And now…it’s time for some SCIENCE! I do have to get back to planning book tours, but first, I am seriously disturbed by how innocent people, who are suffering in all kinds of horrific manners, are scammed by alternative medicine.
Dr. David Gorsky, MD, who has been practicing as a physician for over thirty years, agrees. In fact, he is disgusted with his alma mater, University of Michigan Medical School–with good reason. Although this school used to teach anatomy, histology, physiology, pharmacology, pathology, and the like, it now also offers all kinds of training in alternative medicine. Medical students in this school, and many others throughout the country, including Yale, Harvard, Stanford, and Columbia, are currently taught what Dr. Gorsky calls “quackademic medicine.“ The schools themselves call it Integrative or Anthroposophic Medicine.
Anthroposophic Medicine or Naturopathy
This is based on the idea that “health is a matter of mind-body-spirit balance” and “prescribes treatment for the whole being through conventional methods in combination with holistic methods.” Treating the whole person sounds reasonable, so why am I so vehemently opposed to it? Because it is, in essence, a spoonful of sugar making the medicine go down, only in this case, a little bit of truth making the poison go down, robbing innocent victims of their health and their money.
Of course, most of us are aware that we are more than our bodies. Few would dispute that depression or long-term anger can have physical effects. We’re very conscious that traditional medicine and doctors can and do get things wrong, especially now that the various specialists don’t seem to speak to each other. And everyone dies, proving that medicine is not a cure-all. So, what is a person to do?
Alternative Medicine is Bad News
I’ll address some possible strategies in the future. But, for now, my strong advice is that they not turn to naturopathy. The trouble with alternative medicine is that most of it is based on Eastern mystical philosophies rather than science and, as such, has no scientific validity. Examples of such ‘alternative medicine’ include homeopathy, reiki, acupuncture, reflexology, chiropraxy, cleansing of toxins, alkaline water, and the like. All have lots of the “woo factor,” which makes them readily accepted by our new age culture, but they have no scientific basis.
Homeopathy
The idea behind homeopathy is that substances that cause problems similar to the symptoms the patient is experiencing can activate the immune system to fight the illness. So, water containing the substances is diluted until nothing except water is left, leaving only the “vital forces.” The patient is treated with what is, essentially, distilled water. The benefit of homeopathy is that the treatment cannot harm a person—except by depriving them of real medicine.
Reiki
In Reiki, the practitioner mysteriously waves their hands to channel “positive energy” towards the patient. They may also touch the affected part, and allegedly, the person will be healed. It is a form of Japanese healing that is said to transfer universal energy. Believe it or not, a physician in California offered to do this for me. Obviously, Reiki only benefits the gullible—and the practitioner’s wallet. I changed doctors.
Acupuncture
Acupuncture is based on traditional Chinese medicine. The insertion of needles in strategic places is said to balance the “vital energy” and “vital juices,” which flow through the “meridians” of the body. But there are no meridians. Acupuncture has not been scientifically demonstrated to have any medical benefits. It may help with pain via a placebo effect (the patient thinks it works) and by causing the release of endorphins (natural pain-decreasing chemicals). Reflexology is based on the same theories but “treats” by putting pressure on various places. It provides the same benefits as a massage.
Chiropractic ‘Medicine’
This was invented by a magnetic healer who believed that there is a god or vital force in each person that must flow to heal. It is blocked by “vertebral subluxations,” so the practitioner straightens them out by “adjustments.” Of course, minor misalignments of the spine are entirely normal and not problematic, and orthopedic surgeons say that “subluxations” are figments of the imagination (and manipulation of X-ray images), but that does not stop the chiropractor! Although Chiropractic medicine may provide temporary relief of pain due to endorphin release, it carries a real risk of long-term damage and even death.
Body Cleanses
What about “cleansing” of the body’s toxins? Or “balancing” the body’s systems and forces? Or even the administration of the useless and potentially toxic Iscador (a mistletoe extract) for the treatment of cancer? Amazingly, this last one is based on the twisted reasoning that since mistletoe is parasitic on plants and cancer is allegedly parasitic on people, mistletoe should cure cancer. Clearly, not scientific reasoning!
Currently, you can find bottles of alkaline water in most grocery stores and pharmacies. The theory is that drinking this water will slow aging, activate the immune system, and even prevent cancer. A simple experiment easily debunks this pseudoscientific claim, but first, some background.
Most of us know that we breathe oxygen in and carbon dioxide out. The oxygen going in is so that we can use food for energy. The carbon dioxide leaving is to regulate how acidic blood is. Acidity and alkalinity are opposites and are measured by pH. Blood must be pH 7.4 for immune system cells and the entire body to function. If our blood becomes too acidic (changes by more than 0.05 on the pH scale), we breathe faster and more deeply. If we don’t, we may die. If our blood becomes too alkaline, we may have muscle spasms, become nauseous, or go into a coma. Therefore, the body carefully regulates its pH, no matter what you drink.
Moreover, the alkaline water a person drinks doesn’t enter their bloodstream, partly because the stomach is very acidic and immediately neutralizes it. Now, about the experiment—think about what happens when you mess with the pH of your blood by hyperventilating or holding your breath. Do you feel better or worse?
Do I need more to convince you? As a scientist, I researched immune system cells, growing them with special nutrients in plastic bottles in the lab. The best way to kill them? Change the alkalinity of what they were growing in.
So, alternative medicine and naturopathy are not the answer. This is terrible news for those who are desperate for better health and, unfortunately, ripe for exploitation. And because this type of quackery is taught in medical schools, even doctors may not realize that there is no scientific basis for alternative medicine. At the very least, naturopathy gives patients false hope. But, because some of these treatments are very expensive, this robs desperate patients of funds that would better be applied elsewhere—like on real therapies. This is not even to mention the travesty that insurance companies pay for some of these therapies, forcing all who pay premiums to support pseudoscience.
I know this may not be a popular topic for many readers. After all, some are very wedded to their favorite alternative therapy. But that does not change the facts. Good relationships and a healthy lifestyle, combined with good medicine based on scientific evidence, are demonstrably the best approach for those seeking good health. Can it prevent all suffering? No. But I think it’s better than being scammed.