Confessions of a naturopathic doctor
On February 26, 2015, Senator Marty Block (D-San Diego) introduced CA Senate Bill 538 to remove scope limitations for licensed naturopaths in California. The bill aims to amend the existing law, the Naturopathic Doctors Act, so that naturopaths would be able to independently: order, perform, review, and interpret results of…
You are probably aware of Ezekiel Stephan, a 19 month old boy, who died in 2012, after his parents chose home remedies and naturopathy for the treatment of viral bacterial meningitis. The parents currently are on trial in Canada for failing to provide the necessities of life. Over the course of...
A little bird told me that California naturopathic “doctors” and their supporters are holding a meeting in Sacramento on March 9, 2016 to educate state lawmakers about naturopathic medicine in order to secure support for a stalled bill, S.B. 538, that would, in my opinion, dangerously expand their scope of...
French gastronome Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin left us with a legacy of diet and cuisine. A rather excellent cow’s milk cheese is named after him, as is the Savarin mould, perfect for those who like their desserts with holes in the middle. His writings remain his greatest contribution, and one quote...
I was not going to write about the recent “Naturopathic Chat” forum leak. But then, while having dinner tonight, I had a dark thought: What if my hypothetical naturopath (or real doctor) were talking about me, my medical history, family, and other personally identifiable information in a web forum with a readership of 3,300 members? And what...
Britt’s note: In this anonymous post, an acupuncturist describes the difficult process of turning one’s back on pseudoscience and facing reality. It is an extraordinarily vulnerable position to renounce colleagues and friends in a public forum. I know this first hand. As other anonymous posters have mentioned to me, writing about their experiences is important...
Robert O. Young, a naturopath in California who ran a luxury medical clinic, was found guilty of two counts of practicing medicine without a license. While this news marks an end to the saga of Young’s spree of quackery and precarious trial, during which the jury was nearly hung and ordered by...
Naturopathy is an ideology. It is not a distinct form of primary care medicine. In fact, it is not any kind of medicine. It is pseudoscience. Naturopathy does not convey the same credibility or deserve the same respect as medicine. But, in an effort to generate credibility, proponents of naturopathic “medicine”...
In February 2012, I was twenty-eight years old and had been living with a diagnosis of endometriosis for over a year. I’d had a miscarriage a few months before my diagnosis but was unable to conceive again. Birth control pills and then Lupron Depot, a drug that mimics menopause, hadn’t helped control my increasing...
This year naturopathic “doctors” are trying for the 11th time to gain licensure in Massachusetts. Ahead of a public hearing tomorrow, November 17th, on a pair of naturopathic licensing bills (S1205 and H1992) in front of the Joint Committee on Public Health, I think it is important to provide lawmakers and...
