This thing might work for some. Proof of its working is thin, but that tends to be a chronic problem with this kind of device. The patients studied with Cefaly had migraines not over a few times a month. My patients — who use marijuana, generally of the sativa type — have the most intense migraine headaches I have ever seen or heard of and have them on a daily basis. This is pretty amazing, since I worked for one year in a major Midwestern university headache clinic. The major questions are what causes migraine headaches, and whether this device indeed nips them in the bud. Read more on Cefaly, the Anti-Migraine Device…
Filed under Alternative Medicine, Brain, Research by on Mar 4th, 2013. Comment. 
You know those old traveling medicine shows from the 1800s? Royal Jelly is kind of like that.
Usually this stuff finds me when I’m minding my own business and surfing the net or scanning a book. This time, I was in front of a TV camera with an interviewer and I had already told him in private conversation, not once but twice, I was no believer in Royal Jelly. I suggested that this was not a direction to pursue with me. He did. Read more on Royal Jelly Ain’t That Cool…
Filed under medicine, News, Research by on Feb 21st, 2013. Comment.
I think the major risk is Guillain-Barre. I can find no research to tell me that if you had Guillain-Barre before you are at risk of getting it again, with this vaccination. But that is what it said on the only printed informed consent instrument I could find.
I have a peripheral neuropathy. About 20 million folks do in these United States. Eight million stems from diabetes and the rest from other metabolic stuff. Sometimes it’s from medications — like chemotherapy –and that is plenty enough nerve damage for me to deal with in life. Read more on No Flu Shot for Me This Year I did not get my flu shot this year. Collective gasp!…
Filed under Alternative Medicine, News, Research by on Feb 15th, 2013. Comment.
The first time I heard of the fruit mangosteen, I thought it was just a Jewish mango. Turns out it’s Southeast Asian and in no way Jewish. Makes sense; I mean, how do you circumcise a fruit? Let alone teach it to read the holy books.
The second time I heard of it, I was trying to help a manic-depressive who went manic on it. A degree professional had suddenly thrown angry tantrums, put his hand and other weapons through nearby walls, and tried to burn down the apartment building where his woman-friend lived. He succeeded in burning down part of it. It all happened within a few hours of him ingesting mangosteen. I told him to stop the damned mangosteen. I remember seeing him through bars, and I doubted he could get any mangosteen in there, anyway. But he would not hear ill of his dear mangosteen. It was a multi-level-marketing product and he seemed to believe in it for that reason, despite some factors I was trying to introduce. Things like biochemical truth, behavioral pharmacology, and my decades of medical practice experience — as opposed to his multi-level marketing experience. His family stopped paying me as an expert. I think they all sold mangosteen. Read more on Utah, Mangosteen, and Bad Stuff…
Filed under Alternative Medicine, medicine, News, politics, Research by on Feb 14th, 2013. 3 Comments.
The Catholics have a history of making heroes out of those who suffer the most. I really don’t know what kind of reaction this young man should expect from his “very Catholic” grandmother when she finds out he is using medical marijuana.
My patient is 27, on dialysis, and looking for a kidney transplant to stay alive. He takes medical marijuana to increase his appetite and well being, as well as minimize the pain and anxiety of his situation. I have promised that I will not stop trying to help him. We will go as far as we need to, raising funds if necessary. My help will likely include taking him “public,” using the media. Read more on How Can We Explain Medical Marijuana to a Catholic Grandmother?…
Filed under Alternative Medicine, medicine, Religion, Research by on Jan 16th, 2013. Comment.
Well, it turns out there aren’t really gators in Gatorade. The drink was named as such because a University of Florida coach – team name Gators – worked with a researcher to find a way to replenish fluids in his heat exhausted, wilting athletes. And Gatorade was born. Read more on What’s In Gatorade? Gators?…
Filed under News, Research, Sports, Stimulants by on Dec 24th, 2012. Comment.
