Monthly Archives: January 2016
I didn’t think that I would post something today.
Why?
Because it’s my birthday!
After opening the packages, reading the cards and having a very relaxed start of the day, I looked into my emails and found a lot of nice messages. More congratulations emerged on twitter and facebook. But the nicest note came from someone called Shirley; almost certainly not knowing it was my birthday, she sent me the following email:
From: shirley
Subject: your work
Message Body:
I’ve just come across your website and can’t believe you actually have set up a whole site devoted to trolling alternative medicine, which may not be your area of expertise but helps millions of people every day. why is it so hard for you to acknowledge that illness and pain most often has an underlying emotional cause.? could you be suffering from some unresolved trauma of your own?
either way, you’re a dickhead.
And why do I find this nice?
Simple, because it confirms that my work here is important, that I am doing the right thing, and that I am making progress. Thank you Shirley for this unexpected gift; you made my day!
As I said before: AD HOMINEM ATTACKS ARE NOTHING BUT A VICTORY OF REASON OVER UNREASON
PS
Let me use this occasion to thank everyone else who send me birthday messages.
When given the diagnosis ‘CANCER’, most people go into some sort of shock. Once they have recovered, they are likely to learn that they now face many months of very aggressive treatments which will reduce their quality of life to almost zero. This, they are told, is no guarantee but will merely increase their chances to survive the cancer.
Understandably, before they make what might be the most important decision of their lives, patients are desperate and tempted to look elsewhere to find out for themselves what their options are. It would be foolish to simply accept what their team of health care professionals have been saying. With decisions as important as this one, it is wise to listen to second and possibly third opinions. Who could argue with this logic?
Most cancer patients then go on the Internet and have a look at what alternatives are on offer. Here they find virtually millions of sites offering information. A person with pancreatic cancer might thus be unfortunate enough to stumble over a site called What Alternative Medicine works best against Pancreatic Cancer? If she does, her life is at risk.
You think I am exaggerating? In this case, let me quote from this website (I made no changes whatsoever, not even corrections of the spelling mistakes):
Just to remind you this particular thread is concerned with alternative treatments for cancer. People here are seeking information about alternative medicine. Now we all know that immunotherapy represents potentially a great leap forward in the treatment of cancer in the mainstream medical community although the stats are still pretty low for repsonse most of which have been done on melanoma patients. Nonetheless impresive compared to the useless toxic treatments peddled by the drug industry over the last 30 years. Interferon being one of the worst treatments inflicted on many a poor cancer patient along with chemo and radiation for which many cancers have little or no response and are extremely toxic. I make no false claims about the work of Dr Kelley or Dr Gonzalez for that matter. For those willing to dig a little and research their work they will find a body of good evidence for their protocol.
You might say that this is an extreme exception of irresponsible, life-threatening misinformation. But I disagree. The Internet is full with sites of this nature. They promote treatments for which there is no good evidence; what is worse, they encourage patients to forego conventional treatments which might save their lives. If anyone then dares to point this out, he will be attacked for being in the pocket of ‘Big Pharma’.
I know, a little insignificant post like mine will change very little, but I also feel strongly that, if I do not keep banging on about this issue, who else will warn patients that misinformation from the Internet and other sources can kill?
In 2009, we published a systematic review of studies testing acupuncture as a treatment of menopausal hot flushes. We searched the literature using 17 databases from inception to October 10, 2008, without language restrictions. We only included randomized clinical trials (RCTs) of acupuncture versus sham acupuncture. Their methodological quality was assessed using the modified Jadad score. In total, six RCTs could be included. Four RCTs compared the effects of acupuncture with penetrating sham acupuncture on non-acupuncture points. All of these trials failed to show specific effects on menopausal hot flush frequency, severity or index. One RCT found no effects of acupuncture on hot flush frequency and severity compared with penetrating sham acupuncture on acupuncture points that are not relevant for the treatment of hot flushes. The remaining RCT tested acupuncture against non-penetrating acupuncture on non-acupuncture points. Its results suggested favourable effects of acupuncture on menopausal hot flush severity. However, this study was too small to generate reliable findings. At the time, we concluded that sham-controlled RCTs fail to show specific effects of acupuncture for control of menopausal hot flushes. We also argued that more rigorous research is warranted.
It seems that such research has just become available.
