My new piece: Danielle Smith’s Bizarre Bid to Legitimize Homeopathy thewalrus.ca/albertas-emb... This interest in homeopathy is emblematic of the broader anti-science ethos. The populist playbook: Create distrust in systematically acquired knowledge to create room for alternative narratives. - ThreadSky

caulfieldtim.bsky.social • 72 days ago

My new piece: Danielle Smith’s Bizarre Bid to Legitimize Homeopathy https://thewalrus.ca/albertas-embrace-of-homeopathy-signals-a-growing-war-on-science/

This interest in homeopathy is emblematic of the broader anti-science ethos.

The populist playbook: Create distrust in systematically acquired knowledge to create room for alternative narratives.

Comments

brandieharrop.bsky.social•72 days ago

I detest DS. But don’t discount alternative medicine. People with chronic illness that doesn’t have a cure are OFTEN dismissed by traditional medicine docs. I have fibromyalgia. I was told to join a support group and suck it up. Alternative med helped me when traditional med failed me. /1

brandieharrop.bsky.social•72 days ago

A big part of the issue is, lack of research & studies into the health & wellbeing of women. My fibro diagnosis was years ago. We now know it’s part of perimenopause & menopause. Had I been given HRT years ago I wouldn’t have lost all those years in agony. We finally know better. Too late for me. /2

brandieharrop.bsky.social•72 days ago

Women deserve better than to be abandoned. When the trad med steps up and actually provides us the help and service we deserve we won’t have to go elsewhere for help. Do a story on that please.

caulfieldtim.bsky.social•72 days ago

Thx for comments.🙏 Agree with much.

I touch on some of the issues here: https://healthydebate.ca/2021/03/topic/dear-alternative-medicine/

Conclusion: You can’t fix the problems of the conventional system with unproven therapies, misinformation and a lowering of the standards of evidence. Needed: compassion, good science, etc.

brandieharrop.bsky.social•72 days ago

What a great piece! And yes alternative medicine did not cure me. But it did give me a life beyond just laying in bed in extreme pain. It got me through till western medicine pulled its head out of its arse and stepped up to the plate. Without alt med I would have lost half my life. 1/

brandieharrop.bsky.social•72 days ago

I gained 20 usable years instead of losing 20 years. Unfortunately it cost me a fortune to gain it. I am one of the lucky ones that could afford to pay out of pocket for the help. Everyone should be able to access until western med gets their shit together. Just my take.

vee40below0.bsky.social•72 days ago

I suspect you'll be able to update this piece significantly after RFK Jr's confirmation as head of Health and Human Services, and the policy alignment that surely will follow in Alberta.....

tabbygraycatxyz.bsky.social•72 days ago

You need a dose of real science.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405844021007076

tabbygraycatxyz.bsky.social•72 days ago

"But despite my and other academics’ objections, homeopathy has been studied. A lot. And the conclusions are consistent and definitive." Oh, dear, Erns't review from 2002 was debunked by Robert Hahn in 2013. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24200828/

tabbygraycatxyz.bsky.social•72 days ago

"One study by Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council considered 1,800" 🤣 No, Australian report is not based on "1 800 studies"; only 176. The so called study was debunked long time ago. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8312774/

tabbygraycatxyz.bsky.social•72 days ago

"Homeopathy doesn’t work for anything." 😂 You need read the evidence, read, read!
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12325-024-03022-5

tabbygraycatxyz.bsky.social•72 days ago

Oh, dear "even to the point where not a single molecule remains, the more powerful it is." You need read the evidence:

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/la303477s