By Dr. Ronald Hoffman
Last week, we brought you a compendium of the top podcasts of 2015. This week, as we end the year, I've curated what I consider the Top Ten Articles of 2015. These appear weekly in our newsletter, and also in our News Feed at DrHoffman.com.
This year, it was tough to winnow it down to just ten, because we featured so many great articles that garnered terrific feedback from our readers
We hope that you'll take advantage of the Christmas/New Year's hiatus to catch up on your reading of health-related articles like these. Enjoy!
1) What's your Health IQ? Take this test to find out!: If you answer all these questions correctly, or even nine out of ten, congratulations, you are a true paragon of Intelligent Medicine! If you get seven or eight right, you're still doing better than average. If you score 60% or less, your health literacy needs a boost. Read on!
2) 9 things your doctor doesn't know about supplements (but definitely should): "Ask your doctor about any vitamins or supplements you might consider taking" is an oft-repeated mantra. But most doctors don't know much about nutrition; moreover, their indoctrination leads them to be biased against supplementation. This handy guide helps dispel the most common misconceptions.
3) Do you have SIBO?: Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) is a common cause of indigestion, gas, bloating, reflux, and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). Learn how it can be diagnosed, and view a range of natural treatments that can resolve SIBO.
4) 10 simple hacks to improve your diet: Looking for a way to jumpstart your 2016 diet resolutions? Read this succinct article to get some inspiration.
5) Pushing back against the supplement alarmists: 2015 saw some pretty lurid headlines about supplement dangers. Here's my answer to the supplement alarmists-and I think you'll find the facts reassuring.
6) 14 things you know better than your doctor: In certain important respects, doctors know less than you about your health. Here are some ways in which your wisdom is likely to outstrip that of your physician!
7) You've just been diagnosed with breast cancer: Don't just stand there . . . do NOTHING!: It seems counter-intuitive, but new studies suggest, as with early prostate cancer in men, women with ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) do just as well if they eschew surgery and hormonal therapy. In this 3-part article, I detail the rationale and strategy for Active Holistic Surveillance of early breast cancer.
8) 10 epic medical fails: Bet most of you have fallen for at least one!: Examples of past serious medical blunders: Leeches, blood-letting, mercury for syphilis, X-rays for acne, radical mastectomies, thalidomide . . . I could go on and on. Here are a few of my submissions for contemporary medical "epic fails" which are likely to have impacted you or a loved one.
9) 13 reasons why most health studies are wrong: Every day, we're bombarded with health news with confusing and often contradictory implications for our health choices. Even if you're convinced that critiquing a scientific paper is above your pay grade, here are some basic ways you can arm yourself against junk science when confronted with health headlines that just don't add up.
10) 13 tests your doctor is not likely to offer, but you should ask for anyway: At the Hoffman Center, we go beyond routine testing to make the "routine" physical, even in well individuals, a meaningful exercise. Here are my candidates for 13 essential tests not commonly performed, but that should be.
I hope you find these articles interesting and informative, and that you pass them along to any friends or family who you think may also be helped by them.
Wishing you and yours a happy Holiday season!
Dr. Ronald Hoffman, and the team at Intelligent Medicine
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