Please note: This blog contains descriptions of sexual assault.“Recent reports of medical students performing pelvic exams for training purposes on anesthetized women without their consent”—or their knowledge—“have produced a firestorm of controversy and calls for greater regulation.” However, that
We had the pleasure of talking with Ale Graf about her work, food, and National Hispanic Heritage Month. We hope you enjoy this interview and her recipe for Hibiscus Chamoy.As someone who creates Mexican dishes with a plant-based twist, how is food an important part of your culture and how you share
Please note: This blog contains descriptions of sexual assault.From Heart Failure, a book I wrote about my time at Tufts University School of Medicine: “I am all gloved up, fifth in line. At Tufts, medical students—particularly male students—practice pelvic exams on anesthetized women without their c
What are the pros and cons of relative risk, absolute risk, number needed to treat, and average postponement of death when taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs?In response to the charge that describing the benefits of statin drugs only in terms of relative risk reduction is a “statistical decept
A Mayo Clinic visualization tool can help you decide if cholesterol-lowering statin drugs are right for you.“Physicians have a duty to inform their patients about the risks and benefits of the interventions available to them. However, physicians rarely communicate with methods that convey absolute i
What is the dirty little secret of drugs for lifestyle diseases?Drug companies go out of their way—in direct-to-consumer ads, for example—to “present pharmaceutical drugs as a preferred solution to cholesterol management while downplaying lifestyle change.” You see this echoed in the medical literat
How can you calculate your own personal heart disease risk to help you determine if you should start on a cholesterol-lowering statin drug?The muscle-related side effects from cholesterol-lowering statins “are often severe enough for patients to stop taking the drug. Of course, these side effects co
Do you know more about basic nutrition than most doctors?“A poor diet now outranks smoking as the leading cause of death globally and in the United States, according to the latest data.” The top killer of Americans is the American diet, as you can see below and at 0:23 in my video How Much Do Doctor
It may not be the number of bacteria growing in our small intestine, but the type of bacteria, which can be corrected with diet.When researchers tested more than a thousand patients suffering for longer than six months from symptoms typical with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), such as excess gas, bl
Even if we could accurately diagnose small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), if there is no difference in symptoms between those testing positive and those testing negative, what’s the point?Gastrointestinal symptoms like abdominal pain and bloating account for millions of doctor visits every
In every grade school class photo, I seem to have a mess of tousled hair on my head. No matter how much my mom tried to tame my hair, it was a little unruly. (I sported the windblown look without even trying.) Later came my metalhead phase, with headbangable hair down to the middle of my back. Sadly
A randomized controlled trial investigates diet and psychological well-being.“Psychological health can be broadly conceptualized as comprising 2 key components: mental health (i.e., the presence of absence of mental health disorders such as depression) and psychological well-being (i.e., a positive
How can we use sensory-specific satiety to our advantage?When we eat the same foods over and over, we become habituated to them and end up liking them less. That’s why the “10th bite of chocolate, for example, is desired less than the first bite.” We have a built-in biological drive to keep changing
Big Food uses our hard-wired drive for dietary diversity against us.How did we evolve to solve the daunting task of selecting a diet that supplies all the essential nutrients? Dietary diversity. By eating a variety of foods, we increase our chances of hitting all the bases. If we only ate for pleasu
I debunk the myth of protein as the most satiating macronutrient.The importance of satiety is underscored by a rare genetic condition known as Prader-Willi syndrome. Children with the disorder are born with impaired signaling between their digestive system and their brain, so they don’t know when th
I dive into one of the most fascinating series of studies I’ve ever come across.Anyone can lose weight by eating less food. Anyone can be starved thin. Starvation diets are rarely sustainable, though, since hunger pangs drive us to eat. We feel unsatisfied and unsatiated on low-calorie diets. We do
Why do some pine nuts cause a bad taste in your mouth that can last for weeks?The reason I make pesto with walnuts instead of the more traditional pine nuts isn’t only because walnuts are probably healthier with 20 times more polyphenols, but also because of a mysterious phenomenon known as PMS. Not
Microwaving is probably the most efficient way to reduce agaritine levels in fresh mushrooms.There is a toxin in plain white button mushrooms called agaritine, which may be carcinogenic. Plain white button mushrooms grow to be cremini (brown) mushrooms, and cremini mushrooms grow to be portobello mu
“Clearly, in spite of the widely held ‘belief’ in the health benefits of M. oleifera [moringa], the interest of the international biomedical community in the medicinal potential of this plant has been rather tepid.” In fact, it has been “spectacularly hesitant in exploring its nutritional and medicin
Does the so-called miracle tree live up to the hype?Moringa (Moringa oleifera) is a plant commonly known as the “miracle” tree due to its purported healing powers across a spectrum of diseases. If “miracle” isn’t hyperbolic enough for you, “on the Internet,” it’s also known as “God’s Gift to Man.” I
Emulsifiers are the most widely used food additives. What are they doing to our gut microbiome?When grocery shopping these days, unless you’re sticking to the produce aisle, “it is nearly impossible to avoid processed foods, particularly in the consumption of a typical Western diet,” which is charac
The leading risk factor for death in the United States is the American diet.About a decade ago, the American Heart Association (AHA) expressed concern that its “2020 target of improving cardiovascular health by 20% by 2020 will not be reached if current trends continue.” By 2006, most people were al
There is a reason the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention prohibits not only smoking but also scented or fragranced products in its buildings.In a recent review entitled “Damaging Effects of Household Cleaning Products on the Lungs,” researchers noted: “Adverse respiratory effects of cle
We can raise BDNF levels in our brain by fasting and exercising, as well as by eating and avoiding certain foods.There is accumulating evidence that brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) may be playing a role in human depression. BDNF controls the growth of new nerve cells. “So, low levels of thi