The aim of a brand-new study – a stratified, blind (participants, outcome assessors, and investigators, but not treating acupuncturists were blinded to treatment allocation), parallel, randomized, sham-controlled trial with equal allocation – was to assess the efficacy of Chinese medicine acupuncture against sham acupuncture for menopausal hot flushes (HFs). It was funded by the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council.
Women older than 40 years were recruited; they had to be in the late menopausal transition or postmenopause with at least 7 moderate HFs daily, meeting criteria for Chinese medicine diagnosis of kidney yin deficiency. These patients received 10 treatments over 8 weeks of either standardized Chinese medicine needle acupuncture designed to treat ‘kidney yin deficiency’ or they got the same amount of non-insertive sham acupuncture. The primary outcome was HF score at the end of treatment. Secondary outcomes included quality of life, anxiety, depression, and adverse events. Participants were assessed at 4 weeks, the end of treatment, and then 3 and 6 months after the end of treatment. Intention-to-treat analysis was conducted with linear mixed-effects models.
In total, 327 women were randomly assigned to acupuncture (n = 163) or sham acupuncture (n = 164). At the end of treatment, 16% of participants in the acupuncture group and 13% in the sham group were lost to follow-up. Mean HF scores at the end of treatment period were 15.36 in the acupuncture group and 15.04 in the sham group. No serious adverse events were reported.
The authors concluded that Chinese medicine acupuncture was not superior to non-insertive sham acupuncture for women with moderately severe menopausal HFs.
The trial has several strengths: it includes a large sample size and the patients were adequately blinded to eliminate the effects of expectations. It was published in a top journal, and we can therefore assume that it was properly peer-reviewed. Combined with the evidence from our previous systematic review, this indicates that acupuncture has no effect beyond placebo.
In other words: ACUPUNCTURE IS NOTHING BUT A THEATRICAL PLACEBO.
One does not need to be a clairvoyant to predict that acupuncturists will now find what they perceive as a flaw in the new study and claim that its results were false-negative. Subsequently they will probably conduct their own trial which, because it is wide open to bias, will generate the finding they were hoping for.
This sequence of poor quality positive and high quality negative studies could go on ad infinitum.
This begs the question: how can such wasteful pseudo-research be stopped?
In theory, applications to ethics committees for research that is not aimed at answering open and important questions should get rejected. In practice, however, this is unlikely to happen. In my experience, the main reason preventing such actions is that, when it comes to alternative medicine, ethics committees tend to be too lenient (attempting to be ‘politically correct’), too uninterested (thinking that alternative medicine is not really a serious area of research) and too uninformed (failing to insist on a rigorous assessment of the already available evidence).
The German ‘Association of Catholic Doctors’, Bund Katholischer Ärzte, claims that homeopathic remedies can cure homosexuality!
Yes, I kid you not, this is what they state on their website. Specifically they advise that ‘…the working group HOMEOPATHY of the Association notes homeopathic therapy options for homosexual tendencies…repertories contain special rubrics pointing to characteristic signs of homosexual behaviour, including sexual peculiarities such as anal intercourse (die Vereinigung Katholischer Ärzte, BKÄ, weist mit Ihrem Arbeitskreis Homöopathie auf homöopathische Therapiemöglichkeiten bei homosexueller Neigung hin. Im Repertorium gibt es spezielle Rubriken, die auf charakteristische Zeichen von homosexuellem Verhalten hinweisen.
Auch sexuelle Besonderheiten (z.B. Analverkehr) werden hier benannt.).
You are speechless?
So am I!
These doctors have thus defined homosexuality as a disease!
How did they ever pass any medical exam?
This is not just politically incorrect to the extreme, it also is complete nonsense from a medical point of view.
What is more, they promote the idea that homeopathic remedies can cure this ‘disease’.
They even state that ‘homeopathy is not some straw…but a valuable instrument to help man in peril’ (Die Homöopathie ist nicht “irgendein Strohhalm”, sondern für den ausgebildeten, erfahrenen homöopathischen Arzt / Heilpraktiker ein wertvolles Instrument, dem Menschen in Not zu helfen.).
No, no, no – they cannot possibly have been to medical school, they must have won their diplomas in a lottery or found it somewhere or …
My mind boggles.
The only conclusion I can draw here is that not homosexuality but homeopathy is a disease – and some homeopaths are incurable!
