Month: January 2017

Pink Himalayan Sea Salt: An Update

The claims of health benefits from pink Himalayan sea salt are not supported by a shred of evidence. In fact, its vaunted “84 trace minerals and elements” include several poisons and many radioactive elements.

/ January 31, 2017

“Detox”: Ritual purification masquerading as medicine and wellness

If the "central dogma" of alternative medicine is that wishing makes it so, one of the most important of the other organizing dogmas of alternative medicine is that "toxins," whether they come from inside or outside, are making us sick and that we can't be healthy until we "detoxify." This is far more a religious belief than a science-based one.

/ January 30, 2017

Corrigendum. The Week in SBM for 01.29.2017

Not every article and study that pops up my feeds in the world of pseudo-medicine is worthy of a complete blog post. But they need to be noticed and commented upon: FDA confirms elevated levels of belladonna in certain homeopathic teething products. Homeopaths prove water not toxic to fish. Lots of acupuncture recommendations, little good data. Everything is CAM. And more! Duty...

/ January 29, 2017

Acupuncture for Infant Colic Part 2: Acupuncture Boogaloo

A detailed discussion of infant colic plus a few more thoughts on why acupuncture does not play a role in science-based management.

/ January 27, 2017

How accurately do physicians estimate risk and benefit?

A new study suggests that physicians tend to overestimate the benefits of treatments, tests, and screening tests, while also underestimating harms.

/ January 26, 2017

Acupuncture for Infantile Colic

Another low-quality acupuncture study falls victim to p-hacking and spreads unsupported claims for the efficacy of this failed treatment.

/ January 25, 2017

Flame Retardants Have Ignited a Flaming Controversy

Flame retardants are controversial: proponents say they reduce fire damage and save lives; critics say they don't work, are poisoning our environment, and should be banned.

/ January 24, 2017

How reproducible is basic lab research in cancer biology?

Last week, a review of the reproducibility of several highly cited cancer biology papers was published. The results were mixed and demonstrate how difficult reproducing published results can be at times—and how scientists need to do better.

/ January 23, 2017

Corrigendum. The week in SBM for 1.22.2017

Not every article and study that pops up my feeds in the world of pseudo-medicine is worthy of a complete blog post. But they need to be noticed and commented upon: Liver toxicity from herbs. Popped lungs from acupuncture. Chiropractic does not help scoliosis. Yoga is just exercise. There are eight kinds of wind: Great Feathery Wind, Scheming Wind, Hard Wind, Great...

/ January 22, 2017

Chinese BioMedical Research: Sturgeon’s Law In Action

A Chinese government investigation has found that 80%, yes eighty percent, of Chinese biomedical research is fabricated. I bet that is an underestimate for Traditional Chinese Pseudo-Medicine.

/ January 20, 2017