• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

This Morning Doctor on diabetes

  • Thread starter Thread starter Luna21
  • Start Date Start Date
Absolutely appalled by the comments made. Thankfully Philip Schofield was able to bring some balance. Hopefully he will, as a professional presenter and a suppprter of DUK, push for a correction of the inaccurate and inflammatory opinions of the doctor. I always quite liked him in the past bit now I would question any of his medical opinions or advise because the types of sweeping statements and gross inaccuracies do not suggest that he is up to speed.

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
Thundercat said:
... the types of sweeping statements and gross inaccuracies do not suggest that he is up to speed.

]
Click to expand...
Apparently he did let slip that since the changes in NHS GP contracts he has only been working part-time. :roll:
 
Thanks Fergus. reminds me of a certain MP and part time GP.......I'm not sure how anyone can combine two demanding jobs of that kind -evidence seems to be emerging that its not possible.

I think it is the very fact that Chris steele is a trusted and familiar presnce which has upset many people . it was irresponsible of him to say what he did . Not what I would expect from any doctor. In fact it doesn't make sense in many ways.

I felt I had to email to make my feelings known . Judging by the response here we should expect some reaction .
 
Luna21 said:
For a Doctor to make claims which he did on live TV, claiming that all Diabetics are diabetic due to their unhealthy lifestyles and being overweight and lazy, and then only when nudged by Philip Schofield to differentiate between the Types of Diabetes is disgraceful!
Click to expand...

It is often joked in academia that PhD stands for Pin Headed Dope. Having qualifications does not automatically confer common sense. Sir Ranulph Fiennes, who ran 7 marathons in 7 days on 7 continents cannot be described as lazy yet he had to withdraw from his latest Antarctic expedition because of frostbite brought on by poor circulation due to diabetes. Qualified people who should know better make the most outrageous claims. The Oxford Dictionary of Psychological Terms defines Delusions as beliefs not held by normal people and Delusions of Grandeur as assigning levels of importance beyond that which is merited by actual achievement and states that this is 'common for doctors, university professors and by all politicians'.
 
It's so depressing to see this sort of attitude broadcast yet again by the media.

Even if it wasn't just basically wrong, it would still be cruel and unhelpful.

I doubt anything will be done about his comments. - And even if he was to apologize, it's too late. The comments are out there and people have no reason to question what they've been told.

Speaking as a T2 on a low carb diet, who can't even look at more than about 10g of carbs per meal with out going sky high, I find his comments really upsetting. Yes, I could just give in and go onto insulin. It would make my life a lot less complicated. I'm not particularly fat and I'm not lazy. But even if I was, a trusted media personality condemning me on national TV is not going to make me feel supported and encourage me to try to help myself.

I haven't been diagnosed long. Thankfully, just before the media started its diabetes bashing campaign. If I hadn't already had the diagnosis, I probably wouldn't have gone to the doctor at all. I would have taken my fat lazy self off into a corner to hide. I would have put myself on a nice low fat high carb diet to try and lose some weight before seeing the doctor, so I wouldn't face censure and ridicule. - And probably ended up in hospital within about a week!!


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
Just had an update re my complaint and it has been passed onto the This Morning team, although I hold out little hope for any kind of apology or clarification.

For those who perhaps want to make a comment, the direct e-mail address is

[email protected]
 
Luna21 said:
Just had an update re my complaint and it has been passed onto the This Morning team, although I hold out little hope for any kind of apology or clarification.

For those who perhaps want to make a comment, the direct e-mail address is

[email protected]
Click to expand...

I was just about to post the same thing. It does mean that they probably didn't know the full extent of the backlash until after this morning's programme.
 
Luna21 said:
Just had an update re my complaint and it has been passed onto the This Morning team, although I hold out little hope for any kind of apology or clarification.

For those who perhaps want to make a comment, the direct e-mail address is

[email protected]
Click to expand...

Hi Luna I hope something positive comes from this. I didn't see the programme, but it sounds very negative and coming from a GP :shock:


Please keep us updated if you can.

Best wishes RRB
 
I got this response today


Dear Sir/Madam


Thank you for your recent email regarding This Morning.

I have forwarded your email to the This Morning production team for their attention as soon as possible.
 
Much will depend on the number of protests they receive. Even if you didn't see the programme it is still possible to comment and ask for clarification of what you have heard from others.
 
I never watched the This Morning programme but found it online and had a watch and listen. My thoughts on this is that Dr Chris didn't offend me one bit and I sensed the look of concern and worry on his face when he said that type 2 is rapidly increasing. What he didn't mention was that people are in general, eating too much food every day and not burning what they eat off through doing exercise to keep them slim. There are of course many reasons for not being able to exercise, one of them is that people are working longer hours and don't get home till about 7-8pm and by the time they get in, eat some dinner, its too late for them to go off to a gym as they are worn out...... gone are the days of a 9am-5pm job and gone are the days of employment being close to home. Dr Chris also didn't mention about alcohol causing the rise in type 2. There are many people who when looking at them, don't appear to be overweight but as they reveal more about their life, its found out that they drink alcohol every day (in excess ?) and its that that has damaged the way the pancreas and the liver talk to each other.

I would like to see on tv and also discussed on radio..... the role that carbohydrate plays in weight gain and until this is done, many people will consume food that contains it in excess and wont do anything until they develop a health problem such as diabetes.
 
I have just written to This Morning too.

If we all did this some good may come of it all.

Doctor Chris Steele is a respected doctor on national TV and I think his lack of knowledge is unforgivable.

I have asked for an apology from Doctor Steele and another interview with Diabetics who know what they are talking about.

We live in hope eh....
 
