Food for thought and the NNT

I’ve just stumbled upon Zoe Harcombe, a British expert in Public Health Nutrition as I researched whether I really ought to perhaps eat less butter, and this article written by her popped up. It’s dynamite and just confirms what I had already begun to think when I looked at the ingredients of Benecol – which would quite possibly have been my choice of alternative – which was … can this really be more healthy than a natural product such as butter?

Reading the comments that followed the article and following links from her site (apart from noting she’s also a follower of Malcolm Kendrick’s writing) I came once again to the presentation of risk called the Number Needed to Treat by David Newman. There’s a great website that demonstrates the NNT for a number of treatments commonly applied in medicine, but don’t go to the website before you watch this TEDx video. Once you’ve watched that, and perhaps read Doctoring Data or Bad Pharma you’ll certainly think more about relying solely upon advice from medical experts, and will consider a lot more taking control of your own health for yourself. 

It’s your health, not the NHS’s

I’ve just been asked to give a few pointers as to why I decided to “plough my own furrow” in respect of my decision to take a more “hands-on” approach to my medication and handling of my Coronary Heart Disease – so here goes!

This video popped into my email this morning. It’s so important to understand the degree to which our medical “industry” is perverted that I thought I ought to share it with you. We already know about Bad Pharma (Ben Goldacre), but of recent there’s been an attempt to stifle informed and well-respected debate about the way one should treat various conditions including CHD and diabetes. This video from someone at the heart of the controversy is worth 30mins of your time, even if it’s breathless and rocket-speed delivery give you precious time to think, consider or reflect. However, the one lasting impression you are left with is – take an active part in the decision-making where the decisions effect YOUR health.