How to handle the disconnect in medicine

April 9, 5:34 PMSacramento Nutrition ExaminerAnne Hart

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  If you want to handle the disconnect in medicine, begin by looking for the clues. The first clue I found is in Dr. Sherry A.Roger's recent book, Is Your Cardiologist Killing You? When a consumer looks at the Mayo Clinic studies, there's a report showing that "cod liver oil is eight times more effective in preventing death than defibrillators, according to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine article by TE Kottke, 31; 4:316-23, 2006.

Now ask yourself, when is the last time your physician measured the levels of Omega 3 fish oils in your body. Should people be taking cod liver oil frequently? Should they be eating fish instead? Or are the oils burned out of cooked fish? You see is that a lot of doctors don't have time to read their own journals. And medical ghostwriters specializing in medical, science, and nutrition writing, like myself come along and maybe are hired as independent freelancers to ghostwrite articles for medical journals, including articles about clinical trials. Think about it. Now you take a book that opens your eyes to the Harvard study showing cod liver oil puts the kabosh on certain arrhythmias. Validate the articles for yourself. It's in the study by Leaf, A. et al, Membrane effects of the n-3 fish oil fatty acids, which prevent fatal ventricular arrhythmias, in the Journal of Membrane Biology, 206; 2:129-39, 2005.

So you see cardiologists and gynecologists are busy with patients, paperwork, and insurance, and just maybe they have time to read the articles, but how many test you to see how much fish oil you have in your body and how well it is absorbed? The same goes for magnesium or other essentials you need to run. Unless your M.D. or D.O. also is a naturopath or into alternative, complementary, preventive, or integrative medicine, do they really test you for these oils? Or do they just spend 18 seconds writing a prescription? And if you're postmenopausal, has your gynocologist talked to you about which fish oils have the least amount of mercury and how fish oil works on the postmenopausal individual?

Did your doctor tell you that taking the usual hormones for menopause lowers your level of DHA and EPA (fish oils) at a time when you need DHA and EPA (found in fish oils) such as cod liver oil. To read more on this topic, KD Stark published a study on how DHA and EPA altered the cardiovascular disease risk in postmenopausal women receiving and not receiving hormone replacement therapy. Go to your local university library and read the artice/study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 79;765-73, 2004. (Stark, KD, et al.) 

So few people have time to read the articles in these medical journals hidden in various university libraries. Make use of your interlibrary loan with your public library. Or buy a library card for a semester at any university library and use it. That's the whole idea of why there's a disconnect of clues in the medical industry. Scientists don't share enough information, and consumers may not even know what's in those journals until the news gets rewritten in the mass media.

If you search online, you'll find both sides of the story. There's also articles in plain language online about fish oil such as Cod Liver Oil, Fish Oil, and Omega 3. And you'll find warnings that there are vitamins A and D in cod liver oil which in high amounts can be toxic. But those articles may not inform you that you can buy fish oil without vitamin A and D in it. Or you can read the level and see for yourself how much vitamin A or D is actually in a teaspoon full of cod liver oil. Compare it to your usual multi-vitamin and decide for yourself. Also check out my other Examiner articles on the politics of dairy consumption. Be objective and look at the facts, validate them, and list the pros and cons.

Your own body will tell you how to tailor your food to your metabolic, genetic, and kinesthetic type. Stay open for new findings and learn to validate what you read in the mass media about what appears in medical journals. You see, soon after an article appears in a medical journal, another article appears showing up its flaws, refuting it, or conducting additional studies. It's just science. You want accurate information. But in every scientific journal, someone soon finds omissions. The final decision on what you put into your mouth should be made by you along with healthcare professionals you consult who have seen you and have done necessary tests.  Nutrition as a science is always looking at how people can make as much energy as it is needed for quality of life.