reality vs distortion Flashcards
Warts are caused by ______
A virus
What were some traditional remedies for warts?
Traditional “remedies”: rub with miracle flowers; rub with a radish, rub with raw potato, and bury the potato in clay; use dandelion flower milk; put an equal number of stones in a bag and bury it
Did traditional remedies work?
No, but people thought they did since a lot of things heal on their own
What questions are asked in evidence-bases medicine?
- Does this drug work?
- What are the side effects?
- How does it compare to what is available? Is there anything safer and better out there already?
Alternative medicine is based on what?
hearsay, folklore, or somebody’s imagination
Marketing techniques for alternative medicine used are what?
testimonials (‘I tried it and it was great!’), folklore, tradition, belief system.
What classifies something as being conventional medicine?
- Evidence-based
- Better than placebo
- Benefits outweigh the side effects.
- Documented.
What differentiates marketing for alternative and conventional medicine?
- conventional must list side effects, and show evidence that the drug works
what is double blind?
Neither the person giving the drug, nor the person receiving the drug knows if they are given the placebo or active drug, such that there is no psychological influence.
what questions do clinical trials try to answer?
- Is the drug safe?
- Does it work?
- How does it compare to what is available?
what is a randomized test?
Random distribution of placebo and active drug in a group of similarly aged, built, health individuals, so that one group isn’t in greater health than the other.
what is a placebo and how does it work?
- is a pill with no active ingredients
- Works thanks to a belief system, due to the psychosocial context. So, people can start taking
things that they believe will help, and they start feeling better
how do we know that a drug is good?
superior to placebo
what is the nocebo effect?
If you tell the test subjects to watch out for side effects, about 15% will respond negatively to the placebo
what is homeopathy?
A belief system formed in the late 1700s by a physician in Europe, where he believed “like counteracts like”: We can fight a disease by giving something else that creates the same symptoms.
what happened with initial homeopathic products and what was done to “solve” this?
- Resulted in making the situation worse.
- Then came up with the idea of diluting the original properties, so he could ‘maintain the magical properties’ from the initial sample
approximately __% will respond positively to placebo
35
what is the process of potentization?
Making something potent by diluting it.
- Start with the initial compound (mother tincture) and sequentially dilute it 1:100.
- Succussion: bang/mix the vial in between each dilution.
- Repeat 30 times.
- In doing so you transfer the “magical compound” from the original compound into the water molecules & thus “spiritualize/potentize” the water
- Final concentration 1/1060 => just water; there is nothing left
what is the most probable reason why a homeopathic product might work?
- placebo effect: Person will spend a lot of time talking to you – placebo response can be very strong, especially if you feel that somebody cares about you
Can you argue that homeopathy is a harmless placebo?
It’s rather unethical to say that something can cure something else when there is no evidence. If people do need treatment, taking homeopathic remedies delays the time they go to an actual physician, situation may get worse
what is snake and oregano oil sold as? how is this dangerous?
- both as antibiotics, which can be dangerous if you have an actual infection
- snake oil: claim it can replace vaccines
against whooping cough, can cure headaches, tuberculosis - oregano oil: an antibiotic curing bacterial and fungal infections, parasites, viruses, inflammation, etc.
what are homeopathic nosodes and what do they claim?
- sugar pills
- Claim: immunize against influenza, whooping cough, measles, diphtheria, and polio. Claims that it is better than vaccination
what is the advertised vs reality of herbal extracts?
- Advertised in a very appealing way; often plants are presented in a very beautiful and “healing” way.
- Reality is: we are taking chemicals from plant extracts – they may have side effects. Plants also have thousands of chemicals in them, some of which are toxic and can make us sick
what are the prime target conditions for herbal remedies?
- Conditions that would go away eventually anyway (ex. colds, aches, and pains)
- Conditions with high psychological component (ex. mild anxiety, insomnia) → respond well to
placebo - Chronic conditions that naturally cycle (ex. gastrointestinal conditions, allergies, chronic types
of arthritis) - Attempts to improve appearance, reverse aging, etc. (cosmetics)
- “Cure” terminal illness (ex. heart failure, cancer) => very unethical