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Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Naturopathy Politics Pseudoscience Quackery Science Skepticism/critical thinking

Regulating the magic that is homeopathy: I have a very bad feeling about the upcoming FDA public hearing

Once again, repeat after me: Homeopathy is quackery. In fact, it’s what I like to refer to as The One Quackery To Rule Them All. You would think that, in a modern world and given the incredible advancements in our scientific understanding of biology, physiology, chemistry, and physics over the course of the over 200 […]

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Complementary and alternative medicine Homeopathy Medicine Quackery

Faith healing everywhere in medical academia

When I’m trying to demonstrate the utter implausibility and mystical pseudoscience behind so much of “complementary and alternative medicine” (CAM), which is now more commonly referred to (by its advocates, at least) as “integrative medicine,” I like to point to two examples in particular of modalities that are so utterly ridiculous in concept that anyone […]

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Cancer Complementary and alternative medicine Naturopathy Quackery

Naturopathy, functional medicine, and other quackademic medicine at the University of Kansas Medical Center

It’s been a while since I’ve done this, but somehow now seems to be the right time, particularly after doing such a long post yesterday on the intellectually dishonest promotion of “brave maverick” cancer doctor Stanislaw Burzynski. Unfortunately, dubious clinics like the Burzynski Clinic are not the only place where I find highly questionable medicine. […]

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Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery

Acupuncture and polycystic ovary disease: A depressing case of science by press release

I’ve railed on more than one occasion about how much I detest science by press release. For one thing, it bypasses the peer review process and reports results directly to the public, which to me is a strike against any study. Indeed, releasing results by press release or using a press release to tout a […]

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Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Medicine Quackery Surgery

Yawn. Another worthless acupunct–I mean acupressure–study

Here we go again. It seems just yesterday that I was casting a skeptical eye on yet another dubious acupuncture study. OK, it wasn’t just yesterday, but it was less than two weeks ago when I discussed why a study that purported to show that acupuncture worked as well as drug therapy for hot flashes […]