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A Bunch of Malarkey

Are you a headline junkie?

Dan Malarkey '08

A quick look at internet news headlines on Feb. 27 reveal that "Test Scores Not Lowered by Television" (aol.com), and "Chocolate Linked to Lower Blood Pressure" (yahoo.com).

Though these headlines are honest in presenting information to the American public, they can also be misleading.

The AOL article mentions that there is lots of evidence that educational television is good for children while violent content "is related to antisocial aggressive behavior," but that this study only dealt with test scores. It was based on statistics of preschoolers from the 1940s and 1950s when television was first introduced in America.

In the chocolate study, the scientists said, "it's too early to conclude it was chocolate that led to better health." Other experts mentioned that excessive amounts of chocolate "can make you fat - a risk for both heart disease and high blood pressure." What a shock.

I would wager that many Americans, especially young web surfers, reading these articles will repeat the headlines during their day. Maybe they will use it as a bargaining tool to watch more TV, or as an excuse to eat more chocolate, without understanding the full implications of the studies.

We at Grinnell understand that scientific studies are complex and prone to peer review, and their results should not be oversimplified. But those who do not understand this may be mislead by a generalized headline.

A few days ago, someone told me, "you know that diet does not affect your chances of getting cancer." I replied, "I have not done research on the subject, but I can assure you that if one eats well, or is physically healthy, they will be better able to cope with disease and cancer." Also, studies on cancer are conducted on sample populations and the results do not necessarily apply to all. Have you ever heard the word "anomaly?"

Nevertheless, Americans are obsessed with health and beauty. Just take a look at news headlines, or read an average magazine. We are always looking for the next health tip or the new workout routine. We e-mail tips to friends or give people advice on how they should eat or exercise. Often, these tips come directly from headlines. Not only do people too hastily prescribe headlines, doctors often rush to fix our health problems with shortsightedness.

We go to the doctor with a horsy cough: "Give me the best you got, I've got a job interview on Friday." More likely than not, your doctor will give in to your sad eyes and whiny voice, even if it is not good for you in the long run. Just last week in the New York Times, David Leonhardt published an article on the problem of misdiagnoses in America in which he explained that doctors "are not actually paid to come up with the right diagnosis. They are paid to perform tests and to do surgery and to dispense drugs." This emphasis on tests, surgery and drugs precludes conversations on holistic healing.

I've seen how a more holistic approach to healing works. Several years ago my grandmother's doctor prescribed Lipitor for her high cholesterol. She refused to take it because she was worried about the side effects. By exercising and eating well, she balanced her cholesterol and at 74 years old is medication free.

Though similar in some ways, bodies are different. It is problematic that many allopathic doctors have no intuition into healing as a holistic process. I would even go so far to say that psychiatrists are even worse and more dangerous. They often rush to prescribe antidepressant drugs instead of working more holistically with their patients. People have too much faith in the MD approach and not enough confidence in the holistic approach, which is stigmatized as hippy or foreign.

I am suggesting that we change the way we think about our health. We should know our bodies better. Let's not assume that chocolate will lower our blood pleasure, or that television will not lower our test scores. Let's not have too much faith in doctor's prescriptions. We should seek good healers whether they are allopathic, or homeopathic doctors, or Chinese herbalists. If one really needs to be on medication, then by all means take it, as long as the diagnosis is correct.

And next time a health nut prescribes a headline to you, you can feel completely justified repeating my headline this week, "Are you a headline junkie?"

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