Tag: adverse effects

Wall of Supplements

Adverse Effects from Dietary Supplements: A survey of the US Military

Over 26,000 US Service members completed a survey on the adverse effects associated with dietary supplements. Some categories of supplements are associated with substantial adverse events.

/ September 15, 2022
SARS-CoV-2

Peer review fail: Vaccine publishes antivax propaganda disguised as “reanalyses” of Pfizer and Moderna COVID-19 vaccine clinical trial data

In order portray COVID-19 vaccines as dangerous, Peter Doshi has now managed to get poorly designed and performed "reanalyses" of the clinical trial data used by the FDA to grant emergency use approval of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines published in two reputable journals, The BMJ and Vaccine? What happened?

/ September 5, 2022

Edzard Ernst Tackles Chiropractic

Edzard Ernst's new book is a handy, comprehensive reference for all things chiropractic.

/ September 22, 2020

Corrigendum. The Week in Review. 03/26/2017

Death from naturopathy. Cows and soldiers have a similar problem. Pseudo-medicines never die. Chiropractic complications. And more.

/ March 26, 2017

Do pill organizers help or hurt?

In order for medication to work, getting a prescription filled isn’t enough. You have to actually take the medication. And that’s where you (the patient) come in. Estimates vary based on the population and the medication, but a reasonable assumption is that 50% of people given a prescription don’t take their medication as prescribed. In pharmacy terminology we usually call this medication...

/ August 25, 2016

“Safe” dietary supplements can land you in the emergency room

If there’s one thing I’ve been consistent about, it’s that, however ridiculous all the other woo I routinely discuss here is—homeopathy, reiki, reflexology, I’m talking to you and your friends—herbal medicine and supplements might have value because they might have a physiological effect that is beneficial in treating or preventing disease. Of course, if that’s the case, it’s because the herb or...

/ October 18, 2015

Risk of Intussusception with Rotavirus Vaccines

Rotavirus is the leading cause of severe diarrhea in infants and children worldwide, leading to more than half a million deaths each year in children under the age of 5. Before the introduction of the rotavirus vaccine, almost all children in the US were infected by the age of 5, and rotavirus infections were responsible for 400,000 doctor visits, 200,000 ER visits,...

/ April 15, 2014

How do we avoid harming the elderly with prescription drugs?

Is the best medicine no medicine at all? Sometimes. My past posts have emphasized that the appropriateness of any drug depends on an evaluation of benefits and risks. There are no completely safe interventions, and no drug is free of any side effects. Our choice is ideally informed by high-quality data like randomized controlled trials, with lots of real-world experience so we...

/ June 7, 2012

Gold mine or dumpster dive? A closer look at adverse event reports

All informed health decisions are based on an evaluation of expected risks and known benefits. Nothing is without risk. Drugs can provide an enormous benefit, but they all have the potential to harm. Whether it’s to guide therapy choices or to ensure patients are aware of the risks of their prescription drugs, I spend a lot of time discussing the potential negative consequences of...

/ April 26, 2012

Reducing the Risk of Adverse Drug Events

Critics of mainstream medicine often point to the dangers of drugs. I previously wrote about “Death by Medicine,” where I explained the fallacy of fixating on harmful effects of drugs without putting them into perspective with all the good drugs do. Yes, patients have died from severe allergic reactions to penicillin, but penicillin has also saved countless lives. A recent article in The...

/ January 3, 2012