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The annals of “ I ’ m not antivaccine, ” part 24: Violent imagery for me but not for thee
Last week, the Boston Herald published an editorial about how antivaxers deceived a community of Somali immigrants in Minnesota, referring to the spreading of deadly misinformation as a "hanging offense." Antivaxers took an ill-advised idiom and turned it into a threat of mass lynchings, ignoring their own violent imagery about vaccines and portraying themselves as "pro-vaccine." Yes, they are disingenuous and hypocritical as hell. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 16, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Boston Herald Holocaust lynching Mike Adams Minnesota racism Somali vaccines Source Type: blogs

The annals of “ I ’ m not antivaccine, ” part 24: Antivaxers threaten to dox Boston Herald employees over the newspaper ’ s use of imagery much less offensive than what antivaxers use on a daily basis
Last week, the Boston Herald published an editorial about how antivaxers deceived a community of Somali immigrants in Minnesota, referring to the spreading of deadly misinformation as a "hanging offense." Antivaxers took an ill-advised idiom and turned it into a threat of mass lynchings, ignoring their own violent imagery about vaccines and portraying themselves as "pro-vaccine," and used it as justification to threaten to publish the home addresses and phone numbers of newspaper employees. Yes, they are disingenuous and hypocritical as hell. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 16, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Boston Herald Holocaust lynching Mike Adams Minnesota racism Somali vaccines Source Type: blogs

Acupuncturists mistake insufficient rigor for bias against them
Acupuncturists complain that the UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends treatments for knee osteoarthritis for which the evidence is weak. They think that means that NICE should also accept acupuncture. In reality, it means that NICE should stop recommending treatments without support by strong scientific evidence. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 15, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking acupuncture clinical trials National Institute for Health and Care Excellence NICE Popular Science Source Type: blogs

The Mawson “ vaxed/unvaxed ” study retraction: The antivaccine movement reacts with tears of unfathomable sadness
In the course of just a couple days, a pair of atrociously incompetent studies by Andrew Wakefield fanboy Anthony Mawson were published and retracted by a predatory open access publisher. Surveying the reactions of antivaccine activists, I can't help but conclude that their tears of unfathomable sadness are delicious. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 10, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Skepticism/critical thinking Anthony Mawson Bob Sears GreenMedInfo Retraction Watch Sayer Ji unvaccinated vaxed vs. unvaxed Source Type: blogs

A horrendously bad “ vaxed/unvaxed ” study rises from the dead yet again
Antivaccine "studies" never die. They always return to promote disease among children. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 8, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Andrew Wakefield Anthony Mawson survey vaccines Source Type: blogs

Thanks for the measles yet again, Andy: Antivax vultures swoop in to spread misinformation among the Minnesota Somali immigrant community
Antivaccine activists have been targeting the community of Somali immigrants in Minnesota for over a decade now, with devastating results. In the midst of a growing measles outbreak, antivaxers have descended upon the community to keep promoting antivaccine quackery. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 5, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Andrew Wakefield antivaccine Mark Blaxill Minnesota Somali vaccines Source Type: blogs

It ’ s full steam ahead for cancer quack Stanislaw Burzynski
Since being given a slap on the wrist by the Texas Medical Board for his many years of peddling his antineoplastons, a treatment that's never been shown to have significant anticancer activity, Stanislaw Burzynski is back in action again, preying on desperate cancer patients like it's 1999. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 4, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Cancer Complementary and alternative medicine Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Anna Ortega antineoplastons brain cancer DIPG Mindi Ortega Stanislaw Burzynski Ted Ortega Source Type: blogs

The New York Times publishes fake news false hope in the form of a credulous account of dubious alternative medicine testimonials
It's been a bad week for the Gray Lady in the science department. Hot off the heels of hiring a climate science denier for its op-ed section, it's published a credulous article that uncritically touts a book full of dubious alternative medicine testimonials. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 3, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Homeopathy Naturopathy Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Amy Thieringer Charlotte Walker fake news galvanic skin response idiopathic juvenile arthritis Source Type: blogs