I can certainly agree that this debate is necessary I am sure we would all agree . As you are T1 I don't suppose you would feel as personally involved ut the furore raised by Chris steele's comments as a T2. I never write abusive letters to TV or radio companies but I do always ask them to comment or clarify.
I never like to differentiate betwen T1s and T2s because the things we have in common are more imprtant tha the differences to me.

In a way if you are T1 -you at least know where you are- I am not underestimating any of the difficulties and I truly feel for you all and can even understand why some T1s join in the view of the media etc re T2s having 'brought it on themselves"As you say we do NOT have his debate. Many do not know they are at risk and are only doing what their peers are doing.

Alcohol consumption is not necessarily the default factor for the onset of T2in slim people-I can vouch for that in my case.
No one knows what the trigger is for sure ,but we do know that there is a genetic component.

Basically I think we have to accept that T2s are those with impaired pancreatic function or some pre-disposition towards it..

At present there is no way of identifying these individuals so, as many of them don't understand the dangers or their own individual risk , it seems a little unfair to blame them for doing what everyone else around them is doing.

The only way to change things is to change the eating and drinking patterns and lifestyle of the whole population. Only then might T2 again become a disease of the elderly -occurring when the pancreas , not as functional or enduring in some as in others , comes to the end of its useful life or begins to show signs of so doing.
 
Unbeliever said:
I can certainly agree that this debate is necessary I am sure we would all agree . As you are T1 I don't suppose you would feel as personally involved ut the furore raised by Chris steele's comments as a T2. I never write abusive letters to TV or radio companies but I do always ask them to comment or clarify.
I never like to differentiate betwen T1s and T2s because the things we have in common are more imprtant tha the differences to me.

In a way if you are T1 -you at least know where you are- I am not underestimating any of the difficulties and I truly feel for you all and can even understand why some T1s join in the view of the media etc re T2s having 'brought it on themselves"As you say we do NOT have his debate. Many do not know they are at risk and are only doing what their peers are doing.

Alcohol consumption is not necessarily the default factor for the onset of T2in slim people-I can vouch for that in my case.
No one knows what the trigger is for sure ,but we do know that there is a genetic component.

Basically I think we have to accept that T2s are those with impaired pancreatic function or some pre-disposition towards it..

At present there is no way of identifying these individuals so, as many of them don't understand the dangers or their own individual risk , it seems a little unfair to blame them for doing what everyone else around them is doing.

The only way to change things is to change the eating and drinking patterns and lifestyle of the whole population. Only then might T2 again become a disease of the elderly -occurring when the pancreas , not as functional or enduring in some as in others , comes to the end of its useful life or begins to show signs of so doing.
Click to expand...

Great post, and well put. :clap:
 
The only way to change things is to change the eating and drinking patterns and lifestyle of the whole population. Only then might T2 again become a disease of the elderly -occurring when the pancreas , not as functional or enduring in some as in others , comes to the end of its useful life or begins to show signs of so doing.
Click to expand...

thats a great point Unbeliever.

It set me thinking - the eating and drinking patterns of many of us changed around 30-50 years ago. We changed the type of wheat in our foods, we changed the amount of sugar and carbohydrates in general we eat. And we changed to low fat stuff, with artificial sugars and fats.

so maybe this has been a huge experiment gone wrong, and food manufacturers go back to non-hydrogenated and interesterated fats, and no artificial sweeteners, and the type of wheat we have eaten successfully for hundreds of generations, our bodies would go back to not being so overweight and ill, despite us eating no more calories than before?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/dieta ... ories.html

and its not because we are more sedentary, as exercise uses a minuscule amount of calories a day, unless we are marathon runners, let alone 600 cals a day.

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle ... lic-health
 
Many of us feel that way Lucy. I wasn't diagnosed until just before my 60th birthday and then entirely by accident . As my father had also had T2 ,diagnosed in his sixties I was aware of the possibility it might happen to me.
I often wonder if we had been born at a later date would we have developed the condition at an earlier age

Its shocking to think that even children are now being diagnosed wih T2. i have seen nothing to contradict the belief that the pancreas just becomes worn out. Obviously something is making it do that sooner in many individuals these days As T2 only occurs in 20% of obese people then some individuals are obviously more prone to developing itand it isn't the simple fact of being obese which leads to T2 As I said previously we have no way of identifying the susceptible but as obesity in itself can kill in many other ways , the obvious answer is to consider the entire population.

I am amazed that the obvious connection between diet and obesity is pushed to one side ,almost. Surely this is where all the research should be focused, What about the 80% who will never develop T2.? Is it ok for them to carry on as they are?

if they develop certain cancers is it acceptable to say that they brought those on themselves too? Or is it only T2 diabetics who
ought to have been able to foresee the fuure and assess their own risks by some unexplained means ?
 
Scary isn't it?

Seriously, check out the "Sugar, the bitter truth " thread of a few days ago. It's a link to a lecture given at an American university. It's long but very enlightening.

I've seen a few indications coming particularly from the States that doctors and researchers are starting to look at wider metabolic issues and changes to the western diet as reasons for the up swing in T2 cases.

We are not all fat and lazy, and, come on, how many people out there are big and unable to up their mobility for what ever reason and DON'T have Diabetes?? The media need to stop bashing people who, are in many cases doing and eating exactly the same as their non diabetic peers. The media has a wrong, or at least incomplete idea clutched in their sweaty little palms and they are going to run with it regardless of the contrary evidence.

I think what makes this latest hatchet job so hurtful, is that the source is a figure we have all, at least on some level, trusted and respected. We just didn't expect him to come out with something so wrong headed. - I pity people with doctors who think the same way he does.


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
Back
Top