Updated Edition!
“An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.” (Bill Vaughan)
Any New Year resolutions?
As far as my blog is concerned, I can think of a few:
- Be more polite to people whose opinions differ from mine. I have to admit that I sometimes find it hard to respond politely to offensive or offensively stupid comments. I will try to improve in this respect.
- Try harder to keep an open mind (while being careful that my brain does not fall out in the process).
- Avoid technical lingo so that all people understand what I am trying to say.
- Try to enlarge the readership of my blog (not quite sure how to do this; perhaps by sticking to my resolutions?).
- Cover more areas of alternative medicine. I have always strived to include even the most exotic modalities; the problem, however, is that most are not supported by evidence, and in the absence of evidence I don’t know what to discuss.
- Report more positive results; the problem is that there are very few sound studies with positive findings – but I will try.
- Have fun.
My last post was rather depressive, and I certainly do not want my readers to be under the weather when they go into 2019. For this last post of 2018, I have therefore selected 20 events which gave me hope that perhaps we – those who prefer rationality to nonsense – are making progress.
- It has been reported that New Brunswick judge ruled this week that Canadian naturopaths — pseudoscience purveyors who promote a variety of “alternative medicines” like homeopathy, herbs, detoxes, and acupuncture — cannot legally call themselves “medically trained.”
- The Spanish Ministries of Health and Sciences announced their ‘Health Protection Plan against Pseudotherapies’.
- The medical school of Vienna axed their courses in homeopathy.
- A most comprehensive review of homeopathy concluded that the effects of homeopathy do not differ from those of placebo.
- The UK Pharmaceutical Society has stated that it does not endorse homeopathy and that pharmacists must advise patients considering a homeopathic product about their lack of efficacy beyond that of a placebo.
- A top medical journal has retracted a dodgy meta-analysis of acupuncture.
- A prominent BMJ columnist wrote : Many people seek to make money from those who don’t understand science. Doctors should call out bollocksology when they see it.
- Pharmacare and Bioglan received a ‘Stonky’ for its over-the-counter Melatonin Homeopathic Sleep Formula.
- The Governing Body of Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) approved changes that mean NHS funded homeopathy will only be available in exceptional circumstances in the area.
- Health ministers of all German counties have decided that they will start reforming the profession of the Heilpraktiker, the German non-medically trained alternative practitioners.
- The NHS chief, Simon Stevens was quoted saying: There is no robust evidence to support homeopathy which is at best a placebo and a misuse of scarce NHS funds.
- A systematic review concluded that there is no evidence in the literature of an effect of chiropractic treatment in the scope of primary prevention or early secondary prevention for disease in general. Chiropractors have to assume their role as evidence-based clinicians and the leaders of the profession must accept that it is harmful to the profession to imply a public health importance in relation to the prevention of such diseases through manipulative therapy/chiropractic treatment.
- A Cochrane review did not show any benefit of homeopathic medicinal products compared to placebo on recurrence of acute respiratory tract infections or cure rates in children.
- The French minister of health stated that ‘the French are very attached [to homeopathy]; it’s probably a placebo effect. If it can prevent the use of toxic medicine, I think that we all win. I does not hurt.
- The Australian Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Association retracted false accusation against me about their assumption that I had undeclared conflicts of interest.
- The ‘Daily Telegraph‘ published the following statement after misquoting me: Emeritus Professor Edzard Ernst, Britain’s first professor of complementary medicine at Exeter University said that doctors should make it clear to patients that they could not be taking herbal remedies alongside drugs. Prof Ernst said there was no good evidence that they work and that doctors were ‘contributing to disinformation’ by turning a blind eye to the practice.
- A comprehensive overview of the therapeutic options for chronic low back pain showed that chiropractic is not any better than over-the-counter painkillers or exercise, and that patients need to take precautions when seeking out a chiropractor.
Hold on, you promised 20, but these are just 17!!!, I hear my attentive readers mutter.
Correct! I tried to find 20 to match my last post; and I only found 17. This might be a reflection that, in the realm of SCAM, the bad still outweighs the good news (by much more that 20:17, I fear).
