# This is not a pit, per se, but - was just admonished for NOT taking medical advice? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 28, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516 "2006-09-28T18:04:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/1 "2006-09-28T18:04:41Z")
So, in [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=389841) poorly written, gong show of a thread, I asked a question about aspartame - specifically which diet drinks are made without it. I also erroneously included the information that my physician had advised me not to drink beverages with aspartame because it can raise blood pressure. My question about aspartame free drinks was answered, although I still don’t know if I can get Diet Rite in Canada. However, I also received a boat load of what can only be described as medical advice, IMHO, suggesting that aspartame does **NOT** increase blood pressure, including links to cites suggesting that it may actually lower blood pressure. I expressed concern over taking medical advice from a message board, as opposed to my actual physician, and a few posters suggested that my IRL physician was incorrect, and I should take the information to her to look at, and furthermore, some of the posters suggesting that she was wrong were very, very clever and therefore, their medical opinions should not be dismissed out of hand despite being on a message board. Ok - these are all good points. BUT - then the thread was closed - no worries, my non-aspartame drink question was answered. However, in closing **samclem** says: > [@](#): > > and **the OP has the benefit of informed opinions from other posters(including a real doctor)about the second part of the OP and choses to disregard it**, leaving this open serves no useful purpose. Huh? That sounds an awful lot like **samclem** is taking me to task for **NOT** taking medical advice from a message board, and instead relying on the medical advice of my actual physician. That’s…ridiculous - isn’t it? We’re not supposed to ask for medical advice, but if we’re offered it and it happens to come from a smart poster we should value it over the opinion of our actual physician? OK… Like I said - this isn’t really a pit. I’m not particularly annoyed - just confused. Considering that **samclem** closes the most innocuous medically themed threads I’m sort of surprised that in closing my non-medically (at least not intentionally) themed thread, he implies that I’m foolish for not following the medical advice contained within it. Anyhow - that’s it. I’m just curious as to his motivation for including the little dig. Also, if anyone wants to call me a dumb ass for ignoring medical advice that I received on a message board in favour of medical advice that I received from my IRL physician, this is probably a good place to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/2 "2006-09-28T18:21:38Z")
I have nothing really to say other than that I, too, found the wording of the final post/closure a little odd. So it’s not just you. ---
**Author:** ![Sarahfeena](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sarahfeena/32/519_2.png) [@Sarahfeena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sarahfeena)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/3 "2006-09-28T18:22:10Z")
I don’t get it, either…you were clearly asking a factual question, not for a bunch of medical opinions, given by people who have never met you. Just because you included in the post your reason for wanting to know, it doesn’t mean that this was the point of the question. Besides, how are you supposed to know that someone is, in fact, a “real doctor?” ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/4 "2006-09-28T18:30:00Z")
So it’s not just me then. Well, it’s nice to know that I’m not losing it. Mind - it’s still early yet - there’s still ample time for someone to come in here and call me an assfaced baboon with less sense than God gave a rake. ---
**Author:** ![badbadrubberpiggy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/57b2e6/32.png) [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/5 "2006-09-28T18:33:55Z")
Yeah, I noticed that and thought it was odd myself, especially since your original question wasn’t asking for medical advice to begin with. ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/6 "2006-09-28T18:34:35Z")
Obviously the SDMB now considers itself an authority on medical questions. Not just _an_ authority, but _the_ authority. When SDMB input [read: something someone googled] differs from real world Doctor’s input, the SDMB prevails. What’s hard to understand? You should have been banned. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/7 "2006-09-28T18:37:36Z")
[QUOTE=Waverly] Obviously the SDMB now considers itself an authority on medical questions. Not just _an_ authority, but _the_ authority. When SDMB input [read: something someone googled] differs from real world Doctor’s input, the SDMB prevails. What’s hard to understand? You should have been banned. [/QUOTE] Please let me hijack my own thread at this juncture to say that **Waverly** , you crack my shit up. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/8 "2006-09-28T18:43:10Z")
[QUOTE=Waverly] Obviously the SDMB now considers itself an authority on medical questions. Not just _an_ authority, but _the_ authority. When SDMB input [read: something someone googled] differs from real world Doctor’s input, the SDMB prevails. What’s hard to understand? You should have been banned. [/QUOTE] I think we’ve just found our newest moderator! (Although you really need to swear more.) ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/9 "2006-09-28T18:51:40Z")
Right, you’re not supposed to take medical advice on the SDMB, unless we all know it’s right. Fighting… something… since 1973… ---
**Author:** ![crazyjoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@crazyjoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crazyjoe)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/10 "2006-09-28T18:55:39Z")
I saw the thread, and this is what I thought with regards to the little “dig.” Based on all of the advice and documentation given in the thread, the least you could have done was acknowledge that you would talk to your physician about it. Or do a webmd search on it, or something. I ask my doctor questions regardign stuff I look up all the time. Sometimes he’s amused, other times he just gives me what I take to be the straight dope, and we move on. Any doc that gets offended because you tried to educate yourself as a patient should no longer be your provider of services. I mean, you don’t need to go into your doctor and say “all of my internet friends say you’re an idiot” but you were given some reputable cites from medical establishments and chose to discount them all vs what your doctor told you. Now, I’m with you in that I listen to what my doctor says vs people on the internet, but I do check with him when I find interesting information. For example, I asked once about an herbal supplement that was supposed to help my condition. He said “I have seen info on that, and there’s no statistically significant evidence that it does what it claims. You can try it, it won’t hurt you, but it might make your wallet lighter.” Given that it was about 200/bottle, I decided I’d continue with the normal course of treamtment (that was covered by my insurance) and leave out the supplements. But you’ll never know unless you ask, and your tone in that thread didn’t make it soudn like you were inclined to ask at all. ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/11 "2006-09-28T19:00:41Z")
