{"id":10375,"date":"2017-02-20T14:37:13","date_gmt":"2017-02-20T14:37:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/?p=10375"},"modified":"2017-03-29T21:10:52","modified_gmt":"2017-03-29T21:10:52","slug":"dr-paltrow-presumes-iodine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/dr-paltrow-presumes-iodine\/","title":{"rendered":"Dr. Paltrow Presumes: Iodine"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The Independent:<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

Another week, another piece of questionable advice from Gwyneth Paltrow\u2019s Goop.<\/p>\n

This time, however, the website may have made its most dangerous recommendation yet, as a doctor has called out the latest post <\/a>saying: \u201cAlmost everything in this article is wrong and potentially dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the Goop piece titled \u2018Why We Shouldn\u2019t Dismiss Iodine,\u2019 the lifestyle site speaks to \u201cMedical Medium Anthony William\u201d who apparently heals people\u2019s illnesses \u201cusing wisdom passed on to him from a divine voice he calls Spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n

William claims he \u201cwas born with the unique ability to converse with a high-level spirit who provides him with extraordinarily accurate health information that\u2019s often far ahead of its time.\u201d<\/p>\n

So yes, Goop appears to be taking medical advice from a ghost.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In the interests of fairness, I went over to Williams\u2019 website, medicalmedium.com<\/a>. There\u2019s plenty there to see, and there\u2019s plenty to buy, including the book\u00a0Life-Changing Foods<\/em> (my emphasis added):<\/p>\n

Life-Changing Foods<\/em>: Save Yourself and the Ones You Love with the Hidden Healing Powers of Fruits & Vegetables delves deep into the healing powers of over 50 foods\u2014fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices, and wild foods\u2014explaining each food\u2019s properties, the symptoms and conditions it can help relieve or heal, and the emotional and spiritual benefits it brings. I also arm you with the truth about some of the most misunderstood topics in health: fertility; inflammation and autoimmune disorders; the brain-gut connection; foods, fads, and trends that can harm our well-being; how angels play a role in our survival<\/strong>, and much more.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Scroll on down and you\u2019ll find an endorsement from Robert Thurman, Jey Tsong Khapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies, Columbia University (and Uma\u2019s dad):<\/p>\n

\u201cAnthony’s book [Medical Medium] is truly \u2018wisdom of the future,\u2019 so already now, miraculously, we have the clear, accurate explanation of the many mysterious illnesses that the ancient Buddhist medical texts predicted would afflict us in this era when over-clever people have tampered with the elements of life in the pursuit of profit.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So much New Age Groupthink crammed into one blurb: the reverence for \u201cexotic\u201d ancient texts, the fear of \u201cmysterious\u201d illnesses, the grumbling about \u201cthe pursuit of profit\u201d and the reference to \u201cover-clever people\u201d and the rejection of reason that that implies.<\/p>\n

But back to The Independent<\/em>:<\/p>\n

William explains that he thinks we should all take iodine supplements to boost our immune systems, help with thyroid hormone production and even prevent cancer.<\/p>\n

According to Canadian doctor Jen Gunter though, this is all wrong.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0a retort to the Goop article on her website<\/a>, Dr Gunter spoke with board-certified endocrinologist, Elena A Christofides, to stress the point that William\u2019s advice is not an accepted scientific method, he has no medical training and has not published any data.<\/p>\n

She completely shuts down William\u2019s advice:<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. William\u2019s spirit must not know too much about iodine because he swings and misses right off the bat. He says, \u2018Iodine is essential for two main reasons: (1) your immune system relies on this mineral to function, and (2) iodine is a natural antiseptic.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cLater on he says, \u2018while iodine does also help with thyroid hormone production, that\u2019s one small aspect of why iodine is important for your health.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cThe body needs iodine because without it you can\u2019t make thyroid hormone and then you will slowly die. It will be a long and drawn out process. All of the symptoms of iodine deficiency are related to resulting thyroid dysfunction and 70-80% of the body\u2019s iodine is stored in the thyroid. This is not a \u2018small aspect\u2019 this is THE ASPECT.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr Gunter calls out William\u2019s assertions as \u201cbulls***. I just don\u2019t know any other way to say it.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also reveals that Dr. Christofides has seen just one case of iodine deficiency in 19 years. And it\u2019s nowhere near as common as William\u2019s tries to make out:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile iodine is essential, we actually need very little because it\u2019s a micronutrient […] basically eating out even a couple of times a month gets us enough iodised\u00a0salt<\/a>\u00a0to suffice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2026According to Dr Christofides, taking excessive iodine with a normal thyroid actually \u201cblunts the thyroid and actually causes hypothyroidism.\u201d She has even seen women take so much iodine that they give themselves the condition. So yes, taking too much iodine actually causes the problem William says it will prevent.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlmost everything in this article is wrong and potentially dangerous,\u201d says Dr Gunter.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need very little iodine, that little bit is important but if you eat a healthy diet and have a little iodised salt here and there you will be just fine.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you take iodine supplements when you do not need them you could actually cause hypothyroidism, develop an autoimmune condition, or even get cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

She stresses that iodine is not an internal antiseptic or immune booster as Gunter claims.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Goop includes a disclaimer at the end of its Q&A with Williams:<\/p>\n

The views expressed in this article intend to highlight alternative studies and induce conversation. They are the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of goop, and are for informational purposes only, even if and to the extent that this article features the advice of physicians and medical practitioners. This article is not, nor is it intended to be, a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment, and should never be relied upon for specific medical advice.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

On the other hand, The Independent<\/em> notes that Gwyneth Paltrow has said that William\u2019s work feels \u201cinherently right and true\u201d.<\/p>\n

Feels.<\/em><\/p>\n

Post-modernism + superstition > science.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Independent: Another week, another piece of questionable advice from Gwyneth Paltrow\u2019s Goop. This time, however, the website may have made its most dangerous recommendation yet, as a doctor has called out the latest post saying: \u201cAlmost everything in this … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":64,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[1036],"tags":[1081,1192,341,250],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10375"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/64"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10375"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10375\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10377,"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10375\/revisions\/10377"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10375"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10375"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/secularright.org\/SR\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10375"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}