Yet, this should not depress us. On the contrary, let’s see it as a challenge to get on with out work of fighting for good evidence, ethical standards, rationality and critical thinking.
In this spirit, I wish you all a very good, healthy and productive year 2019.
Over the years, I have become somewhat of an expert in spotting nonsense in the realm of alternative medicine, also known as SCAM. Here are – in no particular order – the 20 most remarkable examples of baloney that I came across (and wrote about) in 2018.
- Based on a totally inadequate study (which was tweeted by homeopaths as a success story), Indian homeopaths concluded that Ibuprofen and Belladonna 6C are effective and provide adequate analgesia with no statistically significant difference. Lack of adverse effects with Belladonna 6C makes it an effective and viable alternative.
- Chinese researchers conducted a meta-analysis and found that Ginkgo Leaf Extract and Dipyridamole Injection was associated with a curative effect for patients with angina pectoris.
- A German ‘journalist’ and PR-man likened critics of homeopathy (naming me and others) to the Nazis during the 1930s.
- A ‘landmark study‘ was celebrated by homeopaths (shortly afterwards it was suspected to be fraudulent. The journal published this note: Readers are alerted that the conclusions of this paper are subject to criticisms that are being considered by the editors. Appropriate editorial action will be taken once this matter is resolved.)
- The World President of the International Homeopathic Medical league published a book entitled ‘Cancer is Curable with Homeopathy’
- The WHO has decided to tolerate nonsensical TCM diagnoses by including a classification system on TCM in their next ICD.
- Osteopaths conducted a laughably insufficient study concluding that the results demonstrate that Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy should be considered in the treatment of patients with chronic symptoms of MS.
- Chinese authors reviewed the evidence on injectable TCM-preparations and found them to be ‘promising’ despite the lack of good evidence for them.
- The ‘Royal College of Chiropractors‘ made a rather pathetic attempt to re-invent chiropractic.
- A ‘respectable’ German medical journal published a homeopath’s claim that homeopathy can cure cancer.
- The UK Society of Homeopaths published recommendations that have the potential of killing many holidaymakers.
- The skeptical movement was called ‘an offshoot of the Communist Party‘ by a proponent of SCAM.
- I was accused of having falsified my qualifications.
- Dana Ullman decided that “evidence based medicine” can no longer be trusted.
- The Sunday Times broke my BS-meter.
- German osteopaths decided to promote intra-vaginal manipulations.
- A homeopath from Delhi advocated homeopathy for treating AIDS/HIV.
- A naturopaths was sued by a naturopath for telling the truth about naturopathy.
- Some homeopaths advocated increasing the height of children by giving them homeopathic remedies!
- A doctor from a Gerson clinic claims that Dr. Gerson, murdered in 1959, remains the most censured doctor in the history of medicine as he was reversing virtually every degenerative disease known to man, including TERMINAL cancer…
This is, of course, a highly personal choice. It nevertheless suggests that we have still more than enough work to do, if we want to instil some reason into SCAM.
You probably know what yoga is. But what is FODMAP? It stands for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols, more commonly known as carbohydrates. In essence, FODMAPs are carbohydrates found in a wide range of foods including onions, garlic, mushrooms, apples, lentils, rye and milk. These sugars are poorly absorbed, pass through the small intestine and enter the colon . There they are fermented by bacteria a process that produces gas which stretches the sensitive bowel causing bloating, wind and sometimes even pain. This can also cause water to move into and out of the colon, causing diarrhoea, constipation or a combination of both. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) makes people more susceptible to such problems.
During a low FODMAP diet these carbohydrates are eliminated usually for six to eight weeks. Subsequently, small amounts of FODMAP foods are gradually re-introduced to find a level of symptom-free tolerance. The question is, does the low FODMAP diet work?
