Can You Trust the Diet Experts?

This is a wonderful post. In the end, the only one responsible for your health is yourself, and making sure you have a doctor you trust who is giving you the treatment you deserve is your responsibility.

I feel no one knows your body like you yourself. When things have changed from the norm or regular responses that your body always cues you into, why do doctors insist and get indignant about your inquiries as to what may be wrong as to cause the sudden changes? They use a guideline but we are all different. Why does everything have to be full blown to be varified? In some cases then it is out of control and complications arise. I did medical billing for a small amount of time and it seemed there was a lot of generic cases of symptoms that each hopsital, doctor, used as a catch all for ER diagnosises. Such as one hospital always had a lot of otitis media, another was known for a lot of pharyngitis. My son for 16 years was taken back and forth constantly for cold symptoms which really was allergies we were never told about. I also have other cases of cries for help in my other three children's needs and not one of them were diagnosed as should have been. They slipped through the system. I'm not taking one doctors, only, advice any more. Certain subjects sure get me riled. I've been fat for a long time and when something changes it is always attributed to the weight. Some yes but not everything!

personally: I find that my doctor is a complete idiot... I rarely visit him except when absolutely unavoidable and it seems as though I know more about medicine than he does! He has yet to have helped me with anything. I don't much trust doctors or nutritionists. I do my research on my own from a wide variety of people and sources and so far, the acumulated information has served me and many others quite well. Besides: if I get something wrong (which I haven't yet) I have only myself to blame.

What you say about doctors and nutrition is right on the mark. But you could say the same about fitness. Many doctors seem not to be interested in maintaining their own health through diet and exercise.

The cigarette-smoking doctor in the photo reminded mw of a news item. When only 5% of doctors in Britain were still smoking, 50% of Dutch doctors were still puffing away.

Knowledge about what is healthy is not lacking. What is lacking is commitment to improve nutrition and to engage in physical activity.

You have that commitment. That's what gives you the authority to speak.

Another very good post.
"Just because they lack formal credentials doesn't make their answers any less real or useful. As for scientific research, the results are often so contradictory, that in many areas of nutrition there is simply no consensus."

Exactly. I agree with the other poster who mentioned that in the end we ourselves have to educate ourselves and take our own responsiblility. Having been 9-1/2 years in the medical field (one of them a year of pre-med) I have witnessed fancy guesswork, wrong diagnosises, poor treatment and avoidable surgeries - this in the US.

Sorry, but especially in the US, UK, Canada, doctors have no to little (as in a few weeks courses) nutritiional training and most medical schoools are supported by the pharma industry - who of course look to chemical solutions for symptoms of dis-ease as a priority and means.

MOST of our health problems stem from poor nutrition and ignorance. Do I want to listen to a doctor for nutritional advice? No. And 'nutritionists' very often are in the same boat as medical doctors, that is they are taught tired old paragidem and blindly follow it. Hence, the SAD (Standard American Diet) STILL advised by many today.

No, sorry. Autodictatic training, reading, reading reading - beyond Reader's Digest and Co. - is the key (it is surprising how many people neither understand how the body functions nor know the anatomy). Health and illness (dis-ease) are holistic issues. Something the allopathic way is not comfortable with.

As for travel in foreign countries...there ARE naturopathic, homeopathic and herbal AND dietary measures one can do/take before going on such trips. There again, there ARE alternatives...that leave you and your immune system stronger than resorting to antibiotics...which should only be absolute last resorts.

Once severly 'bit' by 'something' however, antibiotics CAN be lifesaving. Prevention and immune system support is, however the better path.

Interesting the comment about going to a country with an archaic health system. I, of course have no idea which country you referred to, however I find it interesting that the 'richest' country in the world ranks about 72nd in quality health care.

Grin.

When I was 17 I went to the emergency room for a pain on the right side of my chest. My mother asked twice if it could be my gallbladder since both she and my dad had theirs removed and I was overweight. They said no, it was just gas.

Five years later I had to have my gallbladder removed, only I had much crappier insurance than I did when I was 17 and on my dad's plan, so I got stuck with a $7000 bill.

Ever since then I view doctors as medical advisors. They will give you their best educated guess as to what is wrong with you, but ulitmately your health is your own responsibility. If you are not satisfied with their answers, you need to seek out a second or third or fourth opinion. Most doctors mean well, but they don't know everything and we shouldn't act like they do.

