How diet gurus hook us with religion veiled in science

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  • sofaking6
    sofaking6 Posts: 4,589 Member
    edited June 2015
    I would like to see him differentiate between "religion" and "tactics used to get people to give you their money". I feel like anything people believe without evidence is being called a religion these days. And maybe that's valid but my instincts say no.

    I really liked his diet plan with the highlights though, that was really effective at breaking down the sales pitch. I might keep that around to show people.

    ETA: I wish there was a Like button, thank you for the interesting link :)
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,642 Member
    edited June 2015
    yeah, yup, uh huh...and then:
    How was I able to see through the madness? By rejecting conventional thinking and paying attention to genuine science, not myth! And after you read my diet, you'll be able to do the same.
  • EvanKeel
    EvanKeel Posts: 1,904 Member
    Well, I think it's the difference between a "faith-based" platform-and I'm using faith in a more literal sense, and a "knowledge-based" platform. In that instance, knowledge would rely specifically on evidence in a shared reality, perceptions depending. And it's very easy to jump concepts of faith (belief of something in the absence of evidence) to organized religion.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    “Emotional excitement reaches men through tea, tobacco, opium, whisky, and religion.” — George Bernard Shaw (1856 – 1950)

    http://www.salon.com/2014/01/04/this_is_your_brain_on_religion_uncovering_the_science_of_belief/

    The sector of our brain that handles factual truth lies right beside the part that manages faith. No wonder people defend both virulently.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    Fabulous read. He had me hooked from the start when he talked about the illusion of control fad or what I call named diets gives. I've done lots of reading on the subject of faith, so this line of thinking about dieting resonates with me.

    I also really like what he did at the end there, showing how easy it is to misuse science to mislead people.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    _John_ wrote: »
    yeah, yup, uh huh...and then:
    How was I able to see through the madness? By rejecting conventional thinking and paying attention to genuine science, not myth! And after you read my diet, you'll be able to do the same.

    Did you keep reading, John? Click on the highlights. It's not a real diet. He demonstrates how someone packages a diet plan and wraps it in a veneer of science and breaks it down by debunking his own "plan".

  • snikkins
    snikkins Posts: 1,282 Member
    The money aspect of it makes me think of cults more so than religion, but the points still stand. Thanks for this!
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,642 Member
    PeachyCarol wrote: »
    _John_ wrote: »
    yeah, yup, uh huh...and then:
    How was I able to see through the madness? By rejecting conventional thinking and paying attention to genuine science, not myth! And after you read my diet, you'll be able to do the same.

    Did you keep reading, John? Click on the highlights. It's not a real diet. He demonstrates how someone packages a diet plan and wraps it in a veneer of science and breaks it down by debunking his own "plan".

    that's not his book...but this is (linked at the bottom) http://www.amazon.com/The-Gluten-Lie-Other-Myths/dp/1941393063/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1430947149&sr=8-1
  • sofaking6
    sofaking6 Posts: 4,589 Member
    _John_ wrote: »
    PeachyCarol wrote: »
    _John_ wrote: »
    yeah, yup, uh huh...and then:
    How was I able to see through the madness? By rejecting conventional thinking and paying attention to genuine science, not myth! And after you read my diet, you'll be able to do the same.

    Did you keep reading, John? Click on the highlights. It's not a real diet. He demonstrates how someone packages a diet plan and wraps it in a veneer of science and breaks it down by debunking his own "plan".

    that's not his book...but this is (linked at the bottom) http://www.amazon.com/The-Gluten-Lie-Other-Myths/dp/1941393063/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1430947149&sr=8-1

    But the quote that bugged you was referring to that blurb about plastic making us fat. Read it if you didn't, making sure to click on the highlights.
  • Lourdesong
    Lourdesong Posts: 1,492 Member
    Really good article. I would also add that's there's an element of giving people "identity" as another selling point to fad diets. And the stench of gnosticism (i.e. people who know, or are in the know about what's really what, which sets them apart from the masses/sheep) is often strong in fad diets.

  • snikkins
    snikkins Posts: 1,282 Member
    sofaking6 wrote: »
    _John_ wrote: »
    PeachyCarol wrote: »
    _John_ wrote: »
    yeah, yup, uh huh...and then:
    How was I able to see through the madness? By rejecting conventional thinking and paying attention to genuine science, not myth! And after you read my diet, you'll be able to do the same.

