Last time we spoke with Dr. Stuart Farrimond it was two days before he was scheduled to undergo brain surgery to remove a cancerous tumour. This week we catch up with Stu. We discuss his ongoing treatment, he gives us some tidbits from his upcoming book and we even get in a couple of food science questions. Stuart is a medical doctor turned science communicator, author and food science expert.
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Dr. Stuart Farrimond
Spice: Understand the Science of Spice, Create Exciting New Blends, and Revolutionize Your Cooking
The Science of Cooking: Every Question Answered to Perfect Your Cooking
It’s wonderful to hear that Dr. Farrimond is doing well and keeping busy, especially all the exercise. (My father had a “benign” glioma and got very out-of-shape between surgery & radiation, and that led to serious complications.) So I hope the remainder of the course goes well and he’s back home soon.
As for his concerns about using the “supplemental” medications and whatnot (not to be confused with “supplements”)… It’s a really good question. First off, Stuart got into skepticism because he was looking into alternatives and realized there were serious problems with a lot of junk science out there; and now, even asking the question again at this stage shows better judgment than I think I would have.
So if there are concerns about the risk vs. benefits of these additional things – whether it’s to him personally or if it would affect family and friends – perhaps go back to the original “What’s the Harm?” checklist: Is it at all supported by science? Is there plausible benefit? Will it cause financial harm for little evidence of benefit? …and all the other things that make use realize both scammers and true believers can be so bad for us.
Finally, to be charitable to his doctors: I’m sure some of them know that he’s an advocate of scientific skepticism, so when he suggests something that hasn’t been thoroughly studied it may make them feel very uncomfortable for that alone. Hopefully doctors in the U.K. don’t face the same litigious terrors that those in the U.S. do so that they aren’t resisting out of fear. Finally, keeping track of everything you’re using is important, but it may not be as helpful to others since it will be difficult to figure which, if any, of the additional items actually helped.
…until you write your next best-seller which details each and every one and provides a framework for the next phase. 🙂
So I too would be delighted if there was much more funding to study “off-label uses” for medications, since I’ve been prescribed oddball stuff for some pretty awful conditions. (When I had akathisia I’d have taken raw mercury & uranium injections in my eyeballs to make it stop… but luckily a tiny dose of a generic blood-pressure medication got rid of it.) Medications are being used this way all the time and we could develop even better medications if we understood the interactions more.
BTW apologies to Dr. Farrimond for using third-person here if he’s (uhm… you’re) reading this. Thanks to you, Cristina, and Pat for the good news update and some more delicious answers to food questions.
Thanks for the thoughtful comment, Rich. I’ve shared it with Stu.
Great episode. Wasnt the usually type of thing, but I am glad you let the listeners know how he is doing.