Who Do You Believe?

[JosieA]

There's a wealth of information out there that's accessible to all of us. I'm a school librarian and while I try my best to teach my students to be critical thinkers and smart information shoppers, I have a hard time with this myself. I guess it's because I'm getting older and with that comes a willingness to try the latest make-you-healthier-and-younger cure.

I started taking vitamin supplements about a month ago: calcium, coq10, folic acid, and C. I haven't started fish oil yet. This week on GMA, they talked about vitamins and warned against taking too many.

It's just so hard to know what the right thing to do is. I try to become more informed by reading books and websites. But, when I talk to doctors, they all seem to have different opinions. So, who can you believe? And how can you do what's right for your own body? And so many books and "experts" out there...Dr. Oz, Kevin Trudeau, etc.

I'm on Day 20 of my new Nutrition Plan and I feel good about it. I haven't noticed any dramatic changes, but I'm sure I will long-term. My moods are incredibly even, since I'm off the sugar and caffeine. I've been to three dentists in the past month...Dentist #2 said I have severe bone loss for someone my age...This was the catalyst for my healthy eating change...Today, Dentist #2 said that I have NO bone loss. They both looked at x-rays. Difference of opinion? Is one more competent than the other? Is my healthy eating plan working that miraculously? I hope it's the third.

[maddy]

I try very hard to believe my own body... But then I also try and look at the information being given to me and see if the information is going to benefit them more then me... I would have to ask... what benefit would dentist number one recieve if you have bone loss... Was he recommending supplements, a script, something from his business? Unfortunately alot of people these days are out to make a profit no matter what it takes. Be very careful, that old adage about if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is... still holds true. You have to do your own research, and talk to other people... The folks on this forum are very informed and very helpful! Before you shell out a bunch of money, read, read, read... I am curious as to what changes you have made in your eating habits? The folks here will have alot of information on the weston price way of eating... and to me, this seems the most logical way of eating. It seems to me, the less man touches the food, and the closer to the original food we can get, the better off we will be. An orange will be better then juice...raw milk better then processed milk... whole grain better then white flour..Off the tree/vine instead of out of the can! Thats what I keep striving for... I use real butter instead of margarine, whole milk instead of lo-fat... Dont use anything lo-fat...try not to use sugar substitutes... But I am still addicted to my diet coke, and still struggling to get off them... other then the diet cokes, the only sugar sub I use is stevia, and then that not very often... I tend to stick with honey when wanting sweet. Slow and easy... take your time, dont try to make so many changes so fast that you cant keep up, or that your system will rebel against you...I keep hearing that its better to make a few changes every few weeks, and then add a couple more changes.. Hope I said something to help you out... Best wishes on your new life style... enjoy it, and have fun... it will be good!

[Mark]

I believe myself and my ability to read data and draw my own conclusions. These days I find myself steering clear of others' opinions and just getting down to the actual data. For example, T. Colin Campbell is probably best known for his book on the China Study. It is arguably the most extensive study ever done on diet and disease. If you read his book and believe what Campbell says, you'd be an instant vegan. He uses data to demonize meat eating and glorify a plant based diet. Then I happened to run across the raw data online and started crunching the numbers myself. What I found was that Campbell did not lie in his book. What he did was an incredible job of cherry picking data to confirm to his vegan agenda. When I finished crunching the numbers, I found that some of the most important aspects of the study, including the "All Cause Death Rate," had been omitted from his book. The all cause death rate showed an inverse correlation to animal food consumption... meaning that as more animal food was eaten, death rates went down (people lived longer.)

I didn't start my health search at the WAPF. Information I gathered just sort of naturally lead me there. I found so much conflicting evidence. Eggs are good for you. No, eggs are bad for you. Well, maybe you should just eat the whites and not the yolks. ARH! When I found WAPF, it was like a light bulb turned on. Here was something that explained all the conflicting data. An egg is not just an eggs. The chicken that laid the eggs is not just a chicken. It's their *ENVIRONMENT* that makes all the difference in the world.

Since coming to this realization, I've seen hundred, maybe thousands of articles and studies that have stated the opposite of WAPF recommendations. So far, when I dig in to the data of those articles and studies, I've found the reason for the conflict.

To me, WAPF just "makes sense."

[u&iraok]

If you're really interested in health and you read a lot and learn a lot you'll come to recognize who are the good health professionals out there. You're a librarian so you must be used to reading critically and researching, which is good. There is Information Overload but just be patient and you'll see roadways through it. You already found a good website so you'll be able to get some good and trusted information here. You'll have to step out of the mainstream which it looks like you're already doing. You've already come farther than most.

I wouldn't listen too much to Dr. Oz. Some of his information is good and shows his experience but he waters things down to appeal to the most people. At first I hoped he did it with the goal of at least reaching the largest mass of people and helping them but after observing him I believe he just loves the limelight and wants to be America's and celebrities' cutting edge doctor and since he sees that people are turning to alternative medicine he wants to be there in the forefront. People practically worship him, it's kind of disturbing.

[Bilby]

Key Word: References! Any article that does not provide any references is supect and there are plenty around. Where refernces are provided check them out. Even if these references are not hyperlinked, highlight and google search these references. I once did this some years ago with the AHA website. The only reference they had to supprt their recomendation of avoiding saturated fat was one of their previous statements. Hardly a reference!They had penty of references for avoiding trans fat but one of these suggested that saturated fat was good for you!

[Nigeepoo]

Bone loss is diagnosed by DEXA scan, not standard X-rays. Ask your dentists what tool they used to diagnose your bone loss.

That said, I was diagnosed (by DEXA scan) with osteoporosis (-2SD) in my lumbar spine in 2003. By 2006, my lumbar density was normal. I attributed my recovery to supplementing with Calcium (600mg/day), Magnesium (300mg/day), Vitamin D3 (400iu/day, 5,000iu/day since end 2007) and Vitamin K2 (15mg/day, 15mg/week since 2nd DEXA scan).