For what it's worth: Part of the reason we have this correlation of doctors with godlike powers is thanks to the way we're normally shown them. Not in offices, but on TV. I love "House," but the way that clinic operates isn't even close to reality. "Grey's Anatomy"? Come on.

I was at a seminar put on by the Kaiser Family Foundation some years ago, at which they were speaking to several dozen members of the television industry (executives, writers). They were talking about new procedures, and how they could be accurately portrayed in fictional storytelling. But they also were urging writers to stop this doctor/god portrayal, because it gave audiences a mistaken idea of what they could expect from their medical care in the real world.

With regards to the notion that doctors do not have enough nutritional training/education - I think the important distinction to remember is that Doctors are educated to treat symptoms, not prevent them. That doesnt mean that they don't try to prevent them (usually with drugs on which money can be made), but that this should be taken on board along with your own knoweldge and feelings - not treated like gospel.

That is not meant to excuse them, but I always remember that when I visit the doc's it is only with the hope of finding a fix of a problem (such as antibiotics for an infection) - I never expect or ask for a doctor to provide me with an ongoing solution.

Having said that, I really try not to go to my local doctor unless it is absolutely necessary, simply from the very poor treatment he has given me in the past.

Doctors have little to no nutritional training and so to me are not really qualified to give advice on this matter.

Just my 2p worth!

Great, thought provoking post again Jim - you really are a master-blogger!

I agree, Jim runs a really great blog (applause!!). I have to comment that I am impressed that the Kaiser Foundation actually requested the film industry not to portray them like gods.

It is very true that the average doctor (of today) notoriously treat symptoms first. True preventative 'medicine' lays more in naturopathic/herbal/holistic areas and encompasses as a basis nutritional changes to lifestyle. This is not in the interest of the medical world whose business is dis-ease and chemical medicine.

Informed food/nutrition is our primary 'medicine' or cause for our illnesses ie. gallbladder problems are almost always directly related to our food choices. Problem is as I see it is a public that needs non-governmental (not backed by pharma/food industries) re-education starting with infant care. This is difficult with parents who think it cute that their babies 'love pizza', convenience breakfast foods and coke. Most schools still offer apalling menus based on junk and CFC (Cheap Filling Crap - excuse the expression please :)

Ross made very good points - that visits to doctors should be from the intention to consult their advice.

I would like to add that IMO a visit to a doctor should be the last resort and that where own knowledge fails, that a naturopath, homeopath or herbalist be the first one to consult. Often the allopathic solutions (such as antibiotics) can be avoided.

Doctors drive me nuts! A doctor advised me to have a certain procedure once. I tried to "reason" with him and explain why I didn't want it don at this time. It was like talking to a robot. He obviously didn't want to hear the opinion of a low life patient.

Ross / Patricia (thanks by the way :-) - what you say applies to Western medicine in general. Treat the symptoms, rather than than prevent them.

I tend to feel that the effects of poor nutrition are long-term and cumulative. Therefore the need for powerful drugs when suddenly everything goes bad healthwise (and I for one am thankful that we have them).

Of course the real solution is to get it right early on, and not cop the symptoms later on in life.

Scott, I had a gallbladder attack and went to a doctor to schedule a removal. I was about 170lb at the time, and I'm 5'2" (this info will be important later). So while I'm there he tries to convince me to have a lap-band surgery at the same time as the gallbladder, because I'll "be under anyway". He's talking about lap freaking band as if it were "and then we can remove that mole", that casually. I say that I've already lost 60lb with diet and exercise, and I'd like to lose the rest of the weight with diet and exercise, and that I'm not morbidly obese anyway, so can he even do the surgery on me? He tells me that he can do it if I have health problems like bad knees or high blood pressure (which I don't) and implies he can just make one up so my insurance will pay. At this point, I'm terrified of him and say "no thanks" again, and he says "Suit yourself. Even if you do lose the total 100lb you wanna lose, in about one year you'll have gained 130lb back, and *you'll come back begging me to have the lap band*". I walked out and found another doctor to take my gallbladder out. For a while I was freaked out about his "weight curse" though, it is like he gave me the weight evil eye or something. LOL

You know, It's just amazing why people lie to us.

Here are myths and facts about some foods.