This study examined the effect of a yoga-based intervention vs a low FODMAP diet on patients with irritable bowel syndrome. Fifty-nine patients with IBS undertook a randomised controlled trial involving yoga or a low FODMAP diet for 12 weeks. Patients in the yoga group received two sessions weekly, while patients in the low FODMAP group received a total of three sessions of nutritional counselling. The primary outcome was a change in gastrointestinal symptoms (IBS-SSS). Secondary outcomes explored changes in quality of life (IBS-QOL), health (SF-36), perceived stress (CPSS, PSQ), body awareness (BAQ), body responsiveness (BRS) and safety of the interventions. Outcomes were examined in weeks 12 and 24 by assessors “blinded” to patients’ group allocation.
No statistically significant difference was found between the intervention groups, with regard to IBS-SSS score, at either 12 or 24 weeks. Within-group comparisons showed statistically significant effects for yoga and low FODMAP diet at both 12 and 24 weeks. Comparable within-group effects occurred for the other outcomes. One patient in each intervention group experienced serious adverse events and another, also in each group, experienced nonserious adverse events.
The authors concluded that patients with irritable bowel syndrome might benefit from yoga and a low-FODMAP diet, as both groups showed a reduction in gastrointestinal symptoms. More research on the underlying mechanisms of both interventions is warranted, as well as exploration of potential benefits from their combined use.
Technically, this study is an equivalence study comparing two interventions. Such trials only make sense, if one of the two treatments have been proven to be effective. This is, however, not the case. Moreover, equivalence studies require much larger sample sizes than the 59 patients included here.
What follows is that this trial is pure pseudoscience and the positive conclusion of this study is not warranted. The authors have, in my view, demonstrated a remarkable level of ignorance regarding clinical research. None of this is all that unusual in the realm of alternative medicine; sadly, it seems more the rule than the exception.
What might make this lack of research know-how more noteworthy is something else: starting in January 2019, one of the lead authors of this piece of pseudo-research (Prof. Dr. med. Jost Langhorst) will be the director of the new Stiftungslehrstuhl “Integrative Medizin” am Klinikum Bamberg (clinic and chair of integrative medicine in Bamberg, Germany).
This does not bode well, does it?
What is osteopathy?
That’s a straightforward question; and it’s one that I am being asked regularly. Embarrassingly, I am not sure I know the optimal answer. A dictionary definition states that osteopathy is ‘a system of medical practice based on a theory that diseases are due chiefly to loss of structural integrity which can be restored by manipulation of the parts supplemented by therapeutic measures (such as use of drugs or surgery).‘ And in my most recent book, I defined it as ‘a manual therapy involving manipulation of the spine and other joints as well as mobilization of soft tissues‘. However, I am aware of the fact that these definitions are not optimal. Therefore, I was pleased to find a short article entitled ‘What is osteopathy?’; it was published on the website of the London-based UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF OSTEOPATHY (UCO).
The UCU has a proud history of ~100 years and a mission stating that they want to continually provide the highest quality education and research for all and the very best care, for each patient, on every occasion. Surely, they must know what osteopathy is.
Here is how they define it:
Osteopathy is a person-centred manual therapy that aims to enable patients to respond and adapt to changing circumstances and to live well.
At the UCO, we believe that osteopathy has the potential to help people change their lives – not only by searching for ways to manage disease, but also by helping patients to discover ways to enhance and maintain their own health and wellbeing.
A core principle of osteopathy is that wellbeing is dependent on how each person is able to function and adapt to changes in physical capability and their environment. Osteopaths are often described as treating the individual rather than the condition: when treating a patient they consider the symptom or injury alongside other biological, physiological and social factors which may be contributing to it.
Osteopaths work to ensure the best possible care for their patients, aiding their recovery and supporting them to help manage their conditions through a range of approaches, including physical manipulation of the musculoskeletal system and education and advice on exercise, diet and lifestyle.
END OF QUOTE
Let’s analyse this text bit by bit:
- … a person-centred manual therapy that aims to enable patients to respond and adapt to changing circumstances and to live well. Sorry, but this sounds like a platitude to me. It could apply to any quackery on the planet: Homeopathy is a person-centred manual therapy that aims to enable patients to respond and adapt to changing circumstances and to live well. Faith healing is a person-centred manual therapy that aims to enable patients to respond and adapt to changing circumstances and to live well. Chiropractic is a person-centred manual therapy that aims to enable patients to respond and adapt to changing circumstances and to live well. etc., etc.
