On Monday October 14 I attended what was advertised as a movie about homeopathy.  It was listed in the email that goes out to all staff, faculty and students at NUNM, the National University of Natural Medicine.  I was one of two staff present, the other one being there because she was required to for her job.

I attended this event because I am ( Read more... )

Just the other day a young man came to a doctor for help with persistent headaches after a hard head hit.  He left with a prescription for Nat sulph 1M.  What's that you ask?  That's sugar pills.  That's homeopathy, that's a substance so diluted that it isn't there, that's a treatment that has zero basis in science and plenty of mythology around it ( Read more... )

For me, the characteristic features of a mystlcial and therefore untrustworthy, theory are that it is not refutable, that it appeals to authority, that it relies heavily on anecdote, that is makes a virtue of consensus (look how many people believe like me!), and that it takes the high moral ground.  You will notice that this applies to most ( Read more... )

A group of 30 homeopaths at a conference in Germany became ill from an apparent overdose of a psychotropic medication. The article implies that the trippers had no intention of tripping, but I have my doubts.  Perhaps the food was spiked, or they were told it was "harmless".  Or perhaps they thought themselves ready for an incautious dose of a mind ( Read more... )

Here's the article and poll in the BMJ: http://www.bmj.com/content/351/bmj.h3735
( Thoughts )

Click to view

https://youtu.be/bBUc_kATGgg

This author recognizes that the 19th century explanation of how homeopathy works it not going to satisfy modern people forever. Eventually even the slow ones will wise up that all of science flies in the face of it. I'd like to get the full text to find out if this person actually has a science bone in his body, or it it's just another circuitous ( Read more... )

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/777749_3Read more... )

The other day while challenging us with a case in which the patient needed extensive advanced medical care the prof asked "OK, what next?". I responded with "Does the patient have medical insurance?" And the professor joked that first on the TO DO list is a "wallet biopsy". We laughed. It is necessary to assess people's ability to pay for ( Read more... )

There are no poisons, only poisonous doses.--Paracelsus ( Read more... )