The State of Health Atlas

Surveys health conditions throughout the world in such areas as population control, life expectancy, major diseases, dental care, and infant and maternal mortality

Mackay, current director of the Asian Consultancy on Tobacco Control, has compiled a visually exciting source that is sure to pique the interest of both lay readers and informed students of global healthcare. The atlas covers various health issues in three distinct sections. First is a collection of 35 color maps of the world, each presenting graphically a worldwide health issue, e.g., AIDS or violence against women. Supplemental graphs and maps bring related points into focus. The next section is a comparative table listing most countries of the world with relative health statistics. The volume closes with brief, supportive discussions of each map, complete with notes and acknowledgments. Many of the documents mentioned are from high-power outfits like the World Health Organization and UNICEF. The articles cited are current, scholarly, and taken from credible sources. The book's organization is, alas, slightly distracting. Placing each map with its accompanying essay and binding the book so that the maps could be viewed uncreased would have allowed for a cleaner, more fluid presentation. Still, this paperback should certainly interest anyone concerned with the worldwide health of the human race. Given its modest price, most collections that need capsules of world health information would benefit from its purchase.
- Lorri Zipperer, American Medical Assn., Chicago
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.