Many cancer patients use mistletoe extracts either hoping to cure their cancer or to alleviate its symptoms. The evidence that mistletoe treatment (MT) can achieve either of these goals is mixed but, on the whole, however, it is not positive. Our own systematic review of 2003 concluded that ‘rigorous trials of mistletoe extracts fail to demonstrate efficacy of this therapy’. The more recent Cochrane review concurred: ‘The evidence from RCTs to support the view that the application of mistletoe extracts has impact on survival or leads to an improved ability to fight cancer or to withstand anticancer treatments is weak.’
Patients’ experiences of side effects and the acceptability, tolerability, and perceived benefits of MT have not been assessed critically. The aim of this new article was to systematically review and synthesise the results of qualitative studies of cancer patients’ experiences of using MT.
Electronic searches were conducted in MEDLINE, Embase, PsychLIT, CINAHL, and AMED to identify all qualitative studies of MT. Articles were screened independently by two reviewers and critically appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme tool. A thematic synthesis of the findings was carried out.
One hundred and seventy-three papers were identified; 156 were excluded at initial screening. Seventeen papers were read in full, 14 of which were excluded. Three articles about patients’ experiences of MT alongside conventional treatment were included in the synthesis, either as a monotherapy (two articles) or as part of a package of anthroposophic treatment (one article). Patients reported demonstrable changes to their physical, emotional, and psychosocial well-being following MT, as well as a reduction in chemotherapy side effects. Self-reported side effects from MT were few, and the studies suggest good adherence to the therapy. Self-injection gave patients a sense of empowerment through involvement in their own treatment.
The authors concluded that ‘given the variation in context of MT delivery across the articles, it is not possible to ascribe changes in patients’ quality of life specifically to MT.’
This might be a polite way of saying that there is no good evidence to suggest that MT positively affects patients’ experiences of side effects and the acceptability, tolerability, and perceived benefits.
Mistletoe is, of course, the ‘flagship’ intervention of Rudolf Steiner’s anthroposophical medicine. About a century ago, his idea was simple (or should this be ‘simplistic’?): the mistletoe plant is a parasite that lives off host trees sapping its resources until, eventually, it might even kill its host – just like cancer threatening the life of a human being. It follows, according to the homeopathy-inspired Steiner and the many followers of his cult that mistletoe is an effective cancer therapy.
Despite the weirdness of this concept and the largely negative evidence, MT is hugely popular as a cancer cure, particularly in German-speaking countries. The question I ask myself is this: ISN’T IT TIME THAT THIS NONSENSE STOPS?
Recently I had an unpleasant exchange with an Australian naturopath by the name of Brett Smith. It started by him claiming that ‘chemo’ only kills cancer patients and enriches the pharmaceutical industry. And then it got worse, much worse, and very unpleasant. This got me interested in Mr Smith and prompted me to look him up. Brett Smith describes himself on his website:
Brett is a graduate of Sydney University masters degree program in Herbal Medicine run through it’s acclaimed faculty of pharmacy. He also earned a degree in Health Science from the University of New England making him one of the most qualified Naturopaths in Australia. Brett ran a successful naturopathic clinic in Bondi Junction for 6 years before selling it and founding HealthShed.com and writing and researching a book on Type 2 Diabetes.
In a world of chaos and confusion, the one area you have some semblance of control over is your health. One of the issues around this subject that frustrates me is the conflicting information consistently bombarding us. If we can land a pod on Mars why do we still not know the fundamental pathways to human health.
One of the reasons is the big food corporations that have a vested interest in keeping you reaching to the shelves for their dead foods and the one thing I can assure you of, without any doubt, is that dead food makes dead people. If people understood the true power of foods, herbs and the odd supplement in reaching their health potentials we could eradicate many diseases scourging the planet today – heart disease, diabetes, alzheimer’s, thyroid conditions, asthma, the list is seriously endless.
The other part of the problem is us. We choose the “easy” option too many times, generation after generation after generation. What chance do our children have? Always looking for the Magic Pill. Another thing I can assure you of is that the vast majority of pharmaceutical drugs prescribed is completely unnecessary.
Natural therapists risks making the same mistakes as the pharmaceutical medical industry in becoming an elitist therapy guided by profit at expense of the patient.
I’m committed to helping inspire and empower people to optimal health through simple yet highly effective methods. Despite all the white noise, optimum health is open to us all, rich or poor, old or young. In fact, it’s your birth right. Claim it.
