title: Televised medical talk shows--what they recommend and the evidence to support their recommendations: a prospective observational study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the quality of health recommendations and claims made on popular medical talk shows.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective observational study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mainstream television media.
  
  
  METHODS
  Internationally syndicated medical television talk shows that air daily (The Dr Oz Show and The Doctors).
  
  
  METHODS
  Investigators randomly selected 40 episodes of each of The Dr Oz Show and The Doctors from early 2013 and identified and evaluated all recommendations made on each program. A group of experienced evidence reviewers independently searched for, and evaluated as a team, evidence to support 80 randomly selected recommendations from each show.
  
  
  METHODS
  Percentage of recommendations that are supported by evidence as determined by a team of experienced evidence reviewers. Secondary outcomes included topics discussed, the number of recommendations made on the shows, and the types and details of recommendations that were made.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We could find at least a case study or better evidence to support 54% (95% confidence interval 47% to 62%) of the 160 recommendations (80 from each show). For recommendations in The Dr Oz Show, evidence supported 46%, contradicted 15%, and was not found for 39%. For recommendations in The Doctors, evidence supported 63%, contradicted 14%, and was not found for 24%. Believable or somewhat believable evidence supported 33% of the recommendations on The Dr Oz Show and 53% on The Doctors. On average, The Dr Oz Show had 12 recommendations per episode and The Doctors 11. The most common recommendation category on The Dr Oz Show was dietary advice (39%) and on The Doctors was to consult a healthcare provider (18%). A specific benefit was described for 43% and 41% of the recommendations made on the shows respectively. The magnitude of benefit was described for 17% of the recommendations on The Dr Oz Show and 11% on The Doctors. Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest accompanied 0.4% of recommendations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Recommendations made on medical talk shows often lack adequate information on specific benefits or the magnitude of the effects of these benefits. Approximately half of the recommendations have either no evidence or are contradicted by the best available evidence. Potential conflicts of interest are rarely addressed. The public should be skeptical about recommendations made on medical talk shows. Additional details of methods used and changes made to study protocol.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4 tina.korownyk@ualberta.ca.
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Korownyk
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Michael R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Kolber
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of British Columbia, 2405 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z3.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: McCormack
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, 2J2.00 WC Mackenzie Health Sciences Centre, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2R7.
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lam
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta, 2J2.00 WC Mackenzie Health Sciences Centre, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2R7.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Overbo
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Candra
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cotton
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Caitlin
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Finley
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of British Columbia, 2405 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada V6T 1Z3.
authors.forename: Ricky D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Turgeon
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Garrison
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Adrienne J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Lindblad
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Hoan Linh
authors.initials: HL
authors.lastname: Banh
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Campbell-Scherer
authors.affiliation: Alberta Research Centre for Health Evidence, University of Alberta, Edmonton Clinic Health Academy, 11405-87 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 1C9.
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vandermeer
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, University of Alberta, 6-10 University Terrace, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2T4.
authors.forename: G Michael
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Allan
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine / Q000592:standards; D005197:Famous Persons; D006801:Humans; D010820:Physicians / Q000592:standards*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000592:standards; D013690:Television