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Susan Perry

Minneapolis, MN
Commenter for
3 years 49 weeks

Recent Comments

Posted on 03/09/11 at 04:58 pm in response to A doctor's plea: Get off the high-tech treadmill (and why politicians should listen)

For the record: I'm not a Dr.--not even a PhD one.

Also: I never consider the sponsor of this blog when I choose topics to write about. In fact, I've never had a conversation with anyone at UCare. I don't know what they think of the opinions I express in this blog, and, frankly, I don't care. I wouldn't have signed on to write this blog if I had been put under any constraints by the sponsor.

This is a blog, so I'm free to state my opinions, and I do so from time to time. I do...

Posted on 02/23/11 at 07:46 am in response to 'The King's Speech' is good film-making but not updated science

Bud and Hal,

As I state in my post, it's not the obligation of the film to depict current knowledge about stuttering. I certainly don't expect any film set in an historical context to explain modern approaches to medicine.

But I believe, based on conversations I've been part of, that people still believe in the outdated notion that childhood trauma or other stressors are a major cause of stuttering. That's why I decided to highlight Preston's essay and the recent research from...

Posted on 01/17/11 at 12:09 pm in response to The disreputable -- and entertaining -- spectacle that is the Golden Globes

Ouch. Now I wish I had watched it.

Posted on 12/14/10 at 01:43 pm in response to Healthy lifestyle may significantly lower risk of age-related macular degeneration, study suggests

You're correct, Stephen, and if you've read this column for any length of time, you know that I, too, dislike "sizzle" over science.

I've changed my lede to a passive verb.

Posted on 12/09/10 at 12:10 am in response to Toxic assets: Easily transferable form of BPA found on dollar bills as well as on receipts, study finds

Susan L.: I don't know the answer to your question, but I believe the report said thermal paper has been around for 50 years.

Sue H.: Both spellings are accepted, although the one you prefer is probably most common. I've changed the spelling in the story to yours so as not to distract other readers.

Thanks for your kind words about the column (and your diligent copyediting).

Posted on 11/29/10 at 06:34 pm in response to Why we should be highly skeptical of medical research

Bill:

I am highly skeptical of every medical study I read. I'm not going to stop reporting on such studies, as their publication is news. But I try to point out the limitations of the research--and conflicts of interest. Financial conflicts of interest have become a huge, huge problem in medical research--and in medical practice.

I believe that in a hundred years, people will look upon this time in medicine as we look upon the medicine of the 19th century--woefully inadequate...

Posted on 10/27/10 at 09:29 am in response to Accordion-O-Rama: Magic on a moonlit night in Minnesota

Can we persuade you to play the accordion at a MinnPost event, Pamela? Tickets would go fast.

Posted on 10/20/10 at 10:47 pm in response to Postmenopausal hormones linked to more aggressive and deadly breast cancers, study finds

Gail:

I skimmed through that website you mentioned. I found a lot of medical nonsense on it.

The idea of menopausal "symptoms" is a huge part of the problem. Menopause is not an illness, despite what the makers of various drugs, supplements, and other treatments want women to think. Furthermore, most of the "symptoms" attributed to it on that website (and elsewhere) have nothing to do with menopause.

Posted on 08/27/10 at 11:41 am in response to Your body may pay a long time for your health slip-ups

Ah, Paul, but if you only knew how much ice cream I ate.

Posted on 07/31/10 at 07:42 am in response to Study links calcium supplements with an increased risk of heart attacks

Bernice:

As the editorial that accompanied this study notes (see my second-to-last paragraph), there is no good evidence (evidence without reporting bias) that taking calcium plus vitamin D reduces fractures. And that's the endpoint that matters.