Homeopathy

[Guest alex]

Laboratoire Garnier.

[Park Life 70]

Laboratoire Garnier.

 

I think Fop is more "Splash it all over".

[Tooj 17]

Laboratoire Garnier.

 

I think Fop is more "Splash it all over".

Wor lass says the same about me.

[Park Life 70]

Laboratoire Garnier.

 

I think Fop is more "Splash it all over".

Wor lass says the same about me.

 

[Renton 17776]

Read this article in the Guardian someone sent me today. Clicky.

 

Opinions from Chez et al would be welcome, it appears the MHRA has lost its marbles. This is following from NICE who a couple of weeks ago recommended acupuncture for lower back pain, despite there being no real evidence it is better than sham acupuncture (i.e. it has a purely placebo effect).

 

If people want to spend their own money on this stuff then fair enough, but being available on the NHS when other treatments of proven efficacy are denied? Madness.

[Happy Face 29]

My GP will get replaced by Papa Shango next.

[NJS 3978]

Try this one as well:

 

Homeopathy kills

 

No chance for placebo to work on an infant.

 

Bastards.

[Renton 17776]

Try this one as well:

 

Homeopathy kills

 

No chance for placebo to work on an infant.

 

Bastards.

 

But even after Gloria died, Thomas Sam adhered to his belief that homeopathy was equally valid to conventional medicine for the treatment of eczema.

 

He told police: "Conventional medicine would have prolonged her life ... with more misery. It's not going to cure her and that's what I strongly believe."

 

I had a bit of sympathy until I read this quote. It's eczema ffs, not terminal cancer. It's easily treated with conventional drugs. I find this particularly disturbing because I would be dead myself if I had not been treated for eczema when I was a kid, what complete fucktards these parents are.

[Fop 1]

Read this article in the Guardian someone sent me today. Clicky.

 

Opinions from Chez et al would be welcome, it appears the MHRA has lost its marbles. This is following from NICE who a couple of weeks ago recommended acupuncture for lower back pain, despite there being no real evidence it is better than sham acupuncture (i.e. it has a purely placebo effect).

 

If people want to spend their own money on this stuff then fair enough, but being available on the NHS when other treatments of proven efficacy are denied? Madness.

 

 

It's all about £££'s.

[NJS 3978]

I had a bit of sympathy until I read this quote. It's eczema ffs, not terminal cancer. It's easily treated with conventional drugs. I find this particularly disturbing because I would be dead myself if I had not been treated for eczema when I was a kid, what complete fucktards these parents are.

 

I read this on Pharyngula (PZ Myer's site) and it followed a couple of similar cases in the US with religious fucktards who insisted on prayer as the only valid treatment for their kids with predictable results.

 

Myers made the point about feeling sorry for them as parents but surely you have a "duty" to do everything you could for your kids even if it goes against your beliefs. In a similar situation I'd like to think I'd try anything and everything no matter how extreme but as you say when its something "trivial" like eczema or in the religious case like diabetes which are 100% proven to be treatable I think as you say sympathy is stretched.

[Guest alex]

I had a bit of sympathy until I read this quote. It's eczema ffs, not terminal cancer. It's easily treated with conventional drugs. I find this particularly disturbing because I would be dead myself if I had not been treated for eczema when I was a kid, what complete fucktards these parents are.

 

I read this on Pharyngula (PZ Myer's site) and it followed a couple of similar cases in the US with religious fucktards who insisted on prayer as the only valid treatment for their kids with predictable results.

 

Myers made the point about feeling sorry for them as parents but surely you have a "duty" to do everything you could for your kids even if it goes against your beliefs. In a similar situation I'd like to think I'd try anything and everything no matter how extreme but as you say when its something "trivial" like eczema or in the religious case like diabetes which are 100% proven to be treatable I think as you say sympathy is stretched.

Bet they have more kids as well. Just like God intended.

[Fop 1]

I had a bit of sympathy until I read this quote. It's eczema ffs, not terminal cancer. It's easily treated with conventional drugs. I find this particularly disturbing because I would be dead myself if I had not been treated for eczema when I was a kid, what complete fucktards these parents are.

 

I read this on Pharyngula (PZ Myer's site) and it followed a couple of similar cases in the US with religious fucktards who insisted on prayer as the only valid treatment for their kids with predictable results.

