The “central dogma” of alternative/complementary/integrative medicine
There is something in molecular biology and genetics known as the “central dogma.” I must admit, I’ve always hated the use of the word “dogma” associated with science, but no less a luminary than Francis Crick first stated it in 1958, and it has been restated over the years in various ways. Perhaps my favorite version of the central dogma was succinctly...
Brief Announcement: Video of Panel on Alternative Medicine
Last month at JREF’s The Amaz!ng Meeting in Las Vegas, 3 SBM bloggers along with Rachael Dunlop of Australia participated in a panel on “The Truth About Alternative Medicine.” The video is now available on Youtube. It’s a chance for readers to see Steven Novella, David Gorski and Harriet Hall and hear them speak instead of just reading what they write.
Low Level Lasers: N-Rays in action.
I do not want to get all angsty and omphaloskeptic, but I have been thinking more of late about the purpose of the blog and my role in it. Blogs,and the people who write them, are ephemeral. It takes a unique personality and commitment to churn out these essays and commit them to the ether. Especially since Michelson and Morley. I have never...
Acupuncture practice acts: legalized quackery
As Ben Kavoussi observed recently, [o]nce considered archaic and obsolete, Oriental Medicine has greatly benefited from the postmodern attitudes towards science and knowledge. This is because postmodernists consider the ‘truth’ as being relative to one’s viewpoint or stance. They do not see science as a superior process of acquiring knowledge, but as a ‘belief system,’ a ‘language game,’ which does not give...
Homeopathy’s Recent Woes
Be careful what you wish for. In the last few decades purveyors of dubious medical treatments and products have been trying to go mainstream, and they have had some unfortunate success. They asked for serious scientific investigation into their claims – and they got it. They asked to be treated like real medicine (but not really, they only want the trappings of...
Prostate Cancer Dilemmas: To Test or Not to Test, To Cut or Not to Cut
Diagnosing prostate cancer based on the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test is a tricky proposition. The cancer itself can be slow-growing, and the treatment harmful. Medicine is complicated, particularly when it comes to cancer screening.
Related by coincidence only? University and medical journal press releases versus journal articles
There are certain topics in Science-Based Medicine (or, in this case, considering the difference between SBM and quackery) that keep recurring over and over. One of these, which is of particular interest to me because I am a cancer surgeon specializing in breast cancer, is the issue of alternative medicine use for cancer therapy. Yesterday, I posted a link to an interview...
Dr. Gorski pontificates about the Gerson Therapy on Uprising Radio
Every so often I get requests to be interviewed on the radio about skeptical topics. Now, why anyone would ever want to interview me, who knows? But they do, and when I can manage to accommodate reporters or interviewers, I do. Last week, I was interviewed on Uprising Radio, in which I discussed alternative medicine (particularly the Gerson therapy for cancer). My...
Chiropractic gimmickry
[Editor’s Note: Today, we have a guest post from Sam Homola, who, as you recall, practiced as a chiropractor until he ultimately realized that there is no evidence that subluxations exist. Since then, he’s discussed in various places, including, we are pleased to say, SBM, his skepticism regarding chiropractic. Enjoy!] Much has been written (and published on this site) about the implausibility...
Cinnamon for diabetes? The consequences of “natural alternatives”
A customer strolled up to the counter one night when I was working in a retail pharmacy: “My doctor says I have prediabetes. I don’t want to take any drugs. Do you have something natural I can use to cut my blood sugar?” I looked at him in the eye, and pointed at his sizeable midsection. “Sir, if you’re at risk for...
Don’t Blame the Patient