Let me start by acknowledging what is well known: Manic Depression or Bipolar disorder can be a devastating illness. Affecting at least 1% of the population, it can, untreated, result in suicide, ruined careers and devastated families. Bipolar disorder is often accompanied by alcohol and drug abuse and addiction, criminal and even violent behavior. I acknowledge this, because I do not want to make light of the burden this illness places on people’s lives, their families and communities. On the other hand, the history of the world has been influenced very significantly by people with manic depression – from actors and
Read More
Monthly Archives July 2010
More on ‘Medicine Masquerading as Science’
In a previous blog, I talked about how many doctors and patients do not know the full story about their drugs or medical treatments because of a widespread problem involving unpublished or biased clinical trials. Here is an update on what is happening. As I mentioned, frequently, medical journals or pharmaceutical companies that sponsor research will report only positive results, leaving out the non-findings or negative findings where a new drug or procedure may have proved more harmful than helpful. “A new review of research about this problem points to hidden or misleading studies for all sorts of conditions, including
Read More
Blog.
Scrub the Soap to Save Your Thyroid?
There are over 900 ‘new to nature’ chemicals in our environments, in our blood, and many are even in the blood of unborn children. Now, following the heightened concern regarding bisphenol A (in clear plastics, such as baby bottles), the FDA is beginning to set its sights on Triclosan. Triclosan is an antibacterial preservative used in “76% of liquid soaps and 29% of bar soaps”. Aside from soaps, triclosan is also used in toothpastes, cosmetics, shoes, socks, workout clothes, and many personal care products. Triclosan has been detected in the urine of 75% of Americans, 60% of US streams, and
Read More