# Is Dr. Oz a Quack? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 16, 2011, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107 "2011-05-16T17:06:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/41 "2011-09-21T17:35:04Z")
> [@cerberus](#): > > \ > Which means that he is spending most of his time advocating areas of medicine or science in which he has neither training nor certification. And he does so posing as an expert, with his basic MD, with no actual credentials in > nutrition or preventive medicine. Even though he’s perfectly capable of earning them. That’s what really bothers me about people like him - he is a doctor, and by all accounts a very good one at what he’s trained in, but he lends his credibility to things that don’t deserve it, and many, many people don’t use any critical thinking to differentiate Dr. Oz, thoracic surgeon and Dr. Oz, expert on apple juice. I’m not sure who to blame for that. ---
**Author:** ![Toucanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Toucanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toucanna)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/42 "2011-09-21T17:53:50Z")
[slight hijack] _“I’m not a licensed psychologist, but I play one on TV!”_ > [@Kolga](#): > > {snip}Dr. Phil does not hold a license to practice psychology in any state, which does not make him a quack, but makes him an unreliable “expert.”…he’s as reliable a psychology expert as Rush Limbaugh is as a “news commentator.” It _pains_ me, physically and mentally to type this, as I cannot stand Phil McGraw, but he can be considered a reliable expert on psychology. That he no longer holds a license to practice does not mean the psychological concepts he espouses are unsound. If you strip him of his folksy, good-ol’-boy, just-tellin’-it-like-it-is [del]smug sense of righteousness[/del] charm, the underlying concepts are basic ones taught in mainstream training programs for psychologists, social workers, counselors, etc. and are found in many publications written for the layperson. FWIW, I have “channeled” Dr. Phil a few times, by delivering advice to some people in the style he uses. They were the sort of people who would find him credible and authoritative. I beg of you (generic “you”) not to interpret my defense of the psychological school of thought McGraw espouses as support for or endorsing his sense of ethics, morals, manner of putting his training into action, way of expressing himself, politics, religious beliefs, attitudes towards gender dynamics, choice of professional associates, career choice(s), or anything else to do with him. I would really appreciate that. Thanks. I always wondered if Ohpree put Dr. Pill on her show as quid-pro-quo for getting the beef lawsuit tossed out. Suspsicious minds want to know![/slight hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/43 "2011-09-21T18:01:09Z")
The Drs on [White Coat Underground](http://scientopia.org/blogs/whitecoatunderground/?s=Dr.+Oz) do not think highly of him. “[Dr. Oz, you’re not helping diabetics](http://scientopia.org/blogs/whitecoatunderground/2011/02/24/dr-oz-youre-not-helping-diabetics/)” ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/44 "2011-09-21T20:33:09Z")
It seems like the only quack free doctor on TV is Sanjay Gupta on CNN. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/45 "2011-09-21T20:38:25Z")
I was surprised to see Dr. Oz quoted quite a bit in the excellent Mary Roach book “Stiff” just because he’s a heart expert. This was before he was brought to us by Oprah. I think the book came out in 2003 and his first appearance on Oprah was in 2004. ---
**Author:** ![freep5637](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cdc98d/32.png) [@freep5637](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freep5637)\ **Post date:** [September 23, 2011, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/46 "2011-09-23T08:04:22Z")
> [@Stoid](#): > > Where do you get that? As recently as October of last year he was still performing [surgery](http://njmonthly.com/articles/lifestyle/people/the-doctor-is-in.html) one day a week. Different regulations for different doctors. medical doctor vs. surgeons equals totally different areas of medicine and expertise. ---
**Author:** ![omahajoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f475e1/32.png) [@omahajoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/omahajoe)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/47 "2012-01-11T22:20:28Z")
I watched the Dr. Oz show for about 1 year. I have no idea if he is a quack or not, however I have done some preliminary calculations. I estimate that it will take about $4,500 to hire a contractor to tear out my medicine cabinent and replace it with one that is the size of my garage. That is how large a medicine cabinet I will need to store all of the vitamins, minerals, herbs, home remedies, new age treatments, supplements, etc., etc., etc., that he recommends for every healthy person to take. Of course, for those who are not healthy, he has hundreds of more recommendations. They will require a medicine cabinet about twice as large as my garage because I am a healthy human being. My layman’s opinion is to immediately hit the remote and change channels if you happen on this dude’s show. You will subtract about 8.75 years from your life expectancy if you take him seriously with his obsessive compulsion to find death in every aspect of human behaviour… just saying. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Il_Palazzo)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2012, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/48 "2012-01-11T22:41:38Z")
Almost all of my knowledge of Dr. Oz comes from occasionally hearing a segment he does called The Daily Dose that is broadcast on my local news radio station. Each one is about a minute long (if that) and features health advice ranging from useful (food X is a good source of Nutrient Y which helps prevent Health Problem Z and the like) to mind-numbingly obvious. The worst was one saying that, in order to eat healthier while eating out, the secret is to look at nutritional information and use that to make decisions (shocking, I know.) I’m not sure I would call him a quack, but I certainly don’t place much stock in him. ---
**Author:** ![Allecher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a6a055/32.png) [@Allecher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Allecher)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/49 "2012-01-12T02:05:26Z")
Oz is the only person to have received James Randi’s [Pigasus award](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pigasus_Award) two years in a row. He does have a “folksy” demeanor but ultimately he promotes many quack procedures. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/50 "2012-01-12T02:28:08Z")
