DAMN LIES STATISTICS(Keywords: DAMN LIES STATISTICS, Bernard Preston, trans fats, hydrogenated foods, Chiropractic Research) The phrase 'lies, damn lies, and statistics' was first coined by that great humorist Mark Twain. Statistics have long been used to manipulate the truth by unscrupulous vendors. Thus you will see now that in all reliable research projects, the researchers distance themselves from any personal gain from the results of their research by a disclaimer. Sadly, for example, and this is controversial and I'm not convinced the jury is out on the subject, there's only one research document that shows that Glucosamine Chondroitin sulphate has benefits for arthritis sufferers that has not been financed by the companies producing the product. And plenty of independent research that indicates they don't help a jot. But back to 'damn lies'...
 Custom Search My favourite sandwich spreadDAMN LIES STATISTICSBored at lunch, I took a few minutes this week to scrutenise the label on my all time favourite spread made from a yeast extract (we'll call it M), and compared it with a competitor (call it B). Relief: in the fine print (VERY FINE PRINT) it states that in a serving there are 0.0 trans-isomers. Those are the bad cousins to Cis, made in the hydrogenation of fats.Well and good, but getting an different pair of spectacles, and a magnifing glass (yes the print is that fine, at least for rheumy aging eyes!)
From the company website concerning MDAMN LIES STATISTICS ..."The goodness of home""This concentrated yeast extract paste is 100% vegetarian and gluten free, with no added fat, salt or sugar. M is an excellent source of Vitamin B12, Riboflavin, Niacin and Folic Acid (every 8,5 g serving of M provides 55% of the RDA of Folic Acid) which is good news for pregnant women."
Rounding off of numbersDAMN LIES STATISTICSRounding off figures is a useful techniqe we all use. I'll give you two examples.
MISLEADINGDAMN LIES STATISTICSHowever, rounding off of figures can sometimes only be described as lies, damn lies statistics. It can be done in order to sneakily pull the wool over your eyes.So, having enjoyed, LOVED, product M for all of my 62 years, for the first time I read the label. Whew, a relief: 0.0 g trans-fat per helping. To the average person, 0.0 means ZERO. None! That's what the manufacturer wants you to believe. But with two years university mathematics under the belt... Wait, if there is 0.1g /100g, how can there be ZERO, NONE per serving? Mathematically speaking, 0.0 means somewhere between 0.00 and 0.04. In reality, about 20% of the fat in product M consists of trans-isomers. Bad stuff. And now being suspicious of their questionable reporting, they may well have rounded off 0.14g to 0.1g meaning nearly 30% is trans (see here how I've rounded off the figures to exaggerate to my cause! That should really be 28%), and if they are really dishonest, they may have rounded off 0.19 to 0.1. We just don't know.
GRIST TO THE MILLDAMN LIES STATISTICSNow, can you spot something further in their specious reporting...? "No added fat..." Trans isomers do NOT exist in nature. It's a foreign chemical to the body. You certainly won't find any in mushrooms. So, if about 20-28% of the fat in product M consists of trans isomers, then hydrogenated fats must have been added!
Why is this important?I don't entirely buy into the cholesterol story - our forefathers ate plenty of animal fats, but heart disease was virtually unknown until the last hundred years. It's the UNsaturated fats, and the hydrogenated fats (the trans fats) that have taken off in modern man's diet - just as we've seen these these nasty diseases escalating logarithmically.
The truth...I'll probably go on eating product Marmite despite their lies, damn lies and statistics. When I was weaned, Marmite was probably one of the first spreads on my bread crusts! However, that was more than 60 years ago, and I'll bet it didn't contain a drop of added hydrogenated fat. Along with raw honey from my grandfather's hives. But I have less trust now in all the products made by this company (and they are big), and I'll eat rather less marmite, and I'll stick to my resolution to get my fats from the healthy fats that we KNOW are good: From fish, from the olive and avocados, nuts and seeds. And I keep hunting for cold pressed oils... it's the solvent extraction that spoils many of the other seed oils. The exception is Olive oil, it's cold pressed.Avocados get a lot of flak by the way because they are rich in fat. Healthy mono-unsaturated fat. 100g of avocado contains about the same number of calories as a can of beer. (170cals) In short, healthy fat means healthy nerves, and that's important to a chiropractor. And to you... so I still choose butter, in moderation, over margarine which mostly is full of hydrogenated fat. There are exceptions.
CHIROPRACTIC RESEARCHDAMN LIES STATISTICSResearch without bias is the goal, but it's a difficult moving target to hit. Every researcher has an axe to grind, a theory that h/she is trying to prove, a product or drug that they are trying to peddle, a technique that he's pushing...In research that I will be starting for an MSc I will be trying to show that failed hip surgery is (in part?) due to a sacroiliac joint fixation? And yes, I'll be very disappointed if my theory is not proved correct. But damn lies statistics? Never!
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