Re: Thought I'd post the entire article. In vivo testing of c.silver shows promise.
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Date: 02/09/05
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Date: 9 Feb 2005 06:58:16 -0800
Why Bogus Therapies Often Seem to Work
http://quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/altbelief.html
Why Bogus Therapies Often Seem to Work
Barry L. Beyerstein, Ph.D.
Subtle forces can lead intelligent people (both patients and
therapists) to think that a treatment has helped someone when it has
not. This is true for new treatments in scientific medicine, as well as
for nostrums in folk medicine, fringe practices in "alternative
medicine," and the ministrations of faith healers.
Many dubious methods remain on the market primarily because satisfied
customers offer testimonials to their worth. Essentially, these people
say: "I tried it, and I got better, so it must be effective." The
electronic and print media typically portray testimonials as valid
evidence. But without proper testing, it is difficult or impossible to
determine whether this is so.
There are at least seven reasons why people may erroneously conclude
that an ineffective therapy works:
1. The disease may have run its natural course. Many diseases are
self-limiting. If the condition is not chronic or fatal, the body's own
recuperative processes usually restore the sufferer to health. Thus, to
demonstrate that a therapy is effective, its proponents must show that
the number of patients listed as improved exceeds the number expected
to recover without any treatment at all (or that they recover reliably
faster than if left untreated). Without detailed records of successes
and failures for a large enough number of patients with the same
complaint, someone cannot legitimately claim to have exceeded the
published norms for unaided recovery.
2. Many diseases are cyclical. Such conditions as arthritis, multiple
sclerosis, allergies, and gastrointestinal problems normally have "ups
and downs." Naturally, sufferers tend to seek therapy during the
downturn of any given cycle. In this way, a bogus treatment will have
repeated opportunities to coincide with upturns that would have
happened anyway.
3. The placebo effect may be responsible. Through suggestion, belief,
expectancy, cognitive reinterpretation, and diversion of attention,
patients given biologically useless treatments often experience
measurable relief. Some placebo responses produce actual changes in the
physical condition; others are subjective changes that make patients
feel better even though there has been no objective change in the
underlying pathology.
4. People who hedge their bets credit the wrong thing. If improvement
occurs after someone has had both "alternative" and science-based
treatment, the fringe practice often gets a disproportionate share of
the credit.
5. The original diagnosis or prognosis may have been incorrect.
Scientifically trained physicians are not infallible. A mistaken
diagnosis, followed by a trip to a shrine or an "alternative" healer,
can lead to a glowing testimonial for curing a condition that would
have resolved by itself. In other cases, the diagnosis may be correct
but the time frame, which is inherently difficult to predict, might
prove inaccurate.
6. Temporary mood improvement can be confused with cure. Alternative
healers often have forceful, charismatic personalities. To the extent
that patients are swept up by the messianic aspects of "alternative
medicine," psychological uplift may ensue.
7. Psychological needs can distort what people perceive and do. Even
when no objective improvement occurs, people with a strong
psychological investment in "alternative medicine" can convince
themselves they have been helped. According to cognitive dissonance
theory, when experiences contradict existing attitudes, feelings, or
knowledge, mental distress is produced. People tend to alleviate this
discord by reinterpreting (distorting) the offending information. If no
relief occurs after committing time, money, and "face" to an alternate
course of treatment (and perhaps to the worldview of which it is a
part), internal disharmony can result. Rather than admit to themselves
or to others that their efforts have been a waste, many people find
some redeeming value in the treatment. Core beliefs tend to be
vigorously defended by warping perception and memory. Fringe
practitioners and their clients are prone to misinterpret cues and
remember things as they wish they had happened. They may be selective
in what they recall, overestimating their apparent successes while
ignoring, downplaying, or explaining away their failures. The
scientific method evolved in large part to reduce the impact of this
human penchant for jumping to congenial conclusions. In addition,
people normally feel obligated to reciprocate when someone does them a
good turn. Since most "alternative" therapists sincerely believe they
are helping, it is only natural that patients would want to please them
in return. Without patients necessarily realizing it, such obligations
are sufficient to inflate their perception of how much benefit they
have received.
Buyer Beware!
The job of distinguishing real from spurious causal relationships
requires well designed studies and logical abstractions from large
bodies of data. Many sources of error can mislead people who rely on
intuition or informal reasoning to analyze complex events. Before
agreeing to any kind of treatment, you should feel confident that it
makes sense and has been scientifically validated through studies that
control for placebo responses, compliance effects, and judgmental
errors. You should be very wary if the "evidence" consists merely of
testimonials, self-published pamphlets or books, or items from the
popular media.
Related Topics
Spontaneous Remission and the Placebo Effect
Common Questions about Science and "Alternative" Health Methods
Why Extraordinary Claims Demand Extraordinary Proof
How Quackery Sells
Response to an Alt-Muddled Friend
__________________
Dr. Beyerstein, a member of the executive council of the Committee for
Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is a
biopsychologist at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British
Columbia, Canada. A more detailed discussion of this topic is one of
six superb articles on "alternative medicine" in the Sept/Oct 1997
issue of CSICOP's Skeptical Inquirer magazine, which costs $7.50. An
introductory (six-issue) subscription at the special Internet price of
$16.95 can be obtained by calling (800) 634-1610.
This article was posted on July 24, 2003.
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