His CV seems to point to a very high level of intelligence and drive. > [@](#): > > Early life > > Mehmet Oz was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Suna and Mustafa Öz who had emigrated from Konya Province, Turkey.[2][3] Mustafa Öz was born in Bozkır, a small town in central Turkey. Mustafa Öz earned scholarships that allowed him to emigrate to the United States as a medical resident in 1955. Suna Öz (née Atabay) who comes from a wealthy İstanbul family is the daughter of a pharmacist with Shapsug descent on her mother’s side.[4][3] > > Oz was educated at Tower Hill School in Wilmington, Delaware. In 1982 he received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University.[5] In 1986 he obtained a joint MD and MBA degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and The Wharton School.[6] He was awarded the Captain’s Athletic Award for leadership in college[7] and was Class President followed by President of the Student Body during medical school.[8] > > [edit] Career > > Oz has been a professor at the department of Surgery at Columbia University since 2001.[9] He directs the Cardiovascular Institute and Complementary Medicine Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital.[10] His research interests include heart replacement surgery, minimally invasive cardiac surgery, and health care policy. With his collaborators, he has authored over 400 research papers, book chapters and medical books and has received several patents. He performs around 250 heart operations annually.[11] > > Oz is the founder and chairman of HealthCorps, a non-profit organization that pays a small stipend to recent college graduates to spend two years in high schools mentoring students about health, nutrition, and fitness. > > In 2009, Oz joined Jeffrey T. Arnold (founder of WebMD) as co-founder of Sharecare, Inc.,[12] providing an interactive QA platform that allows industry experts to answer health-related questions.[13] ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2012, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/51 "2012-01-12T02:37:38Z")
How does a high level of intelligence and drive battle the idea that he’s a fraud? He’ll apparently use that intelligence and drive to find success by sucking Oprah’s supersititious tit. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/52 "2012-01-13T11:41:30Z")
A quack? Nonsense. On one show he claimed that men should be having sex _at least_ 4 times per week for health reasons. 😛 Clearly the man is a sage. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/53 "2012-01-13T13:44:04Z")
> [@astro](#): > > His CV seems to point to a very high level of intelligence and drive. Being very intelligent does not make one immune to falling for quackery. Just google “Nobel disease” to come up with a depressing list of Nobel laureates who’ve touted non-efficacious cancer therapy, homeopathy, HIV/AIDS denialism and even shilled for HerbalLife. Dr. Oz may be a bright guy, but he’s also given credence to faith healers, antivaccine propaganda and notorious quackery promoters like Joe Mercola. He helped to make Oprah’s show woo-friendly. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/54 "2012-01-13T16:28:15Z")
Say what you will about Dr. Oz, but I loved him as Fozzie Bear. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/55 "2012-01-13T16:54:49Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > Say what you will about Dr. Oz, but I loved him as Fozzie Bear. Did you know he also has a cameo in _The Blues Brothers_? ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/56 "2012-01-13T19:37:36Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > Dr. Oz may be a bright guy, but he’s also given credence to faith healers, antivaccine propaganda and notorious quackery promoters like Joe Mercola. He helped to make Oprah’s show woo-friendly. I completely agree with the second part of your sentence, but have to disagree with the first. I’m not convinced that a “bright guy” would honestly support the woo that he’s introduced to the public using Oprah’s massive publicity machine. Which makes him either not bright, or a huckster. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/57 "2012-01-13T20:23:18Z")
> [@Kolga](#): > > I completely agree with the second part of your sentence, but have to disagree with the first. I’m not convinced that a “bright guy” would honestly support the woo that he’s introduced to the public using Oprah’s massive publicity machine. Which makes him either not bright, or a huckster. People can be really smart in some areas and really, really stupid in others. “Blinded by one’s own brilliance” is a fair descriptor. QtM, who is frighteningly smart in some (mostly useless) areas and extremely ignorant in others, and who is only now realizing just how pathetically little he really knows. :smack: [sub]but I know enough to not trust Dr. Oz[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/58 "2012-01-13T20:32:34Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > QtM, who is frighteningly smart in some (mostly useless) areas and extremely ignorant in others, and who is only now realizing just how pathetically little he really knows. :smack: Don’t worry-we’re here to let you know just how ignorant you are…'cause that’s what friends are for. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/59 "2012-01-13T20:43:55Z")
> [@Kolga](#): > > I completely agree with the second part of your sentence, but have to disagree with the first. I’m not convinced that a “bright guy” would honestly support the woo that he’s introduced to the public using Oprah’s massive publicity machine. Which makes him either not bright, or a huckster. I think Dr. Oz is very intelligent, and he’s also an excellent businessman. Unfortunately, people buy what he’s selling related to medicine and health because of the M.D. after his name, and that doesn’t seem right to me. ---
**Author:** ![Kolga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e56c9b/32.png) [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2012, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107/60 "2012-01-13T21:01:45Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#): > > People can be really smart in some areas and really, really stupid in others. “Blinded by one’s own brilliance” is a fair descriptor. But he has to know, HAS to know, that the anti-vax propaganda is nonsense. If he’s any kind of doctor at all, he has to know that. And don’t even get me started on the Mercola stuff. I guess I just feel better thinking that a doctor is being a dishonest huckster than truly believing in magic. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-dr-oz-a-quack/582107.md?page=4)