Worrying Yourself Sick?

Why You’re Worried

Not a day goes by without another TV exposé or newspaper article declaring that a particular health risk (such as contaminated water, food-borne germs, polluted air, or pesticide-laden produce) contributes to cancer and immune-system deterioration.

By the next day, there are new reports that dispute those “facts.” This deluge of medical news has had a peculiar effect: Though as a nation we’ve never been healthier, our sense of well-being has declined. In the 1970s, 61 per cent of North Americans said they were satisfied with their health. A decade later, the number was down to 55 per cent. And today, over 11 per cent of people between the ages of 45 and 54—a group not yet touched by the chronic diseases of old age—consider their health fair or poor. Why all the worry? Confusion, partly. We hear about new research all the time, but it’s often contradictory and hard to interpret.

Filtering the Flood of Information

But what if a report in next week’s Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) suggests that soy protein is bad for you? Should you immediately scramble to revamp your diet? Take a tip from the editor of JAMA, Catherine DeAngelis, M.D., M.P.H. When she evaluates medical findings, she asks herself four key questions:

1. Where did the study appear? Was it published in a top-ranked journal, such as the Canadian Journal of Medicine? Was it publicized in a reputable newspaper, such as the Globe and Mail?

2. Where was the study conducted? Be wary if it isn’t from a large university or research center.

3. How was the study conducted? For instance, were the subjects people or laboratory animals? While animal studies have value, what applies to animals does not necessarily apply to people.

4. Are the findings important to me personally? To decide if the study pertains to you, ask for help from a doctor who knows you and your family medical history.

Know the Lingo

When reading media reports on medical studies, look for these terms. They refer to research methods that increase the reliability of the results.

Placebo controlled: This means that one group of patients receives the treatment being studied while a control group of similar patients receives a placebo—often an inactive substance that looks like the medicine under study. A sugar pill is one example of a placebo.

Double-blind: In this case, neither the patients nor the doctors involved in the study know who’s receiving the real treatment, and who’s getting an inactive treatment or placebo.

Randomized: Patients are randomly assigned to different study groups (treatment A, treatment B, or placebo, for example), usually by a computer.

When to Listen Up

If the findings of a major study seem plausible and they document a risk that applies to you, it may be worthwhile to change your behavior.

Mother Nature supplies plenty of challenges for the immune system every day—fungi, viruses, bacteria, solar radiation, harmful chemicals naturally present in foods, and more. But the modern world is rife with new health threats. Avoid them and you’ll make fewer demands on your immune system—and be less likely to get sick.

A large part of strengthening your immune system involves minimizing the extra workload it has to manage.