Acupuncture: A point in the right direction, or a stab in the dark?
Acupuncture is a treatment that dates back to around 100 BC in China. It is based on traditional Chinese concepts such as qi (pronounced “chee” and considered life force energy) and meridians (paths through which qi flows). Multiple studies have failed to demonstrate any scientific evidence supporting such principles. Acupuncture involves the insertion of thin needles into the skin at multiple, varying locations based on the patient’s symptoms. Once inserted, some acupuncturists hand turn the needles for added therapeutic benefit. Although there are many uses for acupuncture in traditional Chinese medicine, in Wester...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - May 3, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Paul G. Mathew, MD, FAAN, FAHS Tags: Complementary and alternative medicine Headache Health Pain Management Source Type: blogs

Old wine poured into a newer skin: The Society for Integrative Oncology updates its clinical guidelines for breast cancer
Just over two years ago, the Society for Integrative Medicine issued clinical guidelines for breast cancer care. Now it's updated them. Unfortunately, mixing cow pie with apple pie for a little longer doesn't make the cow pie any better than it was last time. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 2, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Cancer Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Homeopathy Naturopathy Quackery acupuncture breast cancer Dugald Seely Heather Greenlee integrative medicine integrative oncology society for integrative oncology Suza Source Type: blogs

Keep your seasonal allergies in check
Seasonal allergies can be frustrating. When spring crawls in, many people begin to experience all-too-familiar itchy and watery eyes, runny nose, and congestion. Symptoms of seasonal allergies are the result of an immune system in overdrive in response to pollen and other allergens. Those bothersome symptoms are intended to protect you from unwanted foreign particles, but in this situation they end up causing misery. There are quite a few options when it comes to controlling allergy symptoms, but we want to watch out for a few that can be quite dangerous when used incorrectly. Nasal steroids The first-line treatment for se...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - May 1, 2017 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Dominic Wu, MD Tags: Asthma and Allergies Ear, nose, and throat Health Source Type: blogs

Thanks for the measles yet again, Andy
Yet another population is learning why you shouldn't trust Andrew Wakefield. There is a large Somali immigrant population in Minnesota, and unfortunately they've been targeted by antivaxers. As a result, their MMR uptake has plummeted, and now they're in the midst of another measles outbreak. Andrew Wakefield screws yet another group. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - May 1, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Autism Complementary and alternative medicine Politics Popular culture Pseudoscience Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking Andrew Wakefield immigrant Minnesota Somali Source Type: blogs

Quoth an antivaxer: DNA vaccines are contaminating our DNA in the name of transhumanism!
Transhumanism is the idea that one day humans will merge with machines, to the betterment of humankind. Antivaxers have a thing for transhumanism too. They think that somehow the real purpose of DNA vaccines is to prepare the human race for transhumanism. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - April 28, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Antivaccine nonsense Complementary and alternative medicine Quackery Skepticism/critical thinking DNA vaccines Mike Adams plasmi precious bodily fluids purity of essence recombination Sherri Tenpenny transhumanism Source Type: blogs

The FDA cracks down on bogus cancer “ cures. ” Will this be the last time this happens until after Trump?
This week, the FDA sent warning letters to 14 companies making unsupported claims that their products can treat cancer. Given the new administration's determination to deregulate almost everything, but especially the FDA, is this the last time in the foreseeable future that such a crackdown will occur? (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - April 27, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Cancer Complementary and alternative medicine Politics Quackery Donald Trump DSHEA of 1994 fda laetrile supplements thermography warning letter Source Type: blogs

The failure of the Texas Medical Board: Houston cancer quack Stanislaw Burzynski is back in business
Last month, the Texas Medical Board fined Houston cancer quack Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski and placed his practice under supervision. It did not strip him of his medical license, as he deserves. The result is that families of children with terminal cancer are once again raising hundreds of thousands of dollars to follow his siren song of false hope. (Source: Respectful Insolence)
Source: Respectful Insolence - April 26, 2017 Category: Surgery Authors: Orac Tags: Cancer Clinical trials Complementary and alternative medicine Politics Popular culture Quackery Amelia Saunders antineoplastons billie bainbridge Cristiano Sousa Ewa Sitkowska fda Huddersfield Examiner Liza Cozad Orlando Sousa Source Type: blogs