You may not have received an update from me in a while, but that is simply due to being consumed in my studies. I'm determined to attain my certifications while gaining knowledge and yet attain them long before my deadline. That means little time for posting on a blog - at least for now.
Speaking of studies, I wanted to take a moment to share my two largest "Ah-hah" moments with you that I've had since beginning this certification study back in April.
Ah-hah One
First, let me preface with the fact that I have been a long-time researcher in the area of health and wellness. Long before deciding to get the credentials to back up my knowledge and experience. With that said, I've always been one to look at reports and studies to see who reported them. If some Random Ron stated his opinion and called it a "study", it has never carried much weight with me. But if the report came from someplace or name that has an overall good reputation for being respectable, then I would take notice.
Enter Ah-hah One. What I have learned from my studies in regard to Reports and Clinical Studies in the last three and a half months is that just because a big-name hospital, journal or research team says, "studies show..." doesn't mean it carries a lot of weight. There is much more to the Study that needs to be considered. The name of the reporting or publishing agent doesn't mean the study is sound.
Here are the things to consider:
Who funded the study? Was it funded by someone who could benefit from the bottom line of the report? For explanation purposes only - a random example: if the report is on the benefits of tobacco use, was the funding provided by Marlboro?
Was it done on rats in a lab or on humans? I have news for you...we are not rats and our bodies do not mimic rats. Not in real life or in a petri dish.
Was the study done on or in a petri dish?
Was the study done randomized or did the people know what they were taking/using/etc.?
Was the study done with a control group?
These are just a few of the questions that need to be considered in order to base an idea on the soundness of the report.
One of my sections of assignments has been to watch/listen to particular videos done by Dr Michael Gregor who started the website nutrtionfacts.org. Dr Gregor and his fast talking and sarcasm may take some a while to get past and acclimated to, but what I love about him and his website is that he does not do it for profit, but takes the time in short video clips to look at in detail the reports that have been published and get to the nitty gritty of what they are really saying. In other words, he tells it like it is! (Many of the topics have been Ah-hahs in themselves!)
Here is a screenshot from a video I recently viewed from nutritionfacts.org that reveals the different clinical study types, the quantity and the level of importance in solidity of the study.
Aha-Two
This was actually the first big revelation I received at the beginning of my schooling period and puts so much in perspective for me.
Have you ever wondered why your doctor never prescribes nutritional foods for you as an option for a medical condition, especially those that have to do with the biggest killers in America such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, all inflammatory diseases, Alzheimer's and dementia, etc.?
There are two main reasons:
Carrots and broccoli will not make them money. This one I already knew...doctors make the majority of their income from the pharmaceuticals they prescribe (dare I say, "push").
(Here is the BIG Ah-hah...) THEY DON'T KNOW how nutrition can prevent, arrest and even reverse these major illnesses that most Americans walk around with! THEY HAVE NOT BEEN TAUGHT!
It's true - and if they haven't been taught or haven't taken time to dig in and learn for themselves, how can they be expected to teach others?
Only 25 percent of medical schools in America have ANY nutritional curriculum for the future doctors they are rearing and of that 25%, do you know how much of their total curriculum is on nutriton? One percent! One percent is enough to say, "carrots and broccoli are good for you" and that's it. That's NOTHING!
That means if you go to visit your doctor about a major illness and they don't mention nutritional foods (you know, the ones mentioned in the garden in Genesis that God said, "“See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. Gen 1:29), that is because they do not know.
And if you should ask, they will either tell you that there's no benefit or make up something that is far from true...BECAUSE THEY'VE NOT BEEN TAUGHT! Instead, what you get is what they have been taught on for a major part of their curriculum...pharmaceuticals.
So I beg you...consider these Ah-hahs I've shared with you the next time you see in the media or online, "Studies show" or the next time the doctor scribbles a prescription on his pad.
(For the record: I am NOT opposed to medical doctors. There are some fabulous ones out there who truly care and desire the best for their patients and not just their pocketbooks. If there is a broken bone, an accident or something of that nature that is needed...Thank God for medical doctors! It's when it comes to the diseases that I've described above, just know they may not know it all. There are other options.)
