Is It Ok To Be Wrong?


 Matthew Feroz

Is It OK to Be Wrong?

In my own opinion, there is no magic trick for weight loss. If you consume more calories than your necessary daily maintenance, you will gain weight and if you consume less calories than your daily maintenance you will lose weight and yes there are other factors involved but fundamentally this concept is true. This concept is something that I have tried many times to explain to an acquaintance of mine. This specific person will agree with my statements yet continually break the fundamental rule that I put before them and not understand why they are not losing weight. Rather, this person will chew their food and spit it out, drink tea herbal teas infused with diuretics, and pay for expensive meal replacement programs. As an old saying goes, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink.

Let’s reel it in though, I’m not an expert on the matter and the only way that I can prove that I am correct is through using research that has been peer reviewed and agreed upon. According to a study published in The Journal of Obesity & Metabolic Syndrome by Ju Young Kim, a researcher with a PhD in preventive medicine, there is no specific best strategy for weight management and most care should be individualized rather than generalized [1]. This does not mean that my understanding is wrong, it just means that there are certain options for weight loss that may work just as well as a calorie deficit. To be clear, it’s not that there is no right answer, it’s just that there are multiple ways to get to the same answer of weight loss.

A few weeks ago, I listened to a podcast with Dr. Gundry, Doctor Mike, and Dr. Danielle Belardo [2]. This wasn’t something I commonly listened to, but my friend continually was getting ads on social media regarding Dr. Gundry and so we watched it together. Dr. Gundry’s claims about auto-immune disorders being able to be completely cured by certain diets and how certain fruits such as grapes are no better than eating a bar of Hershey’s chocolate [2] were interesting to say the least. What struck me the most was how well the interviewers dealt with his claims in a respectful and swift manner. They didn’t tell him he was wrong or yelled at him, but they rather continuously brought back up points that he confidently and artfully dodged with his silver tongue. The entire viewing was an experience, and while some of his points made logical sense, Dr. Gundry continued to use research that was not done on humans or just didn’t cite research in some instances to base his claims.  According to F.D. Flam science is a collective rather than an absolute and multiple experiments are necessary to ensure that something is true [3]. His treatments probably worked for a lot of his patients and his advice may benefit some just as the things my acquaintance does to avoid gaining weight may work for some. For me there is always a truth and completing research and informing yourself is important and integral to living. 

I’m not my acquaintance though and they can do whatever they want. It’s not my life so let them stay uninformed. For others, it’s ok to be wrong. It’s ok to believe people like Dr. Gundry so long as you’re not getting hurt. It’s not my job to inform others in my job to inform myself. 

 


Works Cited

1. Kim JY. Optimal Diet Strategies for Weight Loss and Weight Loss Maintenance. J Obes Metab Syndr. 2021 Mar 30;30(1):20-31. doi: 10.7570/jomes20065. PMID: 33107442; PMCID: PMC8017325.

2. “Confronting Dr. Gundry On Lectins | Inflammation & Leaky Gut” YouTube, uploaded by Doctor Mike, 27th December 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZemkG6Vj7hc&ab_channel=DoctorMike

3. Flam, F. D. (2016, November 6). Question Authority, but Trust Science. Bloomberg.com. https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-11-06/question-authority-but-trust-science?utm_source=website&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=copy 


         

 

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