Debate Politics Forums - View Single Post - A bitter fight over who can be called 'doctor'

shuamort · 06-08-08, 12:42 PM

That's fine as long as it's prefixed by the word "witch".

Quote:

It took 99 years, but Minnesota has finally given official recognition to the practice of naturopathic medicine, which relies on the body's powers to heal itself.

Under a new state law, naturopaths -- who use everything from herbal remedies to biofeedback -- will be allowed to register with the state and call themselves doctors without fear of running afoul of the medical establishment.

Source

This is shockingly disturbing as it is granting legitimacy to a field which deserves none.

Homeopathy for instance:

Quote:

Homeopathy was founded by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843). He enunciated what remain today the guiding principles of homeopathic medicine, the foremost of which is the Law of Similars: if a large amount of medicine produces a given symptom, then a small amount of the medicine will stimulate the body to combat that symptom. This isn’t a completely crazy concept; modern vaccines use the same basic idea. The twist with homeopathic medicines is that they reverse the usual understanding of dose effectiveness. Mainstream science holds that, generally speaking, the potency of a drug increases with the dose. Homeopathy--in particular, the Law of Infinitesimals--says the medicine’s effectiveness decreases with the dose. The less you use, the better it works! Which would lead one to conclude that it works best if you don’t use any at all.

(Enjoy side video)

Homeopathic remedies can legally be sold as drugs in the U.S. owing to an odd circumstance--one of the key sponsors of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938 was a homeopathic physician, and he was able to get the entire homeopathic pharmacopoeia (nux vomica, arsenicum album, et al) officially recognized. Homeopathy has enjoyed a quasi-protected status ever since, with federal regulators generally taking the view that the practice is harmless and that any attempt to suppress it would likely have political repercussions. There have even been studies in journals with varying degrees of credibility purporting to show that homeopathy actually works. These have been roundly criticized on methodological grounds, and the universal view among scientists is that any perceived benefit is simply a placebo effect--you think something is going to help you, so it does.

Why does belief in homeopathy persist? Well, for most routine, common-cold-type health complaints, it’s not noticeably less effective than mainstream medicine, or noticeably different in its therapeutic approach. People catch "bugs" that are never diagnosed (and which, if viral, have no cure anyway), take some over-the-counter remedy that claims to address the symptoms, and eventually get better. Did the over-the-counter remedy help? Who knows? It’s silly to believe in homeopathic cures, but I’m not seeing that it’s smarter to place your faith in Sudafed instead.

Source

Think these naturopaths are harmless? Look at these couple of articles:

Deaths sound an Rx alert

Quote:

Nearly identical deaths of patients at hospitals in Portland and Washington state recently have health officials suspecting a highly toxic medication used primarily by naturopaths.

Two patients die after receiving naturopathic injection for back pain

Naturopath to stand trial for cancer patient's death

Quote:

man who called himself a naturopathic doctor is scheduled to stand trial for the death of one of his patients starting Tuesday in Jefferson County District Court in Golden, Colo.

Brian O'Connell, 37, was charged with manslaughter after he unsuccessfully treated Sean Flanagan, a 19-year-old who suffered from Ewing's sarcoma, a form of cancer.

We are talking about adults here. Adults who can make their own choices. Those who want to partake with these quacks and those who want to dispense them . I feel sorry for those that fall for these charlatans and lose money, health, and life. But that's up to them. However, with all of that said, the state of Minnesota (and any governmental body) should not recognize any sort of legitimacy towards this.

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