Naturopaths
oracknows | January 27, 2014Being a cancer surgeon and researcher, naturally I tend to write about cancer a lot more than other areas of medicine and science. It's what I know best. Also, cancer is a very common area for unscientific practices to insinuate themselves, something that's been true for a very long time. The ideas don't change very rapidly, either. Drop a cancer quack from 2014 into 1979, and he would probably be right at home. Of course, part of the reason is because the "elder statesmen" of cancer quackery today were just getting their starts in 1979. Still, the same ideas keep recurring even as far back…
oracknows | April 14, 2009Recently, there's been a movement afoot among purveyors of that special brand of "natural" woo known as naturopathy to convince various legislatures and regulatory bodies that they not only are capable of serving as primary care physicians but that they should be allowed to do so. My first impression was laughter--that is, until I realized that the naturopaths are serious. For example, in New York, naturopaths, spearheaded by the New York Association of Naturopathic Physicians, are lobbying to be given the power to prescribe medications. Never mind that, despite their claims to the contrary,…