I also looked up his ‘health shed’. Amongst other things, it turns out to be a treasure trove of utter nonsense and anti-medical propaganda written by several experts of equally high standing – worth reading, if you have a minute! To give you a flavour, I have chosen a post entitled Which is Greater Threat, Measles or Measles Vaccine?:
Brett Smith N.D
Sometimes in life you just have to put your neck (and your reputation) on the line. I’ve been told on more than one occasion not to run vaccination stories. I’m sorry but I cannot ignore this ‘debate’ right now. Immunisation is a beautiful theory and with the right delivery method and ingredients may have a future, but as it is now we need to stop and have a very close look at this issue. Vaccines are not safe for everyone and vaccine injuries are not rare. Hep B shots on a one day old infant is actually criminal and I will debate any expert anytime, anywhere on that particular subject. Until then hear what Dr Jeffrey Dach has to say on the subject.
by Jeffrey Dach MD
A recent measles outbreak at Disneyland of at least 70 cases (Jan 2015) has created quite a stir in the media. Five of the cases were fully vaccinated, indicating the measles vaccine confers only temporary immunity. Clearly there is no “failure to vaccinate”, as measles has broken out in highly vaccinated populations. It is obviously a failure of the vaccine. Unlike the vaccine, real measles infection confers life-long immunity.
Measles in 2008
In 2008, a similar resurgence in measles cases was reported. An increase in reported cases of measles from 42 to 131 prompted a 2008 New York Times editorial warning of re-emergence of “many diseases” if vaccination rates drop. A quote from the New York Times:
“If confidence in all vaccines were to drop precipitously, many diseases would re-emerge and cause far more harm than could possibly result from vaccination.”
Confidence in Vaccines Has Been Lost
Unfortunately, confidence in vaccines has already been lost according to Shona Hilton in her article, ”Who do parents believe about MMR”. According to Shona Hilton, young parents are mistrustful of the media and the pediatricians who have financial incentives to push vaccines.
What is the Evidence for an Autism/ Vaccine Link?
The Hanna Poling Case
In the case of Hannah Poling, the federal vaccine court has agreed to compensate Poling’s family, conceding that her autism was caused by vaccination. The federal court has already paid out more than $1.5 billion for vaccine related injury or death.
Italian Court Conceded MMR Caused Autism
In 2012, the Italian Health Ministry conceded the MMR vaccine caused autism in nine-year-old Valentino Bocca. Exactly how many other cases exist is unknown because court records are usually sealed from public view.
Abnormal MMR Antibody Response in Autistic Kids
An important finding was found in a 2002 report in Biomedical Science by Dr. Singh entitled ” Abnormal measles-mumps-rubella antibodies and CNS autoimmunity in children with autism.”
The authors found elevated antibody levels to MMR (Measles Mumps Rubells Vaccine) in 60% of autistic children, none in controls. The elevated MMR antibodies in autistic children detected “measles HA protein”, which is unique to the measles subunit of the vaccine. Over 90% of the autistic children with elevated MMR antibodies, also had elevated MBP (myelin basic protein) antibodies, suggesting a strong association between MMR and CNS autoimmunity in autism. The authors state:
“Stemming from this evidence, we suggest that an inappropriate antibody response to MMR, specifically the measles component thereof, might be related to pathogenesis of autism.”
“In light of these new findings, we suggest that a considerable proportion of autistic cases may result from an atypical measles infection that does not produce a rash but causes neurological symptoms in some children. The source of this virus could be a variant MV or it could be the MMR vaccine.”
A second paper in 2003 by the same group confirmed these findings: Singh, Vijendra K., and Ryan L. Jensen. ” Elevated Levels of Measles Antibodies in children with Autism.” Pediatric neurology 28.4 (2003): 292-294.
According to Bernadine Healy MD, Director of the National Institute of Health (NIH) in 1991, there is credible published, peer-reviewed scientific studies that support the idea of an association between autism and vaccines. Rather than oppose all vaccinations, Dr Healy suggests modifying the vaccination schedule to make them safer. Left Image Courtesy of Bernadine Healy MD Huffington Post.
How to Make the Vaccine Schedule Safer?
