Editor’s Note: We interrupt your regularly scheduled entry into the Macro Wars series, to bring you this breaking news update. In other words, this important stuff happened last weekend, and I wanted to report on it in a timely fashion. I’ll be back again next week with the conclusion of the Macro Wars series. In the meantime, here’s what’s hot off the Keto World presses!
“The truth shall set you free.” In the case of Gary Fettke, it may have taken several years, but it’s finally happened.
Dr. Gary Fettke is an orthopedic surgeon in the Land of Oz. That’s Australia, for those who aren’t familiar with any slang from the beautiful Down Under. Dr. Fettke is one of a growing cohort of medical practitioners and professionals who, in the course of their work, have recognized that the way modern humans eat is, quite frankly, killing us. Like many of his nutritionally “red-pilled” peers, the good doctor had become increasingly convinced that a lower carbohydrate approach was more in line with the historical development of human physiology, and began advising his patients that following such a lifestyle could potentially improve their health.
All well and good, right? We all know diet and nutrition affects all aspects of human health. We all believe that doctors who are concerned about their patients’ overall health, and not just the one area of the body in which they specialize, are the good ones! Those are the kind of practitioners for which everyone is on the lookout.
Enter the Australian Health Practitioners Regulatory Authority (AHPRA).
Apparently, the AHPRA has a problem with doctors giving nutritional advice “outside the scope” of their practice. Well, maybe only if the advice said doctor is offering is of the low carb variety. Regulatory bodies seem to dislike that very much.
After a fairly substantial preliminary inquiry into the dietary advice of Dr. Fettke, in November of 2016, the AHRPA issued what was effectively a gag order. Not only was he banned from speaking to his patients about the role diet and nutrition in regards to their health (and really take a second to consider the absurdity of that!), Dr. Fettke was also barred from speaking on the subject in any forum. I’m gonna say that again, so you understand. As per the AHRPA, Gary Fettke, a highly qualified and practicing surgeon, was legally not allowed to speak about diet and nutrition at all, in any venue. Not on a stage. Not on Youtube. Not on Facebook. Not on a blog. Not at all.
Since the issuance of that order in 2016, Dr. Fettke’s wife, Belinda, and many of his friends and colleagues have spoken out on his behalf. In addition to keeping up the No Fructose website, as a way to continue spreading the growing body of evidence supporting a healthy LCHF lifestyle, his supporters have also used the I Support Gary website and social media platforms to shine the international spotlight on Dr. Fettke’s treatment.
Early last weekend, Dr. Fettke’s supporters were thrilled to be able to announce the breaking news: After years of harassment and a campaign that silenced him, Dr. Fettke has been cleared of all charges against him, and may once again freely and openly discuss diet and nutrition- including the LCHF lifestyle- with anyone he chooses, patient or otherwise. In a stunning and comprehensive ruling for the doctor, the governing body stated:
“The Board determined it is not sufficient to simply amend the previous decision. The Board therefore repealed the previous decision in its entirety and proceeded to reconsider the notification afresh. This decision is an exercise of the Board’s power to correct errors in decision making under clause 23 of Schedule 7 of the National Law.”
Not only is Dr. Fettke cleared of all charges, he was issued an apology for the outrageous and censorous treatment he received at the hands of the AHRPA. This is a huge win for Dr. Fettke, his family, friends, and patients, and the Keto community as a whole.
We here at Ketovangelist are elated and much relieved that Dr. Fettke’s long-suffering has been alleviated, and congratulate him on his victory! Unfortunately, these shameful and persecutorial silencing tactics seem to be all too common, and may even increase, in what we hope are the beginning death throes of the SAD and traditional Western style diet. We suspect we may see more cases like that of Dr. Fettke and Dr. Noakes as it becomes more and more apparent that the dietary and nutritional advice that’s so ingrained in our medical culture is stunningly and disastrously wrong. In the meantime, we strongly urge all ketonians to stand firm and loudly support those medical practioners who are brave enough to go against the grain and advocate for clean and healthy low carb living.