(Red Meat causes cancer)
FACT: As long as it's grass fed, red meat does NOT cause cancer. In fact, in conventional farm contrary is true: White meat has higher risks of cancer than red meat, since chickens are raised in horribly, filthy conditions. In orgamic form, red meat is preferred, because of the nutrient density. In fact, I'd eat bison (The American buffalo), because it has more nutrients and a better healthier fat ratio than beef cattle meat. The fat on these animals are much cleaner, so you are eating cleaner and healthier animal fat.

(Lobsters and shell fish are heart bombers)
Eating cholestrol-laten foods will not raise your cholestrol. Excess sugar raises and trans fats raises your bad cholestrol, not the saturated fats and cholestrol that they tell you.

(Drinking raw milk is dangerous and should be avoided because of bacteria infection)
Drinking raw milk is just as safe as drinking pasturized milk. During a study, when divided in to two groups, going from raw milk to pasturized milk does not decrease your risk of getting sick from bacteria. In fact, new researches are pointing out that drinking raw milk may actually be safer than drinking pasturized, homogenized milk!

(Eggs are horrible! They have terribly high amounts of cholestrol!)
Again, intake of lots of eggs, even for those who have cholestrol problems, arn't a threat. It's the trans fats, imbalanced fats, and refined carbohydrates are to blaim for cholestrol problems.

(Saturated fats clogs your arteries)
Nope, excessive intake of monounsaturated fats, as well trans fats, sugars, and an imbalanced Omega 3:6 ratio and too much caffene are the main cause of atherosclerosis. However, the ideal ratio of Monounsaturated to Polyunsaturated to Saturated fats is 5 to 1 to 4, while polyunsaturated omega 3 to omega 6 ratio is 1:1 to 1:3. Please avoid margarines, shortenings, and junk oils on the shelves and switch to coconut oil, butter, olive oil, and clean animal fat such as lard or tallow.

(Lean meat is better than fatty meat)
Lean meat in grocery markets arn't necessary healthy for you. Although they contain less saturated fat, they contain too much polyunsaturated fats, and conventionally-grown chickens contain more bad proteins that can cause cancer than red meat (pork or beef) does, and they are nutrient-poor. The "real" heathy meat you should buy is grass-fed organic meat, especially red meats like buffalo.

Great discussion. No doctors are not Gods and yes they make mistakes. Nobody knows everything - why would you expect them to? Find yourself a good knowledgeable doctor that is right for you. INFORM YOURSELF first and foremost, and then you will be able to get the most out of any professional. We all make mistakes. if you think your doctor is an idiot, then you are an idiot for continuing to go to him.

Do not rely on a doctor to treat your nutrition related problems. Find a Registered Dietitian (which is different from a nutritionist). Don't find one who barely passed in school - find the one that is right for you!

I think doctors and nutrition get a bad name. i think it's mostly due to the media and people listening to the hype. Usually the media presents studies, and then draw their own conclusions for that study. I think what people fail to understand about research, is that it is like a scientific debate. All we do when we do research is put forward a THEORY. When there is enough INDEPENDENT supporting research, then it seems to be more factual. No conclusion should ever be drawn from one study - yet the media does this constantly.

I could write a book - but I won't :0)

Its unfortunate that doctors are governed by the multi-billion £ pharmaceutical industry and all to often just hand out more chemicals rather than trying to get to the root cause of the problem. It's a tough judgement sometimes whether to go to your doctor or whether you would be better off looking at alternative health solutions.

What's the real cause of heart attacks in this country? What's the real cause of high cholestrol and high blood pressure in this country? What's the real cause of atherosclerosis and diabetes?

It's NOT cause by saturated fats, choestrol, salt, and whatever.

The true enemy should be: Too much Omega 6 polyunsaturated fats, trans fats, carbynated beverages, processed foods, starches, and lastly, refined carbohydrates.

Consumers should follow a diet with a Mono-Poly-saturated fat ratio of 5 to 1 to 4, with a Omega 3 to omega 6 ratio of 1:1, eat more good qualtiy grass-fed red meat, oily fish, and plenty of antioxident rich foods such as dark chocolate and blueberries, and limiting your intake on overly processed foods and junk oils like canola, cottenseed, soy, and corn oil.