 

Myers made the point about feeling sorry for them as parents but surely you have a "duty" to do everything you could for your kids even if it goes against your beliefs. In a similar situation I'd like to think I'd try anything and everything no matter how extreme but as you say when its something "trivial" like eczema or in the religious case like diabetes which are 100% proven to be treatable I think as you say sympathy is stretched.

Bet they have more kids as well. Just like God intended.

 

Little do they know that He only intended 2.1 per 2 breeding adults. Just wait till the Apocalypse, they are screwed.

[Park Life 70]

My GP will get replaced by Papa Shango next.

 

Ideally.

[Renton 17776]

(Mitchell and Webb). Sorry, no idea how to embed.

[The Fish 8989]

(Mitchell and Webb). Sorry, no idea how to embed.

 

 

just put youtube in the square brackets as you would i for italics, b for bold or s for strikethrough

[Renton 17776]

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Ha! Thanks Fish.

[NJS 3978]

"But if they have more money than sense"

[Renton 17776]

Science and Technology CommitteeEvidence Check 2: Homeopathy

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Report published

 

The Committee published 'Evidence Check 2: Homeopathy', HC 45, its Fourth Report of Session 2009-10, on Monday 22 February 2010. The report included the oral and written evidence.

 

MPS URGE GOVERNMENT TO WITHDRAW NHS FUNDING AND MHRA LICENSING OF HOMEOPATHY

 

In a report published today, the Science and Technology Committee concludes that the NHS should cease funding homeopathy. It also concludes that the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) should not allow homeopathic product labels to make medical claims without evidence of efficacy. As they are not medicines, homeopathic products should no longer be licensed by the MHRA.

 

The Committee carried out an evidence check to test if the Government’s policies on homeopathy were based on sound evidence. The Committee found a mismatch between the evidence and policy. While the Government acknowledges there is no evidence that homeopathy works beyond the placebo effect (where a patient gets better because of their belief in the treatment), it does not intend to change or review its policies on NHS funding of homeopathy.

 

The Committee concurred with the Government that the evidence base shows that homeopathy is not efficacious (that is, it does not work beyond the placebo effect) and that explanations for why homeopathy would work are scientifically implausible.

 

The Committee concluded-given that the existing scientific literature showed no good evidence of efficacy-that further clinical trials of homeopathy could not be justified.

 

In the Committee’s view, homeopathy is a placebo treatment and the Government should have a policy on prescribing placebos. The Government is reluctant to address the appropriateness and ethics of prescribing placebos to patients, which usually relies on some degree of patient deception. Prescribing of placebos is not consistent with informed patient choice-which the Government claims is very important-as it means patients do not have all the information needed to make choice meaningful.

 

Beyond ethical issues and the integrity of the doctor-patient relationship, prescribing pure placebos is bad medicine. Their effect is unreliable and unpredictable and cannot form the sole basis of any treatment on the NHS.

 

The report also examines the MHRA licensing regime for homeopathic products. The Committee is particularly concerned over the introduction of the National Rules Scheme (NRS) in 2006, as it allows medical indications on the basis of study reports, literature and homeopathic provings and not on the basis of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) - the normal requirement for medicines that make medical claims.

 

The MHRA’s user-testing of the label for Arnica Montana 30C-the only product currently licensed under the NRS-was poorly designed, with some parts of the test little more than a superficial comprehension test of the label and other parts actively misleading participants to believe that the product contains an active ingredient.

 

The product labelling for homeopathic products under all current licensing schemes fails to inform the public that homeopathic products are sugar pills containing no active ingredients. The licensing regimes and deficient labelling lend a spurious medical legitimacy to homeopathic products.

 

The Chairman of the Committee, Phil Willis MP, said:

 

"This was a challenging inquiry which provoked strong reactions. We were seeking to determine whether the Government’s policies on homeopathy are evidence based on current evidence. They are not.

 

"It sets an unfortunate precedent for the Department of Health to consider that the existence of a community which believes that homeopathy works is 'evidence' enough to continue spending public money on it. This also sends out a confused message, and has potentially harmful consequences. We await the Government's response to our report with interest.”

 

Linky

 

D'Oh!

 

[NJS 3978]

They'll exempt it on the basis of "faith" which trumps all other cards.

[ChezGiven 0]

I wonder if NICE will approve my new cancer drug because i 'believe' its cost-effective?

 

Fucking disgrace in this day and age.

[Happy Face 29]

NHS Tayside are advertising for a £68,000 a year homeopath, despite having to sack about 500 people due to budget cuts.

 

 

Its being encouraged for as many people as possible to apply for the job.

 

Here's someones application

 

STATEMENT IN SUPPORT OF YOUR APPLICATION:

 

I am keen to apply for this position as I am currently seeking work in the Scientific field. However, I am also considering non-scientific work, and the position of Speciality Doctor of Homeopathy seems ideally suited to the latter category.

 

I am a qualified doctor of Neuroscience, so am aware of many long and complex words which I often use to convince people I know what I’m talking about, when in reality I am just exploiting their ignorance for my own amusement. As such, I feel I would be an ideal candidate for the post of doctor of homeopathy. Ridiculous claims that I have successfully convinced people are true include the following:

 

· Australia is actually a different planet

 

· McDonalds make all their burgers in one restaurant in the USA and sends them around the world at supersonic velocities in hydraulic tubes (hence the squashed, flattened look of most burgers)

 

· Hiccups that last more than 2 minutes are an indicator of final stage lung cancer (the resulting terror of this diagnosis usually cures the sufferers hiccups immediately).

 

· The North and South Pole are actually the same place; it just looks different depending on how you the direction from which you approach it.

 

As you can see, I am highly skilled at convincing people that ludicrous notions are factually correct, and as such I would appreciate the opportunity to put this skill to use in the workplace.

 

Although not a registered homeopath myself, I am completely familiar with all the literature that proves the efficacy of homeopathic remedies. Other things I am familiar with to a similar extent are the number of palm trees on the moon and every Richard Littlejohn article which doesn’t read like it was written by a bile-filled screaming anus with a pen jammed in it.

 

As stated, I am not currently a registered member of the Faculty of Homeopaths, I am however a member of several institutions of similar levels of prestige and credibility, e.g. I currently own a Blockbuster Video card, and technically my membership of the Desperate Dan fan club was never cancelled, so I may qualify for a senior position in that long-running organisation.

 

Regarding the practical aspects of Homeopathy, although I have no certified training in the practice, whenever I make squash I don’t add much cordial, so am pretty good at diluting things. I also tend to pour a lot of bleach down my toilet whenever I clean it, to the extent that I worry that I may be personally responsible for the decline in cod stocks in the North sea, so clearly I have a very tenuous grasp on the effect of substantial dilution on the potency of a chemical, which could be easily ignored in favour of the salary offered for this position.

 

My personal research into homeopathy reveals that, following dilution, a homeopathic remedy should be ‘succussed’, which appears to be a specific style of striking, usually with a leather book or perhaps other leather-clad objects. I have, admittedly, never practiced succussion, but I believe (should the post require it) that I shall be able to perform this procedure with no difficulty. Although I have, as I say, no direct experience, I did once affectionately pat a cow at a petting zoo. I have also worked as a cook in several kitchens and tenderised many steaks as part of these roles. A reversal of these two actions would logically lend itself to successful succession. I also have an uncle Greg who has extensive experience with striking things with leather (although he is legally banned from working with, for or anywhere near the general public following the scandal with the rooster, the toaster and the mail-order bride, so I shall only seek his professional advice if the situation genuinely requires it)

 

Unlike the majority of scientists, amongst which I count myself, I do not believe homeopathic remedies have anything to do with the Placebo effect. Although I find some of their songs (e.g. Nancy Boy) quite catchy, the ambiguous gender of Placebo’s lead singer does make me feel uncomfortable and definitely not aroused in any way (although I can’t say the same for uncle Greg). Homeopathy has never provoked any similar effect in me, so I find the comparison nonsensical.

 

It's true that there are many laws of chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics and basic reality that would prevent homeopathy from existing as is described in the real world, but I like a challenge. I would also bring more benefits to the role and therefore the hospital as a whole than someone specifically trained in homeopathy. The government recently stated that homeopathy should be available on the NHS as a matter of patient choice. I would be willing to offer patients an even greater deal of choice regarding treatment methods, up to an including exorcism and trepanning. More choice for the same money would mean even greater savings for the hospital and NHS overall.

 

I hope you will consider me as an applicant. To show my commitment to the role, I have provided as little information as possible on my application form, under the assumption that the smaller the amount the more potent it is. Therefore, I expect to be awarded the position, and a promotion and a raise before I even start.

 

I am a well-rounded, highly qualified candidate and enthusiastic proponent of teaching and promoting evidence based science to the general public and encouraging others to do the same. I need the money though, so am willing to say balls to all that if I get the job.

 

http://sciencedigestive.blogspot.com/2010/...-homeopath.html