“Trust the science” say the rational people. “How can we trust the science when it keeps changing its answers?” say the anti-vaxxers. If we put aside the reality that science is supposed to change its answers as it learns more, then the anti-vaxxers ask a legitimate question. Science never ‘proves’ anything, and new hypotheses are proposed all the time to explain new and old phenomena. We out here in the cheap seats must, to some extent, trust the experts when they feel sure, and right now they’re as sure as they can be on Covid and the vaccines. There is no real ‘controversy’ yet small numbers of both experts and “experts” still voice doubts. How can anyone tell when they’ve reached a consensus worthy of trust? Your friendly local mechanic doesn’t have an answer for a question that big, but we might be able to offer some insight by looking at a real medical controversy.
Dietary experts have long said the only (or at least best) way to lose weight is to consume fewer calories than we burn. The Energy-Balance model says eat right and exercise. Of course that makes sense; if there aren’t calories to store as fat then no fat forms. That hasn’t stopped either well-meaning doctors or ill-meaning hucksters from proposing other options. One seemingly legitimate hypothesis, the Carbohydrate-Insulin model of metabolism, makes the case that what we eat may be just as important as how much of it we eat.
From SciTech Daily- “In contrast to the energy balance model, the carbohydrate-insulin model makes a bold claim: overeating isn’t the main cause of obesity. Instead, the carbohydrate-insulin model lays much of the blame for the current obesity epidemic on modern dietary patterns characterized by excessive consumption of foods with a high glycemic load: in particular, processed, rapidly digestible carbohydrates. These foods cause hormonal responses that fundamentally change our metabolism, driving fat storage, weight gain, and obesity.”
But here’s the controversy… research so far doesn’t bear out the Carbohydrate-Insulin model. There have been very encouraging studies supporting it, but there’s still too much wiggle-room to either disprove or confirm the hypothesis. Scientists know about the Carbohydrate-Insulin model, but give the Energy Balance answer because it’s the best they know. The Carbohydrate-Insulin model may be a better explanation than the Energy Balance model, but they aren’t offering is as a “gosh, maybe it works” alternative until they know better. Not just suspect better, but know better.
If you want to ‘do your own research’ on this, chances are you aren’t qualified. (We certainly aren’t!) But, if you’re interested instead, here’s links to a few articles on the subject by actual qualified people…
Scientists Claim Overeating Is Not the Primary Cause of Obesity – Point to More Effective Weight Loss Strategies, American Society for Nutrition on SciTech Daily, Sep 2021
The Carbohydrate-Insulin Model of Obesity: Beyond ‘Calories In, Calories Out’, David Ludwig and Cara Ebbeling in US National Library of Medicine at the National Institutes of Health, Aug 2018
The carbohydrate-insulin model does not explain the impact of varying dietary macronutrients on the body weight and adiposity of mice, Hu, et al, in Molecular metabolism vol 32, Feb 2020
What is the Carbohydrate Insulin Model? Dr. Nicholas Norwitz in KetoDiet, May 2021
Calorie for Calorie, Dietary Fat Restriction Results in More Body Fat Loss than Carbohydrate Restriction in People with Obesity, Hall et al, in Cell Metabolism vol 22, Sep 2015
