What a great post Steve! Something everyone should think about--testing, not making assumptions without all the facts, etc.
Samala, Renee -------Original Message------- From: Steve G Date: 12/31/2009 8:44:17 AM To: silver-list@eskimo.com Subject: CS>Cause and Effect Upon reflection, I thought I'd add a bit about how the unscientific pursuit of the cause and effect approach can go astray. As a child, my brother noticed that every time he ate breakfast, he would have severe stomach pain shortly thereafter. He found that if he skipped breakfast he would avoid this stomach pain. So, he identified the cause of his pain as breakfast, and he used this knowledge to merely skip that meal and thereby avoid the stomach pain. He followed this regimen until about age 60. At this age, he was considerably overweight at about 220 pounds, far too much for his very slender bone structure even though he was 6 feet tall. He was uncomfortable Also, he had ongoing serious trouble with GERD which he treating by consuming huge amounts of antacid every day. Anyway, he decided that he had to do SOMETHING to lose weight and so for the first time in his life he decided he needed to go on a weight loss diet. He flipped a coin and chose Atkins. As most of you know, Atkins is mostly about avoiding almost all carbohydrates. You also eat meals at least 3 times a day and breakfast is very important. My brother decided to resume eating breakfast after a 50 year hiatus and just 'tough out' the pain. Here is what happened. First thing was that he had no stomach pain following breakfast. Second thing was that he felt great. Third thing was that he no longer needed to take Tums in huge quantities. He found it easy to stick to the low-carb protocol and lost weight so quickly people thought he had become ill. After three months he decided to weigh himself and found that his weight had dropped to 167 and he felt too thin. He eased off a bit, and got to 170. It's been about 10 years now since that moment. He has eased off a bit more and now weighs 180. He is tall, lean and trim. Looks great and is healthy. He does not look as if he is much older than me, if at all, although he is 13 years older. He uses about 5 Tums a month now instead of 15-30 a day. So, was he right or wrong when he determined that breakfast was the cause of his stomach pain? Well, here's the thing.... yes and no. It wasn't breakfast per se that was the problem, but rather WHAT he was eating for breakfast. As a child, he would typically have oatmeal or shredded wheat for breakfast. Both of these are high carb breakfasts with low protein. This sort of breakfast is very hard on people who have esophageal reflux, like he does. If he had been eating sausage and eggs for breakfast back then, I suspect the story would have been different. So, because of his logical, but incorrect, assumption due to observed cause and effect, he spent 50 years avoiding breakfast unnecessarily. Please don't take this as an Atkins promotion. I do NOT promote it as I feel it is an unbalanced and extreme diet. It's just what works for him. On a similar note, I have a sister who is certain that sex discrimination is the cause of why she has never gotten into higher paying jobs despite her excellent education. It has not occurred to her that other factors such as her clerical mentality and passive approach might be a factor. It is much easier to blame something outside of yourself than something inside. Cause and effect can be a great tool, but also a great trap. Steve G.