- … we believe that osteopathy has the potential to help people change their lives – not only by searching for ways to manage disease, but also by helping patients to discover ways to enhance and maintain their own health and wellbeing. Of course, they believe that. Homeopaths, faith healers, chiropractors believe the same about their bogus treatments. But medicine should have more to offer than mere belief.
- … wellbeing is dependent on how each person is able to function and adapt to changes in physical capability and their environment. Yes, perhaps. But this statement is too broad to amount to more than a platitude.
- Osteopaths are often described as treating the individual rather than the condition: when treating a patient they consider the symptom or injury alongside other biological, physiological and social factors which may be contributing to it. Really? I thought that all great clinicians can be described as treating the individual rather than the condition: when treating a patient they consider the symptom or injury alongside other biological, physiological and social factors which may be contributing to it. (‘The good physician treats the disease; the great physician treats the patient who has the disease.’ [William Osler], ‘Reductionism is a dirty word, and a kind of ‘holistier than thou’ self-righteousness has become fashionable.’ [Richard Dawkins])
- Osteopaths work to ensure the best possible care for their patients, aiding their recovery and supporting them to help manage their conditions through a range of approaches… What is this supposed to mean? Do non-osteopaths work to ensure the worst possible care for their patients, obstructing their recovery and preventing them to help manage their conditions through a range of approaches? In my view, this sentence is just plain stupid.
What have we learnt from this excursion?
Mainly two things, I think:
- Osteopaths and even the UCO seems unable to provide a decent definition of osteopathy. The reason for this odd phenomenon might be that it is not easy to define nonsense.
- Osteopaths, like other SCAM-practitioners, may not be all that good at logical thinking, but – by Jove! – they are excellent at touting fallacies.
Who would not like to get rid of their post-Christmas bulge? Diet and exercise would do the trick, of course, but they are all too cumbersome for most. And liposuction? That’s invasive. Why not chose something much easier? Why not ‘LASER LIPO’? This website explains it all:
If you have or are considering Liposuction, take a look at Laser Lipo. We utilize a cold laser non-invasively to turn fat cells into energy. This process allows you to lose inches and weight fast, safely and effectively. Our Laser Lipo will have those hard to lose inches melting away.
Obesity has been linked to the driving force of all major inflammatory diseases. These diseases include diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Utilizing the most current technology in Lipo Laser, New-Start bares a cold laser, capable of transforming your fat tissue into energy, EFFORTLESSLY!
- LOSE INCHES!
- GAIN ENERGY!
- Zero Side Effects
- Zero Pain
- Zero Surgery
- Zero Down Time
- Add a Detoxification Program to Lose Inches and Weight
What to Expect with Laser Assisted Fat Loss in Columbus!
- This is a twenty minute procedure designed to transform any trouble fat areas that you might have into usable energy.
- The cold laser technology stimulates your fat cells, allowing the stored water glycerol and fatty acids to leak out, leaving your body slimmer and trimmer.
- This is not another “body wrap” procedure that only dehydrates the skin for temporary results — this is a positive change if you follow the simple New-Start Solution rules.
- After the relaxing 20 minute laser procedure, the New-Start protocol consists of spending 10 minutes on a hypervibe pivotal vibration machine.
- The hypervibe is a relatively new technology that has been developed in the exercise world. This machine is capable of helping you increase your inch loss results and stimulate your metabolism. Vibration technology has evidence to even strengthen your bones and muscles.
- This document will also help you understand our Laser Lipo procedure: How Does it Work? (pdf)
END OF QUOTE
Sounds great!
