malpractice
The General Chiropractic Council (GCC) has signed a memorandum of understanding with NHS England, the Crown Prosecution Service and the National Police Chiefs’ Council to collaborate where there is suspected criminal activity on the part of a GCC member in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making.
I find this interesting and most laudable!
But I also have seven questions, e.g.:
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if a chiropractor explains that the patient’s problem is caused by a subluxation of the spine, an entity that does not even exist? Apparently this happens every day.
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if a chiropractor treats a patient without prior informed consent? Apparently, this happens regularly.
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if a chiropractor fails to warn a patient that his/her manipulations can cause harm and even put him/her in a wheelchair? Apparently this (the lack of warning) happens all the time, and some chiropractors even insist that their manipulations are entirely safe.
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if a chiropractor claims that spinal manipulations are effective for curing the patient’s problem, while the evidence does not support the claim? Apparently this happens more often than not.
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if a chiropractor persuades a patient to have expensive long-term maintenance therapy for preventing health problems, while the evidence for that appoach is less than convincing? Apparently this happens rather frequently.
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if the chiropractor issues advice that is both outside his/her competence and detrimental to the health of the patient (for instance, advising parents not to vaccinate their kids)? Apparently this happens a lot.
- Does it amount to criminal activity in relation to the provision of clinical care or care decision-making, if a chiropractor advises a patient not to do what a real doctor told him/her to do? Apparently this is far from a rare occurance.
I would be most grateful, if the GCC would take the time to answer the above questions.
Many thanks in advaance.
Homeopathy was founded some two hundred years ago by Dr Samuel Christian Hahnemann. Over time, it has grown to be among the most frequently used forms of alternative medicine in Europe and the USA. It is underpinned by the principle of ‘like cures like’, where highly diluted substances are used for therapeutic purposes, by producing similar symptoms to when the substance is used in healthy people. Many studies have been published on the value of homeopathy in treating diseases such as cancer, depression, psoriasis, allergic rhinitis, asthma, otitis, migraine, neuroses, allergies, joint disease, insomnia, sinusitis, urinary tract infections and acne, to name a few. An international team recently published a “comprehensive review” of the literature on homeopathy and evaluated its effectiveness in clinical practice.
Their conclusions were as follows:
The current evidence supports a positive role for homeopathy in health and wellbeing across a broad range of different diseases in both adult and paediatric populations. However further research to assess its cost-effectiveness and clinical efficacy in larger studies is required. These findings may encourage healthcare providers and policymakers to consider the integration of homeopathic therapies into current medical practice, to provide a greater sense of patient autonomy and improve the consumer experience.
Medicine is dynamic and continues to evolve. Conventional medicine, while backed by the largest body of evidence thus far to support its safety and efficacy, still has its limitations in terms of side effects and subsequent effects on quality of life. This analysis calls for more in-depth assessment of the current research on homeopathy across a larger range of diseases.
And their ‘Key Summary Points’ were:
- While homeopathy is among the most frequently applied forms of alternative medicine, there is a lack of familiarity with this therapeutic modality within everyday medical practice.
- This review examines some of the available evidence in relation to the impact of homeopathy on a variety of common chronic diseases.
- Homeopathy was found to have the potential for symptom improvement in certain diagnoses within the fields of internal medicine, oncology, obstetrics and mental health.
- Although there is a paucity of studies on homeopathy within the context of standard clinical practice, an opportunity exists for further research into its application by utilising conventional study designs.
To understand how the researchers could arrive at these conclusions, we need to have a look at their methodology. This is their full description:
We conducted a literature review to answer the following research questions:
- What is the current knowledge on the use of homeopathy in clinical practice?
- Has the use of homeopathy achieved beneficial results in patients being treated for specific clinical entities?
Results were then appraised in relation to:
- Population: patients using homeopathy, physicians and homeopaths who reported using homeopathic agents in the included studies
- Intervention: homeopathic remedies
- Control: conventional treatment or no treatment
- Outcome: improvement in patients’ conditions (or positive results)
Keywords were searched in respect of homeopathy (homeopathy; formulas, homeopathic; pharmacopoeias, homeopathic; materia medica and vitalism) and clinical practice (complementary and alternative medicine, health). The following search terms were used: (“homeopathy” OR “formulas, homeopathic” OR “pharmacopoeias, homeopathic” OR “materia medica” OR “vitalism”) AND (“health” OR “complementary and alternative medicine”).