Lose the carbohydrate cravings and discover the power of low-glycemic foods. USANA Health Sciences has a wonderful reset program that works I myself lost 17 pounds and have kept it off. Its a 5 day program 0f macronutrients high-qaulity protein,good carbohydrates and healthy fats along with the best nutritionals a am. and pm pack .Its not a diet its a lifestyle change.

Doctors have no clue of the importance of nutrition at the cellular level. What they dont know may be killing you.

You guys sure like to criticize doctors! You know, one unfortunate day you may have your ride crushed while on the way to or from your favorite fast-food joint and if you are lucky you will wake up in the Emergency Room. And when you look up at me and I say to you. "I'll get you through this!" You will think I'm the most wonderful thing in the world! And I will be!

Nobody is saying doctors don't save lives. The criticism has been that prevention and management of things like weight loss are not what doctors do best. Fix the heart of the overweight person who had a heart attack? That they can do very well.

'I had a gallbladder attack and went to a doctor to schedule a removal. I was about 170lb at the time, and I'm 5'2" (this info will be important later). So while I'm there he tries to convince me to have a lap-band surgery at the same time as the gallbladder, because I'll "be under anyway". He's talking about lap freaking band as if it were "and then we can remove that mole", that casually. '

Jan - your experience was absolutely appalling! Weight loss surgery is a major, life-altering (and sometimes life-threatening) procedure - nothing to be undertaken lightly.

I had a similar experience recently. I have just had surgery to remove loose skin. Both of the surgeons I consulted about the procedure expressed amazement that I could lose 90 pounds without resorting to surgery. Then, as he was marking me up prior to surgery, my surgeon said, "I don't know where you found the backbone to lose all that weight on your own. Everyone these days has the lap band" - as though it's the latest fashion!

It is scary how casually doctors treat it, isn't it? I noticed that shift somewhere around 2000. I have an aunt that had the surgery when people still took it really seriously. She was something like 350lb and had been most of her life, and had all the health problems to go with it. Then in 2002 a 19-year-old friend of mine who had 85lb to lose total, and no health problems, and who is 6'1", had the surgery without ever trying to diet.

You sound like you have a very limited appreciation for science in general and diet experts specifically. Science is a methodological activity - a tool that allows our nutrition experts doctors and dietitians - to gain insight and knowledge that they then apply to their nutrition practices. Those who practice medicine or dietetics gain their scientific knowledge through books (written knowledge)and through their experiences. Dietitians and doctors apply the science of dietetics as an art but also measure what works for them (scientifically)and then apply it routinely to help dieters with weight loss and with a large number of other nutrtional goals. The measured results they use definitely provides our population with the best of what's practiced today.

Science is ongoing and we have to use the best diet and nutrition science available at any one time. It's too bad you ran into a physician that made a mistake. Don't penalize others though with your poorly formed logic as one doctor or one scientist is not a responsible measure.

If you haven't noticed there's currently a weight loss epidemic and we need as much real help as we can find. We will need to place our trust in something better than vodoo medicine or subjective individual experiences like the anecdote you've left in this article.

Please rethink this article as it lacks the merit necessary to "make a difference" for your diet community and probably does more damage than good for those who really need diet help.

It is indeed difficult to know what is good and what is bad for us nutritionally. Unfortunately a lot of our education comes from sources which are promoting the sale of their products with the primary motive being profit, and the health 'benefits' of such products actually being adverse! Canola oil is one such example - simply because it is unsaturated it is promoted as being healthy. It is, however, one of the most toxic oils that we consume. One of its components, erucic acid, has been shown in clinical trials to cause fatty deposits in the hearts of rats after just one dose of erucic acid.


For more information, and many links to the scientific evidence, you can view the following website:  http://www.ultimatehealthsolutions.com.au/.

Does anyone know who your doctor goes to when they have weight or health issues related to diet - I do. They're called dietitians. There's a good reason why these experts are being sought after for their diet and nutrition knowledge and experience but it's far to complex to develop at this site. Suffice it to say that their background exceeds that of most physicians and nutritionists and why they are "not gods" they are as trustworthy as any professional; we all have to act as judges of "good" and "bad" & competent and incompetent whenever we seek help. There's good and bad mechanics and good and bad blogs. You'll have to be your own judge of this blog however my bet is on the same professionals that doctors trust when it comes to dieting: Dietitians (the spelling is dieticians if you're from Europe and elsewhere)