top ten things you should know about alternative medicine

7/30/2019 Top Ten Things You Should Know About Alternative Medicine

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Im an equal opportunity skeptic.

Im skeptical about alternative

medicine, pseudoscience, and

quackery; but I apply the same

standards of skepticism to

conventional medicine. I dontwrite about conventional medicine

so much, because I dont need

to. Science itselfis inherently

skeptical and scientific

medicine is self-criticizing

and self-correcting. When

better evidence comes along

medical practices change.

1alternative v.conventional

MeDicine

The Wit & Wisdom of

HarrietHall,M.D.

tHeSkepDoc

TopTen ThingsYoushouldKnowAbouT

AlternAtive Medicine

2009 Skeptics Society and Harriet Hall. Read more by Harriet Hall at www.skeptic.com and www.skepdoc.info


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D.D. Palmer, a grocerand magnetic healer,invented chiropracticon September 18,1895. He did some-thing to a deaf mansback. The man said hecould hear again. Thisis particularly ironic, be-cause the nerves to theear dont go anywherenear the spine, and nochiropractor todayclaims to be able tocure deafness.

Chiropractic theoryis based on three principles: (1) bony displacementcauses all disease; (2) displacement interferes withnerve function; (3) removing the interference allows

Innate(a vitalistic force) to heal the body. All threeof these principles are false. (1) Chiropractic sublux-ations have never been demonstrated; (2) No impair-ment of nerve function has been documented; (3) No

such vitalistic force has been detected.

2 Swine flu vaccine fearMongeringBetween April 15 and July 24, 2009, there were43,771 confirmed and probable cases of H1N1 in-fluenza (swine flu) in the U.S. There were 5,011hospitalizations and 302 deaths, 39% among thoseaged 25 to 49, in contrast to the usual flu where90% of the deaths are in people over age 65. Theanti-vaccine zealots are scary. They are not insane,just self-deluded and misguided. I hope the swineflu wont develop into a reprise of 1918; but if itdoes, the false information these people are spread-ing could be responsible for a great deal of deathand suffering. These people are irresponsible fear-mongers. They are wrong, and they are dangerous.


There is no vac-cines-autism contro-

versy. The evidenceis in. The scientificcommunity hasreached a clear

consensus thatvaccines dontcause autism. Thereis, however, a man-ufactroversyamanufacturedcontroversycreatedby junk science, dis-honest researchers,professional miscon-duct, outright fraud,lies, misrepresenta-

tions, irresponsible re-porting, unfortunatemedia publicity, poorjudg-ment, celebrities

who think they arewiser than the wholeof medical science, and afew maverick doctors whoought to know better.

Thousands of par-ents have beenfrightened into re-jecting or delayingimmunizations for

their children.

The immuniza-tion rate hasdropped, resultingin the return ofendemic measlesin the U.K. and

various outbreaksof vaccine-pre-

ventable diseasesin the U.S. Herdimmunity has beenlost. The publichealth conse-quences are seri-ous and are likelyto get worse be-fore they get bet-tera load ofunscientific non-sense has put usall at risk.

4 vaccineS anDautiSM: a DeaDlyManufactroverSy

3 cHiropractic:a little pHySicaltHerapy, a lotof nonSenSe


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7 HoMeopatHy:Still crazy after all tHeSe yearS

Homeopathy was invented by Samuel Hahnemann in the late 1700s. It is based on the now-outdated prin-ciple that like cures like, and the more dilute the dose the better in homeopathy. How dilute? Serious di-lution, as in comparable to one drop diluted in all the water on Earth. When they realized that nomolecules of the original substance were left in most homeopathic dilutions, homeopaths rationalized thatthe water must remember what it had come into contact withas in clusters of water molecules somehowholding the memory of their encounters with the allegedly curative substances. Unfortunately, homeopathshave failed to explain how water can remember what its supposed to remember, and forget all the othermemories of coming into contact with various trace contaminants, elements, bacteria, and what everelse happened to float by at the time.

