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Antivaccine nonsense Medicine Pseudoscience Quackery

Whatever happened to Dr. Daniel Neides, a year after he was forced to leave the Cleveland Clinic because of his antivaccine rant?

Vaccine study by Brian Hooker

A year ago, a prominent Cleveland Clinic “integrative medicine” doctor named Dr. Daniel Neides published an antivaccine screed. At the time, he was the Acting Medical Director of the Tanya I. Edwards Center for Integrative Medicine, Vice Chair and Chief Operating Officer of Cleveland Clinic Wellness, as well as the Associate Director of Clinical Education for The Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine (CCLCM), where he oversaw all clinical activities during years three through five of the medical school. As a result of article, he was dismissed from all his leadership positions. What’s happened to him since then, now that it’s been a year? Surprise! Surprise! He’s let his antivaccine freak flag fly high.

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Medicine Politics Pseudoscience Quackery

More “auricular” acupuncture: Our veterans deserve science-based medicine, not quackery

Baltimore VA Medical Center
Baltimore VA Medical Center

Over the last several years, the Veterans Health Administration has been increasing the amount of quackery being offered in VA hospitals and clinics. This time around, it’s auricular acupuncture.

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Antivaccine nonsense Cancer Medicine Movies Popular culture Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

Oprah Winfrey for President? Does anyone remember all the pseudoscience and quackery she’s promoted?

Oprah Winfrey at the Golden Globe Awards
Oprah Winfrey at the Golden Globe Awards

Oprah Winfrey gave a rousing acceptance speech while accepting the Cecile B. DeMille Award at the Golden Globes on Sunday night, sparking talk of her running for President in 2020. It’s time to throw some cold water on that idea by reminding everyone that Oprah is not a force for reason and evidence. Quite the contrary.

Categories
Medicine Pseudoscience Science Skepticism/critical thinking

Got diarrhea? The latest trend in fashionable nonsense is “raw water”

Mukhande Singh
Mukhande Singh

In pseudoscience, appeals to nature are everywhere. It’s not surprising, then, that there is profit to be made selling “raw” (i.e., untreated) water at very high prices for its nonexistent health benefits, those benefits all claimed to be due to the “naturalness” of the water. I can’t help but note that cholera, Giardia, amoebic dysentery, and a wide variety of waterborne illnesses prevented by modern water treatment techniques are all very, very “natural.”

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Antivaccine nonsense Computers and social media Medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking

The antivaccine movement on Facebook: Small world networks, conspiracy theories, moral outrage, and paranoia

Facebook antivaccine networks by gender
Facebook antivaccine networks by gender

Facebook has become a hub from which antivaxers spread misinformation. A recent study looks at what they’re saying and how FB pages facilitate the spread of antivaccine misinformation.