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April 1, 2008
Based on earlier posts, it's pretty clear that I feel that Scientology is a dangerous and bizarre cult. The responses to the post included some apologetics for the CoS and their stance on psychiatry.
As is typical in these situations, the commenters simply refused to answer any substantive…
April 1, 2008
This was one of the first-class quotes from former OSHA Assistant Secretary Jerry Scannell (1989-1993) during today's hearing on workers' safety and health before the Senate HELP Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety. His comment came in response to discussions about OSHA's and the…
April 1, 2008
This entry needed migrating from the old blog. Thank you for your indulgence. --PalMD
JPANDS, the mouthpiece of the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, is a well-known organ or quackery, so it seemed like a good idea to see what they've been up to lately. It's not good. The most…
April 1, 2008
According to a new study released today by the journal Euromed (Volume 1:3, April 1, 2008, pp 13-26), the so-called "French paradox" can be applied to other populations successfully. In an eight year, double-blind, randomized controlled trial, Americans from two major urban areas were fed either…
March 31, 2008
The breakneck pace of high-rise construction on Las Vegasâ famed Strip comes at a terrible price: Since the end of 2006, nine construction workers have died in workplace accidents. In a special two-part series, the Las Vegas Sunâs Alexandra Berzon explores why these deaths are happening and what…
March 31, 2008
A reader, who happens to write one of the best-named blogs on teh tubes, pointed me toward an article I never would have seen. This parallels a news story we had here in the States late last year. So, since the story is getting press overseas (albeit late), it's time to dust off the old post and…
March 31, 2008
...I really couldn't resist sharing some fun links. I guess you'd call it blogrolling.
First, someone got a hold of the über-seekrit Expelled:Leader's Guide, and started deconstructing it.
Next, Steve Novella once again eviscerates a wacky water-woo cult leader at NeuroLogica.
Panda Bear, M.D.…
March 31, 2008
I love this story because it shows how evidence-based medicine works, even in the face of corporate greed.
A while back I told you about a cholesterol study with negative results; that is, it failed to show a drug to be helpful. Intimately entwined with the study design was a potential conflict of…
March 31, 2008
By Vera ToulokhonovaÂ
Over spring break, my family and I traveled to spend a weekend in New York City. One of our expeditions included a visit to the Statue of Liberty and, naturally, to the large restroom located on Ellis Island.  The first thing I noticed about this notably modern facility…
March 31, 2008
The Lancet (Vol 371:9615, March 8, 2008 p. 784) notes that the government of Malawi is working on legislation to prevent traditional and religious healers from deceiving people about AIDS. According to Mary Shaba, a Malawi health official, "when it [the proposed legislation] passes into law, all…
March 31, 2008
In case you haven't heard, cooking food is bad--at least according to the raw food movement. This movement has developed over the last 5-10 years, and is still fairly fringe, but fad diets, restaurants, stores, and websites devoted to raw foods are flourishing. Let's see what they're up to.…
March 30, 2008
Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) are frighteningly common, as highlighted by a study released by the CDC earlier this month. The U.S. is in a unique position: few countries have the resources we do to prevent and treat STDs, and few countries squander such resources so effectively.
Let me…
March 30, 2008
What if we had a vaccine against cancer? Or even against some cancers? Wouldn't this be a huge news story, with people everywhere clamoring for the shot? Maybe...
Or maybe, some people could find a way to turn that smile upside down. Gardasil, the new vaccine approved for prevention of certain…
March 29, 2008
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a very common problem, especially in women. The link provided offers some very good information, but briefly, women's urethrae (the tube the urine comes out of), are closer to the rectum than those of men (who have a built-in "spacer"). This allows bacteria from…
March 29, 2008
Cults kill. It's really that simple. But different cults kill in different ways. It's not just Jonestown and Killer Kool Aid (OK, Flav-r-Aid). The so-called mainstream cults that are particularly dangerous, because we tolerate them.
