Here's One Crazy Reason Scientists Hate Dr. Oz

Because he’s a fraud. There I said it. They hate him because he’s a fraud and when his advice is checked, it turns out that it’s complete bullshit and that chewing saffron extract will do jack all to make you a leaner, meaner sex machine. Is anyone else surprised?

I must admit that I tried the saffron chews thing to curb my appetite — I watched the show once while hiding from my family on a cruise ship — and found that it didn’t work. But I blamed myself, not Dr. Oz because he has a medical degree and all I have is a lack of motivation to exercise and a desire to fit into the european sizes at H&M. But Dr. Oz, my friends, Dr. Oz has done us wrong.

The British Medical Journal has just published a study in which they had scientists (real people who do real science every day!) sit down and watch some of the doctor talk shows on TV and what they found was that at least 50 percent of the advice Dr. Oz and his pals are giving you is wrong.

From Mic:

The Dr. Oz Show‘s most common recommendation was dietary (“Carb load your plate at breakfast”) while The Doctors often told viewers to seek medical advice. However, the study’s authors noted that specific benefits associated with these recommendations were often missing, as well as just how big of an impact these benefits would have.

“Anyone who followed the advice provided would be doing so on the basis of a trust in the host or guest rather than through a balanced explanation of benefits, harms and costs,” the study’s authors wrote. Even more troubling, they added: “The near absence of potential conflict of interest reporting further challenges viewers’ ability to balance the information provided.”

So, that’s great. I know that you get what you pay for when you listen to Oprah’s friends and a dude who used to be on The Bachelor but I really wanted to believe in those saffron chews and the face reading that would tell me whether I had cancer or not. I guess it’s back to self help books for me. But not Dr. Oz’s…because that’s $19.95 worth of hardback bound fraud.