Two electronic databases were searched using the search terms homeopathy, cancer therapy, type 2 diabetes, complementary and alternative medicine, COVID-19 and SARS-CoV-2. Material retrieved was examined to omit overlapping results or duplicates. Publications in languages other than English, and those without full texts accessible online, were excluded.
This article is based on previously conducted studies and does not contain any new study with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.
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Two crucial things are missing here:
- An adequate description of which articles were included and which were discarded. A look at the reference list discloses that only articles in favour of homeopathy were considered.
- A description of the critical evaluation performed of the included evidence. A look at the text shows that no critical evaluation took place.
Thus this paper turns out to be not a ‘comprehensive review’ but a ‘comprehensive white-wash’ of homeopathy. Using the methodology of the authors it would be easy, for instance, to publish a comprehensive review demonstrating that the earth is flat.
I sugget the journal editors, peer-reviewers and authors of this idiotic paper bow their heads in shame!
It is already 7 years ago that I listed several ‘official verdicts on homeopathy‘, i.e. conclusions drawn by independent, reputable bodies evaluationg the evidence for or against homeopathy:
“The principles of homeopathy contradict known chemical, physical and biological laws and persuasive scientific trials proving its effectiveness are not available”
Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia
“Homeopathy should not be used to treat health conditions that are chronic, serious, or could become serious. People who choose homeopathy may put their health at risk if they reject or delay treatments for which there is good evidence for safety and effectiveness.”
National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia
“These products are not supported by scientific evidence.”
Health Canada, Canada
“Homeopathic remedies don’t meet the criteria of evidence based medicine.”
Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Hungary
“The incorporation of anthroposophical and homeopathic products in the Swedish directive on medicinal products would run counter to several of the fundamental principles regarding medicinal products and evidence-based medicine.”
Swedish Academy of Sciences, Sweden
“We recommend parents and caregivers not give homeopathic teething tablets and gels to children and seek advice from their health care professional for safe alternatives.”
Food and Drug Administration, USA
“There is little evidence to support homeopathy as an effective treatment for any specific condition”
National Centre for Complementary and Integrative Health, USA
“There is no good-quality evidence that homeopathy is effective as a treatment for any health condition”
National Health Service, UK
“Homeopathic remedies perform no better than placebos, and that the principles on which homeopathy is based are “scientifically implausible””
House of Commons Science and Technology Committee, UK
Since then, there have been many more statements from similar organisations (does someone know of a complete list? if so, please let me know). One such statement is from French veterinarians: Avis 2021- 3 sur l’Homéopathie vétérinaire. Aloow me to translate the crucial passages for you:
Opinion 2021- 3 on Veterinary Homeopathy. The Report of a Working Group on Veterinary Homeopathy, an Opinion on Veterinary Homeopathy adopted in the academic session on May 6, 2021. The report ecommends that :
no medical discipline or practice claiming to be a medical discipline should be exempt from the ethical duty of testing its claims;
in this respect, clinical studies on the individual, reconciling scientific rigor and practical constraints, be explored, and in particular the N of 1 trials described in human medicine;
veterinary medicine be defined as evidence-based medicine, and not as allopathic medicine;
it is reaffirmed that veterinary medicine must above all be holistic, and that consequently the label of holistic veterinary medicine cannot be monopolized by particular practices;
homeopathy in veterinary medicine, as in human medicine, is not currently recognized nor can it be claimed as an exclusive veterinary medical activity;
institutional communication provides ongoing information on the scientific approach, evidence-based medicine and complementary medicine, tailored respectively to veterinarians, the general public and, in particular, animal keepers;
veterinary surgeons who, in the absence of recognized scientific proof of the efficacy of homeopathy in particular, wish to pursue this activity, particularly as a complementary medicine, should be fully aware of their increased responsibilities due to the current lack of scientific confirmation of efficacy;
it is possible to use homeopathic preparations, insofar as the medical decision to use a complementary and non-alternative therapy systematically requires informed consent, and does not result in a loss of opportunity by delaying the diagnostic procedure and/or the establishment of a recognized effective treatment;
that, in order to provide the information needed to obtain informed consent, a prescription for a homeopathic preparation should be accompanied, on any suitable medium, by a statement to the effect that, in the current state of knowledge, veterinary homeopathy has a contextual effect;
that the term “homeopathic medicine” be eventually replaced by “homeopathic preparation” in national and European legislation, that labelling state that “the efficacy of the preparation has not been demonstrated in accordance with current standards”, and that homeopathic preparations cannot claim the properties of vaccines or replace them, without incurring criminal sanctions;
in veterinary medicine, no university diploma in homeopathy be awarded by schools and other public establishments, and that training in homeopathy only take place within the framework of training that takes into account the realities of the scientific approach;
as part of their initial training, veterinary schools are places for debate and training in critical thinking, by offering interdisciplinary seminars on non-conventional approaches;
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So, the next time someone claims “homeopathy has been proven to work in animals”, let’s show them what the experts think of this notion.
