Alternative Medicine

The French National Council of the Order of Physicians expresses concern over the rise of unconventional healthcare practices. In response to emerging issues, it has compiled a 88 pages report emphasizing the urgent need to address the dangers associated with these increasingly prevalent practices. Termed as “traditional,” “alternative,” or “complementary” medicine, they lack scientific recognition and are not part of physicians’ initial training. The Order is alarmed by the uncontrolled growth of these practices, attributing it to societal factors such as a strained healthcare system, societal distress, and distrust in healthcare professionals. The potential risks include illegal medical practices, therapeutic deviations, and sectarian concerns, posing a substantial public health issue.

Alternative Medicine

Northern Ireland – Ivermectin: seizures of unproven horse drug used for Covid

Thousands of tablets of a horse deworming drug promoted as an alternative Covid-19 treatment despite being unproven have been seized coming into Northern Ireland by the Medicines Regulatory Group (MRG). The MRG is part of the Department of Health. “There is currently a clinical trial with Ivermectin ongoing in the UK and results are awaited.”  In the United States, there have been reports of people becoming unwell having taken the drug. A spokeswoman for the British Medical Association in Northern Ireland said it had not been alerted to the misuse of Ivermectin as an issue. Responsibility for approval of prescription drugs in the UK comes from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). DFL welcomes new studies on this topic. More

Alternative Medicine

India – Alternative medicine practitioners can’t use ‘doctor’ title.

A High Court verdict wrote that the health and family Planning Ministry illegally allowed alternative medicine practitioners to use ‘doctor’ title before their names. Practitioners of allopathic, unani, ayurvedic, homeopathic, herbal and acupuncture used the ‘doctor’ title before their names in violation of the Section 29 of the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council (BMDC) Act 2010. The court referring to the law said that none but MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine/Bachelor of surgery) and BMDC (Bangladesh Medical & Dental council) degree holders of BMDC registered medical and dental institutes can use the ‘doctor’ title. The court also recommended measures to ensure education, training and services to alternative medicine practitioners and to recognise the degree of specialised universities, colleges and educational institutions. More

Alternative Medicine

USA – Crystals healing hoax

Crystals and crystal healing have become increasingly popular in recent years. People who use crystals cite their supposed healing powers and positive energy. However, there is no scientific evidence to support their use in the treatment of anxiety or depression. Dominique Fontaine, BSN, RN, HNB-BC, HWNC-BC is a double board certified holistic nurse and health and wellness nurse coach of the American Holistic Nurses Credentialing Corporation and advises people to consult with a doctor to determine a treatment that will work best for their symptoms. More

Alternative Medicine

Ecuador – Police raid ‘alternative medicines’ clinic

An unlicensed clinic in the Ecuador’s capital Quito offered clients what it falsely claimed to be a $15-per-dose vaccine. The place was raided and shut down by authorities. The establishment, which was located in the south of the city, added a “vaccine” against the disease to its list of treatments and sold an estimated 70,000 doses before getting busted. What exactly the gullible recipients were injected with is yet to be determined by lab tests. The woman running the clinic claimed to be a specialist in alternative medicine, but had no formal medical degree. Ecuador has approved two vaccines – Pfizer and AstraZeneca’s. The government plans to vaccinate nine million adults for free by the end of the year. More

Alternative Medicine

South Africa – Doctors plead with Ramaphosa to review Ivermectin

A petition has been signed by close to 100 South African healthcare professionals appealing to the President to set up an urgent special council to conduct a rapid review of the antiparasitic drug.  A general practitioner from Durban, Dr Naseeba Kathrada, penned a heartfelt letter to the president. The product is used for the treatment and control of parasites in animals and is currently not registered for human use in the country.  Ivermectin has been around since 1975.  It is FDA approved and authorised for human use in many countries around the world. Four countries have now added it to their Covid Treatment protocol. Ivermectin has won the Nobel prize in medicine.  There are hundreds of studies done already and new data is emerging daily showing the promise of Ivermectin. More

India – Undigested pills block stomach

Several undigested tablets were found in a patient’s stomach. Doctors in a Kolkata hospital found these alternative medicines in the small intestine of a 56-year-old Salt Lake resident. The undigested pills that the patient had been consuming for three years had resulted in critical stomach blockage, pain and digestive issues. During an MRI of the stomach to detect what was causing the blockage doctors saw huge patches of foreign objects in his abdomen. Removing foreign particles like dentures from the gastrointestinal is a common operation. Deb Kumar Roy, consultant GI surgeon said, “But we were shocked to see thousands of undigested pills of various brands intact.” DFL is of the opinion that all alternative medicinal measures should be tested and approved before promoting them as equivalent to tested medicine and methods that prove successful. More

