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Dr John Briffa's blog, A Good Look at Good Health — writing on food, cholesterol, weight, energy and the science behind everyday health, from the drbriffa.com archive. Filter by topic, browse by category, or search the library.

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World Health Organisation accused of improper soliciting of funds from the pharmaceutical industry Food and Medical Politics

World Health Organisation accused of improper soliciting of funds from the pharmaceutical industry

It seems that not a week goes by without some information leaking out about the sometimes too-cosy relationship that can exist between the pharmaceutical industry and organisations we rely on for giving us impartial health information and advice. This particular week’s story concerns accusations that a representative of the World Health Organisation (WHO) attempted to […]

February 19, 2007· 3 min read· Dr Briffa
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Enviga’s manufacturers forced to substantiate ‘weight loss’ claims Food and Medical Politics

Enviga’s manufacturers forced to substantiate ‘weight loss’ claims

Some of you may remember that the Coca-Cola Corporation announced the forthcoming launch of its ‘weight loss’ drink Enviga. Naturally, I felt compelled to blog about this, and included a calculation which revealed that (if what the Coca-Cola Corporation is taken at face value) each kilogram of weight lost through the imbibing of the beverage […]

February 12, 2007· 3 min read· Dr Briffa
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Why do drug companies put caffeine in headache remedies? Food and Medical Politics

Why do drug companies put caffeine in headache remedies?

I noticed that this week’s copy of the British Medical Journal included a ‘Masterclass for GPs’ on the subject of headaches [1]. This took, as expected, a pharmaceutical-based approach to the problem. What I found more interesting was an electronic response to this review by a doctor wishing to draw attention to a cause of […]

February 5, 2007· 3 min read· Dr Briffa
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Why removing tonsils is not usually the answer for children who do not breathe easily Children's Health

Why removing tonsils is not usually the answer for children who do not breathe easily

Enlarged tonsils and adenoids are quite common in children, and may make breathing difficult. One way that this may manifest is as snoring and something known as sleep apnoea ” basically where breathing is so obstructed that it can stop for short periods during sleep. Surgical removal of tonsils and adenoids is a common strategy […]

February 2, 2007· 5 min read· Dr Briffa
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Study finds that overweight children eat the LEAST fat and most sugar Children's Health

Study finds that overweight children eat the LEAST fat and most sugar

While it is widely held in the medical and dietetic communities that eating fat is one sure way to become fat, there are for why this just ain’t so. Some of the key explanations for why fat is not necessarily fattening were covered in a previous blog [1]. Despite the dearth of evidence against fat […]

January 31, 2007· 4 min read· Dr Briffa
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Drug companies charged with using money to influence treatment guidelines Cholesterol and Statins

Drug companies charged with using money to influence treatment guidelines

Not uncommonly, I use drbriffa.com to draw attention to how conflict of interest might influence health advice. One of the areas that seems quite badly affected in this respect is the recommendations that we get regarding drug therapy. Only last week, I was writing about how it seems we have not been given the full […]

January 29, 2007· 4 min read· Dr Briffa
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Why we need to run for cover when the food industry appears to ‘come to our rescue’ Food and Medical Politics

Why we need to run for cover when the food industry appears to ‘come to our rescue’

It’s a fundamental belief of mine that a ‘healthy’ diet is one made up of natural, unprocessed foods. Unfortunately, richer pickings for the food industry will generally be found in chemicalised, processed foods that have little or no place in the diet ” margarine springs readily to mind. After a half-century history of use, evidence […]

January 26, 2007· 3 min read· Dr Briffa
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Statin drugs shown to be largely ineffective for the majority of people who take them, but why does this fact seem to have passed researchers by? Cholesterol and Statins

Statin drugs shown to be largely ineffective for the majority of people who take them, but why does this fact seem to have passed researchers by?

Over the last decade or two, it seems that increasing pressure has been put on us to have our cholesterol levels measured, and to do something about them if these turn out to be ‘raised’. Elevated cholesterol levels in the bloodstream is often said to be a potent risk factor for so-called ‘cardiovascular’ disease – […]

January 22, 2007· 6 min read· Dr Briffa
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Why epidemiological studies don’t ‘prove’ anything Exercise and Activity

Why epidemiological studies don’t ‘prove’ anything

January is typically a time when individuals seek to adopt healthier habits, and activity and exercise often feature here as part of the plan. While it is often said that exercise is healthy, actually there is not as much evidence for this as you might think. The best test for any lifestyle factor is to […]

January 17, 2007· 5 min read· Dr Briffa
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Why fructose needs to be consumed with caution Food and Medical Politics

Why fructose needs to be consumed with caution

Last Friday’s blog was about the UK’s Food Standard Agency’s (FSA) ‘traffic light’ food labelling scheme, or more specifically, the idiocy of it. One of the anomalies I mentioned was the fact that fruit manages to ring up a red light according to the FSA scheme, on account of its sugar content. That got me […]

January 15, 2007· 5 min read· Dr Briffa
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