Joseph Mercola

Joseph Mercola
Joseph M. Mercola
Born July 8, 1954 (1954-07-08) (age 57)
Education Postgraduate
Years active 22
Known for Running mercola.com, a high-profile alternative medicine website
Profession Osteopathic Physician (DO)
Institutions Natural Health Center
Specialism Nutritional Medicine

Joseph M. Mercola, D.O. (born 1954), is a controversial osteopath, health activist, and entrepreneur practicing in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.[1] He is the author of several books including The No-Grain Diet (with Alison Rose Levy), and The Great Bird Flu Hoax. Mercola is the founder and editor of an alternative-medicine website, where he advocates dietary and lifestyle approaches to health and markets a variety of ostensibly health-related products. Mercola criticizes many aspects of standard medical practice, particularly vaccination and the use of prescription drugs and surgery to treat diseases. He is a member of the politically conservative Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, as well as several alternative medicine organizations.[2]

Mercola has been the subject of criticism from both the business and medical communities. A 2006 BusinessWeek editorial criticized Mercola's marketing practices as "relying on slick promotion, clever use of information, and scare tactics."[3] In 2005, 2006 and 2011 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned Mercola and his company to stop making illegal claims regarding his products' ability to detect, prevent and treat disease.[4] The medical watchdog site Quackwatch has criticized Mercola for making "unsubstantiated claims and clash with those of leading medical and public health organizations [and making] many unsubstantiated recommendations for dietary supplements.".[4]

Contents

Biography

Mercola is a 1976 graduate of the University of Illinois and a 1982 graduate of Midwestern University.[5] According to Mercola's website, he is a former Chairman of Family Medicine at St. Alexius Medical Center. He has written two books which have been listed on The New York Times Best Seller list: The No-Grain Diet (May 2003) and The Great Bird Flu Hoax (October 2006).[6][7] In the latter book, Mercola dismisses medical concerns over an avian influenza pandemic, asserting that the government, big business, and the mainstream media have conspired to promote the threat of avian flu in order to accrue money and power.[8] Mercola has appeared on programs such as the Dr. Oz show[9], and The Doctors.[10]

Views and controversy

Mercola operates mercola.com, which he has described as the most popular alternative-health website on the Internet.[3] The site advocates and sells a variety of alternative medicine treatments and dietary supplements. An article in BusinessWeek was critical of his website's aggressive direct-marketing tactics and complained of Mercola's "lack of respect" for his site's visitors, writing:

Mercola gives the lie to the notion that holistic practitioners tend to be so absorbed in treating patients that they aren't effective businesspeople. While Mercola on his site seeks to identify with this image by distinguishing himself from "all the greed-motivated hype out there in health-care land", he is a master promoter, using every trick of traditional and Internet direct marketing to grow his business... He is selling health-care products and services, and is calling upon an unfortunate tradition made famous by the old-time snake oil salesmen of the 1800s.[3]

Phyllis Entis, a microbiologist and food safety expert, highlighted Mercola.com as an example of websites "likely to mislead consumers by offering one-sided, incomplete, inaccurate, or misleading information."[11]

Mercola has also received three warning letters from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for violations of U.S. marketing laws. The first two letters, dated 2005 and 2006,[12][13] charged Mercola with making false and misleading claims regarding the marketing of several natural supplemental products, which violated the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act.[4] In the most recent letter, sent in March 2011,[14] Mercola was again found to be violating federal law, by making claims about the efficacy of certain uses of a telethermographic camera exceeding those approved by the FDA concerning the diagnostic and therapeutic potential of the device (regulation of such claims being within the purview of the FDA). Dr. Mercola has challenged the FDA's order.[15]

Food consumption

Mercola advocates a diet consisting mostly of unprocessed foods. He sees value in paleolithic diets and advocates metabolic typing.[16]

Mercola's dietary recommendations often put him at odds with mainstream dietary advice.[11] Mercola encourages the ingestion of unprocessed saturated fats, including unrefined coconut oil.[17] The American Heart Association says that saturated fats raise the level of cholesterol in the blood increasing the risk of heart disease.[18] Recent academic reviews say that replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fats—but not refined carbohydrates—can help lower the risk of heart disease, although the effects of the individual types of fatty acids is a complex and largely unresolved question.[19][20]

