Healthcare: just a reminder

The forums here on MFP should not be treated as a substitute for professional health care. MFP makes this quite clear to us at the bottom of every forum page:

Posts by members, moderators and admins should not be considered medical advice and no guarantee is made against accuracy.

If you're really in need of health advice please schedule an appointment with your doctor, nurse practitioner, or other qualified member of the healthcare field. The people here on MFP are great, most seem quite intelligent, some are actually nurses, doctors, nutritionists, dietitians, etc. in the "real" world. However, you have to remember that the examinations and tests that lead to your individualised care plan cannot be done on the internet, and shouldn't be attempted even by those who are qualified to do so in the "real" world. It's quite dangerous and can lead to harm. Most of the medical professionals I see here are not hesitant to say "please consult your doctor", and that is brilliant and how it should be.

What you should be seeking from MFP isn't health advice, but support and motivation. MFP members can only tell you what has worked for them, and it's fabulous that it did, but you should never assume that what's worked for another will work for you. There are some general health rules that can be followed by almost everyone in the world, e.g., wash hands to prevent infection, but there are very few regarding weight loss that can be safely applied to the "almost everyone" category. One of those few rules is that eating less calories than your body requires to sustain your body function and personal activities throughout the day will result in weight loss--and even that rule only applies to "almost everyone".

The bottom line is that you should get your medical/health advice from medical/health professionals, and get your support and motivation from MFP users. If you see someone's success story and they've detailed how they succeeded, don't just start doing what they say. Print out the story, take it to your doctor, and ask them if it could work for you. And if you don't think your doctor is acting in your best interest remember that you can always see someone else. Just remember that the medical/health community exists to help you, not to harm you. :flowerforyou: