Holistic Doctors, and medicine

Naturopathy is the most eclectic of "alternative" practices. It has changed its methods in response to popular fads and beliefs. It practices no pool of consistent diagnostic or therapeutic methods. The most notable things that unite its practitioners are a penchant for magical thinking, a weak grasp of basic science, and a rejection of scientific biomedicine, which they refer to as "allopathy." Because naturopathy lacks a coherent rationale, patients can encounter anything from commonsense lifestyle advice -- eating a healthy diet, rest, exercise, and stress reduction -- to an array of scientifically implausible nostrums and gadgets [1].If a glue binds the diverse and changing patchwork of naturopathic practices together, it is espousal of the teachings of the early nineteenth-century romantic movement known as Naturphilosophie. The central tenet of this movement affected the romantic poets and artists of the era and some noted scientists as well -- that there is a single unifying force underlying the entirety of nature, one that steers all of its parts into a harmonious and indivisible whole [2]. Much like the concept of "Qi" in Chinese philosophy and medicine, this mystical force is said to permeate all living things. Believers in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) assert that imbalances in the flow of Qi are responsible for disease, fatigue, etc., and that that balance between yin and yang variants of Qi is essential to health. Acupuncture, Chinese herbs, etc., supposedly restore well-being by rebalancing the flow of this spiritual essence [3]. Naturopaths explain what they do by resorting to similar metaphorical usages of the terms "balance," "harmony," and "flow," which in the final analysis boil down to synonyms for "good" and have no science-based meaning. The similarities of their theories may explain why TCM is taught in naturopathic colleges.A corollary of Naturphilosophie is that in order to comprehend nature one must experience it as a whole -- i.e., intuitively rather than objectively and analytically. Openness to one's subjective feelings is considered the most reliable means of revealing the workings of the natural world. Not surprisingly, then, naturopathy has been quick to ally itself with the "holistic health" movement. This emphasis on "holism" helps explain the apparent indifference and/or antipathy of most naturopaths to objective, scientific research.Naturopathy views sickness as a generalized breakdown of the body in response to "unnatural" events in the enviroment that can be remedied by overall strengthening of the body's resistance. This clashes with scientific biomedicine's view that disease is a malfunction due to specific pathogens or processes that involve identifiable organ systems. Biomedicine tailors its treatments to the system and pathologic processes that are involved, whereas naturopathy claims to "treat the whole person."Although naturopathy uses scientific terms and assumes some of the trappings of science, it exhibits more features of pseudoscience [4] and has magical and quasi-religious roots [5]. Its claim that healing stems from a supernatural "life force" is much like the abandoned principle from prescientific biology known as elan vitale [6]. Biologists once believed that a force that distinguished living from inanimate matter was derived from a cosmos whose natural order was governed by moral laws -- as opposed to the mechanistic ones of modern science. For proponents of naturopathy, "natural laws" are not generalizations from observation and experimentation, but seem to be the moralistic dictates of an anthropomorphic "Nature" -- usually capitalized to emphasize its purposeful, theistic properties. They also postulate that health is awarded or withdrawn in accordance with one's ability to maintain harmony and balance with the animistic, vital forces of the universe. In committing itself to vitalism, naturopathy puts bodily functions outside the realm of physics, chemistry, and physiology. This is apparent in the following excerpt from the writings of Harvey Diamond, an advocate of the "Natural Hygiene" movement: "The true cause of impaired health lies in our failure to comply with the laws and requirements of life. All health problems arise from the abuse of natural laws. . . . Living healthfully is not an art that we must learn, it is an instinctive way of life to which we must return!" [5:98]

And what wackjob version of nutrition do they advocate?

Many Americans suffer from "enzyme deficiency" that can be corrected by taking Nu-Zymes.The American diet is generally enzyme-deficient because most of the food we consume has been cooked or processed.Lack of enzymes in food strains the human body.Enzyme deficiency causes heart disease, joint pain, obesity, and many other health problems that Nu-Zymes can correct.

Jay Kordich, an advocate of "juicing" who claims that "live foods" are superior to cooked or processed foods because they contain "active enzymes."CHIROPRACTOR: Howard F. Loomis, D.C. whose "Enzyme Replacement System" is based on treating "enzyme deficiency states" with products "targeted to organs stressed by subluxation." The products listed in Loomis's 1995 catalog include Chiro-Zyme, a line of "carefully formulated combinations of herbs, vitamins and minerals with plant enzymes," each named with an abbreviation for certain spinal segments and an organ or body function.Infinity2, a multilevel company whose professional distributors used live cell analysis to persuade people they need to take enzyme pills.Ronald Schneider, whose Web site describes him as a "leading enzymologist" and "self taught holistic nutritionist"who "has studied at the Arizona State Public Medical Library and has over 10 years of research material." Schneider claims that, "Although digestive enzymes occur naturally in our foods, they are destroyed by commercial growing, cooking and processing methods. Carbonated drinks, strenuous exercise, environmental factors and stress further deplete our enzyme stores and ability to make more enzymes for bodily functions."NATUROPATH: National Safety Associates (NSA), which markets Juice Plus+®, based on the theories of Humbart Santillo, N.D.

