New Florida law forces physicians to endorse pseudoscience

A new Florida law forces physicians to endorse chiropractic, acupuncture, and massage as non-opioid alternatives for pain, even if the physician disagrees with that advice.

/ September 12, 2019

Soft Drinks and Death Risk

New study linking soft drinks to increased mortality is correlational only, and should be interpreted with caution.

/ September 11, 2019

Herbalife or Herbadeath?

A case of fatal liver failure in India was attributed to Herbalife products, adding to many other reports from around the world. Analysis showed Herbalife products contain heavy metals and other contaminants. The products have not been scientifically tested, and in the absence of evidence of benefit to human health, they can't be recommended.

/ September 10, 2019

The long, strange road to passing SB 276 appears to be near its end…finally

In 2015, California passed SB 277, which eliminated religious and personal belief exemptions to school vaccine mandates. Unfortunately, there was a problem; a weakness in the law allowed antivaccine quacks to help parents get around the law by writing medical exemptions not supported by science. The long strange battle to get SB 276, the law designed to close that loophole, reveals a...

/ September 9, 2019

A British Teenager is Blind, But Not Because of Junk Food or “Fussy Eating”

A recent case report about a British teenager blinded by severe nutritional deficiencies resulted in widespread media coverage, much of which missed the point. He wasn't blinded by junk food and he wasn't just a fussy eater.

/ September 6, 2019
Chris Wark didn't beat cancer

Chris Beat Cancer: A Comprehensive Guide to Making a Killing

Chris Wark has a new book out, with the unsurprising title of Chris Beat Cancer. It purports to be a guide to beating cancer. It's not.

/ September 5, 2019

Update on the Obesity Epidemic

The obesity epidemic continues, and even accelerates, among continued debate about its causes and solutions.

/ September 4, 2019

Generic Drugs and Global Deception

Generic drugs are supposed to be equivalent to brand-name drugs, but all too often they are defective. Katherine Eban's book shows that corrupt overseas manufacturers have committed intentional global fraud. The system is broken and the FDA lacks the power to correct abuses.

/ September 3, 2019

Veterinary quackery at the San Diego Zoo

As I was spending a quiet Saturday night watching Animal Planet, I was disturbed to see out and out quackery on The Zoo:San Diego, as an elephant named Tembo, who was suffering from arthritis of the hip and one of her legs, was being subjected to thermography and acupuncture. Yes, as with human medicine, acupuncture quackery has infiltrated even the highest levels...

/ September 2, 2019

Pet Food Mislabeling: Let Food Be Thy Dogma

Should you feed your dog organic, biodynamic, grain-fed, non-GMO, high-protein, low-carb, unpasteurized, cruelty-free, free-range, soy-lacto-egg-free caribou Num-Nums? Particularly when their last meal was cat vomit?

/ August 30, 2019