Food preparation

Mercola's website has called microwave ovens dangerous, claiming that microwaving food alters its chemistry.[21][22] In contrast, academic reviews have concluded that "no significant nutritional differences exist between foods prepared by conventional and microwave methods."[23] Other studies have suggested that food cooked in microwave ovens can be more nutritious than conventionally-cooked food.[24][25] The Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide states that "as a general proposition, cooking with a microwave probably does a better job of preserving the nutrient content of foods because the cooking times are shorter."[26]

Mercola is also against homogenization,[27] claiming that it leads to xanthine oxidase absorption and oxidative stress.[28] This idea has been described as "tenuous and implausible" in the Journal of the American Medical Association.[29] A review published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concluded that "Experimental evidence has failed to substantiate, and in many cases has refuted, the xanthine oxidase/plasmalogen depletion hypothesis".[30]

HIV and AIDS

Mercola has suggested that HIV is harmless and does not cause AIDS. He has claimed instead that the manifestations of AIDS (including opportunistic infections and death) are a result of "psychological stress" brought on by the belief that HIV is harmful.[31] Mercola.com has featured positive presentations of the claims of AIDS denialists, a fringe group which denies the existence of AIDS and/or the role of HIV in causing it.[31][32]

The scientific community considers the evidence that HIV causes AIDS to be conclusive[33][34] and rejects AIDS-denialist claims as pseudoscience based on conspiracy theories,[35] faulty reasoning, cherry picking, and misrepresentation of mainly outdated scientific data.[33][34][36]

Drugs and supplements

Mercola opposes the use of most prescription drugs and immunizations, favoring what he calls natural food choices, lifestyle modifications and energy psychology tools to address emotional challenges.[37] He promotes and sells numerous dietary supplements, including krill oil, vitamin K, probiotics, and anti-oxidant supplements.

Mercola is especially critical of new drugs, as well as of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.[38]

Sunscreen

Mercola has also claimed that the use of sunscreen increases, not decreases, the likelihood of contracting skin cancer with high UV exposure.[39] This view is not held by mainstream medical science; in 2011, the National Toxicology Program stated that "Protection against photodamage by use of broad-spectrum sunscreens is well-documented as an effective means of reducing total lifetime UV dose and, thereby, preventing or ameliorating the effects of UV radiation on both the appearance and biomechanical properties of the skin".[40]

Vaccinations

Mercola has been highly critical of vaccines and vaccination policy, claiming that too many vaccines are used too soon during infancy.[41] He hosts vaccine critics on his website, advocates preventive measures rather than vaccination in many cases, and strongly criticizes influenza vaccines.

Mercola argues that thimerosal, previously widely used as a vaccine preservative, is harmful.[42][not in citation given] Thimerosal is no longer present in most vaccines given to young children in the USA, though it is still present in some vaccines approved for adults.[43] Extensive evidence has accumulated since 1999 showing that this preservative is safe,[42] with the World Health Organization stating in 2006 that "there is no evidence of toxicity in infants, children or adults exposed to thiomersal in vaccines".[44]

In his book The Great Bird Flu Hoax,[45] Mercola appears to take a stronger anti-pharmaceutical industry stance by accusing them of a fear-mongering marketing campaign against the public. In supporting this stance, Mercola often has wholly critical views of those working in governmental health care, as well as towards international health organizations. He argues at length that concern over swine flu and the resulting immunizations were actually false alarms put forth to terrify the public.[46] The World Health Organization reports that by 1 August 2010 about 18,500 deaths have been caused by the H1N1 pandemic influenza.[47]

Natural parenting

In October 2010, Mercola announced plans to produce a breastmilk alternative for mothers who may experience difficulty in breastfeeding their infants. Mercola explained in the announcement on his website that the intent is to provide an alternative nutritional source for infants that they should normally get from breastmilk, even if their mothers aren't able to nurse. Many of his fans questioned his ethics for marketing an artificial formula product, when donor milk banks provide a nutritionally adequate food for human infants.