Being a dedicated crook and a liar himself, Donald Trump has long had an inclination to surround himself with crooks and liars. As discussed repeatedly, this preferance naturally extends into the realm of healthcare, Some time ago, he sought the advice of Andrew Wakefield, the man who published the fraudulent research that started the myth about a causal link between MMR-vaccinations and autism.
Early November this year, Trump stated that, if he wins the election, he’ll “make a decision” about whether to outlaw some vaccines based on the recommendation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a notorious vaccine critic without any medical training. The president doesn’t have authority to ban vaccines but he can influence public health with appointments to federal agencies that can change recommendations or potentially revoke approvals.
Now that he did win the election, Trump suggested that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., his pick to run Health and Human Services, will investigate supposed links between autism and childhood vaccines, a discredited connection that has eroded trust in the lifesaving inoculations.
“I think somebody has to find out,” Trump said in an exclusive interview with “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker. Welker noted in a back-and-forth that studies have shown childhood vaccines prevent about 4 million deaths worldwide every year, have found no connection between vaccines and autism, and that rises in autism diagnoses are attributable to increased screening and awareness.
Trump, too stupid to know the difference between correlation and causation, replied: “If you go back 25 years ago, you had very little autism. Now you have it.” “Something is going on,” Trump added. “I don’t know if it’s vaccines. Maybe it’s chlorine in the water, right? You know, people are looking at a lot of different things.” It was unclear whether Trump was referring to opposition by Kennedy and others to fluoride being added to drinking water.
Kennedy, the onetime independent presidential candidate who backed Trump after leaving the race, generated a large following through his widespread skepticism of the American health care and food system. A major component of that has been his false claims linking autism to childhood vaccinations. Kennedy is the founder of a prominent anti-vaccine activist group, Children’s Health Defense. The agency Trump has tasked him with running supports and funds research into autism, as well as possible new vaccines.
The debunked link between autism and childhood vaccines, particularly the inoculation against mumps, measles and rubella, was first claimed in 1998 by Andrew Wakefield who was later banned from practicing medicine in the UK. His research was found to be fraudulent and was subsequently retracted. Hundreds of studies have found childhood vaccines to be safe.
Autism diagnoses have risen from about 1 in 150 children in 2000 to 1 in 36 today. This rise has been shown to be due to increased screening and changing definitions of the condition. Strong genetic links exist to autism, and many risk factors occurring before birth or during delivery have been identified.
If Trump does, in fact, ‘outlaw’ certain vaccinations, he would endanger the health of the US as well as the rest of the world. Will he really be that stupid?
We had to deal with Hongchi Xiao several times before:
- Slapping therapy? No thanks!
