I have known some people into alternative medicine and it just seems very cult like. It doesnt matter how useless it is, they swear by it. I even know a couple who took their infant with spinal bifida to a chiropractor!! The same guy would not let his wife get eye glasses for vision problems but insisted she do eye exersizes.

People die and many people are harmed from alterntive medicine. Echanasia which most people think is a harmless way to boost the immune system can actually cause auto-immune diseases like Lupus if taken for an extended period of time because it actaully throws the immune system in hyperdrive which makes it attack the body, luckily most echanasia induced diseases reverse after stopping the herbal treatment.

Many people, like Steve Jobs, die from wasting valueble time pursuing alterantive medical "cures" which could have been spent on medically sound early intervention. And Steve Jobs is a perfect example that bright intelegent people can be taken in by these false hopes in a vunerable state of mind.

And even Dr. OZ pumps out really dangerous altenative medical treatments like a few years ago he was pushing for a company that sold colon clease products whch basicly flushes out all the leftover stuff in the colon as a weight-loss treatment...wtf??
Well the aftermath was horrible. People's colon prolasped, ruptured, and some people even died...yet Dr. Oz was never held accountable for giving out such bad medical advice because of the tiny disclaimer "for entertainment purposes only". I have lost all respect for him after that, but people still flock to him and his latest unproven untested alternative treatment.

But there is this culture of folks who shun all conventinal medicne and are brainwahsed to believe that all conventional medicine is corrupted by the FDA which has "inside connections" with drug companies to make people sicker so they are dependant on more and more drugs so the drug companies and the FDA profit from illness.

But many of these people, when they do get sick with something that confermation bias and the placbeo effect cant handle, they basicly die from a lack of treatment or die and or are further sickened by unproven treatments. Many either refuse real proven medical treatment until it is too late and some die with their delusions.

These snake oil salesmen who make, distribute and push these products prey on the vunerable when they want to feel more control over their situation.

This is epidemic. I do believe that RI should have a section in the message board dedicated for victims of alternative medicine.

Jojo

Anything can be “cult-like in nature” when it goes beyond reason, practicality, sincerity and honesty. In other words, fanatic. Fanatic does not define alternative medicine.
Truth to tell, “alternative medicine” is actually the original medicine, not “alternative.”
The herbal, natural modalities of healing which had evolved after millennia of use and effectivity used by generations has become the alternative. But that is beside the point.
What is important is to apply what is practical in the naturopathic methods, whether they be Chinese Medicine, herbal therapies, homeopathic and when needed, also the conventional medicine. Together they can do wonders!
While on the other hand, there have been countless more stories of harm and death from conventional medicine. But that doesn’t condemn conventional medicine in toto.
It is dangerous to accuse one or the other to be totally evil.