    Did you keep reading, John? Click on the highlights. It's not a real diet. He demonstrates how someone packages a diet plan and wraps it in a veneer of science and breaks it down by debunking his own "plan".

    that's not his book...but this is (linked at the bottom) http://www.amazon.com/The-Gluten-Lie-Other-Myths/dp/1941393063/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1430947149&sr=8-1

    But the quote that bugged you was referring to that blurb about plastic making us fat. Read it if you didn't, making sure to click on the highlights.

    So awesome and clever.

  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    The one star reviews on his book are everything wrong with the myths he's writing about. I might want to read his book. It seems like a good companion to Matt Fitzgerald's Diet Cults.
  • royaldrea
    royaldrea Posts: 259 Member
    _John_ wrote: »
    PeachyCarol wrote: »
    _John_ wrote: »
    yeah, yup, uh huh...and then:
    How was I able to see through the madness? By rejecting conventional thinking and paying attention to genuine science, not myth! And after you read my diet, you'll be able to do the same.

    Did you keep reading, John? Click on the highlights. It's not a real diet. He demonstrates how someone packages a diet plan and wraps it in a veneer of science and breaks it down by debunking his own "plan".

    that's not his book...but this is (linked at the bottom) http://www.amazon.com/The-Gluten-Lie-Other-Myths/dp/1941393063/ref=tmm_hrd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1430947149&sr=8-1

    Would have been really cool if you could have just admitted you were wrong.
  • royaldrea
    royaldrea Posts: 259 Member
    This was brilliant, thanks for sharing!
  • kvcreed
    kvcreed Posts: 29 Member
    I knew it! Dastardly Packaging! ;)

    - awesome article! Thanks for sharing!
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,642 Member
    royaldrea wrote: »
    This was brilliant, thanks for sharing!

    umm...I get the satire...but he says so many diets are wrong (or implies it) by the sarcastic tone, then offers little substance.

    Then the link at the bottom is to buy his book...which is the same way the thing he talks against gets you to buy something.

    Sure, I agree that fad diets fool people, but it still hit me as off (even if the quote I linked is meant to be sarcastic/satire) as the article is kind of still a "sales pitch" to read his book.
  • sofaking6
    sofaking6 Posts: 4,589 Member
    _John_ wrote: »
    royaldrea wrote: »
    This was brilliant, thanks for sharing!

    umm...I get the satire...but he says so many diets are wrong (or implies it) by the sarcastic tone, then offers little substance.

    Then the link at the bottom is to buy his book...which is the same way the thing he talks against gets you to buy something.

    Sure, I agree that fad diets fool people, but it still hit me as off (even if the quote I linked is meant to be sarcastic/satire) as the article is kind of still a "sales pitch" to read his book.

    I see your point - BUT (of course there's a but) I think his point is more about the HOW of convincing people to buy into your diet by using a formulaic sales pitch that is easy to spot and also about how once you can spot it you can avoid being convinced by it. He may be making a pitch for his book but not by using the formula he shows in the example.
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,642 Member
    edited June 2015
    **** I'm turning into (banned member)...even though I'm right (in my mind about the article being a sales pitch), I agree with the author and want to read the book.,
  • royaldrea
    royaldrea Posts: 259 Member
    _John_ wrote: »
    royaldrea wrote: »
    This was brilliant, thanks for sharing!

    umm...I get the satire...but he says so many diets are wrong (or implies it) by the sarcastic tone, then offers little substance.

    Then the link at the bottom is to buy his book...which is the same way the thing he talks against gets you to buy something.

    Sure, I agree that fad diets fool people, but it still hit me as off (even if the quote I linked is meant to be sarcastic/satire) as the article is kind of still a "sales pitch" to read his book.

    I often see news sites refer to the work of the authors of their articles (and to their twitter handles etc). Maybe that's why I'm not struck by it in the same way as you are. I think that probably his book expounds further on what the article is about in any event, so if the article is a plug I'm fine with it, I think it's reasonable, and I don't think it impacts the thrust of the article whatsoever.

    I don't think he was trying to prove that fad diets are wrong per se, but was demonstrating how fad diet proponents can and do use pseudo-science and inconclusive science and mystical language to persuade people into believing that something is a definite when it really isn't. That seemed to be the substance of the article and there was plenty of it in my view.

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