Out of the Blue

Happy National Fruitcake Day! I actually tend to like fruitcake, but I haven't had any in a really long time, so I may not feel that way if I had some right now. Holiday foods aside, we had a rare visit to the movies on Christmas, as we went to see Rogue One. I can see why the reviews on this are mixed, as I have mixed feelings about it myself. There were parts I loved, and parts I didn't, but on balance the experience was positive, and I was happy to have seen it, and happy to have made the effort to do so in the theater. But I also just like movies in general, so in the same way I wouldn't be a good video game critic, I wouldn't be a good movie critic. Also, I probably would have considered the movie enjoyable if they just had Alan Tudyk's part surrounded by footage of cows grazing, so you may not want to go by me.

R.I.P.: Everybody Hates Chris Star Ricky Harris Dead: Actor Dies at 54.

Roguish Links: Thanks Ant and Acleacius.
Play: Anti Chess.
Story: CHP Officers Stunned by Use of Zip Ties in Place of Car Chains.
Science: USDA Develops Rapid Test for Imported Red Fire Ants.
Disappearing Spots - Panthera.
Media: Captain Picard sings "Let it Snow!"
Fan-O-Rama: A Futurama Fan Film. Thanks HARDOCP.
Peacock Spider Christmas.
Follow-ups: George Michael's philanthropy comes to light after his death.
George Michael's boyfriend reveals he died alone at home and 'battled a secret heroin addiction.'
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55.
 
Re: Out of the Blue
Dec 29, 2016, 02:21
55.
Re: Out of the Blue Dec 29, 2016, 02:21
Dec 29, 2016, 02:21
 
bigspender wrote on Dec 28, 2016, 18:42:
I'm not sure if you have ever seen that show called Doctors? But they are constantly telling people to eat bacon and eggs for breakfast, they push ketogenic diets, paleo diets and other cholesterol heavy foods.(and shunning healthy staples like potatoes).
Other celebrity doctors like Dr. Axe doing a similar thing.

I haven't seen it, but I don't think celebrity doctors count. People giving advice primarily through TV are probably entertainers first and medical practitioners second. They're shysters promising people what they want, \a way to lose weight without eating less and exercising more.

Like I mentioned, the conferences and training programs that doctors are sent to are funded by drug companies - why else would a drug company sponsor it if they weren't getting something back? EDIT: my local doctors office is full of pamphlets that look very similar to official dietary guidelines, except in the fine print they are industry created, and of course they tell you to eat more eggs, red meat etc These pamphlets wouldn't fool you or me, but the general public will take read them in waiting room and assume the information is correct, since it's at the doctors office.

Drug companies do have a history of getting cozy with doctors, I just don't believe that they're behind the dietary aspect. There are problems that would exist even without nefarious intent -- we can have firemen without them also being arsonists, we can have SAT prep classes without them secretly encouraging kids to text in shorthand so they'll be bad at formal writing.

Yes exactly, obesity itself causes problems, which is why there is a big incentive to encourage more people to be obese, and keep them that way. Obesity related diseases do not kill people quickly, so they will be able to keep taking the drugs for a long time. Drugs that treat (not cure) chronic diseases are where they make all of their money.

I believe they don't have to do any encouraging, and if they did it would backfire almost immediately. How many times do they have to suggest to (real) doctors to encourage patients to eat more bacon before one of them outs it on the Internet?

On the other hand I do believe the food industry is doing a ton of consumer-unfriendly lobbying and advertising. The sugar lobby was in the news recently for making a bogeyman out of cholesterol fat for decades so they could sell more soft drinks and sweets, shouting down research that disagreed with their goal of selling more product. The corn industry's lobbying for subsidies and use of HFC in everything is well documented. This kind of thing does make people fat, and they totally are in bed with government. Industry is just not subtle enough to go for a long game of getting people sick to sell more pharmaceuticals.

I work for a company that makes glucose meters and cholesterol tests, and while we would sell more products if there were more people at risk, I'm 99% certain that we don't belong to any organization that actually encourages people to get fat and we definitely aren't doing anything like that on our own. It's unnecessary and counterproductive.

I believe the drug establishment is in the same position. They don't have to do anything to get more fat customers, that will happen on its own. That's how society goes, and to a large extent it's how we, as animals, are wired; we're designed for scarcity and not for plenty.
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