In two prior posts , I have offered my steep skepticism that probiotics deliver on the claims their manufacturers make. By not being classified as actual drugs, these products leapfrog over traditional Food and Drug Administration scrutiny and are marketed directly to the public who seeks relief from various chronic diseases – conditions that conventional medicine doesn’t handle well. While I have lambasted the lack of medical evidence underlying probiotic treatment claims, in fairness, I will now offer an opinion that also has no supportive medical evidence. So, probiotic enthusiasts may wish to call me out as well. I worry about unproven but plausible risks of long term probiotic use to the individual users and to society at large. These products are tampering with our own bacterial ecosystem that we don’t yet truly understand, always a dicey prospect. And keep in mind that if you scan the labels of probiotics that fill several shelves in retail stores, they are all diffe
Ask most of us if we are honest and we will likely respond in the affirmative. Who among us wants to admit publicly that we are a cheat or a liar? It would be more accurate to describe ourselves as mostly honest, since there are occasions when we do some fact massaging and truth shading. And, sometimes, applying a little spin may be the better choice. Consider this hypothetical. Your mom has been working all afternoon to prepare meatloaf as a birthday treat for you. While it appears appetizing with its golden-brown appearance, it is simply not palatable. Your mom asks you directly how it is. Choose among the following potential responses. Mom, did you mix in some dog food in by mistake? Hey, are you trying to poison me? I like the ground glass. It give the meat a great crunch. Mom, this is great! I hope there will be leftovers for tomorrow, if I can wait that long! 'Mom, the meatloaf was....indescribable!' While I do believe in the e