‘All things are poison and nothing is without poison. It is the dose that makes a thing poisonous.’
PARACELSUS, FATHER OF MODERN TOXICOLOGY (1493-1541)
Dedicated to Carole and Averil for their patience, understanding and love.
A bold book… thought provoking – Panic Nation sets out to demonstrate that, when it comes to food, we are collectively the victims of an incredible amount of hogwash… It is hard not to concede that they have a point… the arguments are sensible and even-handed. The authors do not deny that the food we eat affects us, or that it is important to eat healthily. What they do say is that our ability to look rationally at the issues is hampered by the prevalence of all sorts of myths.’
New Statesman
‘This book should be read – and then recommended by word of mouth – because it deals with matters that no free press, motivated by mass circulation profits, can afford to tolerate. Truly impressive.’
Catholic Herald
‘Could the ban on the pesticide DDT have been responsible for as many deaths as Hitler and Stalin? Could a new generation of children be plagued by measles because of hysteria against immunisation? Panic Nation makes for fascinating and provocative reading.’
Irish Independent
‘This unique collection of essays debunks the scare mongering that bombards us about the safety of our food and its effects on our health. Written by experts on each topic covered, it presents some surprising facts, such as that salt does not raise your blood pressure and food does not affect the amount of cholesterol in your blood. A good read for anyone looking for the truth among the panicked headlines that determine what goes on our plates. Controversial, but Feldman and Marks do have the facts at hand.’
The Good Book Guide
‘After reading Marks and Feldman’s look at health scares, you will learn to ignore those news items based on “scientific evidence”, outlawing yet another basic food. Moderation and good sense will be all that’s needed, together with Marks and Feldman’s guide to separate the truth from the lies.’
Publishing News
‘Panic Nation provides an interesting insight into the way that tabloid fascination with scare stories can spiral out of control, and gives readers an idea of how they can avoid putting themselves at risk without believing everything that they hear.’
Farmers Guardian
A glance at the list of distinguished contributors will reveal that this book is very much a joint effort; indeed, without the enthusiastic support of these experts the work would not carry as much authority as it does. We are indebted to the members of the Millennium Society who have helped us in identifying topics that they felt needed to be covered in the book.
Scientists are used to communicating with each other in a genre that is often difficult for those outside their circle to understand. We are indebted to Jennie Bristow for her careful editing of the manuscripts so as to reduce any technical jargon to a minimum and to ensure that all the contributions are presented in a uniform, readily understandable style.
We are grateful for the assistance and encouragement of our publisher, John Blake, and to his staff, who have helped nurse the book through to this new edition. We would like to acknowledge the help of our wives, for the guidance provided by their suggestions and criticisms, and the assistance of Michaela Bergman, one of our ‘guinea pig’ readers, who, together with those on board the yacht Holiday VII, helped shape the way in which the various contributions have been presented in the book.
Stanley Feldman gave up his biochemistry thesis on the metabolism of the woodlouse to study medicine in 1950. Qualified (hons) Westminster Medical School 1955. He trained as an anaesthetist at Westminster Hospital, Research Fellow at University Washington USA 1957–58. Senior Lecturer Postgraduate Medical School, 1962. Adviser in Post Studies Faculty Anaesthetist 1965–70. Visiting Professor Stanford University USA 1967–68. Higginbotham Lecturer Dallas, Frederickson Orator Emory. Member Senate University London, Chair of Anaesthesia University London at Charing Cross and Westminster Medical Schools (later Imperial College School Medicine). Research adviser Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital 1994–97. Examiner in physiology for Faculty Anaesthetists, College of Surgeons and Dental Faculty.
Author/Editor of 12 textbooks on anaesthesia, including Scientific Foundations of Anaesthesia, Mechanism of Action of Drugs and Drugs in Anaesthesia. Editor Journal Anaesthetic Pharmacology Review. Contributor to the Encyclopaedia Britannica.
He has published over 100 peer-reviewed papers on molecular mechanisms of drug action and post-graduate education. His most recent publication is Poison Arrows (Metro Publishing, 2005).
The author of several textbooks, Vincent Marks went from Tottenham County School on a State Scholarship in 1948 to read medicine at Oxford. Since 1970, he has been Professor, now Emeritus, of Clinical Biochemistry at the University of Surrey in Guildford. Known internationally for his research on hypoglycaemia and diabetes, he has appeared as an expert witness in some of the world’s most famous trials such as those of Claus von Bulow in America, Beverley Allitt in England and Colin Bouwer in New Zealand. His work on intestinal hormones led him to designate GIP the obesity hormone and his description of muesli-belt nutrition established him as one of the country’s best-known nutritionists. A former president of the Association of Clinical Biochemists and erstwhile vice president of the Royal College of Pathologists, Vincent was a founder member of HealthWatch. He is now semi-retired and lives in Haslemere with his wife Averil. Both their children are lawyers.
Professor Paul Aichroth, MS, FRCS, was a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at the Westminster, Chelsea & Westminster and the Westminster Children’s Hospitals over many years. His private work was undertaken mainly at the Wellington Hospital where he was Director of the Knee Surgery Unit. He is now Visiting Professor in the Department of Surgery, Imperial College, and continues teaching there. He exercises regularly!
Dr David A Bender has a BSc in Biochemistry (University of Birmingham) and a PhD from the University of London; since 1970, he has taught nutrition and biochemistry to medical students and general students. He is currently Sub-Dean (teaching) of the Royal Free Hospital and University College Medical School and a senior lecturer in the Department of Biochemistry of University College London. In addition to over 100 research publications in nutritional biochemistry, he has written 16 textbooks and contributed chapters to others. He is Editor-in-Chief of Nutrition Research Reviews and an Executive Editor of the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture.
Dr Michael Fitzpatrick has been a general practitioner in East London for the past twenty years. He has written on a wide range of medical and political subjects, including AIDS, addictions and health scares for both medical publications and the mainstream media. He writes columns in The Lancet and the British Journal of General Practice and is a regular contributor to the online magazine spiked (www.spiked-online.com). He has