This controversy also ignited a discussion over his stance on infant circumcision.[48]

References

  1. ^ "Doc's got odd appetite". Chicago Tribune. May 25, 2003. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2003-05-25/news/0305250393_1_food-pyramid-diet-guru-osteopathic. Retrieved 22 August 2011. 
  2. ^ "Who Sits at the Clintons' Table, and Who Picks Up the Tab?". Association of American Physicians and Surgeons. 1994-04-01. http://www.aapsonline.org/newsletters/apr94.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  3. ^ a b c Gumpert, David (May 23, 2006). "Old-Time Sales Tricks on the Net". BusinessWeek. http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/may2006/sb20060523_063274.htm. Retrieved September 1, 2009. 
  4. ^ a b c Barrett, S (2011-05-26). "FDA Orders Dr. Joseph Mercola to Stop Illegal Claims". Quackwatch. http://www.quackwatch.org/11Ind/mercola.html. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  5. ^ My Education, from mercola.com
  6. ^ "Paperback Best Sellers: May 18, 2003, How-to and Miscellaneous: Hardcover". New York Times. May 18, 2003. http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/18/books/paperback-best-sellers-may-18-2003.html?pagewanted=3&src=pm. Retrieved 16 May 2011. 
  7. ^ "Paperback Best Sellers: October 22, 2006". New York Times. October 22, 2006. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C07E0D91030F931A15753C1A9609C8B63&scp=6&sq=Mercola&st=cse. Retrieved 16 May 2011. 
  8. ^ "About 'The Great Bird Flu Hoax'". Google Books. http://books.google.com/books?id=YVchyXwUqgQC. 
  9. ^ "The Alternative Health Controversy". The Dr. Oz show. http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/alternative-health-controversy-pt-1. 
  10. ^ "Health Investigation: Artificial Sweeteners". The Doctors. http://www.thedoctorstv.com/videolib/init/1904. 
  11. ^ a b Entis, P (2007). Food safety: old habits, new perspectives. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 300. ISBN 1555814174. 
  12. ^ "FDA warning 1: Living Fuel Rx, Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil, and Chlorella". Food and Drug Administration. 2005-02-16. http://www.fda.gov/downloads/Drugs/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/EnforcementActivitiesbyFDA/CyberLetters/ucm059189.pdf. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  13. ^ "FDA warning 2: Warning Letter: Optimal Wellness Center CHI-7-06". Food and Drug Administration. 2006-09-21. http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/EnforcementActions/WarningLetters/2006/ucm076069.htm. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  14. ^ Silverman, S (2011-03-22). "Warning letter from Center for Devices and Radiological Health". Food and Drug Administration. http://www.casewatch.org/fdawarning/prod/2011/mercola.shtml. Retrieved 2011-08-19. 
  15. ^ Tsouderos, T (2011-04-26). "FDA warns doctor: Stop touting camera as disease screening tool". Chicago Tribune. 
  16. ^ Mercola, Joseph (2003). The No-Grain Diet. USA: Dutton. p. 292. ISBN 0525947337. 
  17. ^ Low-Fat Diet Myths and the Advantages of Coconut Oil, Part III, mercola.com
  18. ^ "Fat". American Heart Association. Archived from the original on 2009-03-03. http://web.archive.org/web/20090303122358/http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4582. Retrieved 2011-10-18. 
  19. ^ Siri-Tarino PW, Sun Q, Hu FB, Krauss RM (March 2010). "Saturated fat, carbohydrate, and cardiovascular disease". Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 91 (3): 502–9. doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.26285. PMC 2824150. PMID 20089734. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=2824150. 
  20. ^ Lecerf JM (May 2009). "Fatty acids and cardiovascular disease". Nutr. Rev. 67 (5): 273–83. doi:10.1111/j.1753-4887.2009.00194.x. PMID 19386031. 
  21. ^ Wayne A, Newell L.The Hidden Hazards Of Microwave Cooking, mercola.com
  22. ^ The Proven Dangers of Microwaves, mercola.com
  23. ^ Cross GA, Fung DY (1982). "The effect of microwaves on nutrient value of foods". Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr 16 (4): 355–81. doi:10.1080/10408398209527340. PMID 7047080. 