- China Power and Influence
- Slapping therapy: therapist arrested and charged with manslaughter by gross negligence
Slapping therapy is based on the notion that slapping patients at certain points of their body has positive therapeutic effects. Hongchi Xiao, a Chinese-born investment banker, popularised this SCAM which, he claims, is based on the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine. It is also known as ‘Paida’—in Chinese, this means ‘to slap your body’. The therapy involves slapping the body surface with a view of stimulating the flow of ‘chi’, the vital energy postulated in Traditional Chinese Medicine. Slapping therapists believe that this ritual restores health and eliminates toxins. They also claim that the bruises which patients tend to develop after the treatment are the visible signs of toxins coming to the surface. Hongchi Xiao advocates slapping as “self-healing method” that should be continued until the skin starts looking bruised. He and his follows conduct workshops and sell books teaching the public which advocate slapping therapy as a panacea, a cure-all. The assumptions of slapping therapy fly in the face of science and are thus not plausible. There is not a single clinical trial testing whether slapping therapy is effective. It must therefore be categorised as unproven.
Now it has been reported that Hongchi Xiao has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the death of a 71-year-old diabetic woman who stopped taking insulin during one of his workshops.
Hongchi Xiao, 61, was convicted of manslaughter by gross negligence for failing to get medical help for Danielle Carr-Gomm as she howled in pain and frothed at the mouth during the fourth day of a workshop in October 2016. The Californian healer promoted paida lajin therapy which entails getting patients to slap themselves repeatedly to release “poisonous waste” from the body. The technique has its roots in Chinese medicine and has no scientific basis and patients often end up with bruises, bleeding — or worse.
Xiao had extradited from Australia, where he had been convicted of manslaughter after a 6-year-old boy died when his parents withdrew his insulin medication after attending one of his workshops in Sydney. “I consider you dangerous even though you do not share the characteristics of most other dangerous offenders,” Justice Robert Bright said during sentencing at Winchester Crown Court. “You knew from late in the afternoon of day one of the fact that Danielle Carr-Gomm had stopped taking her insulin. Furthermore, you made it clear to her you supported this.” Bright added Xiao only made a “token effort” to get Carr-Gomm to take her insulin once it was too late and had shown no sign of remorse as he even continued to promote paida lajin in prison.
Carr-Gomm was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 1999 and was desperate to find a cure that didn’t involve injecting herself with needles, her son, Matthew, said. She sought out alternative treatments and had attended a previous workshop by Xiao in Bulgaria a few months before her death in which she also became seriously ill after ceasing her medication. However, she recorded a video testimonial, calling Xiao a “messenger sent by God” who was “starting a revolution to put the power back in the hands of the people to cure themselves and to change the whole system of healthcare.”
Xiao had congratulated Carr-Gomm when she told other participants at the English retreat that she had stopped taking her insulin. By day three, Carr-Gomm was “vomiting, tired and weak, and by the evening she was howling in pain and unable to respond to questions,” prosecutor Duncan Atkinson said.
A chef who wanted to call an ambulance said she deferred to those with holistic healing experience. “Those who had received and accepted the defendant’s teachings misinterpreted Mrs. Carr-Gomm’s condition as a healing crisis,” Atkinson said.
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A healing crisis?
A crisis of collective stupidity, I’d say!
This update of a systematic review evaluated the effectiveness of spinal manipulations as a treatment for migraine headaches.
Amed, Embase, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Mantis, Index to Chiropractic Literature, and Cochrane Central were searched from inception to September 2023. Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) investigating spinal manipulations (performed by various healthcare professionals including physiotherapists, osteopaths, and chiropractors) for treating migraine headaches in human subjects were considered. Other types of manipulative therapy, i.e., cranial, visceral, and soft tissue were excluded. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to evaluate the certainty of evidence.
Three more RCTs were published since our first review; amounting to a total of 6 studies with 645 migraineurs meeting the inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis of six trials showed that, compared with various controls (placebo, drug therapy, usual care), SMT (with or without usual care) has no superior effect on migraine intensity/severity measured with a range of instruments (standardized mean difference [SMD] − 0.22, 95% confidence intervals [CI] − 0.65 to 0.21, very low certainty evidence), migraine duration (SMD − 0.10; 95% CI − 0.33 to 0.12, 4 trials, low certainty evidence), or emotional quality of life (SMD − 14.47; 95% CI − 31.59 to 2.66, 2 trials, low certainty evidence) at post-intervention. A meta-analysis of two trials showed that compared with various controls, SMT (with or without usual care) increased the risk of adverse effects (risk ratio [RR] 2.06; 95% CI 1.24 to 3.41, numbers needed to harm = 6; very low certainty evidence). The main reasons for downgrading the evidence were study limitations (studies judged to be at an unclear or high risk of bias), inconsistency (for pain intensity/severity), imprecision (small sizes and wide confidence intervals around effect estimates) and indirectness (methodological and clinical heterogeneity of populations, interventions, and comparators).
