You are absolutely right Smackman, while its great that Dr John and others are starting to recognize what we have promoted here for the last 14 years, like with a number of his other stances, in my view, Dr John goes a bit overboard in making proclamations of grand breakthroughs at times. Maybe its just the growing journalist in him, and he is a good communicator with some very good points at times as well.
The issues he and Dr Day bring up in this new blog linked to above are certainly important and valid steps to help far better control AFIB likely for a majority of folks, but it is not the universal panacea they tend to paint with a too broad of a brush here.
It's like when the very first press on FIRM came out Dr J breathlessly pronounced a watershed event that would completely overturn ablation technology... It was premature hyperbole at the very least. These kind of responses often remind me of the 'true believer' syndrome when people suddenly discover a very positive connection with a valid point or issue that may have real merit, such as between better diet, nutrient repletion, stress reduction and other wise lifestyle choices and a solid reduction in AFIB incidence, and yet in a naive overblown optimistic impulse it is declared as a newly discovered 'Holy Grail' such the newly converted accolytes pronounce it the second coming when for the most part they are relative greenhorns in the area of their recent enthusiastic conversion. As in the good doc from Utah switching from jellied donuts and fast food to a largely vegan organic diet, slowing down a bit and losing lots of weight, lowers his BP and metabolic syndrome and is feeling much better.... The obvious and previously well-vetted outcome. I fully understand their rush of discovery and feeling of Eureka and seeing a panacea that can well help reduce AFIB burden substantially in many, if not most, who fully apply the principles, yet still falls short of a slate wiper cure that would make AFIB irrelevant or optional as just a matter of enough will power applied.
As scientists, it requires a more measured enthusiasm and the realization that saying AFIB is entirely 'optional' is taking it over the top.
Yes, some Chinese have some health benefits from a largely vegetarian diet in those areas of the country where they can't afford animal products for generations, and westernized or processed foods have been around only the last two decades. But AFIB is a big epidemic in China as well in growing degree too and they have ablation centers popping up in most all the major cities with lots of AFIB and ablation research being published out of China every month. Proportionally, it may still be less prevalent than in the US with its SAD diet and high fructose corn syrup 'diabetes/metabolic syndrome diet' and again the basic point is not only well taken, it has been our central theme and take home message since this website began, but holding up China as a place AFIB hardly exists is going much too far to try to emphasize that point.
I dont argue at all with the premise they put forth in this link, but saddling up the Great White Horse to announce it as the latest discovery and solution like that should be more measured, balanced and realistic in my view. Yet, all the while still fully encouraging a proper diet and better lifestyle as a key tool for better health all around. I often get the feeling Dr J is almost apologetic, at times, or reluctant, to be a modestly active ablationist. Or maybe he is just an idealist at heart frustrated by the druggery of medical bureaucracy and slow pace or genuine breakthroughs?
And yet, he does make some good points too and I enjoy many of his posts, especially when keeping the issue being discussed in balance. In my book, you often just have to balance those excellent points that it is very good he is writing about, with the sometimes over zealous context in which often the message gets delivered, and thus not get swept up too far in the hype that occasionally comes across.
On the otherhand, perhaps the way our sensationalizing press works these days, in its symbiotic relationship with the public, bloggers like Dr J really do have to trumpet such more or less obvious findings and points with enough zeal for it to really register with folks on a larger scale?
In any event, there is nothing in those findings that comes as anything new to long time readers of this message board and The AFIB Report, but certainly it is nice to see the Cardios and EPs on the front line starting to recognize the invaluable role of proactive self care and good diet and nutrition in the war on AFIB, Cardovascular disease, Cancer and other chronic diseases that plaque humanity these days. Let's just keep it in proportion as there are a huge number of folks who will never be able to eat enough good food and swallow enough supplements to suddenly reverse and turn off for good long term AFIB. That's the part I call them on here, and if you really questioned them their own daily experience in treating patients would verify that.
For all the good success stories they can quote with these self-help methods alone, there will be just as many, if not substantially more, that only found real freedom from a long existing beast in their lives via an expert ablation process, even if made even more consistent and solid with the wise combination of these very same nutritional and life style common sense protocols.
Shannon
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/17/2014 05:08PM by Shannon.
