Superfood or Supertoxic – How Debunking Food Myths... [Dr Christopher Labos]

Superfood or Supertoxic - How Debunking Food Myths Can Teach People About Scientific Skepticism

In his talk based on Does Coffee Cause Cancer?, Dr. Christopher Labos tackles popular food myths with science and humor. Using a fictional narrative to frame real evidence, he explores how common beliefs—like coffee causing cancer—often stem from flawed studies or media hype.
The coffee myth, for example, originated from a 1981 study with selection bias. Later research disproved the link, yet the fear lingered, even leading to a temporary cancer warning label in California. Labos uses this case to teach key concepts like bias, p-hacking, and misleading statistics.
He also addresses other myths, including claims about vitamin C, red wine, breakfast, and chocolate. Rather than fear food, Labos encourages audiences to question health headlines and understand how science evolves.
With clarity and wit, he empowers people to separate fact from fiction—and make smarter choices without falling for nutrition myths or wellness trends.
Dr. Christopher Labos is a cardiologist, a course lecturer in the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health at McGill University and an affiliate member of the Department of Global and Public Health. He is a columnist with the Montreal Gazette and Medscape, featured on the Sunday Morning House Call on CJAD radio, and has a regular TV segment with CTV Montreal and CBC Morning Live. He blogs and produces a video series called “On Second Thought” for Medscape. He is an associate with the McGill Office of Science and Society and hosts the award-winning podcast “The Body of Evidence.” He is the author of “Does Coffee Cause Cancer?” a story about food epidemiology and why food headlines are usually wrong. He realizes that half of his research findings will be disproved in five years: he just doesn’t know which half. Occasionally, he finds time to practice as a cardiologist so he can buy groceries. To date no one has offered him his own primetime TV show.
N.B. Bonus October Talk is on a different day from our regular schedule.