A physician strongly advises against consuming any raw fish (sushi) or rare meat, citing a much higher risk of parasitic infection than the public realizes. These infections are a leading global cause of iron deficiency anemia and can lead to severe liver damage.
Despite their high theoretical sensitivity, standard PCR stool tests for parasites frequently fail to detect active infections in symptomatic patients. Old-school microscopy, where a sample is manually examined under a slide, has proven to be a more reliable diagnostic tool in practice.
The rise in consumer cleaning products and spick-and-span households reduces our exposure to diverse microbes. According to the hygiene hypothesis, this lack of immune system training can make our bodies less robust and more prone to overreacting to benign substances like food proteins, thus fostering allergies.
An asymptomatic partner can repeatedly reinfect their symptomatic partner with parasites through shared household surfaces like toilets and bedsheets. This necessitates testing and treating all household members simultaneously, not just the individual showing symptoms.
The fitness trend of consuming very high amounts of protein (e.g., 1g per pound of body weight) is not supported by data. Amounts exceeding 1 gram per kilogram, especially from animal sources, can lead to systemic inflammation and promote the development of atherosclerosis (clogged arteries).
Chronic issues like fatigue, moodiness, and brain fog are frequently dismissed as inevitable side effects of getting older. However, these are often direct symptoms of underlying environmental health problems, such as mold exposure or parasites, that can be addressed.
A physician was forced to add "environment" as a third pillar of health after a patient, who perfectly managed her diet and exercise, remained ill due to significant environmental exposures. This challenges the conventional two-pillar model of health.
To significantly slow the progression of age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness, a surprisingly modest diet change is effective. Consuming just two servings of oily fish and 2.7 servings of green leafy vegetables per week reduces the risk of the disease advancing by 41%.
The cheerful 'Washi Washi' staff who sing at buffet entrances are a frontline public health strategy. Their real job is to use entertainment and emotional labor to ensure passenger compliance with handwashing, mitigating the huge financial and reputational risk of a norovirus outbreak.
Nutritional research shows that dietary diversity is a more critical health factor than simply eliminating animal products. People who consume 30 or more different kinds of plants and animals weekly are significantly freer from disease than even those on exclusively vegan or vegetarian diets.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, operating on the precautionary principle, advised parents to delay introducing allergenic foods. This lack of early exposure prevented immune systems from developing tolerance, directly leading to a massive increase in food allergies and creating a disastrous feedback loop.