highlights include:
NLP master practitioner
Private practice in Nutrition, Iridology and Reflexology
Practised as a Homoeopath for 15 years
Worked for 20 years in retail (wholefood shops)
Runs workshops and on both Nutrition and Homeopathy

A cooks tour of alternative therapy with the nutritional therapy of Psychology (Neuro Linguistic Programming) heading the list.

Interestingly, a course that seems to feature prominently on the members cvs is the University of Westminster BSc Honours Health Sciences: Nutritional Therapy (3 years). Can anyone shed any light on the academic credentials of this course? It is intersting to note that the “students are required to join the British Association of Nutritional Therapists (BANT), and as students may also join the Nutrition Society and the British Society for Ecological Medicine. Please note that this course does not lead to a diploma in dietetics.”

I suppose since he’s not a member of a properly regulated profession that means that there’s nothing exciting or newsworthy enough as there was when Dr Raj Persaud was suspended by the GMC for plagiarism.

That’s a great pity.

Admin edit: the parts of Holford’s work that are original are not good. The parts that are good are not original. You haven’t read that much of the blog so are in no position to comment on our balance versus his. His work is riddled by scientific error, I don’t think you understand the scale of it. We do point out the useful material (usually in line with what your grandmother might have told you) but you really haven’t read our work so are in no position to comment.

As for the remainder of your points, please consult our previous answers or Bronze Dog’s doggerel index.

Worried well westerners with nothing better to do than subject themselves to false alarms and scare-mongering.

Admin edit: it is interesting because the BNF recently called for Omega-3 capsules to be distributed to ‘the poor’ on the grounds that Omega-3 is important and UK is apparently not awash with people who enjoy oily fish.

The charity organisation that promotes better nutrition also called for greater education about the role of omega-3 in the diet of a nation that is blatantly “not an ‘oily fish-loving’” country.

“Making high-quality supplements more available to those subgroups of the population who may not normally be able to afford them, and may be likely to benefit most from them, could help individuals to achieve optimal health,” wrote Ingennus nutrition scientist, Dr Nina Bailey in a BNF paper.

Bailey added: “Substantial research is needed to clarify the role that long-chain fatty acids play in health and disease to enable the public to modulate their diet accordingly. The use of supplements and the attempts to fortify foodstuffs could play an important role in improving our intake of n-3 fatty acids, at least in some groups.”

There is obviously no dispute that people could (if they wish) buy a couple of sardines per week and feed 2-4 people with enough Omega-3 to meet their needs and for around 50-60p. I understand the intent and there may be a certain pragmatism about this but it feels misguided.

Admin edit: one may cite and cite and be a wretched scholar if one has not read the material correctly (or, sometimes, read it at all).

Shouldn’t there be a new category on book shelves for this sort of thing? Demi-fiction by the fictitiously qualified?

Admin edit: “Demi-fiction by the fictitiously qualified?” Heh. If you don’t mind, we might borrow that (with attribution).

Admin edit: interesting point. Patrick Holford refuses to consider any corrections unless he agrees with them and declares himself too busy to deal with the documented corrections on a blog.

People like HOlford are selling stuff to the worried well.

Admin edit: yes, it is very much about the sales.