We cocluded that the effectiveness of SMT for the treatment of migraines remains unproven. Future, larger, more rigorous, and independently conducted studies might reduce the existing uncertainties.
The only people who might be surprised by these conclusions are chiropractors who continue to advertise and use SMT to treat migraines. Here are a few texts by chiropractors (many including impressive imagery) that I copied from ‘X’ just now (within less that 5 minutes) to back up this last statement:
- So many people are suffering with Dizziness and migraines and do not know what to do. Upper Cervical Care is excellent at realigning the upper neck to restore proper blood flow and nerve function to get you feeling better!
- Headache & Migraine Relief! Occipital Lift Chiropractic Adjustment
- Are migraines affecting your quality of life? Discover effective chiropractic migraine relief at…
- Neck Pain, Migraine & Headache Relief Chiropractic Cracks
- Migraine Miracle: Watch How Chiropractic Magic Erases Shoulder Pain! Y-Strap Adjustments Unveiled
- Tired of letting migraines control your life? By addressing underlying issues and promoting spinal health, chiropractors can help reduce the frequency and severity of migraines. Ready to experience the benefits of chiropractic for migraine relief?
- Did you know these conditions can be treated by a chiropractor? Subluxation, Back Pain, Chronic Pain, Herniated Disc, Migraine Headaches, Neck Pain, Sciatica, and Sports Injuries.
- When a migraine comes on, there is not much you can do to stop it except wait it out. However, here are some holistic and non-invasive tips and tricks to prevent onset. Check out that last one! In addition to the other tips, chiropractic care may prevent migraines in your future!
Evidence-based chiropractic?
MY FOOT!
THE TIMES recently published an interview with (my ex-friend) Michael Dixon, a person who has featured regularly on this blog. Here is a short passage relevant to our many discussions about homeopathy:
“Can I say on the record I’ve never studied homeopathy,” he says. “I’ve never even offered homeopathy. What I have done is said that if patients feel they’ve benefited from homeopathy, what’s the problem?”
The problem, scientists would argue, is that homeopathy undermines trust in real, evidence-based medicine. Homeopathic remedies are made by diluting active ingredients in water, often so that none of the original substance remains. Homeopathy has been banned on the NHS since 2017, because it is “at best a placebo”.
For Dixon, however, this “trench warfare” divide between alternative and conventional medicine is too binary. Even if something is scientifically impossible, as long as it helps his patients that is all that matters, Dixon says. “Many years ago, a Christian faith healer started seeing some of my patients. She made a lot of them better. I didn’t care a damn if it’s placebo — they got better,” he says.
While he thinks homeopathy can serve a purpose on the NHS, he draws a line at the “madness of some of the more wayward complementary practitioners” who will argue for using homeopathy to vaccinate children. “I would always advocate against anyone going for complementary medicine if there’s good evidence-based conventional medicine.”
Apart from
- the hilarious implication that a faith healer is NOT a “wayward practitioner”,
- the fact that, as far as I know, nobody ever claimed that Dixon studied homeopathy,
- the fact that Dixon does not understand what, according to scientists, the problems with homeopathy are,
his statements seem very empathetic at first glance.
Dixon’s key argument – if patients feel they’ve benefited from homeopathy, why not prescribe it – is an often-voiced notion. But that does not make it correct!
A physician’s duty is not primarily to please the patient. His/her duty foremost is to behave responsibly and to treat patients in the most effective way. And this includes, in a case where the patient feels to have benefitted from a useless or dangerous treatment, to inform the patient about the current best evidence. To me, this is obvious, to others, including Dixon, it seems not. Let me therefore ask you, the reader of these lines: what is the right way to act as a GP?
