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Cancer Medicine Naturopathy

Pediatric naturopathic oncology: A horrifying concept

“Naturopathic oncology” is a specialty made up by naturopaths in order to justify using their quackery to treat cancer patients. A new survey takes it a step further and looks at using naturopathy to treat children with cancer, including the use of homeopathy, reiki, and restrictive diets.

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Complementary and alternative medicine Integrative medicine Medicine Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery

“Dr.” Tad Sztykowski: One reason why acupuncture should not be licensed

Tad Sztykowski is an acupuncturist who lost his acupuncture license for misrepresenting himself as a physician. His case is a good illustration of why licensing quack specialties like acupuncture is bad policy.

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Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Integrative medicine Medicine Skepticism/critical thinking

A bait-and-switch study of acupuncture in stable chronic angina

This week, JAMA Internal Medicine published a clinical trial purporting to find that acupuncture helps stable angina. Here’s a hint: It doesn’t. It’s a bait-and-switch study that used “electroacupuncture” instead of acupuncture with poor blinding and lack of consideration of prior plausibility.

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Medicine Politics Quackery

HB 4710: Acupuncturists are trying again to license their quackery—and more

Last month, HB 4710, a bill to license acupuncturists, was considered by the Michigan House of Representatives Health Policy Committee. If passed into law, HB 4710 would do far more than license the quackery that is acupuncture. It would also expand the scope of practice of acupuncturists to include homeopathy, “health coaching”, and dietary advice, and is yet another example of what practitioners of pseudoscientific medicine crave: State-granted legitimacy.

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Homeopathy Medicine Naturopathy Quackery

Naturopaths argue that they are science-based. Hilarity ensues.

Naturopathy is a form of pseudomedicine rooted in vitalism. However, naturopaths delude themselves into thinking they’re science-based. Hilarity always ensues when they make that argument.