Why the MMR-autism ‘war’ is far from over
This blog is about the safety of MMR and the science and politics surrounding this issue. I didn’t have any intention of writing about this until very recently. Let me say up front I have no special interest in this area, other than having met a significant number of people who believe their children have [...]
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More evidence supports fish eating in pregnancy, but again finds mercury is to be avoided
Many of you will have noticed that nutritional information and advice can sometimes be widely contradictory and therefore very confusing. I usually mention this at the start of any talk I may give. One of examples I often cite is the general recommendation to eat a low-fat, high-carb diet, though on the other hand some [...]
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BMJ editorial highlights the evidence that food additives can have adverse effects in children, and questions the decision by official bodies to be unmoved by this research
Back in September of last year I reported on a study which found that certain food additives (specific colourings and the food preservative sodium benzoate) had been found to have a statistically significant adverse effect on children’s behaviour and attention [1]. This study (sometimes referred to as the ‘Southampton study’) was actually performed in ‘normal’ [...]
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The limited value of ‘statistical significance’ in the real World
Earlier this week I was working from home in the morning. I had the radio on in the background. My normal choice of oral wallpaper is BBC Radio 4. It’s often on, but I’m rarely ‘listening’ to it. I rely on the ‘cocktail party effect’ to pick up on anything vaguely relevant. In other words, [...]
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If vertical growth is hormonally driven, couldn’t horizontal growth be too?
Some of you will be familiar with Gary Taubes’ book The Diet Delusion (entitled Good Calories, Bad Calories in the USA). In this book, I think Taubes does a good job of presenting obesity as not a problem to do with gluttony and lack of exercise, but a problem of fat storage. He argues, quite [...]
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It’s not just the salt that makes many meat-substitute foods a thoroughly unhealthy option
I am no fan of processed foods generally. And many processed foods, I think, masquerade as something quite healthy on the basis of being low or absent in something supposedly unhealthy. Not so long ago, I highlighted the not so nutritional aspects of the mold-organism-taken from-soil-and-fermented-with-sugar-based product that is Quorn. This food, in a dizzying [...]
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A slightly more personal message than usual as drbriffa.com reaches the 500 mark
Today’s blog is actually drbriffa.com’s 500th article. Right from the outset, my aim with drbriffa.com has been to use it as a portal for giving trustworthy and accurate advice about a broad range of topics that relate to health and wellbeing. In order to do this, I try and mix what can be learned from [...]
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High GI/GL carbohydrates again linked with an increased risk of breast cancer
Because for so long we have been encouraged to eat a diet based on carbohydrates, it’s natural to have warm feelings toward this ‘macronutrient’. Yet, many carbohydrates, particularly those that cause considerable fluctuation in blood sugar and insulin levels, I think should be handled with considerable caution. Not that long ago, I blogged about a [...]
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Why does TV-watching appear to increase our risk of being overweight?
I don’t think for a moment that I’ve got my whole life sussed, and see it as a ‘work in progress’. I’ve been putting energy into my personal development and health management for 20-odd years now, and to this day still strive to lead a better, healthier, happier more balanced life. One of the most [...]
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Study shows a ‘primal’ diet can bring rapid weight loss and health benefits
On Monday I started a blog about the artificial sweetener aspartame with a reference to my preference for a diet rich in natural, unprocessed foods. Such a diet might be described in various ways including a ‘hunter-gatherer’, ‘caveman’ or ‘paleolithic’ diet. However such a diet is described, the aim is the same: to feed the [...]
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