It is very hard for straightforward and presumably honest medical researchers to give us much of anything objective about something that has been labeled “alternative medicine”. Maybe there should only be two kinds of medicine. Good and not good; helpful and not helpful. I was minding my own business – well, as much as ever — when I found an article about chelation as a preventative for heart disease. It basically says that chelation seems to “work”. But it also seems that some people are ashamed to find this out and don’t want too many people to take advantage of this as a treatment option. This makes about as much sense as most of what I have read recently about medical research, but I do have one way to put it in context. I have spoken at some alternative medicine meetings where I have proselytized about the effectiveness of high dose vitamins — chelated, to pass the blood-brain barrier. I have been told that I would be skewered by colleagues. Colleagues never seem to have much worried about what I have to say. As a matter of fact, the world seems to have a pretty bad track record as far as listening to what I say. Read more on Chelation As Preventive Therapy for Heart Disease…
Filed under Disease, medicine, Research by on Nov 26th, 2012. Comment.
Topic: Research Fraud
For someone who has been a part of many clinical trials, I will be the first to admit that I have very little training in research design or statistics. Oh, the hours I’ve spent surreptitiously curled up on the sofa of a doctors’ lounge or my own apartment, thinking that somebody paid somebody a lot of money to write “science” so I could figure out how and why I would know things. It pretty much worked. There were a few mentions of statistics at my delightfully thorough prep school, but there was not so much as a word at medical school. The research types were always hanging around medical school settings — their brains rented and services bought by the medical side of things — as they did not make much money. We did receive some wonderful instruction from clinicians as to how to evaluate research literature and decide how to apply it to our practices.
I have a vivid memory of an endearing shy and spindly instructor during a course required for incipient biologists at Boston University. He had Jewish afro hair, coke bottle bottom glasses, and a more than passing resemblance to a young Woody Allen. Oh, how he despaired that we were mostly going to be money-chain doctors as opposed to truth-chasing scientists. I remember that once, and only once, did he reach fiery intensity in that class. “Nothing will be published unless the probability that it actually shows what it is supposed to show is greater than 19 out of 20, that means p>.05. But nobody wants to admit what that really means.” Oh, how silent we were, on the edge of our chairs. Read more on Research Fraud Isn’t Reported To The Public…
Filed under Government, Research by on Nov 14th, 2012. Comment.
In the National World War II museum, it is easy and even triumphant and pride-generating to look back and see some of the scientific advances made during World War II. There’s no doubt that science is advancing. But I wonder if our ethics can keep pace.
I am fairly proud of Teflon. And synthetic cortisone is widely used and may have saved plenty of lives. It’s a steroid that knocks down the action of the immune system. When a medical substance becomes cheaper and easier to use and known to the public, then it runs a real danger of getting overused. Most concern about overuse is focused on illegal steroids taken by athletes. Nevertheless, everything that can be helpful and fast may make things worse. One example would be the over-prescribing of steroids to kids with allergies.
Penicillin had been invented before WWII, but its use did not become widespread until WWII. Of course, it took people awhile to find out about the ability of bacteria to develop resistances to antibiotics. This has led to newer and stronger antibiotics, which would not be the worst thing in the world. Unfortunately, the excessive use of antibiotics has led to untreatable infections, such as methicilline-resistant strep and an untreatable strain of tuberculosis. Read more on Science and War (and Ethics)…
Filed under medicine, News, prescription drugs, Research, Science by on Oct 14th, 2012. Comment.
I think we’d all agree that kids have tough choices to make at every turn, and this includes what they eat and drink. A thick, sloppy sandwich served with fries and a sugary soda, or a salad of mixed greens and vegetables from every color of the rainbow with a side of vinaigrette. Yeah, I get it.
But c’mon, does anyone really think that creating junk food laws for kids is going to help? Read more on Making Criminals of Overweight Children…
Filed under eating disorders, Government, News, Research, weight by on Aug 30th, 2012. Comment.