Im rather fond of my recipe for the homeopathic Oscillococcinum from my Curingthe Common Cold column: start with duck liver, dilute the duck out of it, andhope that the water remembers the duck. In my opinion, all that leaves is a quack.

Theres evidence that several things might begoing on with placebos: expectancy, motivation,conditioning, and endogenous opiates.(1)Expectancy: If we expect to feel pain we aremore likely to feel pain. If we are told to expecta strong pain-killer, were more likely to get painrelief. (2)Motivation: Patients who are stronglymotivated to get well are more compliant andfollow health advice more conscientiously. Andpatients who are more compliant about takingtheir placebo pills regularly get a strongerplacebo response. (3) Conditioning: Peoplelearn to associate pills and medical treatments

with relief of symptoms. (4)Endogenous opi-ates: pain-relieving chemicals produced in thebrain mimic the effects ofopium-like drugs (morphine,etc.). There is some evidencethat when patients respond

to placebos, their brains pro-duce more of these chemi-cals. Imaging studies haveshown activation of opioidreceptors in thebrain whenpeople are toldthat a placebois a painkiller.


5tHe placebo effect

6 wHat toeat: fooD.

not

tooMucH.MoStlyplantS

Organic has become a meaningless buzzword; Iflinch when I see it on a label: it inclines me not tobuy that product. What we really want is sustain-able agriculture that does minimal damage to the

environment and produces food that is nutritious,tastes good, and has no unnecessary contaminants.Organic food as currently defined doesnt neces-sarily achieve those goals. Produce may have beentrucked long distances using up fossil fuels andmaking it less fresh than local produce; it may costmore and not look as pretty. It may not use landefficiently. Absent pesticides, plants may producehigher levels of natural pesticides for self-de-fensecould that be bad for us? Sometimes locallygrown foods that are not technically organic are

a better choice. We should ask questions ratherthan reflexively buy organic.


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When you really stop to think, is thereany reason a remedyshouldbe better

just because its natural? There areplenty of natural poisons, from hemlock

to strychnine. Plants have to protectthemselves from predators, and they have

invented quite an array of chemical defenses.We go organic out of concern for

artificial pesticide residues in our food,but natural pesticides make up 99.99%

of the pesticides in our diet. Plants haveno intention of helping us. If theres a

chemical in a plant thats medically useful tous its not natural: its unnaturally good luck.

People who want to detoxifyoften dont have any idea what toxins theyre talking

about. They may vaguely believe that modern life contaminates us with lots of badthings that we ought to get rid of. Its reminiscent of religious fasting and purification

rites. Orthodox Jewish women go to a ritual bath (Mikveh) that restores them topurity after childbirth or menstruation. Shamans used smoke for purification.Numerous religions observe periods of fasting. American Indians used sweat

lodges for purification and sacred ceremonies. Its mysticism, not science. Ourbodies come equipped with livers, kidneys, stomachs, intestines, enzymes, and

metabolic processes that deal with toxins efficiently with no outside help. There isno medical evidence to support any other methods or benefits of detoxification.

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There were originally 360 acupuncture points (based on the number ofdays of the year rather than on anatomy). Currently more than 2000acupuncture points have been discovered, leading one wag to com-ment that there was no skin left that was notan acupuncture point.

There were either 9, 10, or 11 meridianstake your pick. Any numberis as good as another, because no research has ever been able to docu-ment the existence of acupuncture points or meridians or chi.Acupunc-

ture has been shown to work to relieve pain, nausea, and other subjectivesymptoms, but it has never been shown to alter the natural history or course

of any disease. Studies have shown that acupuncture releases natural opioid painrelievers in the brain: endorphins. Veterinarians have pointed out that loading a horse into a trailer or throw-ing a stick for a dog also releases endorphins. Probably hitting yourself on the thumb with a hammer wouldrelease endorphins too, and it would take your mind off your headache.

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top ten things you should know about alternative medicine

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