Health Literacy & Patient Education

From Good Reads:                                                                                                                                                  Blind Spots: when medicine gets it wrong and what it means for our health [print book available from SMU Libraries].

When modern medicine is interpreted through the harsh lens of opinion and edict, it can mold dogmas and popular beliefs that harm patients and stunt research for decades. In Blind Spots, Dr. Marty Makary from Johns Hopkins University states how some of the biggest public health recommendations of modern medicine have been quietly reversed, some without the public knowing. 

Specifically, Dr. Makary highlights the engrained beliefs based on flawed data regarding cholesterol in eggs, estrogen recommendations for menopausal women and pediatric peanut avoidance, the role of the microbiome, GLP-1, childbirth and new parents, cancer prevention, and the overuse of antibiotics.

Fact: Due to misinformation circulated 25 years ago, the U.S. now leads the world in peanut allergies per capita.

The resources below can help your patients spot and discern good science from bad.

• Confronting Health Misinformation [U.S. Health & Human Services Dept.]
• Know the Science Tools [NCCIH] - Clinical Digest
• Practical Playbook for Addressing Health Misinformation [Johns Hopkins]
• Understanding Medical Research [MedlinePlus]

Examples: Crystal Flush - Nugenix - Nutrafol - Prevagen - Relaxium Sleep - Relief Factor - Serovital - Super Beets