Those Nefarious Nutrition Scientists are at it Again!

Friday, December 2, 2011

If only I had I a picture of me in a lab coat poring over test tubes and looking evil, like Dr. Horrible*, or a photo of my lavish office! Well, I don’t have a recent picture of me in a lab coat, and to get a better feel for my office you can watch The Daily Show video below.

Where am I going with all this, you ask? I’ll elaborate on Monday, as my class prepares for a discussion of In Defense of Food written by popular food writer Michael Pollan. To get the conversation started, please check out my mission and watch the following entertaining video clips from recent showings of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report.

“Interview with Michael Pollan,” as seen on The Colbert Report with Stephen Colbert (November 2, 2011)
“Science: What’s it up to?” with Aasif Mandvi, as see on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (October 26, 2011)

I find these clips rather thought provoking, especially when juxtaposed as I’ve done here. (Jon Stewart’s satire is, as always, spot on.) They’re also a great place to launch a discussion exploring the treatment of nutrition science in the media and popular press. It’s not a topic that will take over my blog, don’t worry – I love talking about food, cooking, science, and health way too much to get constantly distracted by bloviators in the media and debunk every diet myth out there. There’s not enough time in the world for all of that! (Until I get paid to do so, at least.) That said, this is an important issue: the voice of science is often drowned out by fiction, fear, anecdote, and misinformation, so occasionally I’ll weigh in on some issue or another to help you bring sound science to your plate.

I look forward to pursuing this discussion with you and my students next week and beyond. In the meantime, I have to get back to the lab to figure out how to make the world fatter, more diseased, more miserable, and then die. Mwahahaha!

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* Dr. Horrible? No? Part 1 is below.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=apEZpYnN_1g]

Rob | 04Dec

Well, I for one would be pleased to see you devote at least a little more space to this issue. The public discourse on nutrition needs more good communicators with bonafide scientific credentials.
P.K. Newby | 04Dec

Thanks, Rob — that is music to my ears…!
PKN

Dr. P.K. Newby is a nutrition scientist, speaker, and author with expertise in all things food, farm to fork, whether preventing obesity and other chronic diseases through diet or teaching planet-conscious eating. As a health expert and food personality, she brings together her passions for food, cooking, science, and sustainability to educate and inspire, helping people eat their way towards better health, one delectable bite at a time. Healthy Hedonism (TM) is her philosophy: Because healthy food shouldn’t suck.