Don Miller MD in this article on Lew Rockwell, provides a safer vaccination schedule. For example, the vaccination schedule can be made safer by waiting until child’s immune system is better developed after age 2, by moving from the combined MMR shot to individual doses, avoiding thimerosol, and avoiding the live vaccines…
Vitamin A and measles
Numerous medical publications have shown health benefits for Vitamin A in treatment of measles.
Conclusion
Clearly, there is a trade off in terms of benefits and risks of vaccines. Rather than deny the adverse effects of vaccines, we should be openly discussing how to make the vaccine schedule safer, as Don Miller MD and Bernadine Healy MD suggest.
If this had been a exceptional excursion into quackery, I would probably not have mentioned it. But Smith’s ‘health shed’ is full of it. Here are just three further examples:
The Truth About Chemotherapy – History, Effects and Natural Alternatives
The Amazing Cancer-Fighting Properties of Pineapple
Amazing Herb Kills 98% Of Cancer Cells In Just 16 Hours
Such dangerous nonsense tends to make me first speechless and then quite angry. This man claims to be one of the best educated naturopaths in Australia. If that is true, what is the rest of the naturopaths like? He wants to ’empower people to optimal health’. In truth, he and many like him are experts on misinformation that potentially could shorten the lives of many patients.
A 2016 article set out to define the minimum core competencies expected from a certified paediatric doctor of chiropractic using a Delphi consensus process. The initial set of seed statements and sub-statements was modelled on competency documents used by organizations that oversee chiropractic and medical education. The statements were then distributed to the Delphi panel, reaching consensus when 80% of the panelists approved each segment. The panel consisted of 23 specialists in chiropractic paediatrics from across the spectrum of the chiropractic profession. Sixty-one percent of panellists had postgraduate paediatric certifications or degrees, 39% had additional graduate degrees, and 74% were faculty at a chiropractic institution and/or in a postgraduate paediatrics program. The panel was initially given 10 statements with related sub-statements formulated by the study’s steering committee. On all 3 rounds of the Delphi process the panelists reached consensus; however, multiple rounds occurred to incorporate the valuable qualitative feedback received.
The results of this process reveal that the Certified Paediatric Doctor of Chiropractic requires 8 sets of skills. (S)he will …
1) Possess a working knowledge and understanding of the anatomy, physiology, neurology, psychology, and developmental stages of a child. a) Recognize known effects of the prenatal environment, length of the pregnancy, and birth process on the child’s health. b) Identify and evaluate the stages of growth and evolution of systems from birth to adulthood. c) Appraise the clinical implications of developmental stages in health and disease, including gross and fine motor, language/communication, and cognitive, social, and emotional skills. d) Recognize normal from abnormal in these areas. e) Possess an understanding of the nutritional needs of various stages of childhood.
2) Recognize common and unusual health conditions of childhood. a) Identify and differentiate clinical features of common physical and mental paediatric conditions. b) Identify and differentiate evidence-based health care options for these conditions. c) Identify and differentiate clinical features and evidence-based health care options for the paediatric special needs population.
3) Be able to perform an age-appropriate evaluation of the paediatric patient. a) Take a comprehensive history, using appropriate communication skills to address both child and parent/ guardian. b) Perform age-appropriate and case-specific physical, orthopaedic, neurological, and developmental examination protocols. c) When indicated, utilize age-appropriate laboratory, imaging, and other diagnostic studies and consultations, according to best practice guidelines. d) Appropriately apply and adapt these skills to the paediatric special needs population. e) Be able to obtain and comprehend all relevant external health records.
4) Formulate differential diagnoses based on the history, examination, and diagnostic studies.
5) Establish a plan of management for each child, including treatment, referral to, and/or co-management with other health care professionals. a) Use the scientific literature to inform the management plan. b) Adequately document the patient encounter and management plan. c) Communicate management plan clearly (written, oral, and nonverbal cues) with both the child and the child’s parent/guardian. d) Communicate appropriately and clearly with other professionals in the referral and co-management of patients.
6) Deliver skilful, competent, and safe chiropractic care, modified for the paediatric population, including but not limited to: a) Manual therapy and instrument-assisted techniques including manipulation/adjustment, mobilization, and soft tissue therapies to address articulations and/or soft tissues. b) Physical therapy modalities. c) Postural and rehabilitative exercises. d) Nutrition advice and supplementation. e) Lifestyle and public health advice. f) Adapt the delivery of chiropractic care for the paediatric special needs population.