Are you getting all the oxygen you need for good health? If you're like most of us, you're probably not. Yet studies reveal that oxygen in your bloodstream can enhance your ability to fight infectious bacteria, microbes, and viruses. How? Oxygen in the bloodstream acts as a cleaner, helping to rid your body of the toxins that build up due to pollution. Our revolutionary, high-tech oxygen water cooler contains water with a 600% higher concentration of dissolved oxygen (as compared, say, to a mountain stream) which may help maintain your health, concentration, skin tone, and overall well being.

Between the stainless steel exterior and porcelain interior of this mug lies a material that magnetizes hot or cold liquids. Why? Because magnetizing water, the basis of any liquid, creates space between its molecules, adding alkalinity to water that has become acidic. Alkaline water is more readily absorbed by the body. As your tissues increase their hydration levels, your body flushes out toxins more easily.

Ghee (clarified butter) ...Balances excess stomach acid and repair the mucus lining of the stomachPromotes learning, memory, and recallEnhances the quantity and quality of semen and ovum for increased fertility and healthier childrenIs well known as an anti-aging ingredientEnhances the quality and quantity of Ojas, the master coordinator of mind and body.

All diseases are caused by a combination of three factors: malnutrition, dehydration, and stress.

Various disciplines fall under alternative medicine.

* Acupuncture
* AIDS-Related Quackery and Fraud
* Algae Products: False Claims and Hype
* "Antiaging Medicine" (posted 8/26/04)
* Arthritis: Questionable Approaches (to be posted)
* Aromatherapy
* Ayurvedic
* Cancer: Questionable Therapies
* "Calorie-Blockers"
* "Candidiasis Hypersensitivity/Yeast Allergy"
* "Cellulite" Removers
* Chelation Therapy
* Chinese Medicine
* Chiropractic:
o Applied Kinesiology (updated 4/23/99)
o Contact Reflex Analysis (updated 4/16/98)
* Veterinary Chiropractic
* Colloidal Minerals
* Colloidal Silver
* Colon Therapy and Related Quackery
* Craniosacral Therapy
* Holistic Dentistry
o The "Mercury Toxicity"
o Neuralgia Inducing Cavitational Osteonecrosis (NICO)
* "Detoxification" Schemes
* DHEA
* Dietary Supplements, Herbs, and Hormones
* Dubious Diagnostic Tests
* Ear Candling
* Electrodiagnostic Device Quackery
* "Ergogenic Aids"
* Fad Diets
* Faith Healing
* Genetic Testing Scams
* Glucosamine for Arthritis
* Gamma-hydroxybutyric Acid
* Hair Analysis: A Cardinal Sign of Quackery
* Herbal Practices and Products
* Hyperbaric Medicine: What Works and What Does Not?
* Iridology (updated 8/20/04)
* Juice Plus+®
* Low-Carbohydrate Diets (including Atkins Diet)
* Macrobiotics
* Magnet Therapy
* Massage Therapy
* Orthomolecular Therapy
* Psychomotor Patterning
* Metabolic Therapy
* Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
* Naturopathy
* Osteopathy
* Pneumatic Trabeculoplasty (PNT)
* Qigong
* Reflexology
* Therapeutic Touch

PD writes:Various disciplines fall under alternative medicine. I've simply said it will take time to see what comes out in the wash. I've already agreed that there are quacks and that tougher standards need to be set. I want them to be licensed. But it takes time and when money and politics are involved it takes more time.

...Once a treatment has been tested rigorously, it no longer matters whether it was considered alternative at the outset. If it is found to be reasonably safe and effective, it will be accepted.

Chiro is full of bunk.

Then why do insurance companies cover your visits?

the wheat from the chaff

Andrew Weil, M.D. - Nutritional Supplements
Julian Whitaker, MD. and his most popular products

So what wackjob version of nutrition do those who aren't selling their own products or health systems advocate?

I just want to point out that the founder of quakwatch.org, has a vested interest in promoting all that is said there.

In 1984, he received an FDA Commissioner's Special Citation Award for Public Service in fighting nutrition quackery. In 1986, he was awarded honorary membership in the American Dietetic Association. From 1987 through 1989, he taught health education at The Pennsylvania State University. He is listed in Marquis Who's Who in America and received the 2001 Distinguished Service to Health Education Award from the American Association for Health Education.

Then why do insurance companies cover your visits?

I just want to point out that the founder of quakwatch.org, has a vested interest in promoting all that is said there.