Search Results for: prescription food

Should Herbalism Be a Recognized Specialty in Veterinary Medicine?

Introduction As regular readers will know, herbal medicine is the area within complementary and alternative medicine I am most sympathetic to. Plants obviously contain chemical compounds that can have significant physiologic effects, for good or ill. And many conventional medicine … Continue reading

Posted in Herbs and Supplements | 19 Comments

More Nonsense from Holistic Vets about Commercial Therapeutic Diets

One of the subjects that holistic vets and other advocates of alternative practices get really passionate about is the evils of commercial and conventional diets. They promote a laundry list of myths about pet food, many of which I’ve addressed … Continue reading

Posted in Nutrition | 180 Comments

Are Homeopaths Innocent Victims of Skeptical Attacks?

Homeopaths often claim they are being unfairly “attacked” when skeptics point out that homeopathy is irrational, pseudoscientific, or simply ineffective. They portray themselves as innocently minding their own business until we spontaneously attack them. This ignores the reality, however, that … Continue reading

Posted in Homeopathy | 6 Comments

Two New Campaigns in the UK to Protect Patients & Clients from Veterinary Homeopathy

A couple of years ago, I was very involved in an effort to get the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) to publically acknowledge that homeopathy has been proven to have no value beyond placebo effects and to discourage its use … Continue reading

Posted in Homeopathy | 12 Comments

FDA Reviews Its Regulation of Homeopathy-Now is Your Chance to Comment!

The FDA is reviewing its regulation of homeopathic products, both prescription and over-the-counter. The current regulatory structure essentially no evidence of safety or efficacy since the products were grandfathered into the legislation in 1938 by its author, a Senator who … Continue reading

Posted in Homeopathy | 3 Comments

The Dangerous Allure of Alternative Therapies for Pets with Cancer

Most pet owners understand that science-based medicine is the best hope for maintaining and restoring health in their animal companions. The tremendous successes of preventative and therapeutic healthcare in the last couple of centuries is difficult to deny (though proponents … Continue reading

Posted in General | 5 Comments

Holistic Veterinary Medicine: A Variety of Faith Healing

Early on in my effort to understand and evaluate alternative veterinary therapies, I had the naïve notion that learning about their mechanisms of action and the research evidence behind them would enable me to tell which were safe and effective … Continue reading

Posted in General | 14 Comments

Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy Doesn’t Like Criticism–Except Their Own

During the discussion about the AVMA resolution identifying homeopathy as ineffective, defenders of homeopathy were adament that it would be unfair of the AVMA to single out their methods for criticism. I wonder if the House of Delegates was aware … Continue reading

Posted in Homeopathy | 2 Comments

Please Support S. 1425: The Dietary Supplement Labeling Act of 2013.

I have written previously about the woefully inadequate regulation of dietary supplements in the U.S. under the Dietary Supplement Health an Education Act (DSHEA). Much has previously been written at the Science-Based Medicine Blog on the subject of the Dietary … Continue reading

Posted in Herbs and Supplements, Law, Regulation, and Politics | 5 Comments

FDA Warns Homeopathy Manufacturer Hyland to Stop Mislabeling its Products

I’ve written previously about the official regulation of homeopathy by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The bottom line is that homeopathy was exempted from the standards of proof for safety and efficacy required of all other medications regulated by … Continue reading

Posted in Homeopathy | 29 Comments