SCENARIO DIXON
Patient wants a treatment that is far from optimal and claims to have experienced benefit from it. The GP feels this is enough reason to prescribe it, despite plenty of evidence that shows the treatment in question has at best a placebo effect. Thus the doctor agrees to his/her patient taking homeopathy.
SCENARIO ERNST
Patient wants a treatment that is far from optimal and claims to have experienced benefit from it. The doctor takes some time to explain the the therapy is not effective and that, for the patient’s condition, there are treatments that would be better suited. The patient reluctantly agrees and the doctor prescribes a therapy that is backed by sound evidence (in case the patient resists, he/she is invited to see another doctor).
I admit that risking to lose a patient to another colleague is not an attractive prospect, particularly if the patient happens to be your King. But nobody ever said that medicine was easy – and it certainly is not a supermarket were customers can pick and choose as they please.
What do you think?
A journalist from the DAILY MAIL alerted me to the fact that yet another celebrity having decided to sell dietary supplements, interviewed me on the subject, and eventually published an article about it. One would not have thought that the Beckhams are short of money – so, why did David Beckham turn into a snake-oil salesman? I am far from being able to answer this question. What I now do know is that, via his firm ‘IM8’, he has started marketing two supplements (one of his slogans is ‘Built by Science, Trusted by Beckham’):
Daily Ultimate Essentials: All-in-One Supplement
This is a ‘multi-everything’ supplement. The only truly remarkable thing about it is its price tag. There are hundreds of similar products on the market. Almost all of them are much cheaper, and none is helpful for anyone who is healthy and consumes a balanced diet, as far as I can see.
Daily Ultimate Longevity: Healthy Aging
The implication here seems to be not a trivial one; the name clearly implies that we live longer, if we regularly bought this supplement. Not onlly that, we would also be healthier! I can see no evidence for either of these claims, yet a simple calculation tells me that we would be considerably poorer, if we fell for this advertising gimmick.
On the website, we learn a bit more:
At IM8, our commitment to science goes beyond innovation—it’s the foundation of everything we do. A world-class team of experts from space science, medicine, and academia has united with one goal: to revolutionize wellness. We’ve pioneered CRT8™ (Cell Rejuvenation Technology 8), designed to enhance cellular rejuvenation and push the limits of what’s possible in health.
Each of our products undergoes rigorous third-party testing and clinical trials, ensuring purity, efficacy, and results you can trust. With IM8, you’re getting scientifically driven core nutrition for optimal health and longevity.
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I feel embarrassed for the ‘world-class team of experts from space science, medicine, and academia’ who give their good name to this hyped up nonsense. Moreover, I ask myself whether David Beckham’s new attempt to increase his wealth might be a case for the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
“As a medical doctor having taken care of thousands of patients in my life, I strive to ensure the health safety and superior wellbeing of my patients. I continue to encourage, educate and inform not only my patients, but the public to stay strong and healthy any time, not just during a pandemic. Our body is our temple and what we put in it and what we don’t affects the way we feel, think and function. Essential vitamins and minerals are key component to daily functioning but thats not always possible in this day and age with our busy hectic lifestyles, so after years of educating my patients, now I made it a little easier to get all the nutrition you need to live strong and stay healthy.”
These are the words from an advertisement for “Immune System Support for your Active Life” sold by Dr. Janette Nesheiwat who was just nominated as Donald Trump’s next SURGEON GENERAL. Amongst other items, she sells 60 capsules of ‘B+C BOOST Plus D3 & Zinc‘ for US$26.99.
Her website describes the new US Surgeon General as follows:
Dr. Janette Nesheiwat is a top Family and Emergency Medicine doctor. She brings a refreshingly no-nonsense attitude to the latest medical news, breaking down everything you need to know to keep you- and your family- healthy at all times.
Whether caring for her patients in the ER, serving on the front lines of disaster relief with the Red Cross, or sharing need-to-know info with TV audiences, Dr. Nesheiwat’s mission is not only to save lives—but to change them, by giving real people the treatment and the expertise they need.
Her sincere and straightforward approach is a product of her background. She was one of five kids raised by a widowed mother, and also completed US Army ROTC Advanced Officer Training in Ft. Lewis, Washington prior to becoming a Family and Emergency Physician. She has led medical relief missions around the globe and today she is a medical news correspondent and the Medical Director at CityMD.