Even more so because the site belongs to Dr. Trent Mozingo who has recently proved himself to be such a reliable and avid commentator on this blog (see the comments section of this post). According to his site, he enrolled in Purdue University where he earned a Bachelor’s of Science degree. Upon completion of Purdue’s curriculum, Dr. Mozingo earned a Doctorate of Chiropractic at Palmer College of Chiropractic, Florida. During his time at Palmer, Dr. Mozingo, focused his education on a scientific approach to chiropractic care, where evidence backs up each diagnosis and treatment. Additionally, Dr. Mozingo gave much attention to nutrition, inflammatory diseases, and the American diet. While musculoskeletal pain is the initial reason he pursued a chiropractic education, Dr. Mozingo has focused most of his patient treatment plans to the prevention of disease, with proper lifestyle changes.
As much as we all trust a man with such a background, I am sure, we might still ask whether there is any evidence that LASER LIPO takes any body fat away. My searches did not result in any such evidence, I am afraid. All I did find was a website that provides further explanation as well as some clinical impressions:
This is not a stand-alone treatment and requires that the guest do at least 30 minutes of exercise after the treatment. The fat cells are porous for approximately 3 hours, and any contents that are not peed, sweated or exercised out will settle back and reduce the results.
Many spas will do measurements around certain areas right before and after the treatment, usually resulting an about an average quarter inch loss. Some spas will do multiple measurements in one area and add up the results. For example, if three areas are measured around the abdomen (at the belly button and one inch above and below), and a quarter inch difference is noticed in all three areas, many spas will claim this is a three quarter inch reduction—this can be misleading.
The average cost (in Canadian) is $200 per treatment, with a series of 8 recommended. Many spas will give an introductory price of $50 or $100 for your first visit so you can see the results. Although there is usually an immediate inch loss difference (which gets you hooked), this rarely lasts until the next day.
With the numerous guests that I performed this service on, I found that about 80% of the people who completed their series of 8 were dissatisfied with the results. Many saw no change on their last measurement from the first, and a few even saw a gain at the end. For the guests who did see a difference, it was clear that their lifestyle had a big influence, with many going regularly to the gym. My professional opinion on this treatment is to skip it and save your money…
SORRY ‘DOCTOR’ TRENT MOZINGO!
And sorry also to all of those readers who had hoped the LASER LIPO might do them some good.
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the deer antler, the young, non-ossifying, and pilose antler on the head of deer, is known as Lu Rong. It is a prized and highly sought after commodity and thus an ideal X-mas present for TCM-fans. Deer antler has been used for hundreds of years for health and longevity and is considered a yang tonic. The most expensive deer antler is harvested in Alaska; prices range from $100 to $ 500 per 100 gram.
TCM knows three main treasures – deer antler velvet (Lu Rong), Ginseng (Ren Shen), and carex meyeriana grass (Wu La Cao). Among them deer velvet antler is the most precious. It is used for curing all deficiency syndromes, especially deficiency of the kidney, weak constitution, premature aging, deficiency of qi, blood, and semen. Reportedly, deer antlers contain 25 kinds of amino acids and a variety of vitamins that can improve the body’s immune system and promote hematopoietic function. In his “Compendium of Materia Medica”, Li Shizhen stated that deer antler is for reinforcing kidney to strengthen yang, promoting essence production, enriching blood, supplementing marrow, and invigorating bone.
Does deer antler work? TCM-practitioners seem to have little doubt. They claim it can:
- enhance immunity,
- increase body resistance to disease
- delay aging,
- sharpen the brain,
- and strengthen memory,
- treat infertility,
- cure deficient cold,
- treat postpartum weakness,
- cure metrorrhagia,
- treat metrostaxis,
- treat paediatric liver and kidney deficiency,
- remedy slow growth,
- help with delayed walking of children,
- help with delayed eruption of teeth, delayed closure of the anterior fontanelle, soft bone condition, and more.
And what about any evidence for all this extraordinary claims and assumptions?
A 2013 review concluded that deer antler base has emerged as a good source of traditional medicine. However, further investigations are needed to explore individual bioactive compounds responsible for these in vitro and in vivo pharmacological effects and its mechanism of actions. Further safety assessments and clinical trials in humans need to be performed before it can be integrated into medicinal practices. The present review has provided preliminary information for further studies and commercial exploitations of deer antler base.
In plain language: there is no evidence that deer antler has any health effects whatsoever.