  24. ^ O’Connor, Anahad (October 17, 2006). "The Claim: Microwave Ovens Kill Nutrients in Food". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/17/health/17real.html. 
  25. ^ Hoffman CJ, Zabik ME (August 1985). "Effects of microwave cooking/reheating on nutrients and food systems: a review of recent studies". J Am Diet Assoc 85 (8): 922–6. PMID 3894486. 
  26. ^ "Microwave cooking and nutrition". Harvard Medical School. 2008. http://www.health.harvard.edu/fhg/updates/Microwave-cooking-and-nutrition.shtml. Retrieved 20 August 2010. 
  27. ^ Don't Drink Your Milk!, mercola.com
  28. ^ Milk May Worsen Heart Failure, mercola.com 10 Jul 2002
  29. ^ Bierman EL, Shank RE (November 1975). "Editorial: Homogenized milk and coronary artery disease: theory, not fact". JAMA 234 (6): 630–1. doi:10.1001/jama.234.6.630. PMID 1242197. 
  30. ^ Clifford AJ, Ho CY, Swenerton H (August 1983). "Homogenized bovine milk xanthine oxidase: a critique of the hypothesis relating to plasmalogen depletion and cardiovascular disease". Am. J. Clin. Nutr. 38 (2): 327–32. PMID 6349321. 
  31. ^ a b Mercola, Joseph (January 2, 2008). "Can AZT and Other "Antiretrovirals" Cause AIDS?". Mercola.com. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/01/02/azt.aspx. 
  32. ^ Al-Bayati, Mohamed (September 5, 2001). "HIV Does Not Cause AIDS". Mercola.com. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2001/09/05/hiv-aids.aspx. 
  33. ^ a b "Confronting AIDS: Update 1988". Institute of Medicine of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. 1988. http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=771&page=2. "…the evidence that HIV causes AIDS is scientifically conclusive." 
  34. ^ a b "The Evidence that HIV Causes AIDS". National Institutes of Health. 2010-01-14. http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/HIVAIDS/Understanding/howHIVCausesAIDS/Pages/HIVcausesAIDS.aspx. Retrieved 2011-02-04. 
  35. ^ Cohen, J (1994). "The Duesberg phenomenon". Science 266 (5191): 1642–4. Bibcode 1994Sci...266.1642C. doi:10.1126/science.7992043. PMID 7992043. http://www.sciencemag.org/feature/data/cohen/266-5191-1642a.pdf.  edit
  36. ^ "Denying science". Nat. Med. 12 (4): 369. 2006. doi:10.1038/nm0406-369. PMID 16598265. "To support their ideas, some AIDS denialists have also misappropriated a scientific review in Nature Medicine which opens with this reasonable statement: "Despite considerable advances in HIV science in the past 20 years, the reason why HIV-1 infection is pathogenic is still debated."" 
  37. ^ Mercola, Joseph. "Death by Medicine". http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2003/11/26/death-by-medicine-part-one.aspx. Retrieved 2003-11-26 
  38. ^ FDA is "Virtually Incapable of Protecting You From Unsafe Drugs", mercola.com
  39. ^ How Supermodel Gisele Bundchen "Infuriated Cancer Experts", mercola.com, April 22, 2011. (Scroll down to avoid registration popup.)
  40. ^ Photococarcinogenesis Study of Retinoic Acid and Retinyl Palmitate, draft technical report, National Toxicology Program
  41. ^ A User-Friendly Vaccination Schedule, mercola.com, December 2004
  42. ^ a b Clements CJ, McIntyre PB (January 2006). "When science is not enough - a risk/benefit profile of thiomersal-containing vaccines". Expert Opin Drug Saf 5 (1): 17–29. doi:10.1517/14740338.5.1.17. PMID 16370953. 
  43. ^ "Thimerosal in Vaccines Questions and Answers". http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/Vaccines/QuestionsaboutVaccines/UCM070430. 
  44. ^ Global Advisory Committee on Vaccine Safety (2006-07-14). "Thiomersal and vaccines". World Health Organization. http://www.who.int/vaccine_safety/topics/thiomersal/en/index.html. Retrieved 2007-11-20. 
  45. ^ J. Mercola, The Great Bird Flu Hoax: The Truth They Don't Want You to Know About the "Next Big Pandemic,"Nelson Books, September 19, 2006 ISBN 0-7852-2187-5
  46. ^ "Major Expose on Swine Flu by 60 Minutes". http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/07/16/Major-Expose-on-Swine-Flu-by-60-Minutes.aspx. 
  47. ^ Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - update 112 World health organization 6 August 2010
  48. ^ Mercola Fans Angry LisaRussell.org 20 October 2010

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