Holford Watch: Patrick Holford, nutritionism and bad science

Professor Patrick Holford of Teesside University and Head of Science and Education at Biocare has an unerring sense for his endorsements (see, e.g., the qLink with the unconnected coil and the dLan that may enhance your exposure to EMR).

It shows commendable loyalty to one’s partners that his name is showing up in Google Sponsored Links, advertising blood tests that came in for especial criticism in this week’s report from the House of Lords on allergy and allergic disease in the UK. (more…)

I don’t know, you can’t put together a decent conspiracy nowadays without some daft blogger publishing all the details on his public site.  All these years of working with Big Pharma, the Illuminati, and the alien lizards - planning for ultra-secret Skeptic’s Circle action - and now the Conspiracy Factor blog has put all the details online.  Doh - I mean, working with people like that, what can you do…  Anyway, it’s there now, so you may as well read about this week’s Skeptic’s Circle - before They take down the evidence.  Please leave your details here, or on the Conspiracy Factor blog, to facilitate Their tracking you down and erasing your memory; thanks in advance for your cooperation.

It comes too late for inclusion in the Circle - though on the basis of this sterling work the good doctor will be welcome at our next planning meeting, after the necessary initiation - but Dr Aust’s blogging spleen also benefits from examination.  Go and read about his investigation of Patrick Holford’s mentors and inspirations.

Given the current discussion of allergy and allergy testing around the recent House of Lords report, and Shinga’s recent post on IgG testing, this seems like a good time to look at some words of wisdom from Professor Patrick Holford of Teesside University. For Holford, “Although it is hard to believe, [health dowsing] is an accurate and simple method of diagnosis that uses intuition rather than logical thinking to determine people’s nutritional needs” (Holford 1983, 132). Unsurprisingly, health dowsing is not an effective diagnostic technique: there is no plausible mechanism by which it might work, and no good evidence that it does.

It is interesting to see Holford focusing on “intuition rather than logical thinking”: sadly, given the type of ‘evidence’ that Holford views as “deeply impressive”, it appears that Prof Holford’s approach to science and nutrition is failing in certain ways. Here at Holford Watch, we feel that logical thinking about nutrition can be useful: relying on intuition is inadequate. I trust that Teesside’s staff will currently be thinking logically about certain interesting features of Patrick Holford’s application for his professorial post.

Holford, P. (1983) The Whole Health Manual, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire: Thorsons.

Professor Patrick Holford of Teesside University and Head of Science and Education at Biocare is a staunch advocate of direct to consumer IgG food intolerance tests and is impressed by the “sound science” that underlies these tests. Holford is convinced that:

The evidence for IgG antibody reactions as a basis for food intolerances continues to grow, including well designed randomised controlled trials, however, some health professionals just haven’t kept up to date. Perhaps it’s because a ‘home test’ takes the power away from the professional and puts it in your hands.

However, Holford is also swayed by the scientific research for a neck pendant that protects wearers from the evil eye of electromagnetic radiation so one might be tempted to generalise from that as to the scientific credibility of some of his endorsements. (more…)

Professor Patrick Holford of Teesside University and Head of Science and Education at Biocare has an interesting take on what level of “scientific proof is deeply impressive”. For example, see Holford’s endorsement of the QLink:

There are many gadgets out there promising to protect you from electromagnetic radiation and give your energy a boost. I’ve investigated many and didn’t find any stacked up. The one exception is QLink. The scientific proof is deeply impressive…

After researching all the products available that claim to combat EMR, I’ve finally found one where the science stacks up: QLink. This revolutionary pendant provides continuous support against EMR via a microchip which resonates at the same frequencies as the body’s own energetic field. This so-called Sympathetic Resonance Technology works along the same principles as acupuncture – but without the needles! [Emphasis added.]

So, the magical coil may not be connected to anything and Holford appears to have an imperfect understanding of EMR, but he is impressed by the quality of the research. (more…)

As Professor of Mental Health and Nutrition at Teesside University, Patrick Holford may soon be advising students on the importance of proper presentation for their academic work. It is therefore distressing to note that he is rather more lax about standards on his own website.

Dr Alex Richardson has researched - among other things - the links between food, behaviour and conditions like dyslexia. PatrickHolford.com is selling her latest book, but it appears that their copywriter may not have been taking his/her fish oil: there are rather too many typos in the text. Parents are informed that “The right food choices can transform your chiild [sic].” Maybe they will, eventually, even allow the development of an adult who can spell ‘child’. (more…)

In his New Optimum Nutrition for the Mind, Professor Patrick Holford of Teesside University advises readers to “Avoid any form of sugar” [1]. This is a terrible idea - among other problems, fruit contains sugar (fructose) and a fructose-free diet would therefore tend to be horribly unbalanced. With this in mind, Holford’s advice is troubling for a number of reasons.

Firstly, it annoys me that Holford makes such basic mistakes (on occasion, he even advises snacking on fruit - which is sound advice, but not compatible with Holford’s advice to ‘avoid any form of sugar’) [2]. As the newly appointed Visiting Professor of Mental Health and Nutrition at Teesside, this apparent confusion is rather worrying: this is not the type of the mistake that one would expect a professorial level nutritionist to make. (more…)

Prof Patrick Holford of Teesside University excites remarkable admiration; so much so that Holford Watch is regularly reproved for merely questioning the Holford interpretation of science and nutrition.

We’ve previously referred to the oddities of the Holford way with simple numbers whereby, e.g., 4 days is the equivalent of a month and a striking inability to interpret simple messages accurately. (more…)

Prof Patrick Holford of Teesside University has been the recipent of a useful lesson from the ASA, the organisation that oversees advertising claims to ensure that they are:

legal, decent, honest and truthful.

Universities typically hope that their professors are in the news because they have won prestigious awards, published ground-breaking research or attracted substantial research grants. It is difficult to anticipate Teesside University’s reaction to an ASA adjudication against Holford as a newly appointed Visiting Professor although it must be helpful that the advertisement that breached the CAP (Committee of Advertising Practice) Code was disseminated prior to his appointment. However, given Holford’s recent characterisation of some children as ’stupid’ or ‘thicker’ it is particularly surprising to learn that this is not the first ASA adjudication against Holford which is a dispiriting indication of his willingness to take useful criticism or learn from appropriate authorities (see Update 1).

The 100%health response to the ASA challenges was rather odd; it smacked of the arrogant manipulator who slopes around in Revenge Tragedies rubbing his hands as he influences others to believe his truths and enact his plan. As ever, the manipulator-with-enormous-self-belief seems to be completely undone when the cunning plan goes awry. (more…)

Prof Patrick Holford’s slapdash attitude to stating qualifications and work experience seems to be strangely contagious: Holford Watch came to this conclusion after seeing the list of ION teaching staff and their qualifications that was provided to Dr Ben Goldacre earlier this year.

Several members of the list have been subject to a cursory Google and a number of them have significant associations with a variety of supplement companies which is entirely understandable; however, that is not the focus of this post. (more…)