If you are nevertheless interested, you can very easily buy deer antler as a supplement.
But PLEASE, don’t let Rudolph hear about it; he empathises with his relatives who detest being harvested for useless TCM.
Need a last minute X-mas present?
I might have just the right thing for you: Healing Courses Online.
They are run by true professionals who clearly know what they are doing: The founders of The Online Bio Energy Healing Training Course are John Donohoe and Patricia Hesnan, both of whom have been working in the alternative complementary healing area for over 25 years. Our healing centre clinic has been involved in teaching, development and trainings since it was first established in 1990, and we continue to promote and hold our regular live training courses.
Healing Courses Online is registered with the CMA (Complementary Medical Association), which is internationally recognized as the leading organization in professional, ethical complementary medicine by professional practitioners, therapists, and the public in general. Having completed this course, you can apply for membership of the CMA which offers a number of benefits including supplying professional accreditation. The CAM industry does not have a single regulatory body at present. With this in mind here at Oisin Centre Limited and Healing Courses Online we provide certification and training of the highest standards and expect our students to adhere to all statutory regulations, standards and codes of ethics regarding professional practice as therapists. You can feel safe in the knowledge that we are an experienced and trusted provider of Energy Healing training courses.
AND HERE ARE THE DETAILS AND PRICE-TAGS OF 4 COURSES:
A diploma course in energy healing. It includes 58 professional video lessons, 8 PDF lectures in a carefully constructed A, B, C, step-by-step format, allowing you to learn each technique and each application in easy stages. When you have completed the course you receive a Certified Diploma in Energy Healing. Once you have the knowledge and understand how to apply this energy healing therapy you can help yourself and others to activate the body’s own natural process of self-healing.
€97.00 – Was €375.00
A diploma course in sound healing. It includes 37 professional video lessons, 18 PDF lectures in a carefully constructed A, B, C, step-by-step format, allowing you to learn each technique and each application in easy stages. When you have completed the course, you receive a Certified Diploma in Sound Healing. Learn the secrets to sound healing with Tibetan singing bowls, Chinese gong, Tuning forks, the Human Voice, plus energy healing clearing for chakras plus much more.
€69.00 – Was €275.00
A diploma course in animal energy healing. It includes 30 practical video lessons and 5 PDF lectures in a carefully constructed A, B, C, step-by-step format, allowing you to learn each technique and each application in easy stages. When you have completed the course, you receive a Certified Diploma in Animal Healing. This is an ideal course to learn how you can help your pet or any animal so they may be healthy, happy and content.
€59.00 – Was €225.00
SELF HEALING / SELF HELP ONLINE COURSE includes 24 professional video lessons, plus 20 PDF lectures in a carefully constructed A, B, C, step-by-step format, allowing you to learn each technique and each application in easy stages and certification of completion. You can view a video with simple Qi-Gong exercises filmed at picturesque Galway Bay in Ireland. The aim of using singing bowls, crystal bowls, tuning forks, healing music, or the human voice as a self healing modality is to help restore the body to its normal.
€19.99 – Was €199.00
__________________________________________________________________________
IN CASE YOU WONDER WHAT YOU CAN DO ONCE YOU HAVE PASSED ONE OF THOSE COURSES, THE COURSE DIRECTORS GIVE IT TO YOU STRAIGHT:
Energy healing can be used as a standalone therapy or in conjunction with many other modalities including counselling, psychotherapy, hypnosis, acupuncture, massage, reflexology, and many more.
As soon as you have completed the course plus a short 10 question test, you will be granted your diploma, which you can download and print. (Your diploma is also automatically sent to your email account.)
___________________________________________________________________________
On this blog and elsewhere, my critics regularly complain that I do not have any qualifications in alternative medicine. Therefore, I am tempted to enrol (as a generous and high-value X-mas present to myself) – even though I am still uncertain which of the 4 courses might be best for me (and, of course, I cannot be sure to pass the ’10 question test’!).
How about you?
Will you join me?