7) Integrate and collaborate with other health care providers in the care of the paediatric patient. a) Recognize the role of various health care providers in paediatric care. b) Utilize professional inter-referral protocols. c) Interact clearly and professionally as needed with health care professionals and others involved in the care of each patient. d) Clearly explain the role of chiropractic care to professionals, parents, and children.
8) Function as a primary contact, portal of entry practitioner who will. a) Be proficient in paediatric first aid and basic emergency procedures. b) Identify and report suspected child abuse.
9) Demonstrate and utilize high professional and ethical standards in all aspects of the care of paediatric patients and professional practice. a) Monitor and properly reports of effects/adverse events. b) Recognize cultural individuality and respect the child’s and family’s wishes regarding health care decisions. c) Engage in lifelong learning to maintain and improve professional knowledge and skills. d) Contribute when possible to the knowledge base of the profession by participating in research. e) Represent and support the specialty of paediatrics within the profession and to the broader healthcare and lay communities.
I find this remarkable in many ways. Let us just consider a few items from the above list of competencies:
Identify and differentiate evidence-based health care options… such options would clearly not include chiropractic manipulations.
Identify and differentiate clinical features and evidence-based health care options for the paediatric special needs population… as above. Why is there no mention of immunisations anywhere?
Perform age-appropriate and case-specific physical, orthopaedic, neurological, and developmental examination protocols. If that is a competency requirement, patients should really see the appropriate medical specialists rather than a chiropractor.
Establish a plan of management for each child, including treatment, referral to, and/or co-management with other health care professionals. The treatment plan is either evidence-based or it includes chiropractic manipulations.
Deliver skilful, competent, and safe chiropractic care… Aren’t there contradictions in terms here?
Manual therapy and instrument-assisted techniques including manipulation/adjustment, mobilization, and soft tissue therapies to address articulations and/or soft tissues. Where is the evidence that these treatments are effective for paediatric conditions, and which conditions would these be?
Clearly explain the role of chiropractic care to professionals, parents, and children. As chiropractic is not evidence-based in paediatrics, the role is extremely limited or nil.
Function as a primary contact, portal of entry practitioner… This seems to me as a recipe for disaster.
Demonstrate and utilize high professional and ethical standards in all aspects of the care of paediatric patients… This would include obtaining informed consent which, in turn, needs to include telling the parents that chiropractic is neither safe nor effective and that better therapeutic options are available. Moreover, would it not be ethical to make clear that a paediatric ‘doctor’ of chiropractic is a very far cry from a real paediatrician?
So, what should the competencies of a chiropractor really be when it comes to treating paediatric conditions? In my view, they are much simpler than outlined by the authors of this new article: I SEE NO REASON WHATSOEVER WHY CHIROPRACTORS SHOULD TREAT CHILDREN!
The Nobel laureate Venkatraman Ramakrishnan recently called homeopathy ‘bogus’. “They (homeopaths) take arsenic compounds and dilute it to such an extent that just a molecule is left. It will not make any effect on you. Your tap water has more arsenic. No one in chemistry believes in homeopathy. It works because of placebo effect,” he was quoted saying.
But what does he know about homeopathy? This was the angry question of homeopaths around the world when the Nobel laureate’s views became international headlines.
Nothing! Exclaimed the furious homeopaths with one voice.
If we want to get an informed opinion, we a true expert.
The Queen’s homeopath Dr Fisher? No, he has been known to tell untruths.
Doctor Michael Dixon, the adviser to Prince Charles who recently defended homeopathy? No, he is not even a homeopath.
Dana Ullman, the voice of US homeopathy? Heavens, he is a homeopath but not one who is known to be objective.
Alan Schmukler perhaps? He too seems to have difficulties with critical thinking.
Perhaps we need to ask an experienced and successful homeopath like doctor Akshay Batra; someone with both feet on the ground who knows about the coal face of health care today. He recently spoke out for the virtues of homeopathy explaining that it is based on the ingenious idea that ‘like cures like: “For example if you are suffering from constant watering eyes, you will be given allium cepa which comes from onions, something that causes eyes to water. Homeopathy works like a vaccine”. Dr Batra claims that the failure of allopathy (mainstream medicine) is causing the present boom in homeopathy. “With the amount of deaths taking place due to allopathic medicine and its side effects, we can see people resorting to homeopathy,” he said. “Certain children using asthma inhalers suffer from growth issues or develop unusual facial hair. Homeopathy avoids that and uses a natural remedy that treats the root cause,” he added.
