Revisiting usog, pasma, kulam / Michael L. Tan.

This book looks at folk illnesses in the Philippines including, as the title suggests, usog, pasma, and kulam. Rather than looking at these folk illnesses as "supertitions." Tan explains the broader social norms, tensions, and conflicts. He emphasizes, too, that far from being static, these folk illnesses continue to evolve, influenced by Western medicine as well as new images surrounding health and illnesses that come with mass media and advetising. Finally, he calls attention to a medical ecological perspective, looking at how our changing relationships with the natural environment also lead to modifications in the folk illnesses Besides reviewing the extensive social science studies that have been conducted on these folk illnesses, Tan also refers to the limited, but still significant, biomedical studies that explore some of these illnesses, for example, bangungot, showing that these syndromo often have a psychological basis and need to recognized by health professionals.