Naturopathy is an eclectic system of health care that uses elements of alternative and conventional medicine to support and enhance self-healing processes. Naturopaths employ treatments based on therapeutic options that are thought of as natural, e. g. naturally occurring substances such as herbs, as well as water, exercise, diet, fresh air, pressure, heat and cold – but occasionally also acupuncture, homeopathy and manual therapies.
Naturopathy is steeped in the obsolete concept of vitalism which is the belief that living organisms are fundamentally different from non-living entities because they contain some non-physical element or are governed by different principles than are inanimate things. Naturopaths claim that they are guided by a unique set of principles that recognize the body’s innate healing capacity, emphasize disease prevention, and encourage individual responsibility to obtain optimal health. They also state that naturopathic physicians (NDs) are trained as primary care physicians in 4-year, accredited doctoral-level naturopathic medical schools.
However, applied to English-speaking countries (in Germany, a doctor of naturopathy is a physician who has a conventional medical degree), such opinions seem little more than wishful thinking. It has been reported that New Brunswick judge ruled this week that Canadian naturopaths — pseudoscience purveyors who promote a variety of “alternative medicines” like homeopathy, herbs, detoxes, and acupuncture — cannot legally call themselves “medically trained.”
The lawsuit was filed because actual physicians were frustrated that fake doctors were using terms like “medical practitioner” and saying they worked at a “family practice.” This conveyed the false idea that naturopaths were qualified at the same level as real doctors.
The argument from naturopaths was that they weren’t misleading anyone. “There’s not even the slightest hint of evidence that anyone has been misled — or worse, harmed,” [attorney Nathalie Godbout] said. “This mythical patient that has to be protected by naturopathic doctors — I haven’t met them yet.”
However, Justice Hugh McLellan wasn’t buying it. He said the justification for naturopaths using terms such as “doctor” and “family physician” are based on the assumption that “people are attuned to the meaning of words like “naturopathy.” Many patients might read a website or a Facebook ad out of context, he said, and fail to pick up on the difference between “a doctor listing his or her qualifications as ‘Dr. So-and-So, B.Sc., MD,’ as opposed to the listing that might include ‘B.Sc., ND [naturopathic practitioner].’”
“I see a risk here,” McLellan said, “that the words … could, in fact, imply or be designed to lead the public to believe these various naturopaths are entitled to practise medicine.”
Britt Marie Hermes, a former naturopath who now warns people about the shortcomings of the profession, said she was thrilled with the judge’s ruling: “This is a very encouraging step in the right direction toward ensuring public safety. Naturopaths are not doctors. The onus should not be on patients to vet the credentials and competency of someone holding themselves out to be a medically trained physician. Now, patients will have an easier time separating truly medically qualified physicians from naturopathic practitioners. Bravo New Brunswick!”
In view of the many horror-stories that emerge about naturopathy, I am inclined to agree with Britt:
- Naturopaths tend to advise against vaccination.
- Some naturopaths advocate CEASE therapy.
- Many naturopaths use bogus treatments such as homeopathy.
- Some naturopaths claim to able to treat cancer.
- This has resulted in fatalities.
In the context of healthcare the title ‘doctor’ or ‘physician’ must be reserved to those who have a conventional medical degree. Anything else means misleading the public to an unacceptable degree, in my view.
A few weeks ago, I was interviewed by a journalist who wanted to publish the result in a magazine. He now informed me that his editor decided against it, and the interview thus remained unpublished. I have the journalist’s permission to publish it here. The journalist who, in my view, was well-prepared (much better than most), prefers to remain unnamed.
Q: How would you describe yourself?
A: I am a researcher of alternative medicine.
Q: Not a critic of alternative medicine?
A: Primarily, I am a researcher; after all, I have published more Medline-listed research papers on the subject than anyone else on the planet.
Q: You are retired since a few years; why do you carry on working?
A: Mainly because I see a need for a critical voice amongst all the false and often dangerous claims made by proponents of alternative medicine. But also because I enjoy what I am doing. Since I retired, I can focus on the activities I like. There is nobody to tell me what to do and what not to do; the latter happened far too often when I was still head of my research unit.