The top issues treated with homeopathy, according to Dr Batra, are hair and skin problems. “A lot of ailments today effecting hair and skin are because of internal diseases. Hair loss in women has become very prevalent and can be due to cystic ovaries, low iron levels or hormonal imbalance due to thyroid,” explained Dr Batra. “We find the root cause and treat that, since hair loss could just be a symptom and we need to treat the ailment permanently. Allopathic medicines just give you a quick fix, and not treat the root cause, while we give a more long term, complete solution,” he added. Homeopathy is mind and body medicine: “A lot of people today are under pressure and stress. Homeopathic treatment also helps in relieving tension hence treating the patient as a whole,” said Dr Batra.
I bet you now wonder who is this fabulous expert and homeopath, doctor Batra.
He has been mentioned on this blog before, namely when he opened the first London branch of his chain of homeopathic clinics claiming that homeopathy could effectively treat the following conditions:
Yes, Dr Akshay Batra is the managing director and chairman of Dr Batra’s Homeopathic Clinic, an enterprise that is currently establishing clinics across the globe.
And now we understand, I think, why the Nobel laureate and the homeopathy expert have slightly different views on the subject.
Who would you believe, I wonder?
Consensus recommendations to the ‘National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health from Research Faculty in a Transdisciplinary Academic Consortium for Complementary and Integrative Health and Medicine’ have just been published. It appeared in this most impartial of all CAM journals, the ‘Journal of Alternative and Complementary Mededicine’. Its authors are equally impartial: Menard MB 1, Weeks J 2, Anderson 3, Meeker 4, Calabrese C 5, O’Bryon D 6, Cramer GD 7
They come from these institutions:
- 1 Crocker Institute , Kiawah Island, SC.
- 2 Academic Consortium for Complementary and Alternative Health Care , Seattle, WA.
- 3 Pacific College of Oriental Medicine , New York, NY.
- 4 Palmer College of Chiropractic , San Jose, CA.
- 5 Center for Natural Medicine , Portland, OR.
- 6 Association of Chiropractic Colleges , Bethesda, MD.
- 7 National University of Health Sciences , Lombard, IL
HERE IS THE ABSTRACT OF THE DOCUMENT IN ITS FULL AND UNABBREVIATED BEAUTY:
BACKGROUND:
This commentary presents the most impactful, shared priorities for research investment across the licensed complementary and integrative health (CIH) disciplines according to the Academic Consortium for Complementary and Alternative Health Care (ACCAHC). These are (1) research on whole disciplines; (2) costs; and (3) building capacity within the disciplines’ universities, colleges, and programs. The issue of research capacity is emphasized.
DISCUSSION:
ACCAHC urges expansion of investment in the development of researchers who are graduates of CIH programs, particularly those with a continued association with accredited CIH schools. To increase capacity of CIH discipline researchers, we recommend National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) to (1) continue and expand R25 grants for education in evidence-based healthcare and evidence-informed practice at CIH schools; (2) work to limit researcher attrition from CIH institutions by supporting career development grants for clinicians from licensed CIH fields who are affiliated with and dedicated to continuing to work in accredited CIH schools; (3) fund additional stand-alone grants to CIH institutions that already have a strong research foundation, and collaborate with appropriate National Institutes of Health (NIH) institutes and centers to create infrastructure in these institutions; (4) stimulate higher percentages of grants to conventional centers to require or strongly encourage partnership with CIH institutions or CIH researchers based at CIH institutions, or give priority to those that do; (5) fund research conferences, workshops, and symposia developed through accredited CIH schools, including those that explore best methods for studying the impact of whole disciplines; and (6) following the present NIH policy of giving priority to new researchers, we urge NCCIH to give a marginal benefit to grant applications from CIH clinician-researchers at CIH academic/research institutions, to acknowledge that CIH concepts require specialized expertise to translate to conventional perspectives.
SUMMARY:
We commend NCCIH for its previous efforts to support high-quality research in the CIH disciplines. As NCCIH develops its 2016-2020 strategic plan, these recommendations to prioritize research based on whole disciplines, encourage collection of outcome data related to costs, and further support capacity-building within CIH institutions remain relevant and are a strategic use of funds that can benefit the nation’s health.
