We know that drinking alcohol during pregnancy can cause birth defects; the government-mandated warnings on alcoholic beverage labels constantly remind us of that fact. But toxicologists remind us that the poison is in the dose: what is the dose of alcohol that causes birth defects? Heavy drinking can cause fetal… read more "Alcohol and Pregnancy"
Medicine’s Beautiful Idea
For most of human history, doctors have killed their patients more often than they have saved them. An excellent new book, Taking the Medicine: A Short History of Medicine’s Beautiful Idea, and Our Difficulty Swallowing It, by Druin Burch, MD, describes medicine’s bleak past, how better ways of thinking led… read more "Medicine’s Beautiful Idea"
Food Allergies and Food Addiction
Last week I wrote about the CME presentations at an obesity course put on by the American Society of Bariatric Physicians. I saved the most controversial one for last. Dr. Kendall Gerdes is a former president of the American Academy of Environmental Medicine, which I have previously written about. The… read more "Food Allergies and Food Addiction"
Power Balance Technology:Pseudoscientific Silliness Suckers Card-Carrying Surfers
Carrying a Power Balance card in your pocket will supposedly improve your athletic performance and cure what ails you. The alleged mechanism (“frequencies” in an embedded hologram) is laughable pseudoscientific bunk. Remember when professional golfers were wearing Q-ray bracelets to improve their game? The Q-ray folks recently had a run-in… read more "Power Balance Technology:Pseudoscientific Silliness Suckers Card-Carrying Surfers"
A Report from the Bariatric Trenches
The American Society of Bariatric Physicians recently invited me to speak at their continuing medical education (CME) conference on obesity in Seattle. They got my name from Stephen Barrett of Quackwatch and asked if I could speak about questionable weight loss treatments like HGH, MIC (methionine, inositol and choline), and… read more "A Report from the Bariatric Trenches"
Nine Breakthroughs and a Breakdown
In his new book Breakthrough! How the 10 Greatest Discoveries in Medicine Saved Millions and Changed Our View of the World Jon Queijo describes what he believes are the 10 greatest discoveries. 9 of them are uncontroversial discoveries that have been on other top-10 lists, but his 10th choice is… read more "Nine Breakthroughs and a Breakdown"
Breastfeeding Is Good but Maybe Not THAT Good
An article entitled “The Burden of Suboptimal Breastfeeding in the United States: A Pediatric Cost Analysis,” by Bartick and Reinhold, was published in Pediatrics 2010 April 5. According to this news report, it showed that 900 babies’ lives and billions of dollars could be saved every year in the U.S. if we… read more "Breastfeeding Is Good but Maybe Not THAT Good"
Taking Control of Death
Science isn’t the only game in town. Literature can teach us things about the world that science can’t. It can give us vicarious experience and insight into other minds. Two recently published novels illuminate why perfectly rational people might reject the help of scientific medicine and prefer to die a… read more "Taking Control of Death"
Genetic Testing for Patients on Coumadin
Anticoagulation is advised for patients who have had a blood clot or who are at increased risk of blood clots because of atrial fibrillation, artificial heart valves, or other conditions. Over 30 million prescriptions are written every year in the US for the anticoagulant warfarin, best known under the brand… read more "Genetic Testing for Patients on Coumadin"
Brief Note: Followup on Spinal Decompression Machines
In September 2008 I wrote a post on Misleading Ads for Back Pain Treatment. with particular attention to the bogus claims for the DRX 9000. The Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) show “Marketplace” has just done a scathing exposé of so-called nonsurgical spinal decompression treatment with machines like the DRX 9000 and… read more "Brief Note: Followup on Spinal Decompression Machines"