A new cupping fad using silicone devices is gentler than traditional cupping, but even sillier. There is no evidence of health benefits. I keep thinking, “Now I’ve seen everything,” and I am constantly being proven wrong. I recently came across the new fad of facial cupping. After I stopped laughing, I went on to an
Alternative medicine proponents criticize mainstream medicine and think they can do better. Evidence from medical journals shows that their criticisms are not valid. Advocates of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), including naturopaths and functional medicine practitioners, constantly criticize mainstream medicine. The recurrent themes are: Doctors don’t do prevention They only prescribe drugs and surgery and
A chiropractor who bills himself as a chiropractic gynecologist has continued to practice after his license was permanently revoked. Among his many questionable practices, Nick LeRoy is treating cervical dysplasia with escharotics, a potentially dangerous replacement for conventional treatments to prevent cancer.Chiropractor Nicholas LeRoy has a funny idea of what “closed” means. Note: This article has
Karyne Jeanne Richardson offers a ridiculous program of electrodiagnosis, flower remedies, and fractal sound to treat autism and other disorders. There are science-based autism programs that work; it is unfortunate when parents subject their autistic children to onerous, expensive, time-consuming, useless treatments based on pseudoscientific claims and false promises. When children are diagnosed with autism
Amino neuro frequency treatment uses one-inch stick-on patches with embedded “frequencies” that the body recognizes and directs to the proper area to treat pain and inflammation. The concept of “embedded frequencies” is bogus and ANF is nothing but a theatrical placebo. What is ANF? Amino Neuro Frequency is a treatment system being taught mainly to
Evidence for the efficacy of Traditional Chinese Medicine is scanty, unconvincing, and often fraudulent. China is seeing a resurgence of TCM, even teaching it to children. But in Australia, restrictions are being placed on misleading advertising. What is traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)? And if it works, why aren’t we all using it? Here’s one explanation: With
The many myths about flu shots continue to circulate and persuade some people not to get a flu shot. Flu shots are excellent insurance, safe and reasonably effective. Immunization protects not only the recipient but also vulnerable groups in the community. It’s that time again. The flu season starts in October. You will be protected about
The movie “Cholesterol: The Great Bluff” claims that we have been lied to: cholesterol doesn’t cause heart disease and statins are harmful. It is biased and misleading. The people interviewed in the movie are denialists who don’t accept the clear evidence for the role of blood cholesterol levels and the benefits of statins. A correspondent
News reports suggest new drugs may replace statins. PSCK9 inhibitors are useful, but only along with statins in high risk patients not controlled on statins alone, or for patients who can’t tolerate statins. They’re not about to replace statins. PyMOL rendering of the structure of the PCSK9 protein. Are statins obsolete? Are new drugs more effective and
ZYTO is a bogus, illegal electrodermal diagnostic device that claims to evaluate organ function and make dietary recommendations. Repeat testing produced results that were wildly inconsistent. The device produces noise, not meaningful information. Dr. Stephen Barrett, the founder of Quackwatch, had abundant reason to believe the ZYTO electrodermal testing device couldn’t possibly work as claimed,
