Pay No Attention To The Man Behind The Curtain

Healthcare providers are often in a position of influence in terms of the use of supplements, vitamins, and alternative therapies by their patients, but patients are also swayed by the latest medical “experts” in the media. 

A couple of weeks ago, the controversial physician/TV personality Mehmet Oz, MD was called to appear before a Senate hearing on consumer protection. During this hearing, Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) and Mary Engle of the Federal Trade Commission confronted Dr. Oz about playing a role in perpetuating scams involving a variety of weight-loss products and frequently referring to them as “magic” and a “miracle”.

Dr. Oz argues that he is a proponent of alternative medicine and that although his goal is to educate viewers, he does not sell or endorse any supplements or products. He made this claim despite a variety of video clips from his daily television show and website and other evidence offered by members of the committee.

Mehmet Oz, MD received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, an MD degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and an MBA from the Wharton School. He has served as a member of the Department of Surgery at Columbia University and as the director of the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

In addition to his clinical work, Dr. Oz has co-authored six New York Times best sellers. He began to make regular appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show as a medical expert and eventually this led to his own daily show, The Dr. Oz Show, starting in 2009.

Critics point out that despite his training as a physician, Dr. Oz has endorsed not only a wide variety of vitamins and supplements with little to no scientific basis to support their safe and effective use, but that he has also endorsed faith healing, homeopathy, and psychic communication with the dead.

As healthcare providers, we have the opportunity to positively influence our patients’ medical decisions. However, unless asked directly, many patients will not volunteer information regarding the non-prescribed substances they are taking. There has been a significant increase in the number of such products that patients are routinely taking—the supplement and vitamin industry is estimated to be a thirty-two billion dollar industry each year in the U.S. alone.

I always make a point to inquire about non-prescribed treatments that patients use.  I try to do this in a non-judgmental way, offering opinions if asked and framing my responses in terms of the amount and quality of the data that we have supporting the use of various products, as well as the factual information regarding the lack of regulatory oversight of the supplement and vitamin industry.

In some cases, such as when patients are taking something that I consider to be dangerous or categorically nonsensical (i.e., homeopathy) I will strongly suggest that they stop the use of those products and will provide them with information supporting my recommendation.

Do you routinely ask patients about their use of vitamins, supplements, etc.? If so, how do you address their questions about your opinion of their use?

Chris Bojrab, MD, is the president of Indiana Health Group, the largest multidisciplinary behavioral health private practice in Indiana, established in 1987. He is a board certified psychiatrist and a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association who treats child, adolescent, adult, and geriatric patients. His areas of interest include psychopharmacology, sleep disorders, and gambling addiction. For more information and disclosures, visit  www.chrisbojrabmd.com

The views expressed on this blog are solely those of the blog post author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Psych Congress Network or other Psych Congress Network authors.