Few things captivate the public more than a new diet. From Atkins to Ornish to the Mediterranean diet, each new theory attracts attention and true-believer adherents and generates lots of book sales and interviews on daytime TV. People passionately argue about whether a diet low in carbohydrates or low in fat is best for weight loss. But until now no large trial has ever been done to answer the question.
This week’s New England Journal of Medicine published the largest study that di...
More
Mind if I Don’t Smoke?
Quitting smoking is probably the hardest thing I ask my patients to do. (Losing weight is probably the second hardest.) Smoking is a profound addiction. Smoking feels good, and countless smokers have told me the calming pleasure they get from a cigarette.
Despite the health risks and financial costs associated with smoking, medications aimed at helping smokers quit have been only modestly successful. A very helpful article in Monday’s Los Angeles Times reviews the medications avail...
More
Would You Like Some Salmonella With That?
Our modern hyper-efficient means of producing, processing and distributing food has made hunger virtually extinct in the developed world. (In fact obesity is a much more pressing problem.) But our modern food production network is revealing an increasingly dangerous cost. Because food from any one farm or any one plant is frequently distributed nationally or even internationally, contamination with a foodborne infection can sicken thousands before the source is identified.
Two years ago Esc...
More
The Flu: Good News, Bad News
The good news about this flu season is that so far, both nationally and in California, it has been a mild one, with a relatively small number of people infected. The weekly trends are still increasing, so the worst is still ahead of us.
The bad news is that one of the major strains of the flu virus this season is resistant to Tamiflu, the most frequently prescribed and safest anti-flu medicine. In response, the CDC has issued an Interim Antiviral Guidance statement, which recommends which ant...
More