May 23rd, 2011 by RyanDuBosar in Humor, Quackery Exposed, True Stories
Tags: Alternative Medicine, Evidence Based Medicine, Jeff Gardere, Natural Frequency Technology, Philip Stein, Press Release, Psychology, Watch
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Every once in a while, a press release comes along that’s worth mocking publically. Here’s one of them.
In honor of National Mental Health Month, one PR flack pitched Philip Stein watches. In the flack’s words: “The highlighted element of the watch is the brand’s exclusive wellness technology that helps wearers improve sleep and reduce stress. The watch is embedded with a metal disk that emits natural frequencies into the body wearer and in turn, affects the wearer’s energy field. It’s called ‘Natural Frequency Technology’ and is a new patented technology studies suggest help to improve sleep quality and reduces stress.”
Really. That’s what the flack said. Right off the bat, he’s gone from mental health issues to sleepless nights from stress. Not content with confounding the two issues, he continues: “Dr. Jeff Gardere, America’s well-known psychologist, is Chief Medical Executive for Philip Stein Watches and had been running a practice for over 20 years. He recognized during that time that there was a huge need to educate the public on the possible severities of stress and everyday lifestyle changes that everyday people can make without a prescription. Dr. Gardere found a natural way to reduce stress and prescribed his patients with a high-end accessory Philip Stein Watch.”
The psychologist “prescribed” a watch. I wonder if my insurance company would pay for that scrip? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
May 16th, 2011 by Mark Crislip, M.D. in Health Tips, Quackery Exposed
Tags: Delusions, Delusions Of Parasitism, Energy Medicine, Infectious Disease, Morgellon's, Naturopathy, Parasites, Psychiatry, Science and Medicine
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I saw a patient recently for parasites.
I get a sinking feeling when I see that diagnosis on the schedule, as it rarely means a real parasite. The great Pacific NW is mostly parasite free, so either it is a traveler or someone with delusions of parasitism.
The latter comes in two forms: the classic form and Morgellons. Neither are likely to lead to a meaningful patient-doctor interaction, since it usually means conflict between my assessment of the problem and the patients assessment of the problem. There is rarely a middle ground upon which to meet. The most memorable case of delusions of parasitism I have seen was a patient who I saw in clinic who, while we talked, ate a raw garlic clove about every minute.
“Why the garlic?” I asked.
“To keep the parasites at bay,” he told me.
I asked him to describe the parasite. He told me they floated in the air, fell on his skin, and then burrowed in. Then he later plucked them out of his nose.
At this point he took out a large bottle that rattled as he shook it.
“I keep them in here,” he said as he screwed off the lid and dumped about 3 cups with of dried boogers on the exam table.
To my credit I neither screamed nor vomited, although for a year I could not eat garlic. It was during this time I was attacked by a vampire, and joined the ranks of the undead. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Science-Based Medicine*
April 29th, 2011 by GarySchwitzer in News, Quackery Exposed
Tags: Acai Berry, Fake News Sites, FTC, NPR, Scott Hensley, Weight Loss
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On the NPR Shots blog, Scott Hensley reports: “This Just In: Fake News Is No Way To Sell Acai Berries.” Excerpt:
“Some marketers of weight-loss products containing acai berries are also purveyors of news you shouldn’t use, the Federal Trade Commission says.
The FTC has asked federal courts to put a stop to the activities of 10 different outfits that the commission alleges use “fake news websites” to tout acai berry weight-loss products.
Chances are you’ve stumbled across the sites, which often sport the logos of major mainstream news organizations, such as ABC, CNN and Consumer Reports. (See this example posted by the FTC.)
Take, for example the FTC’s complaint against Beony International LLC, a company based in San Diego.
The company allegedly ran sites with names such as “News 6 News Alerts,” “Health News Health Alerts,” and “Health 6 Beat Health News.” The sites feature purportedly objective investigative reports of acai products by reporters, who supposedly tried the stuff “and experienced dramatic and positive results.”
The blog post also includes links to examples and complaints posted by the FTC, a Consumer Reports feature on acai scams and this Better Business Bureau video warning about free trial scams.
Unfortunately, every day in our nationwide scan of health news stories, we see REAL news stories that look like advertising. So advertising that is made to look like news is not surprising.
*This blog post was originally published at Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview Blog*
April 26th, 2011 by Steve Novella, M.D. in Quackery Exposed, True Stories
Tags: Acupuncture, Alternative Medicine, Denial, Dismissiveness, Dr. Oz, Dr. Oz Show, Homeopathy, Mehmet Oz, Mysticism, Pet Beliefs, Pseudoscience, Quackery, Science And The Media, Science Based Medicine, Steve Novella
1 Comment »
I must say I was a bit shocked two weeks ago when I was contacted by a producer for The Dr. Oz Show inviting me on to discuss alternative medicine. We have been quite critical of Dr. Mehmet Oz over his promotion of dubious medical treatments and practitioners, and I wondered if they were aware of the extent of our criticism (they were, it turns out).
Despite the many cautions I received from friends and colleagues (along with support as well) – I am always willing to engage those with whom I disagree. I knew it was a risk going into a forum completely controlled by someone who does not appear to look kindly upon my point of view, but a risk worth taking. I could only hope I was given the opportunity to make my case (and that it would survive the editing process).
The Process
Of course, everyone was extremely friendly throughout the entire process, including Dr. Oz himself (of that I never had any doubt). The taping itself went reasonably well. I was given what seemed a good opportunity to make my points. However, Dr. Oz did reserve for himself the privilege of getting in the last word—including a rather long finale, to which I had no opportunity to respond. Fine—it’s his show, and I knew what I was getting into. It would have been classy for him to give an adversarial guest the last word, or at least an opportunity to respond, but I can’t say I expected it. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Science-Based Medicine*
April 26th, 2011 by Bryan Vartabedian, M.D. in Opinion, Quackery Exposed, Research
Tags: Compliance, Fake, HIPAA, Hospital, Imposters, Policy, Social Media Experts, Social Media Policy, Twitter, Uncategorized
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They’re here: Creeping researchers who see the opportunity that’s social media. Publications, position papers, professional guidelines and policies on social media are appearing faster than you can say ‘ARA grant opportunity.’ A simple search will show that some of these authors have little more than a token feel of what its like to be a doctor in the social space. And they’ve got just enough of a footprint to fool the editors. “They’ve actually got a Twitter account. They must know what they’re talking about.”
The next time you see a policy or a guideline coming from a society or medical professional organization, deep search its authors. Look to see if they have the experience and social scars to guide you as a professional. If you’re a professional society or journal, be sure to do the same. Thoroughly vetting the social media experience of authors should be part of peer review when it comes to medical research and policy generation in social media. Otherwise expect those who have never experienced social media to position themselves as the new voice of authority. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at 33 Charts*