Jehovah's Witnesses have their own brand of craziness. It's…
March 29, 2008
As the anti-vaccine mercury militia's limited credibility shrinks even further, actual scientists are investigating real mercury-based toxins.
Remember how followers of the mercury militia were getting all their old mercury amalgam fillings pulled? It turns out that maybe that's not the greatest…
March 28, 2008
In response to a recommendation from the Department of Labor's Inspector General, MSHA released data on 40 additional deaths which occurred (mostly) in 2007 at U.S. mining operations but were deemed not "chargeable" to the mining industry. The information, which includes 5 deaths in late 2006 and…
March 28, 2008
Bloggers had a lot to say about food this week:
Tom Philpott at Gristmill contrasts the U.S. and Canadian approaches to regulating the use of ethanol distillers grains in cattle feed. Guess which countryâs regulators think the important thing is leaving cattle owners free to feed their animals…
March 28, 2008
It had seemed at first that there would be no help for the living children of the killer parents in Wisconsin. But, in a fit of rational behavior, the authorities removed the remaining children from their parents care. I hate to see families broken up, but until the parents are deprogrammed, it…
March 28, 2008
I am not pleased. I am not pleased at all. Of course, hospitals need to make money, and in my part of the country, that's getting damned hard. More and more people are jobless, without insurance, and broke. Hospitals are focusing more on customer service---and that includes providing what the…
March 28, 2008
In another fit of sloth, I am migrating one of my favorites over from my old blog. If you haven't read it, it's new to you! --PalMD
Many of my patients ask me about it; the TV is full of ads for it; you can't avoid it. "Detoxification" is apparently the pinnacle of modern health care, if you…
March 27, 2008
It's amazing that anti-vaccine crankery persists. I went over to Joe Mercola's woo-palace again, and what should pop up but an article by Dr. Woo himself, Russell Blaylock. Apparently Russ and Joe are "good friends", which is appropriate, since both are doctors that aren't welcome in the…
March 27, 2008
My profession does not allow me the luxury of suffering fools, but neither does it allow me the luxury of always being blunt in my beliefs.
Readers may have noticed a slight tendency toward snarkiness, especially when dealing with woo. I refuse to pull punches when it comes to people peddling…
March 27, 2008
I think I made clear that Scientology is a wacked-out cult. The primary concern from my perspective as a doctor is their denialist position on psychiatric illness.
Given the toll mental illness takes on society, and the amount of influence exerted by Scientology, everyone should be shouting from…
March 27, 2008
The Senate HELP Committee's Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety announced that former OSHA Assistant Secretary, Mr. Gerard Scannell, will testify at next week's hearing on workplace safety. He was the OSHA chief during the George H.W. Bush administration, and a long-time officer with…
March 27, 2008
I was thinking about poor Orac and his death crud, so I thought I'd do a little research for him.
I did a quick google search for holistic healing (call a doctor? Are you kidding?) and immediately found my answer--Pranic Healing.
First, I gotta tell you, it's a deal--a steal, really--because you…
March 27, 2008
My pager went off at about 7 p.m. I had already finished rounding at the hospital, gone home, showered off the day, and sat down with a cup of tea. It was my senior resident. We had admitted a psychotic young woman to the hospital, and her parents were trying to sign her out against medical…
March 27, 2008
...at Mike's Rant, and quote-mining is the rule of the day...don't miss it!
March 27, 2008
In light of recent discussions in this corner of teh intertubes, I've been thinking about anti-quackery writing. To what extent does our debunking actually feed the ducks?
Many of us don't link to crank sites---that makes sense, since click-throughs probably put money in their pockets.
But…
March 26, 2008
Hat-tip to PZ for shining some light onto local idiocy. The basic story is an old one---family kills kid by refusing medical care for a curable condition. In this case, it's a child with type I diabetes. This hits close to home for two reasons: I'm an internist, and my nephew is a type I…