[QUOTE=alice\_in\_wonderland] Please let me hijack my own thread at this juncture to say that **Waverly** , you crack my shit up. 😃 [/QUOTE] The feeling is mutual. i.e. I crack me up too. By the way, you actually heard from two doctors in that thread, as DrDeth gave you what-for as well. Sure, he says he’s not a real doctor, but he sounds genuinely Hippocratic. He used BOTH google and wiki!! Giraffe, did you know that affectionate necking among same-sexed giraffes, progressing up to, and including, mounting and sexual climax is more common than male-female reproductive behavior? Not that there is anything wrong with that. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/12 "2006-09-28T19:04:30Z")
[QUOTE=crazyjoe] But you’ll never know unless you ask, and your tone in that thread didn’t make it soudn like you were inclined to ask at all. [/QUOTE] I guess that’s because I wasn’t asking for medical advice, or for tips on how to deal with my physician. I was asking about diet drinks that don’t contain aspartame. Sure, I might mention it to my physician next time I’m in her office, but I’m sure as hell not making an extra trip to do it. Furthermore, even if my physician is totally full of crap, aspartame has **NO** positive health benefits that I’m going to be missing out on if I cut it out of my diet. While other posters’ speculations about the veracity of my physician’s claim make for an interesting side hijack, they are in no way pertinent to my op, nor are they in any way relevant to how closely I should follow my physician’s medical advice. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/13 "2006-09-28T19:07:15Z")
[QUOTE=alice\_in\_wonderland] Mind - it’s still early yet - there’s still ample time for someone to come in here and call me an assfaced baboon with less sense than God gave a rake. [/QUOTE] You are an ass-faced baboon with less sense than God gave a rake. However, that was a bogus closing. Even a blind ass-faced baboon fnds an acorn every once in a while. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/14 "2006-09-28T19:11:39Z")
[QUOTE=Waverly] By the way, you actually heard from two doctors in that thread, as DrDeth gave you what-for as well. . [/QUOTE] And God knows that following medical advice from someone named Dr. _Deth_ is a super good idea. ---
**Author:** ![Waverly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/57b2e6/32.png) [@Waverly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Waverly)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/15 "2006-09-28T19:14:10Z")
[QUOTE=crazyjoe] Based on all of the advice and documentation given in the thread, the least you could have done was acknowledge that you would talk to your physician about it. [/QUOTE] Of course! Because that’s what I do when I find myself disagreeing with a bunch of people on a tangential point that I’m not even interested in… I thank them all, and agree to spend time and money looking into whatever the hell it is they insist I look into. It’s no imposition, really, and I think my insurance covers “well visits to ask questions the SDMB want me to.” I might even spring for a trip to the emergency room for something that important. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/16 "2006-09-28T19:14:35Z")
[QUOTE=Contrapuntal] You are an ass-faced baboon with less sense than God gave a rake. [/QUOTE] Thank you. Thank you very much. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/17 "2006-09-28T20:33:34Z")
> [@](#): > > My question about aspartame free drinks was answered, although I still don’t know if I can get Diet Rite in Canada. According to [this wikipedia article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadbury_Schweppes_Americas_Beverages), my guess would be no. That list puts Diet Rite (and the sugary beverage RC Cola) in the American list of products, but only RC is in the Canadian list. ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/18 "2006-09-28T20:41:20Z")
[QUOTE=Contrapuntal] Even a blind ass-faced baboon fnds an acorn every once in a while. [/QUOTE] If there’s an ass-faced baboon out there that _isn’t_ blind, for the love of God, I don’t want to know where its eyes are. Oh, and yeah, the thread may have run its course, but the wording of that closing was just bizarre. ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/19 "2006-09-28T20:48:27Z")
[QUOTE=Hal Briston] If there’s an ass-faced baboon out there that _isn’t_ blind, for the love of God, I don’t want to know where its eyes are. [/QUOTE] What the hell are you talking about? He’s got one eye. And it’s brown. ---
**Author:** ![YWalker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/6f9a4e/32.png) [@YWalker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YWalker)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2006, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516/20 "2006-09-28T21:33:53Z")
In my opinion, **samclem** cut you some slack for not chewing you out for being rude to **CurtC**. Calling names (Mr. Snarky Pants) and telling someone “to take your snooty tone and stuff it” is generally frowned upon in GQ. I have nothing against you, but I feel that you were the primary one being sarcastic in that thread. What I saw was people saying “Hmmm. Maybe your doc’s not right; here’s some research you could show her to verify next time that aspartame is really bad for you,” trying to save you your beloved Diet Pepsi. I think everyone recognized you’re bright enough not to throw over your doc’s opinion for the random comments on a message board. You just seemed a bit martyred in your comments there (and here), feeling that you were being hounded to drink Diet Pepsi, your doctor’s advice be damned. I didn’t see the factual advice people were handing out as hounding you. And I didn’t see **CurtC** ’s comment as snarky at all. I think he was calmly pointing out that no one was really telling you to follow their advice over a doctor’s. As you stated, it’s a case of tomato vs. tomato. (This metaphor really DOES translate poorly to this medium.) You could very well see this post as an attack on you, but that’s not how I intended it, either. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/this-is-not-a-pit-per-se-but-was-just-admonished-for-not-taking-medical-advice/374516.md?page=2)