Science deniers?
In the latter part of my career I have become increasing aware of those who have a different opinion and question the evidence of of current wisdom being labelled "X" - deniers.
At a recent conference on FH (familial Hypercholesterolaemia- devastating for those who are impacted). I asked why do a small subset of FH live to old age without any vascular disease, and they have a high amount of the causative agent for their whole lives. I was genuinely curious and came to seek an answer from those who knew much more than me.(above 80) and was quickly shot down by a colleague- "oh you must be one of those Cholesterol deniers!", and as a result of being labelled a nutcase no one answered the question.
I was thought in school (A long time ago) that in science you develop a hypothesis and then the science is trying to proving your self wrong.
I rarely see this these days.
A dogma is saturated fat is bad, eat less meat, g low fat and world will be a better place.
Despite this paper in 2014 from a "small" journal called Annals of Internal Medicine, it remains in daily newspapers every week. Nobody has proved this paper wrong:
Should we return to that class room with an inspiring teacher whose technology was inkwells and chalk and a blackboard.
Money speaks louder these days......
Diabetes Clinical Nurse Specialist at Hampshire and IOW Heathcare
11 个月Well said Donal…and thank you for all that you do to help those of us without a medical degree to make sense of our world when the ‘science’ doesn’t seem to fit the reality of clinical and personal experience.
Yes agreed, curiosity is really good. Hope you are keeping well Donal. ??
I believe we can think beautifully for ourselves | Thinking Partner, Writer, & Health Coach
11 个月I love that you’ve posted this Donal. I think we seem to have lost the ability to allow others to have their own opinions. Debate and different viewpoints are healthy and necessary; it’s vital we can accept people and their independent thinking, and hold it with curiosity, as you say. It worries me that, as Noam Chomsky said, we have narrowed the scope of acceptable debate. Where will new ideas and progress come from if we shut down alternative thinking? Or diplomatic solutions to problems? Or the ability to connect with people from all walks of life? The impact of such labelling is, potentially, huge.