My thyroid doctor thought it would be a good idea to have me sit down with the nutritionist in the office. She said it was just to get some ideas about what is good for the thyroid and what is bad for the thyroid. I hesitantly agreed and off to group nutrition class I went.
As we sat down in the group setting, with other people experiencing thyroid issues just as myself, this nutritionist began to tell her story. In the middle of her "speech" I noticed her quote the book The Wheat Belly. In my daze of boredom I quickly perked up to catcher telling the group that the wheat we eat has been genetically modified and that is why our bodies do not accept it like it used to......
Hold it right there! As my face turned red and my heartbeat started going faster and faster I kindly raised my hand and asked her to please share her source for genetically modified wheat. She looked at me dumbfounded. I kindly explained to her that there is no genetically modified wheat being sold in the United States. For some reason she had a hard time believing me until another farm woman spoke up and said "no she is right". The nutritionist then went on to ask well why doesn't wheat look the same as it did 100 years ago........
Head to desk. Myself and the other woman explained that with breeding we are able to control height and other features that work with the different environments and equipment being used today. I asked her to please stop saying that it was genetically modified as she is putting a bad perception into the minds of these people she is talking to.....plus it is just not the truth. Her answer: "well I will have to look into it." Classic.
Next on our list was meat. Of course she tells us that we should really chose Organic meat as it is a healthier choice to make. That is when I about walked out and she lost all credibility with me. How do you sit and tell a group of women that they should choose organic because it is healthier without sourcing your claim. Also, is that fair to the other women? If I were a mom on a budget and just couldn't afford organic, that may make me feel as though I am supplying an inferior product to my children. That is not ok! Show the choices and leave your fear mongering out of it!!!!!!!
I left that day angry, confused, and disappointed. It quickly made me realize how so many people become so misinformed. These people came to this group meeting to gain information from someone that is looked at as a professional in her field. This is the kind of information they are walking away with. Sad.........
We walk into a meeting expecting to hear factual information from someone that many may see as an "expert". Instead we get very biased and false information. I would expect professionals to show the choices out there and let the consumer do the choosing instead of fearing them into a choice. If I wouldn't have known better, there would have been no reason why I wouldn't have taken what she said as the truth and made those lifestyle changes.
It really made me realize the importance of not taking everything at face value. While we may be seeing experts in a certain profession it is always important to keep asking questions and maybe get a second opinion.
And that my friends is why I broke up with the nutritionist
Good Day!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Way to stick up for yourself. The Wheat Belly book has wonderful recipes for people dealing with Crohns and Celiac (my brother in law and mother in law have each) but you need to ignore the author's entire introduction. He's a whack job who is just fear mongering.
ReplyDeleteYou go girl! I agree with you wholeheartedly, and I don't have your extensive knowledge and research. It doesn't take much to see that people who switch from eating Cheetos to organic chicken of course feel much better! But what if they just ate "regular" chicken instead of Cheetos? Hey, they still feel much better! SMH ...
ReplyDeleteYou might have spurred a blog post for me now. All the organic/natural/"real food" diets drive me crazy. Just eat right and exercise, and it won't matter how your food was produced!
And your comment about expense is spot on. My grocery bill already went up quite a bit when I started shopping more in the produce section - I NEVER buy organic because it's sometime triple the price. Eating healthy is expensive enough - why make it even more out of reach for most Americans?
You should hear what they say the diet for hypothyroidism should be - organic this, organic that, hormone free beef (don't they know it is hormone free by the time you eat it?), and on and on. It's really rotten. I think you should go back and continue to cause trouble for her! But you're right, it does make you feel like you're giving your family an inferior product and the fact is, you're not. Good Lord!
ReplyDeleteI will say this, Taysha -- going gluten free did help me lose about 4lbs. Something about gluten making your body attack the thyroid or something like that...
Great blog post and good for you for trying to educate her. Maybe she will check into it... (My optimism creeping in 😊)
ReplyDelete