In the past ten days, I have featured the Dr. Oz Show twice: the first when his show featured Dr. Campbell, Dr. Esselstyn and others in a promotion segment for the upcoming movie Forks Over Knives, which opens today in NYC and Los Angeles. Next week, it will begin rolling out all over the country.
J. Morris Hicks introduces Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn at the Stonington Harbor Yacht Club
My second Dr. Oz post was following his shameless promotion of the latest fad (Atkins type) weight-loss diet — an unsustainable and dangerous diet that’s all about weight-loss with virtually no mention of the health consequences. Here is my key point:
How can the American public know what to eat when the story keeps changing every day? With Dr. Oz possibly being the most recognized (and respected) doctor in the United States, it seems that his fame should be coupled with a responsibility to tell the complete truth to the American public — even if it’s not always what they want to hear.
Dr. T. Colin Campbell and J. Morris Hicks review the manuscript of "Healthy Eating - Healthy World" after eating a "4-Leaf" meal next to the Cornell campus in December of 2010
Wouldn’t it be great if he followed the lead of the two great men that he featured on his show the previous week? With Dr. Campbell and Dr. Esselstyn, you will always get clarity and consistency. Their refreshingly simple story never changes — you can reverse heart disease, promote vibrant health, enjoy effortless & permanent weight-loss and so much more. All you need to do is maximize the percent of your calories from the natural foods for our species — whole plants. (See our 4-Leaf Program)
But the American public still believes that they “need” their animal protein and they can’t imagine giving up their burgers, steaks, cheese, and shrimp. And Dr. Oz promoting the Dukan Diet gives them the justification they need to continue believing that the plant-based diet-style endorsed by Campbell and Esselstyn is just too extreme. Besides, where would they get their protein? (See protein page if you’re still wondering.)
And, as I said in an earlier post, Dr. Oz is in the entertainment business and must keep his audience entertained — his sponsors demand it. But we’re talking about people’s lives here, we’re talking about an obesity epidemic, and we’re talking about a completely out-of-control cost of health care. What do you value most? The health of your children or being entertained?
For your convenience, scroll down for videos of the two Dr. Oz segments mentioned earlier. The first from 4-27-11 with Campbell and Esselstyn, the second promoting the Dukan Diet on 5-2-2011. You take a look at both — then tell me what you think.
If you make it all the way through the Dukan video, you will see that my friend Dr. Joel Fuhrman stuck to his guns and labeled the Dukan Diet for what it was, scoring it a “1” on a scale of 1 to 10. Dr. Furhman was the ONLY beacon of integrity on the entire segment.
The video of the Dr. Oz Show on the Dukan Diet is no longer available.
If you like what you see here, you may wish to join our periodic mailing list. Also, for help in your own quest to take charge of your health, you might find some useful information at our 4-Leaf page. From the seaside village of Stonington, Connecticut – Be well and have a great day.
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—J. Morris Hicks…blogging daily at HealthyEatingHealthyWorld.com
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J. Morris Hicks, engineer. writer. big picture guy. 
Severely dismayed now that I watched the second segment. How could a medical doctor possibly approve people only eating vegetables every OTHER day in the main weight-loss phase of the diet? I can see how the exercise physiologist could fall for it, but Dr. Oz? Losing weight by any means necessary is almost never long term. My mother has done it again, and again, and again. She swore by the Atkins diet, and lost 100 pounds only to regain it, and then some. She had her gall bladder removed (50% filled with cholesterol-based stones, though her blood lipids were fine), and she still eats bacon every morning to “suppress appetite”.
One of the things that sent me on a quest for healthy living was not wanting to wind up spending life as many American women do, yo-yo-ing from diet to binge to diet and ruining a healthy metabolism in the process. The Dukan “diet” actually encourages that very behavior! Eat whatever you want for 6 days? Then only protein one day a week? How will that make up for anything? We have to change what we WANT to eat. On a trip to Spain a few years ago, by 2 days in I was prowling the streets, looking for a good bowl of rice and beans (or a vegetarian paella, or something veg that wasn’t a sandwich or light salad). You change the cravings, and proper eating comes more and more easily. As long as you put garbage in- you get garbage out.