Q: Fine, but I still do not quite understand what drives you. Who is motivating you to criticise alternative medicine?
A: Nobody. Some people claim I am paid for my current activities. This is not true. My blog actually costs me money. My books never return enough royalties to break even, considering the time they take to write. And for most of my lectures I don’t charge a penny.
Q: There are people who find this hard to believe.
A: I know. This just shows how money-orientated they are. Do they want me to publish my tax returns?
Q: Sorry, but I still don’t understand your motivation.
A: I guess what motivates me is a sense of responsibility, a somewhat naïve determination to do something good as a physician. I am one of the only – perhaps even THE only – scientist who has researched alternative medicine extensively and who is not a promoter of bogus therapies but voices criticism about them. There are several other prominent and excellent critics of alternative medicine, of course, but they all come ‘from the outside’. I come from the inside of the alternative medicine business. This probably gives me a special understanding of this field. In any case, I feel the responsibility to counter-balance all the nonsense that is being published on a daily basis.
Q: What’s your ultimate aim?
A: I want to create progress through educating people to think more critically.
Q: Which alternative medicine do you hate most?
A: I do not hate any of them. In fact, I still have more sympathy for them than might be apparent. For my blog, for instance, I constantly search for new research papers that are rigorous and show a positive result. The trouble is, there are so very few of those articles. But when I find one, I am delighted to report about it. No, I do not hate or despise any alternative medicine; I am in favour of good science, and I get irritated by poor research. And yes, I do dislike false claims that potentially harm consumers. And yes, I do dislike it when chiropractors or other charlatans defraud consumers by taking their money for endless series of useless interventions.
Q: I noticed you go on about the risks of alternative medicine. But surely, they are small compared to the risks of conventional healthcare, aren’t they?
A: That’s a big topic. To make it simple: alternative medicine is usually portrayed as risk-free. The truth, however, is that there are numerous risks of direct and indirect harm; the latter is usually much more important than the former. Crucially, the risk-free image is incongruent with reality. I want to redress this incongruence. And as to conventional medicine: sure, it can be much more harmful. But one always has to see this in relation to the proven benefit. Chemotherapy, for instance, can kill a cancer patient, but more likely it saves her life. Homeopathic remedies cannot kill you, but employed as an alternative to an effective cancer treatment, homeopathy will certainly kill you.
Q: Homeopathy seems to be your particular hobby horse.
A: Perhaps. This is because it exemplifies alternative medicine in several ways, and because I started my alternative ‘career’ in a homeopathic hospital, all those years ago.
Q: In what way is homeopathy exemplary?
A: Its axioms are implausible, like those of many other alternative modalities. The clinical evidence fails to support the claims, like with so many alternative therapies. And it is seemingly safe, yet can do a lot of harm, like so many other treatments.
Q: You have no qualification in homeopathy, is that right?
A: No, I have no such qualifications. And I never said so. When I want to tease homeopaths a little, I state that I am a trained homeopath; and that is entirely correct.
Q: In several countries, homeopathy has taken spectacular hits recently. Is that your doing?
A: No, I don’t think so. But I do hope that my work has inspired the many dedicated activists who are currently protesting against the reimbursement of homeopathy by the public purse in the UK, Germany, France, Spain, etc.
Q: You often refer to medical ethics; why is that?
A: Because, in the final analysis, many of the questions we already discussed are really ethical issues. And in alternative medicine, few people have so far given the ethical dimensions any consideration. I think ethics are central to alternative medicine, so much so that I co-authored an entire book on this topic this year.
Q: Any plans for the future?
A: Plenty.
Q: Can you tell me more?
A: I will publish another book in 2019 with Springer. It will be a critical evaluation of precisely 150 different alternative modalities. I am thinking of writing yet another book, but have not yet found a literary agent who wants to take me on. I have been offered a new professorship at a private University in Vienna, and am hesitant whether to accept or not. I have been invited to give a few lectures in 2019 and hope to receive more invitations. Last not least, I work almost every day on my blog.
Q: More than enough for a retiree, it seems. Thank you for your time.
A: My pleasure.
