ScienceBlogs Channel : Medicine & Health

If this is true, the Dutch must be drinking in lots of information! [Respectful Insolence]

Posted: 25 Jan 2012 12:00 AM PST

If there's one thing about homeopaths, it's that they're indefatigable in their dedication to their unique brand of pseudoscience. They're also endlessly protean in their ability to induce their explanations for how homeopathy is supposed to "work" to evolve into endless forms not so beautiful. If it's not the claim that "like cures like" is some sort of immutable law of nature or that diluting a remedy somehow makes it stronger, it's pivoting to the claim that water has "memory." If it's not that, then homeopaths and homeopathy apologists invoke quantum entanglement that somehow works at the macro level, that "nanocrystalloids" are involved, hilariously off-base explanations of energy, or that there's somehow a quantum gyroscopic interaction between practitioner and patient. They also seem to have a hard time understanding that explaining exactly what homeopathy is, why it's pseudoscience, and why it's quackery is not a "misinformation campaign," as homeopath Dana Ullman has characterized it.

So when a reader e-mailed this little gem entitled Scientists investigate water memory, I couldn't help but take a look, particularly since there's this spiffy video to go with it:

And this introduction:

Read the rest of this post... | Read the comments on this post...

HIV Snake Oil 'cure' leads to arrests in Uganda [erv]

Posted: 24 Jan 2012 09:00 AM PST

We in the skeptic community like to make fun of naturopaths and homeopaths and all the snake oil salesmen out there. While its a good ol laugh here in the West, if not nostalgic, the damage these charlatans can do in other parts of the world is not funny at all.

Long-time readers of SciBlogs might remember someone named Matthias Rath

In the battle of science versus woo...
The Dr. Will Sue You Now - A stolen chapter from Ben Goldacre's book Bad Science

Homeboy got rich taking advantage of desperate HIV/AIDS patients in Africa. Gave them some 'magic potion' of Vitamin C to ~~cure HIV/AIDS~~ HE TOTALLY DIDNT SAY IT WOULD CURE HIV/AIDS (except when he did). Men, women, children, he didnt care.

The Guardian described a case in which a pregnant woman newly diagnosed with HIV was visited at home by Rath Health Foundation employees and convinced to stop taking her antiretroviral medication in favor of Rath's vitamins; she died 3 months later.

Yes, Gary Null taking megadoses of his stupid supplements and getting sick is funny. A pregnant woman dying from AIDS complications because some quack told her to take (supposedly, could have been water) Vitamin C? Not funny.

The good news is, it appears as if African officials are becoming more aware of quackery and are cracking down on their local charlatans. From a few days ago:

Uganda's National Drug Authority recently arrested sales representatives of a company selling a drug that purports to cure HIV; the firm's owners are not licensed to sell medicine and are being sought by the police.

The drug, known as Virol ZAPPER, was being sold in 37-milliliter liquid doses, each costing about US$210; patients were advised to take 10 drops daily. It was being advertised on local radio and TV stations as a miracle cure for HIV.

$210. $210. I couldnt afford that. Disgusting.

What I really like about that second link though is that the author put together a 'trail of tears' quacks have created in Africa over the years (including Rath). A few examples:

Uganda - In 2006, the Ugandan government banned the use of a popular anti-AIDS herb remedy known as "Khomeini" , after tests found it provided no cure. Iranian Sheikh Allagholi Elahi claimed the drug - which contained olive oil and honey and cost $1,650 per dose - could cure HIV/AIDS and TB in three weeks.

Gambia - In 2007, President Yahya Jammeh was roundly denounced by AIDS activists when he said he had found a cure for HIV/AIDS and began treating citizens. Shortly after his announcement, Jammeh expelled the most senior UN official in the country for questioning his "cure".

Tanzania - In 2011, tens of thousands of people from all over East Africa flocked to the tiny village of Loliondo in Tanzania seeking a cure for several diseases, including diabetes, tuberculosis and HIV. Ambilikile Mwasapile, a former Lutheran pastor, was charging 500 Tanzanian shillings - about $0.33 - for a cup for his concoction.

Remember this the next time you are laughing at some rich, fundamentally healthy individual mindlessly repeating bullshit about homeopathy or herbal medicine or naturopathy or whatever. Disgusting.

Read the comments on this post...