Ask a public-health/nutrition student

[Aractus]

[LadyForCamus]

[LadyForCamus]

That is such a great question!  Yes, I do get very frustrated, but my frustration is not with the clients, it is with the unqualified individuals who infect innocent people with potentially harmful  information.  It infuriates me on a number of levels, actually.  Many self declared "nutritionists" are ignorant of the physical and/or mental harm they can cause (like an eating disorder, as you mentioned) by dispensing medical nutrition therapy, or even generalized diet advice for good health, without a formal education.  

It also infuriates me that for some reason in this country people don't feel they NEED a formal education in nutrition science in order to practice it.  I find it ironic how many nutrition "experts," and "gurus," scoff at scientific research, ignore it, or more insidious, spread the idea that the general public cannot TRUST nutrition research, public health guidelines, the FDA, the USDA, the WHO, the AND, AHA, and the ADA (ect...lol) because it's all one big government conspiracy.  

So, I am rambling, and I apologize!     To answer the second part of your question: yes, I do try and steer people away from restrictive, potentially harmful fad diets that are unsubstantiated by scientific evidence.  Like you mentioned, I am not qualified to treat eating disorders, but maybe I can keep someone from walking through that door, so to speak.  I admit I had not heard of this "FreeLee" woman.  After reading up on her, I think she is one of the biggest nutrition nut jobs I have come across on the internet!  She is the PERFECT example of someone who could cause serious harm with all that nonsense about raw foods until 4pm (WTF?!), and  her insane macronutrient ratios.  Not to mention her restricted sodium recommendation I would feel guilty giving to a CHF patient!

What type of work do you do in public health?  Do you come across a lot of these wackos from a day to day basis?

[Aractus]

[paulpablo]

Have you heard of alpha brain, or turmeric, what are your opinions of these things? Or the chaga mushroom

[Aractus]

I haven't heard of Alpha Brain but I'd caution you to be wary of claims that are unverified by 3rd party research. The way these products generally work is they're given a scientific test with a small sample and the data is then mined for a positive result. It's a way of guaranteeing that you have something to sell - doesn't matter at the start what you find, once you've found it you make the claim. "it reduces stress" or "it sharpens your concentration" or whatever it might be. By design you will almost always get something you can claim doing this.

Like all Vitamin supplements it appears to be marketed towards people that don't need it.

I can't really comment on traditional medicines. They might work, they might not, but in either case it's probably more expensive with less reliability and knowability of the side-effects, if I were you I'd treat traditional medicines as if they were a new as yet untested pharmaceutical drug, unless its effects have been studied to the same extent as other medicines.

[Aractus]