Announcement: Server migration this weekend
Our long-needed server migration has begun. While we were at it, we threw in modernization of the SBM template for mobile-friendliness, cooler-looking images, and, we hope, an overall better reading experience. Enjoy.
Announcement: Harriet Hall will not be posting today, and here’s why
I have bad news to announce to our readers. While traveling in Australia, SBM stalwart and founding editor Harriet Hall suffered a fall and significant injury. Australian skeptic and friend of the blog Eren Segev has the news, and this is all I know other than what Steve Novella told me the other day in an e-mail. It wasn’t any more than...
A Rolling Stone gathers no science-based medicine—but does gather a lot of quackery
Say it ain't so, Ron. Say it ain't so that you and your family love homeopathy and that you all believe that apricot pits cure breast cancer!
“Functional medicine” in practice
"Functional medicine" is a form of quackery that combines the worst aspects of conventional medicine and alternative medicine. Specifically, it combines massive over-testing with a lack of science and a "make it up as you go along" ethic, all purportedly in the service of the "biochemical individuality" of each patient. Don't believe the hype. It's mostly quackery.
Milestones on the path to integrating quackery with medicine
The "integration" of quackery with real medicine occurring in academia and now private hospitals and practices didn't occur overnight. It began decades ago. Here, we examine what an advocate of "integrative medicine" views as key milestones on the path towards adding pseudoscience and quackery to your medicine.
Medical science policy in the U.S. under Donald Trump
The election of Donald Trump was unexpected. Given Trump's history of antivaccine beliefs and conspiracy theories, coupled with a fervor for deregulation (a fervor shared by the Republican Congress), it is reasonable to fear what will happen to medical science policy during the next four years.
Cancer quackery from Germany to Australia
Sadly, cancer quackery is a worldwide phenomenon. Here, we examine its reach from Germany to Australia.
German alternative cancer clinics: Combining experimental therapeutics with rank quackery and charging big bucks for it
You think that Mexico has the most quack cancer clinics? Don't be so sure of that. When it comes to clinics peddling a mix of snake oil and a dash of real medicine, Mexico's got nothing on Germany.
Commenting and server problems
Please note that ScienceBasedMedicine is having issues with its hosting services and Disqus commenting interface. We are working to resolve it. UPDATE: More recently, we have been having issues with our certificate, in case you get SSL certificate errors.
Mammography and overdiagnosis, revisited
Another new study supports the hypothesis that overdiagnosis is a major problem in mammography screening programs. Predictably, it is attacked based on a misunderstanding of what overdiagnosis is.