$2.5 billion spent, no alternative cures found

[salvorhardin]

$2.5 billion spent, no alternative cures found
Big, government-funded studies show most work no better than placebos

BETHESDA, Md. - Ten years ago the government set out to test herbal and other alternative health remedies to find the ones that work. After spending $2.5 billion, the disappointing answer seems to be that almost none of them do.

Echinacea for colds. Ginkgo biloba for memory. Glucosamine and chondroitin for arthritis. Black cohosh for menopausal hot flashes. Saw palmetto for prostate problems. Shark cartilage for cancer. All proved no better than dummy pills in big studies funded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. The lone exception: ginger capsules may help chemotherapy nausea.
...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31190909

[Oregone]

1. Is Fish Oil considered among "alternative health remedies"?

Wanna see a couple studies about its effectivness? Maybe even a couple comparing it to Lipitor?

Lets be honest though. If you cannot patent a compound, its effectiveness may be supressed by those who own the politicians. Yes, there is some crap based on ol wife's tales and fables. And there are some effective natural treatments to quite a few ailments (pot included).

[Orrex]

12. Ladies and Gentlemen, allow me to present another case of

[pscot]

2. Quackwatch

If you're wondering about the efficacy of the latest medical fad, Quackwatch is the medical equivalent of Snopes. http://www.quackwatch.org/

[BuddhaGirl]

4. that doctor

hates supplements and alternative therapies...he is hardly unbiased. He's a bit of a wackjob, imo.

[BuddhaGirl]

3. well

I know differently about saw palmetto and glucosamine and chondroitin.

Saw Palmetto greatly reduced the nightly-trips-to-the-bathroom for my husband. Gluc. & Chond. has helped his joints.

This study will not stop me or hubby from using supplements. They work!

[trotsky]

5. I wonder what $2.5 billion could have done for cancer research.

Or stem cell research.

Or hell, funding ANY kind of research into treatments that have scientifically shown promise.

Because as we already see on this thread, these results don't matter to the true believers. They'll believe in horse urine and thistle no matter what anyone else says.

[BuddhaGirl]

6. nice broad brush

and typical. :-)

[trotsky]

11. Someone did indeed display exactly that attitude, though.

I'll leave it as an exercise for the reader to figure out who.

[BuddhaGirl]

16. still a broad brush

exactly like the "if-the-medical-establishment-says-it's-true-so-I-believe-everything-they-say" crowd.

[Celebration]

7. horse urine=hrt n/t

[salvorhardin]

8. Yep. Some HRT drugs are derived from horse urine.

But bringing up HRT is a non sequitor because HRT is not an alternative medicine (when used for the purpose it has been shown to be effective for).

The point of the article is that research in no small measure has already been done on numerous altmed treatments. To the tune of at least $2.5 Billion in U.S. government funded research (which doesn't count the research done around the world on altmed). The findings have been null for almost everything tested.

Yet the battle cry we hear from altmed proponents is that we need to do more research. Why? When the purported treatment modalities have never even been shown to exist. Penicillium fungi were tested. It showed proven usefulness. Reiki has been tested. It has shown nothing. If reiki worked, it'd no longer be alternative medicine. It'd just be medicine.

Nobody is saying we shouldn't investigate new treatments and medications. Why would they? That's how pharma companies and research institutions make money. What the article, and myself when prompted, are saying is that it's pretty safe to consign most altmed treatments to the ashcan of history because they have already been demonstrated to be noneffective.

Unless you want to posit some grand conspiracy theory by the scientists, journals, governments and the media the world over, and if you value a scientific worldview, this is pretty much the only conclusion you can make.

[trotsky]

10. No, there's no equals sign in there.

But an excellent attempt! Better luck next time.

[Why Syzygy]

13. The point IS

"horse urine" is not considered an alternate treatment. It is a MAIN STREAM treatment. The ones you endorse.

Premarin® stands for Pregnant Mares' Urine (PREgnant MARes' urINe); PMU for short (we spell it both ways, with an "e", PREgnant MARes' urINE which is the older name used in Canada, and without -- which is the more popular recent spelling, and the one that is a U.S. registered trademark).

Premarin (including Prempro, Premphase, Prempac, and Premelle) is a drug made up of conjugated estrogens obtained from the urine of pregnant mares -- put out in many forms (pills, creams, injections, patches, vaginal rings) and is used to reduce the symptoms of menopause in women or women who have had a hysterectomy. It is also prescribed to nearly eliminate the risk of osteoporosis (the brittling of bones) and reduce the chance of heart disease in women over 50.

http://www.premarin.org/

It's manufactured by Wyeth.
http://www.premarin.com/

trotsky> :blush:

[trotsky]

14. No, the point IS, they're not equivalent.

Premarin is made of chemicals extracted FROM mare's urine, it is not EQUAL to horse urine.

But feel free to drink unadulterated horse piss if you think they're the same.

Why Syzygy > :silly:

[Why Syzygy]

15. Feel free

to flush your head in the toilet. No one (BUT YOU!) suggested drinking horse pee.
If it weren't for the horse urine, they would not be able to extract the chemicals!
Your post was dense. GET OVER IT!

[trotsky]

17. My, my.

Of course the post was "dense", it was intended to be an exaggeration. You need to "get over" your little obsession with me.

[Why Syzygy]

18. You flatter yourself.

It is an overwhelming temptation to correct outright misrepresentations so often coming from your room.
I've decided to remove that obstacle. buh bye

[trotsky]

19. Sweet!

Take care, hon.

[LiberalAndProud]

9. Want to bet we will still hear glucosamine&chondoitin commercials.

ad nauseum. The tv told me this stuff works! Are they calling my t.v. a liar?