AND WHY DID THIS SURPRISE ME?
Well, I would have expected that such an impartial, intelligent bunch of people who are doubtlessly capable of critical analysis would have come up with a totally different set of recommendations. For instance:
- Integrative health makes no sense.
- Integrative medicine is a disservice to patients.
- Integrative health is a paradise for charlatans.
- No more research is required in this area.
- Research already under way should be stopped.
- Money ear-marked for integrative health should be diverted to other investigators researching areas that show at least a glimpse of promise.
Alright, you are correct – my suggestions are neither realistic nor constructive. One cannot expect that they will turn down all these lovely research funds and give it to real scientists. One has to offer them something constructive to do with the money. How about projects addressing the following research questions?
- How many integrative health clinics offer evidence-based treatments?
- Is the promotion of bogus treatments in line with the demands of medical ethics?
- If we need to render health care more holistic, humane, patient-centred, why not reform conventional medicine?
- Is the creation of integrative medicine a divisive development for health care?
- Is humane, holistic, patient-centred care really an invention of integrative medicine, and what is its history?
- Which of the alternative treatments used in integrative medicine can be shown to do more good than harm?
- What are the commercial drivers behind the integrative health movement?
- Is there a role for critical thinking within integrative health?
- Is integrative health creating double standards within medicine?
- What is better for public health, empty promises about ‘the best of both worlds’ or sound evidence?
Yes, it’s true: we all suffer from potentially poor health due to subluxations of our vertebrae. If they have not yet made us ill, they will do so shortly. But luckily, there is hope: rush to your chiropractor, get adjusted (pay cash) and all will be well.
If you don’t believe me, read what a chiropractor wrote on his website. The message could not be clearer:
Today you are going to learn what it is that causes your spinal misalignments or subluxations. Remember that a subluxation is a partial or incomplete dislocation of a vertebra. And contrary to what you may have been told or think or believe, we all have them. It is virtually impossible for all 24 of your spinal vertebrae to remain in their correct anatomical position because what causes a subluxation is stress. And each and every one of us is affected by stress each and every single day of our lives. The best way for me to explain stress is with the 3 T’s. The 3 T’s are traumas, thoughts and toxins. Traumas are those physical stresses that can affect our body. Examples are the birth process, the falls we have as toddlers as we learn to stand, walk and run, all the bumps, bruises and falls we suffer throughout our childhood, sporting injuries, car accidents, pregnancy, texting on a cell phone and prolonged sitting at a desk (computer). Thoughts are those mental/emotional stresses that can affect our body. Examples are job insecurity, relationship difficulties, being bullied at school and witnessing your parents go through a separation/divorce as a child. Toxins are the chemical stresses that can affect our body. The absolute number 1 chemical stressor is vaccines and immunizations. Other examples of chemical stressors are antibiotics, medications, recreational drugs, tobacco, alcohol and of course a poor diet. As human beings we can never escape the collective effects of stress. Some people have more physical stress, others more mental/emotional and others more chemical stress. But we all are affected by all 3 types of stress which means that we are always at risk of getting subluxations in our spine. What I would like you to do is think what the biggest source of stress is in your life and your children’s lives. Is it traumas, thoughts or toxins?
Yes, yes, yes: ‘The absolute number 1 chemical stressor is vaccines and immunizations.’ And those evil doctors – no, not doctors of chiropractic, doctors of medicine who have managed to steal the title that belongs to chiropractors – are all out to poison us! They are being paid by BIG PHARMA so that our kids are forced to get injected with pure poison.
These so-called doctors also prescribe antibiotics and other medications. As though anyone would ever need them! They are based on what is called the ‘germ theory of disease’. As chiropractors, we have long refuted this ridiculous theory; it is absurd: germs do not cause disease – subluxations are responsible for all that ails humans. But this simple yet important message has been suppressed by the medical mafia since the last 120 years.
So, do yourself a favour and immediately take your entire family to a chiropractor. He is your ideal and only primary care physician. No drugs, no immunizations – just adjustments to benefit your health (and the chiropractor’s cash flow).
PS
In case someone is not quite switched on today: THIS IS A JOKE! DON’T FOLLOW THIS ADVICE, IT MIGHT HARM YOUR HEALTH IRREPARABLY.