Alternative Medicine

South Africa – Warning Over Bogus Beauty Treatment

Oxygen chamber therapy is a popular procedure in which users climb into an ozone pod with their head out of the top of the pod, while steam and oxygen mixture circulates inside the unit. It’s often punted as an anti-aging and detoxifying treatment. Typically, the marketing will claim that ozone therapy helps with everything from weight loss to skin rejuvenation, however medical doctor, Doctor Harris Steinman, Director – food and allergy consulting & testing Services says ozone therapy is a scam which can have harmful health consequences, not just to the skin, on inhalation, it can cause lung damage and there have been reported deaths from ozone therapy, he warns that unqualified people are administering ozone and making false health claims without any regulatory oversight. Read more

Australia – Immunity, stress relief vitamin                                                                                                                                 

The country’s chief group of general practitioners is warning consumers to treat alternative and complementary medicine products with a “great deal of caution.” Prof Shenouda said “Many alternative treatments lack any scientific evidence base of effectiveness to support their use. These products might have no beneficial effect and could even cause harm,” “My advice for anyone stressed or concerned about COVID-19 and their mental health is to avoid ‘quick fix’ products with no scientific basis, and instead contact your GP. “Your GP can give you expert medical advice on a whole range of treatment options, both medical and non-medical, that are right for you and your situation.” Read more

India – Ayurveda claims have no scientific basis  

Despite years of research and backing from the Indian government, as well as mainstream scientists speaking out about the misguided belief in “cow-pathy” which is faith in the protean curative properties of cow products – milk, cow urine, and dung. Currently, no cow product-based cure exists yet for any specific disease. This hasn’t however, prevented the Hindu government from using the coronavirus pandemic as an opportunity to promote the pseudoscience of AYUSH which stands for Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy. Ayurveda has no scientific basis grounded in rigorous research. No evidence exists to make such claims. Yes, it is ancient, and it is uniquely Indian. But none of that makes it remotely scientific. Science is a set of ideas, hypotheses and results that are testable and tested, and either accepted or discarded depending on the objective evidence gathered in research studies that meet certain standards of reproducibility and repeatability. read more

Britain – Delaying cancer treatment, even by a month, sharply raises death risk                                                    

Researchers found that delays in treatment – whether for surgery, radiotherapy or other treatments such as chemotherapy – for seven types of cancers had a significant impact on patient mortality “There has never been a systematic attempt to look at all the evidence on what delays in different types of treatment mean for cancer patient outcomes,” said co-author Ajay Aggarwal, a clinical oncologist and associate professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. “Because we know this is happening to cancer patients during the Covid-19 pandemic, it is essential to understand the real impact. “The study found that even a month postponement could mean a patient had a 6-13% higher risk of dying. Read more

Philippines – Integrative Medicine Vs Patent Medicine

Testimonials seem to show that alternative medicine works. However, medical testimonials are unacceptable in scientific journals, and court as well as for Food and Drug Administration approval, for three reasons. First, since some conditions are self-limiting, the improved condition may not be due to the intervention. For example, common colds disappear in about one week. Some cancers simply disappear without intervention.

Second, the symptoms of some diseases vary. Thus, the cessation of a symptom may not be due to the intervention. Third, the cure may be due to the placebo effect. Accepting an untested medical cure has three dangers. First, if the cure does not work, you will have wasted money. Secondly, if you don’t avail yourself of or discontinue a mainstream cure, you might deteriorate. Thirdly, if the unconventional approach is dangerous, your life will be at risk. For example, some leaves used as herbal medicine may contain toxic alkaloids. Read more

Alternative Medicine

Nigeria – FEC Approves bill on establishment of traditional

The ministry of health presented a memo on a bill to establish the council for traditional, Alternative and complementary medicine practice in Nigeria. This is a memo that seeks to take traditional and complementary medicine out of obscurity and give it a profile to institutionalise it as has been done in other countries like China and India. He said the emergence of Coronavirus has renewed the call for home grown solutions to public health diseases and value in Traditional medicines. And the proposed law, when approved, would also help protect the intellectual property of traditional medicine practitioners in the country. Read more

South Africa – Health Supplements, complementary medicines will soon no longer be regulated                                                                                                                                       

Health supplements and complementary medicines – which are not programmed prescription as defined by the Medicine’s Act – will soon no longer be regulated by the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority, which controls all medicines, including scheduled remedies. Judge Elizabeth Kubushi gave the minister of health and the regulatory authority 12 months to determine how best to adjust these alternative medicines. She said 12 months should give the health authorities ample time to decide how best to regulate this popular industry. The order was sparked by the Alliance of Natural Health Products in South Africa assume the minister of health did not have the power to add alternative and supplementary medications to the same regulations as that of scheduled medicines. It said the definition of alternative medicines was too broad and included products that did not fall under the meaning of remedy at all. Read more