Review of Dr. Jean Dodds' book Canine Nutrigenomics The Skeptvet has finally released his long-awaited review of Dr. Jean Dodds' book "Canine Nutrigenomics." The full review can be found here: Canine Nutrigenomics by Dr. Jean Dodds: Science as Windowdressing | The SkeptVet To help him review the book, he recruited the help of two experts in small animal nutrition, a cancer specialist, and a nutrigenomics researcher. The review is quite thorough, and also discusses the validity (or lack thereof) of the Nutriscan saliva test. I won't go into any specific details--those can be found in the link I gave above--but I will quote the conclusion: Bottom Line While Dr. Dodds’ book is a mixture of fact and fiction, science and pseudoscience, plausible ideas and outright nonsense, overall the work is deeply misleading. It has little at all to do with nutrigenomics or epigenetics, despite the title and claims to the contrary, and it uses real science primarily to give an aura of legitimacy or authority to claims which are unproven or outright false. References are employed in a manner that suggests an academic research summary with conclusions based on scientific evidence. The reality is that the book is a collection of opinions, some plausible and some not, supported in most cases by very little evidence and in some cases clearly contradicted by this evidence. The references employed are often simply other people’s opinions or, in some cases, Dr. Dodds’ own opinions reprinted elsewhere. The recommendations made for and against specific feeding practices and dietary supplements are mostly typical for proponents of alternative medicine, and they stem from ideology and philosophical beliefs rather than scientific evidence. Occasionally, such claims turn out to be true, in the manner of a broken clock which happens to be right twice a day but this has little to do with the underlying principles. And while there are a few evidence-based claims here and there in the book, and some recommendations I would agree with, overall Canine Nutrigenomics is misleading, misguided, and in conflict with the best evidence and expert consensus in veterinary nutrition. |
The Skeptvet's book review of Canine Nutrigenomics is a must-read, and addresses Dr. Dodds' faulty writing on the following topics: (1) GMO's (2) gluten (3) raw diets (4) the Nutriscan saliva test for food insensitivities (5) bee pollen and raw honey (6) glycemic index and high glycemic index foods (7) corn, wheat, and soybeans as dog food ingredients (8) organic foods for dogs (9) artificial preservatives, including BHA, BHT, and ethoxyquin (10) fluoride in the water Plus 23 additional controversies, such as glucosamine/chondroitin supplements, menadione, and vaccines. Please note that not all of these points are critical of Dr. Dodds--the Skeptvet does agree with her on some of these topics, such as fish oils. The Skeptvet provides many citations of peer-reviewed research to support his critiques. If anyone wishes to discuss any of these topics below, feel free, but please be respectful! |
Very interesting! |
All times are GMT -8. The time now is 05:29 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Copyright ©2003 - 2018 YorkieTalk.com
Privacy Policy - Terms of Use