Sysiphus Speaks

I ran across Why conventional doctors ignore alternative medicine over at the Signs of the Time web sight. A curious site. A quick skim suggests that its approach to medicine, or reality, has little to do with mine. But then, I do not understand one of the purposes of their organization: The project includes collecting, arranging, and analyzing news items that seem to best reflect the movement of macrocosmic quantum energies on the planet.

It is no wonder that in all the reviews, homeopathy is no different that placebo for the treatment of any disease. It is why it is interesting that the inventor of homeopathy, Samuel Hahnemann, differentiated between a sham medication (placebo) and his homeopathic nostrums.

A plethora of class action lawsuits have been filed in the last few years alleging that customers were deceived by a product's claim that it is made from "natural" ingredients" or the product is "all natural." (You can find a list and description of these suits on the Top Class Actions website by typing in the search term "natural.")

It should be the Gloria Thomas Memorial week. She was the 9 month old with severe eczema who died from infectious complications, having only received homeopathic therapies from her parents.

Sexual problems? Rhino horns could help. What makes blood flow? Heat. So why not set your crotch alight with Fire Therapy?

I read "Naturopathic Practice at North American Academic Institutions: Description of 300,483 Visits and Comparison to Conventional Primary Care with a bit of curiosity.

Like most pseudo-medicines it is indicated for virtually any disease, but it's main claim to fame is reversing breech presentation. Moxibusion is supposed to change the baby from feet first to head first. I was, shall we say, skeptical.

Frankly, this is one time I was actually rather proud that American regulation was ahead of the Canadians. Otherwise, their single-payer health care system runs rings around ours. But, shades of DSHEA! The new law would exempt "natural products," which includes dietary supplements. Scott succinctly summarizes why this is a bad idea:

Yes. They propose that schizophrenia is actually demon possession and best treated by a faith healer.

Adults, as a rule, have a choice in participating in medical studies and the potential for adverse effects. Children and animals do not, and the ethics of inflicting worthless pseudo-medical procedures on dumb animals is suspect at best and creepy at worst. Take Comparison of intrarectal ozone, ozone administered in acupoints and meloxicam for postoperative analgesia in bitches undergoing ovariohysterectomy as an example.

Numerous class actions against homeopathic remedy manufacturers, based on fraud and violation of various consumer protection laws, are pending or have been settled in the U.S. This has soured at least one homeopathic remedy manufacturer on the U.S. market.  Heel Group, a German manufacturer of homeopathic remedies, announced it is ceasing all U.S. and Canadian operations.

Harriet Hall calls it Tooth Fairy Science and it abounds in the world of pseudo-medicine. Modern technology is applied to fictional concepts with laughable results that are used to ‘prove’ that fiction is reality. A case in point: Ear acupuncture and fMRI: a pilot study for assessing the specificity of auricular points.

Someone else notices an association between an ear lobe crease and coronary artery diseases. That seems even odder and studies have been both pro and con for the association. But a recent meta-analysis, Ear lobe crease as a marker of coronary artery disease: A meta-analysis., suggests the association is legit.

So it was with interest I saw “Effect of Pumpkin Seed Oil on Hair Growth in Men with Androgenetic Alopecia: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial.” One never knows if a botanical is going to have an effect on a physiologic process, and, given the difference in hair between Linus and Charlie Brown, perhaps there is something to it.

It is rare for pseudo-medical providers to recognize that their interventions can cause harm. You see this in the lack of hand hygiene and gloves in any of the videos or photographs of the pseudo-medicines.