July 8th, 2010 by Steve Novella, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion, Quackery Exposed, Research
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Mark Hyman, a proponent of so-called “functional medicine” promoting himself over at the Huffington Post (an online news source that essentially allows dubious medical infomercials to pass as news) has posted a particularly egregious article on personalized medicine for dementia.
In the article Hyman distorts the modern practice of medicine, the current state of genetic science, and the very notion of “disease.” It is, as usual, a fine piece of medical propaganda sure to confuse many a reader. Hyman starts with some standard epidemiology of dementia –- it’s a common and growing disorder –- but then descends quickly into distortion and pseudoscience. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Science-Based Medicine*
March 29th, 2010 by Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe, M.D. in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion
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So, the healthcare reform bill passed in the House. Some people want to embrace this moment as a victory because any healthcare bill that becomes law is better than nothing. I heard a lot of “this was a long time coming,” “finally,” “it was our time yesterday,” and comments like that. I also heard a great deal of “time will tell,” “who’s the really winner?,” “is it a victory with a country and government so divided?,” “is this the right path?,” and comments like that.
I’m uncertain. As a physician, I so wanted to be able to feel good about it. I so wanted to believe that the “win” would push the healthcare industry in a positive direction, even if in baby steps and even if in just the insurance industry. But I have to be skeptical about a plan that doesn’t address the needs of American’s paying high co-pays today and having trouble getting timely doctors appointments today.
As a physician, I see too many patients not filling prescriptions and going without seeing doctors for these reasons. As a patient these have been my recent concerns, and I don’t see those being addressed. Do you? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr. Gwenn Is In*
January 25th, 2010 by Dr. Val Jones in Audio, Better Health Network, Expert Interviews, Health Tips
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Since mainstream media is feeding parents a constant stream of health information that is often inaccurate and poorly vetted (just ask Gary Schwitzer), I thought it would be helpful to create a new series at Better Health: Mythbusters for Moms. Now, I know that moms aren’t the only ones who will benefit from “straight talk” from healthcare professionals, but the alliteration was simply irresistible.
Our first guest of the series is Dr. Rahul Parikh. Rahul is a board-certified pediatrician who works at Kaiser Permanente’s Walnut Creek Medical Center in California. Prior to becoming a pediatrician, Rahul completed a degree in molecular biology at UC Berkeley, and his medical degree at Tufts in Boston.
Online, Rahul is perhaps best known for his columns, featured at Salon.com. There he takes a critical look at media misinformation about health and science, and has spoken out against misleading content promoted by Oprah Winfrey and the Huffington Post.
You may listen to an audiocast of our conversation here (or read a short transcript below):
[Audio:https://getbetterhealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/rahulparikhmfm.mp3]
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August 15th, 2009 by KevinMD in Better Health Network, Opinion
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The Huffington Post is one of the most prominent, and fastest growing, news sites, and as pediatrician Rahul Parikh puts it, “one of the most valuable pieces of real estate on the Internet these days.”
They have a prominent health and wellness section, but as you can read from Dr. Parikh’s piece, The Huffington Post is crazy about your health, readers be warned.
As with their approach to other topics, The Huffington Post accepts submissions from a wide variety of bloggers, some of whom, “mirror [founder Arianna Huffington’s] own advocacy of alternative medicine.”
With such influence, that can be problematic. Well documented are numerous pieces advocating against childhood vaccines, and perpetuating its mythical link with autism. And by accepting factually suspect pieces on the subject by celebrities, such as actor Jim Carrey for instance, it’s a powerfully dangerous platform for misinformation.
What Dr. Parikh simply asks for is fairness and accuracy from such an influential site, but in his words, they “take a back seat to sensationalism and self-promotion on the Huffington Post.”
Indeed.
*This blog post was originally published at KevinMD.com*
