Don't Believe What You Think: Arguments for and against SCAM (Societas)

So-called alternative medicine (SCAM*) is largely useless; very few SCAMs demonstrably generate more good than harm. Yet, SCAM is popular and has grown into a huge business. Spending on SCAM in Australia (2016) was estimated to be AUS $3.9bn, in the UK (2008) £4.5bn, and in the US (2012) US $30.2bn. Why is something that is expensive and useless nevertheless popular? One answer is that consumers are constantly being misled about SCAM. Consequently, many of us have come to believe things that are quite simply not true. Currently, over 50,000,000 websites promote SCAM, and consumers are being bombarded with information not just via the internet, but also via newspapers, magazines, books and many other sources .This situation has the potential of separating us from our cash or even of damaging our health. There is little that protects us from greedy SCAM-entrepreneurs and over-enthusiastic SCAM-therapists. Therefore, we ought to protect ourselves. This book offers this protection for anyone who is willing to reconsider their own beliefs. It discloses the errors and lies that misled you into believing things about SCAM that are untrue. It analyses the many falsehoods used in the promotion of SCAM, explains the erroneous thinking behind them, and presents the scientific evidence in easily understandable terms. In a way, Ernst's new book amounts to a course in critical thinking, a skill that should prove to be helpful far beyond the realm of healthcare. *Ernst's previous book was entitled SCAM: So-Called Alternative Medicine. Preface 1. Introduction 2. The basics (Evidence and experience ; More good than harm? ; How much of conventional medicine is evidence-based? ; Evidence-based medicine, celebrity-based medicine ; Placebo ; Ethical issues in SCAM) 3. Common problems in SCAM (The root cause and the panacea ; Faer-mongering ; Holism ; Conspiracy theories or paranoia ; Is SCAM a cult? ; Non-communication ; Quackademia) 4. Research and researchers (Research activity in SCAM ; Promotion masquerading as research ; NCCAIM ; The making of a pseudo-researcher ; How can we differentiate good from bad research? ; Scientific misconduct ; Nonsensical research ; Too good to be true ; The role of criticism) 5. Healthcare practitioners (The tricks of the SCAM trade ; Inside the brain of a SCAM practitioner ; Little SCAM and Big Pharma ; Holistic dentistry ; Doctors of integrative medicine ; The German 'Heilpratiker' ; Veterinarians ; Nurses ; Midwives ; Pharmacists) 6. Patients and consumers (Patient choice ; When orthodox medicine has nothing more to offer ; The wellness mania ; Value for money ; Alternative cancer cures ; SCAM advice for patients ; Charities ; Great expectations) 7. The funny side (How to become a charlatan ; Monty Python and the homeopaths ; The SCAM lecture ; How to avoid progress from criticism ; Politicians on SCAM ; Prince Charles on SCAM ; The 'knighthood starvation syndrome") Postscript Glossary. So-called alternative medicine (SCAM) is popular and therefore important, no matter whether we love or loathe it. Consequently, an impressive number of books about SCAM are already available. Most of them, however, are woefully uncritical, overtly promotional and dangerously misleading. Not so this one! This book was written by someone who received SCAM as a patient, practised SCAM as a doctor, and researched SCAM as a scientist. It provides an insider's perspective by covering aspects of SCAM which most other books avoid, and by questioning the many tacitly accepted assumptions and wild extrapolations that underpin SCAM. The text is factual, occasionally dosed with a touch of humour or satire. The aim is not only to inform but also to entertain. It is written principally for members of the general public who have an interest in healthcare and are tired of the promotional counter-knowledge produced by SCAM enthusiasts. It is an exercise in critical thinking that might prevent you from wasting your money on (or endangering your health with) bogus treatments. "Professor Ernst has recieved So-Called Alternative Medicine (SCAM) as a patient, practised it as a doctor, and researched it as a scientist. He provides an insider's perspective by covering aspects of SCAM that most other books avoid. Whilst presenting us with the scientific evidence, Ernst adds his own touches of humour and satire, making this book both informative and entertaining. If you have an interest in healthcare and want a scientifically researched, evidence based evaluation of alterative medicine, this book is for you. It might just prevent you from wasting your money on, or endangering your health with, bogus treatments."--Back cover