I've mentioned Dr. Paul Thomas before as a rising star in the antivaccine movement. A month and a half later, it occurs to me that I haven't given proper due to his co-author, Jennifer Margulis, as an equally prominent rising star in the same crank movement. Here, I rectify that oversight.
Tag: quackery
Integrating homeopathy with medicine: Not the “best of both worlds”
Advocates of "integrative medicine" argue that integrating alternative medicine with real medicine represents the "best of both worlds." A recent study by Ben Goldacre suggests that, in reality, integrating quackery with medicine infects medicine with pseudoscience and poor practice.
Naturopathy: Using homeopathic saliva from a rabid dog to cure growling, aggression, and a fear of werewolves
Whenever I think I've seen the most ridiculous quackery ever in homeopathy or naturopathy, homeopaths and naturopaths go above and beyond to prove me wrong. This time around, I learn of Lyssinum, a homeopathic remedy claimed to have been made from the saliva of a rabid dog, and how it "cured" a child of his fear of werewolves.
fake médicine: Science-based medicine versus homeopathy in France
Homeopathy is The One Quackery To Rule Them All. The same is true all over the world. It's also true that the preferred tactic of homeopaths and other quacks is to try to suppress criticism of their quackery, not to answer it with science. During Homeopathy Awareness Week, I present an example of this in France.
The dubious cancer “virotherapy” Rigvir returns with an equally dubious case report
Rigvir is a "virotherapy" from Latvia promoted by the International Virotherapy Center and, increasingly, by alternative cancer clinics. There is no convincing scientific evidence for its efficacy. That didn't stop its advocates from presenting a case report. Not surprisingly, the case report isn't convincing either.
Homeopathy Awareness Week 2018 starts today. Let’s help celebrate by reminding people that it’s quackery!
Homeopathy Awareness Week starts today. Terrifyingly, the theme this year is "Homeopathy for Pregnancy an Childbirth." Here, Orac does his part to celebrate by reminding his readers once again why homeopathy remains The One Quackery To Rule Them All.
Old guard antivaccine activist J. B. Handley loses his best platform to spread misinformation
J. B. Handley and Orac go way back (to 2005), when Orac first encountered Handley's brand of blustering, arrogantly ignorant antivaccine pseudoscience. Lately, Handley's been blogging over at Medium. A couple of weeks ago, Medium kicked him off its platform for violating its TOS. Schadenfreude ensues.
The previously undiscovered organ known as the “interstitium” revisited: The Deepak Chopra connection
Yesterday, Orac discussed a widely hyped new scientific finding of a "new organ" known as the interstitium, , in which the Neil Theise and his co-authors suggested that their findings might "explain" acupuncture. Today, Orac realizes that the woo goes much, much deeper. Deepak Chopra, anyone?
The “interstitium”: Interesting science versus PR spin and pseudoscience
Last week, the media were awash with reports of the "interstitium," which was dramatically described as a hitherto undiscovered "organ," a narrative that was definitely a triumph of PR over science that went beyond what even the investigators claimed in their paper. Worse, the investigators themselves even speculated that their discovery could "explain" acupuncture and other kinds of alternative medicine, thus providing an opening for quacks to run wild with their discovery, something I expect to see very soon.
The deadly false hope of German alternative cancer clinics, part 3: Hallwang Clinic revisited
I've written twice before about German alternative medicine cancer clinics, the quackery they ply, and how they take advantage of desperate cancer patients. Finally, in a disturbing report a journalist has investigated what one of these clinics (Hallwang) does and how such clinics can continue to operate.