I was always telling my patients who were unwell drink some tea, take some vitamin b12 and vitamin C. I found myself repeating my all natural regimen to my patients over and over “take some B12 and C to Boost” your immune system. Thats how I came up with BC Boost. Although I am a doctor, I am not quick to prescribe drugs unless I feel necessary as we want to put into our body the most natural wholesome ingredients.
Vitamin B12 is a cofactor in DNA synthesis. It helps maintain healthy blood cells and nerve function as well as prevent anemia which causes fatigue, a common complaint in those who are sick, tired, run down. Vitamin C is needed for development of collagen and a strong immune system as well as body repair and growth.
Yes, you are quite right, Dr. Nesheiwat might have forgotten one or two not-so-unimportant details:
- If you eat a healthy diet, you don’t need vitamins.
- If you do need vitamins, you can buy them cheaper elsewhere.
- These vitamins do not boost your immune system.
- Boosting the immune system could actually do a lot of harm to the many people suffering from auto-immune diseases.
But never mind, we can nevertheless be confident that Dr. Nesheiwat will bring great joy to the US supplement industry. I am less confident, however, that she did public health a great service when, in her role as a regular ‘Fox News’ commentator, she warned that wearing face masks during the pandemic exposed consumers to toxic substances linked to seizures and cancer.
It has been reported that the Dresden Higher Regional Court (OLG) examined the extent to which a doctor must inform his patient, if he/she uses so-called alternative medine (SCAM) that deviates from conventional medicine. To be precise, the case was about a detoxification therapy with so-called chelating agents. A patient had received ‘holistic treatment’ for symptoms of exhaustion with sleep disorders, headaches, concentration problems and general restlessness and became worse and worse during the course of the therapy. Eventually, he sued for compensation for pain and suffering and damages.
Initially, the patient had been treated conservatively with iron supplements. After carrying out ‘provocation test’, the doctor diagnosed a heavy metal load, which he treated with ‘elimination therapy’ in the form of an i.v. “detox therapy” (2-3-dimercaptopropane-1-sulfonate (DMPS)). The patient subsequently became increasingly unwell, leading to hospitalisation and treatment for severe thrombocytopenia with moderate liver damage.
The expert opinion obtained in the first-instance of the ensuing legal proceedings considered the cause of the patient’s complaints to be the administration of an inadmissibly excessive amount of alpha-lipoic acid during ‘detoxification therapy’. It became clear that the doctor had not properly informed the patient about this therapy and its risks.
The court considered that the basic information required under German law had not been provided. This basic information gives the patient a general idea of the severity of the procedure and the impact of the associated burdens on their lifestyle. The obligation to provide information also applies to practitioners who use SCAM. A doctor who offers SCAM must therefore clearly inform the patient that they are deviating from a conventional approach. He/she must also explain why he/she is doing this and what advantages and disadvantages the patient can expect as a result.
Detoxification therapy is indisputably such a SCAM, the costs of which are not covered by the health insurance companies. The patient must therefore not only be informed of the risks and the danger of failure of the procedure, but must also be informed that the planned therapy is not standard medical practice and that the effectiveness of the therapy is unproven.
The patient must be able to weigh up whether they want to take the risks of treatment with regard to the prospects of success in view of their state of health before the procedure. Such information was not provided in the present case. For this reason, the Regional Court awarded damages for pain and suffering amounting to EUR 15,000 for the damage to health suffered.
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On this blog, we have often discussed the problems of informed consent. Informed consent, I have previously stated, must usually include full information on:
- the diagnosis
- its natural history
- the most effective treatment options available
- the proposed therapy
- its effectiveness
- its risks
- its cost
- a rough treatment plan
Only when this information has been transmitted to and understood by the patient can informed consent be considered complete. I do understand why many SCAM practitioners do not like informed consent – it could stop many from practising: they are frequently unable to provide the required information. Yet, ALL clinicians have a moral, ethical and legal duty to obtain informed consent BEFORE starting a therapy. It is reassuring that the German court agrees.
