Comments on: What would $34 billion of Quack money buy you? http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html Experiments and Thoughts on Quackery, Health Beliefs and Pseudoscience Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:47:47 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: Private health insurance forcing all customers to pay for pseudoscience alternative therapies « Sans Science http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-16037 Private health insurance forcing all customers to pay for pseudoscience alternative therapies « Sans Science Sat, 15 Oct 2011 12:35:46 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-16037 [...] is not about saying people can’t take alternative therapies if they want to. Go ahead. Spend your money. You could even have private health insurance policies that explicitly include alternative [...] [...] is not about saying people can’t take alternative therapies if they want to. Go ahead. Spend your money. You could even have private health insurance policies that explicitly include alternative [...]

]]> By: Skinny http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-11990 Skinny Mon, 28 Jun 2010 23:37:45 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-11990 "The health cost of obesity in the United States is as high as $147 billion annually" http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/2009/r090727.htm “The health cost of obesity in the United States is as high as $147 billion annually”

http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/2009/r090727.htm

]]> By: davidjwbailey http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-11892 davidjwbailey Mon, 31 May 2010 11:16:14 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-11892 yoga is quack when it involves neti pots, snorting salt water, enemas, and the other madness that they claim 'cures' things http://www.healthandyoga.com/html/product/neti.html - the 'stretching bit' is just the introduction to a whole world of INSANE unproven claims made by yoga teachers and practiced at great cost by the pure gullible fools who take it all in (pun intended) eventually they have you 'cleaning your bowel' using 'yogic therapy' http://www.bhj.org/journal/2000_4202_apr00/sp_367.htm as a way of dealing with colo-rectal cancer. and then people DIE... yoga is quack when it involves neti pots, snorting salt water, enemas, and the other madness that they claim ‘cures’ things http://www.healthandyoga.com/html/product/neti.html – the ’stretching bit’ is just the introduction to a whole world of INSANE unproven claims made by yoga teachers and practiced at great cost by the pure gullible fools who take it all in (pun intended)

eventually they have you ‘cleaning your bowel’ using ‘yogic therapy’ http://www.bhj.org/journal/2000_4202_apr00/sp_367.htm as a way of dealing with colo-rectal cancer. and then people DIE…

]]> By: Inspiros http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8957 Inspiros Sat, 03 Oct 2009 23:44:04 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8957 What about what people spend on alcohol, nicotine, excess food, fancy food, fancy clothes, fancy housing, holidays, luxury cars, luxury anything... infact anything more than basic survival requirements? Perhaps much of that $34 billion is spent on treatments that make people feel better. Not physically getting better but subjectively feeling better. That might not be job of the physician (although it calls at their door a lot) but is of concern to the individual. <br />These sort of "mega-placebos" (see Dylan Evans: Placebo) are very good at making people feel better. I don't see how we can argue with that. Certainly anything getting someone to move and breath better - yoga, qi-going, pilates, alexander technique etc - seems hard to criticise. How about all the money people spend at gyms, tennis clubs, little league, golf clubs?<br />Aren't many of these very therapeutic for the individual concerned? I continually see clients who are having panic attacks or insomnia once they have stopped regularly exercising (e.g. from a hip replacement). <br /><br />I completely agree that most nutritional supplements are a waste of money and I deplore the "you've got parasites" parasites. And in many cases the behaviours of taking lots of supplements or visiting the therapist each week are maintaining the ongoing low level anxiety of the worried well.<br /><br />Or they could have a drink? Or a round of golf? What about what people spend on alcohol, nicotine, excess food, fancy food, fancy clothes, fancy housing, holidays, luxury cars, luxury anything… infact anything more than basic survival requirements? Perhaps much of that $34 billion is spent on treatments that make people feel better. Not physically getting better but subjectively feeling better. That might not be job of the physician (although it calls at their door a lot) but is of concern to the individual.
These sort of "mega-placebos" (see Dylan Evans: Placebo) are very good at making people feel better. I don't see how we can argue with that. Certainly anything getting someone to move and breath better – yoga, qi-going, pilates, alexander technique etc – seems hard to criticise. How about all the money people spend at gyms, tennis clubs, little league, golf clubs?
Aren't many of these very therapeutic for the individual concerned? I continually see clients who are having panic attacks or insomnia once they have stopped regularly exercising (e.g. from a hip replacement).

