Data quirks, p-hacking, and researcher apathy

What does the body of evidence say on the topic of gluten, celiac disease, and non-celiac gluten sensitivity? Plus: a puzzling finding in nutritional epidemiology is painted as a conspiracy, and the FDA is getting sued by people who claim the abortion drug mifepristone was wrongly approved… twenty years ago.

Block 1:

(2:26) Gluten: what gluten is, what celiac disease is, whether or not it's an allergy, the genetic cause, the solution, and how to test for it

Block 2:

(10:04) Gluten: gluten sensitivity (NCGS) and other explanations for its symptoms, including FODMAPs

Block 3:

(26:12) A mystery for the ages: is ice cream… good for you?

Block 4:

(43:53) The lawsuit against the abortion drug mifepristone

* Jingle by Joseph Hackl

* Theme music: "Fall of the Ocean Queen" by Joseph Hackl

* Assistant researcher: Nicholas Koziris

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Jingle Lyrics:

FODMAPs! Woo-oo!

It's not gluten, it really is

FODMAPs! Woo-oo!

Unless you have celiac, it's really

FODMAPs! Woo-oo!

F-f-f fructose, lactose, fructans

Found in bread and dairy and fruits

If you feel ill, just avoid these

FODMAPs! Woo-oo!

Some foods have a lot of them, it's

FODMAPs! Woo-oo!

Other foods are low in them, it's

FODMAPs! Woo-oo!

References:

1) Alan Levinovitz's The Gluten Lie: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23280245-the-gluten-lie

2) Cancer incidence in people with celiac disease: https://doi.org/10.1053/gast.2002.36585

3) Testing for gluten-related disorders: https://doi.org/10.1155/2011/642452

4) Trends in gluten avoidance: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2016.10.012

5) First gluten sensitivity trial mentioned: https://doi.org/10.1038/ajg.2010.487

6) Second gluten sensitivity trial mentioned, with FODMAPs: https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2013.04.051

7) Crossover trial of non-celiac gluten sensitivity in children: https://doi.org/10.1038/ajg.2017.483

8) The Atlantic article on the ice cream problem: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2023/05/ice-cream-bad-for-you-health-study/673487/

9) Scientific American's write-up on the legal case surrounding mifepristone: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/mifepristone-is-safe-a-court-ruling-reducing-access-to-it-is-dangerous/

It's Not Twitter, But It'll Do:

1) Jonathan's interview in the Tribune: https://www.thetribune.ca/sci-tech/combatting-pseudoscience-with-reason-and-rationality-030423/

2) Dr. Jonathan Howard's book, We Want Them Infected: https://redhawkpublications.com/We-Want-Them-Infected-p547021769

3) Chris' article on the misguided use of honey to treat allergies: https://montrealgazette.com/opinion/christopher-labos-no-eating-honey-wont-help-your-seasonal-allergies

Music Credits:

The following music was used for this media project:

Music: Wish For Victory by MusicLFiles

Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/8102-wish-for-victory

License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license