First off a few weeks back the FDA rejected the diet drug Lorcaserin. It's been a minor miracle that two drugs have been rejected and one removed. Is the FDA finally realizing that diet drugs don't work in the long run and can be dangerous?
The Atlantic Magazine has an excellent article about lies in the medical community. A meta-reasearcher Dr. John P. A. Ioannidis who questioned in a 2005 paper Why Most Published Research Findings Are False. In the Atlantic article: "He charges that as much as 90 percent of the published medical information that doctors rely on is flawed...
"...But these studies often sharply conflict with one another. Studies have gone back and forth on the cancer-preventing powers of vitamins A, D, and E; on the heart-health benefits of eating fat and carbs; and even on the question of whether being overweight is more likely to extend or shorten your life. How should we choose among these dueling, high-profile nutritional findings? Ioannidis suggests a simple approach: ignore them all."
The Medical community while may contain many things to benefit humankind. Drugs, surgerical procedures, preventive care that save lives. Several members of my family are alive today due to life saving drugs, procedures and early diagnosis.
However even if Dr. Ioannidis is only half right, that is still a lot of false information. There isn't always a lot of consumer protection, so you best bet is to be educated when dealing with the doctor. If you decide to take a pill, get surgery, get preventive care make sure you fully inform yourself about it.
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