New health book to come on the market but will it sell?

Books on improving health have become very popular in China in recent years, attracting various authors and publishers but it may not necessarily be good news for the world-renowned Merck Home Health Handbook.

Based on a professional medical care manual with more than 100 years of history and with a total circulation of more than 5 million copies since 1997, the Merck health manual is regarded as one of the most successful medical care works for the public in the world.

"But I am not sure if the book can sell well in China," said Zhang Ya'nan, a publication analyst at Zero2IPO Research Center, explaining that medical care books are popular in China now but most readers seem to prefer simple and practical ones with no more than 300 pages and interesting illustrations.

Compared with the majority of health improvement books on bookstore shelves in China, the Chinese-language Merck Manual Home Health Handbook looks rather like a big dictionary with more than 1,200 pages.

It is based on Merck Manual, one of the most widely used professional medical reference books in the West and is published by Merck Publishing Group, a division of international drugmaker Merck & Co Inc. The publishing house is cooperating with the People's Medical Publishing House to introduce the third version of the book to China, which is expected to be available on shelves early next year priced at more than 400 yuan ($79.40).

Along with Chinese people's increasing awareness of health and surging income, they want to get more medical knowledge and keep in a good physical condition, resulting in a sales boom of related publications.

Statistics from the General Administration of Press and Publication show that the number of publishing houses involved in the public medical care book business jumped to 362 in 2009 and more than 500 in 2010 from 290 in 2004. The fixed price of such kinds of publications, which reflect the volume of publication, accounted for 3.75 percent of China's publishing industry as a whole in 2009 from 1.92 percent in 2004. The progress will continue in coming years, forecast Zhang.

Although demand and supply are both rising rapidly, industry insiders say the market is in disorder and some of the publications are not only without any professional value but also mislead readers.

Some books exaggerate the principle that "diet cures more than the doctor", saying people's illnesses can be treated well only by eating sweet potato, mung bean, eggplant or even loach. These books have misled readers and delayed curing some patients, some people say.

Dong Jiming, a buyer of medical care books, said that many publications contain real knowledge and are useful and practical, while some are total nonsense. "When I choose such books, I usually check the background of the writers first and then quickly look through one chapter," he said, adding that he likes the books based on traditional Chinese medicine theories, especially those from the principles of Inner Canon of Yellow Emperor and Compendium of Materia Medica - two classical TCM works.

Last July, the General Administration of Press and Publication ordered publication houses to withdraw and destroy 24 books that it said contained wrong medical information or editing errors. In July 2010, the administration stopped the circulation of 104 public medical care books and canceled 69 related book publication proposals.

"Thanks to continuous market standardization, many Chinese readers have gradually become more knowledgeable in how to choose public medical care books," said Zhang. "However, the majority of them still like such books written and designed in a light way instead of those filled with heavy medical jargon, which is different from Western reading habits."

The Merck Manual Home Health Handbook is written in easy-to-understand language and contains simplified medical theories, said Gary W. Zelko, director and publisher of Merck Publishing Group. The new version of the book systematically illustrates causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, recovery and prevention of various diseases during the whole lifespan of a human - from birth to death. It specifically updates therapies and self-care methods for chronic diseases that have a high incidence in modern society, such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and tumors. To make the book readable and interesting, the new version also adds some small practical tips and sidebars on the medical industry.

"I believe Chinese readers will like it. It's a handbook and you can check it at any time for any professional medical information explained in a simple way," said Chen Xianyi, president and chairman of the People's Medical Publishing House.

liujie@chinadaily.com.cn