IN MY VIEW... BEWARE INTERNET ‘ADVICE’

THE discrepancy between what science tells us and what people believe is mystifying. It took a long time for mankind to accept that the Earth is round (though a few diehards are still convinced it’s flat) — and the same problem occurs in medicine.

Recently published guidelines stress that drinking cranberry juice (or taking cranberry tablets) is not an effective treatment for urinary tract infections; there is insufficient evidence to back its use.

And yet the mythology persists — even among doctors and nurses who continue to recommend the remedy, rather than sending a urine sample to the laboratory to identify the bacteria causing the problem (and, therefore, the correct antibiotic to prescribe).

And how many people still think eggs are packed with cholesterol and so limit their consumption? This is despite science showing us the cholesterol in eggs has little impact on cholesterol in our blood and that eggs are a good food that can be eaten freely.

Then there’s the near-epidemic of those on a gluten-free diet in a misguided attempt to ease symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

The science shows that the only people who benefit from such an approach are those with coeliac disease, which affects around 2 per cent of the population and is an inherited immune response to gluten, the protein component of wheat.

A GP’s role is to help educate. Patient and careful explanations of the science are essential. We need to steer patients away from the plausible misinformation so easily obtained from the internet.

But this requires two things to work: time — always a rare commodity — and the confidence of the patient, which is where continuity of care is helpful.

It is so much easier to be persuaded of good sense when you know and trust your doctor.

But, these days, so few do know their doctor — with that has gone trust, and into the breach step rumour and misconception over hard medical fact.