Isa, we can always trust you to get to the core of the problem.
I'd be interested to know how others deal with these vexing overloads of information.
I think that these issues have EVOLVING information about them whether milk, fat vs carbs, HRT vs not, ad infinitum. We need to stop expecting science to come up with THE answer, because at best it will only bring us the answer at this time as formulated by scientist A, scientist B, and hopefully some consensus eventually, etc. One thing that particularly struck me in the Taubes article on low fat/low carb diets was the emphasis he placed on the way the media "grabs" a study, simplifies the results without examining the study in detail and screams in its headline the "new gospel" which, of course, is all too often quickly supplanted by yet another "gospel."
My personal solution has been to try to read all sides of the question as best I can and arrive at a "provisional" sense of what's best for me. And then be ready to reassess the situation over and over again. As for gmo's, pesticides, processed foods with their many chemicals, anti-biotics and added growth hormones in milk -- I avoid them whenever it is within my control, without getting an anxiety attack when it is not possible.
Sometimes the evidence will seem clear to me and I don't change my mind. Tobacco was one such. When someone close to me died of cancer in the 50's I read up on it. At that time it so little was known or in the public consciousness about cancer that it was possible for people to have it and die of it without knowing that was what they had. Other than in medical circles, it was hardly suggested that cigarette smoking might have a causal relationship to cancer, and it was a surprise to me to learn about the role of tobacco. After I read a book or two on the subject which reviewed the then contemporary thinking about what might be causing it, I had the clear impression that cigarettes most likely caused cancer. And even if there were more causal elements, the sensible thing to do was NOT smoke. Not smoking would not cause it, smoking very likely would. So I never did. Time of course has pretty well demonstrated the link.
I think the fat/carb, milk, organic, gmo, etc. controversies are much like that. We can only inform ourselves and decide what are the most prudent courses to follow. Given my slapdash nature I mostly follow a middle course. (for example I never gave up fat, but I changed over to mostly olive oil using butter only when a dish especially called for it and consume that sort of food less often and Mediterranean more; I still eat bacon several times a year, NEVER switched to margarine, etc .)  | 
07-13-2002, 04:12 PM
Who is telling the truth? 
