Background Food safety is a serious business. If a company produces a food item that is subsequently found to have harmed those who consume it, this is very bad news. Customers lose faith and sales are likely to suffer. Even worse, the retailer may terminate the supplier contract, which may mean that the business collapses. […]
For some time, I have been concerned about the harm that may occur as a result of medical treatment such as adverse effects of drugs or damage caused by exposure to radiation. I have just come across a paper entitled “Death by Medicine” (1), which presents a picture that is absolutely horrendous. Although it deals
Learning from his own experience Dr. Gary Fettke Is an amazing character I was delighted to meet, when I attended the Low Carb Summit at Cape Town in February 2015 (1). He is an orthopaedic surgeon and an ardent advocate of preventive medicine because this improves the success rate of surgery and can sometimes avoid
238. The Scandalous Treatment of Dr. Gary Fettke Read More »
As I was sorting out some old books, I came across this one entitled: “Confessions of a Medical Heretic” written by Dr Robert S Mendelsohn, which was first published in 1979 (1). This is an absolutely damning account of medicine and although it is based on the author’s experience in the USA, there are elements
Rangan Chatterjee is a GP who works in the Oldham area of Greater Manchester. He is featured in a rather unique series of TV programmes on the BBC entitled “Doctor in the House”. Dr Chatterjee lives with a family for a period so that he can get to know and understand individual members in order
In his third Reith Lecture Dr Atul Gawande, focuses on the approach by doctors to patients with diseases which may be terminal (1). One of the big changes that has occurred in the last 50 years or so has been the increase in the number of people who now die in hospital or other institutions,
It seems to be the accepted wisdom that the prime problem with our health services is a lack of resources and therefore all will be well if we can find enough money to meet all the demands. However we have only to look at the USA to appreciate that this view is nonsense. The Americans
I have just received a mail shot from the Stroke Association which points out that research into stroke is currently woefully underfunded. In order to maintain its current commitment to stroke research and support further ground-breaking research projects in the future I am asked to donate £100. It continues: “Tragically, approximately 50,000 people in the
136. Stroke Association. Digging beneath the Surface Read More »
Mammography is a procedure in which the breast is examined using a special X-ray machine to detect signs of cancer. The rationale is that early detection enables treatment to be started before symptoms become evident thereby increasing the chances of curing or controlling the disease. This approach is utilised in many countries and in the
126. What Every Woman Should Know about Mammography Read More »