I completely agree that most nutritional supplements are a waste of money and I deplore the "you've got parasites" parasites. And in many cases the behaviours of taking lots of supplements or visiting the therapist each week are maintaining the ongoing low level anxiety of the worried well.

Or they could have a drink? Or a round of golf?

]]> By: Orac http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8721 Orac Thu, 13 Aug 2009 21:10:22 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8721 You forget that $34 billion is slightly more than the yearly budget of the NIH. You forget that $34 billion is slightly more than the yearly budget of the NIH.

]]> By: Cavall de Quer http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8677 Cavall de Quer Mon, 03 Aug 2009 20:26:11 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8677 "Tilting at windmills", "Tilting", Anonymous<br /><br />"You remind me of Don Quixote de la Mancha; you too are chasing windmills".........however touched the old Don was, he didn't chase windmills, they don't tend to go anywhere.<br />Could this be an example of confused thinking - without the excuse of the Don that he was pursuing chivalry? "Tilting at windmills", "Tilting", Anonymous

"You remind me of Don Quixote de la Mancha; you too are chasing windmills"………however touched the old Don was, he didn't chase windmills, they don't tend to go anywhere.
Could this be an example of confused thinking – without the excuse of the Don that he was pursuing chivalry?

]]> By: Anonymous http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8676 Anonymous Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:50:28 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8676 Wait... Yoga? Since when is stretching quack? Wait… Yoga? Since when is stretching quack?

]]> By: Le Canard Noir http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8673 Le Canard Noir Sun, 02 Aug 2009 18:35:54 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8673 Dear brave anonymous. You appear to be rather upset, confused and have a simplistic view of the world. <br /><br />What makes you think I am not aware that the pharmaceutical companies are not profiting in this $34 billion american quackery? Look at companies like NYBT, Roche, Aventis and so on have been profiting (and sometimes profiteering) from food supplement sales. It does not matter one jot if is a lone homeopath or a multi billion pharma co flogging useless treatments. Its all quackery. Dear brave anonymous. You appear to be rather upset, confused and have a simplistic view of the world.

What makes you think I am not aware that the pharmaceutical companies are not profiting in this $34 billion american quackery? Look at companies like NYBT, Roche, Aventis and so on have been profiting (and sometimes profiteering) from food supplement sales. It does not matter one jot if is a lone homeopath or a multi billion pharma co flogging useless treatments. Its all quackery.

]]> By: Anonymous http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8672 Anonymous Sun, 02 Aug 2009 18:16:15 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8672 can you calculate also the amount of money spent on unproven drugs (such as indigestion tablets, cold remedies, weight loss tablets, sleep aids etc) that are marketed and sold by the major pharmaceutical compagnies; if you add this to your 33 billions and you can probably feed a few starving countries of africa for a little while.<br />You remind me of Don Quixote de la Mancha; you too are chasing windmills can you calculate also the amount of money spent on unproven drugs (such as indigestion tablets, cold remedies, weight loss tablets, sleep aids etc) that are marketed and sold by the major pharmaceutical compagnies; if you add this to your 33 billions and you can probably feed a few starving countries of africa for a little while.
You remind me of Don Quixote de la Mancha; you too are chasing windmills

]]> By: Le Canard Noir http://www.quackometer.net/blog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money.html#comment-8671 Le Canard Noir Sun, 02 Aug 2009 07:29:58 +0000 http://www.quackometer.net/wpblog/2009/07/what-would-34-billion-of-quack-money-buy-you.html#comment-8671 And of course I am not telling other people what to do although I guessed that the quacks would think I was.<br /><br />I am merely highlighting the unimaginably huge amount of money spent in the US on quackery - treatments that are at best simple placebos, and at worst dangerous and fraudulent - and comparing that amount of money with what it could do with people in desperate need of effective healthcare. And of course I am not telling other people what to do although I guessed that the quacks would think I was.

I am merely highlighting the unimaginably huge amount of money spent in the US on quackery – treatments that are at best simple placebos, and at worst dangerous and fraudulent – and comparing that amount of money with what it could do with people in desperate need of effective healthcare.

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