Search results

The advance of scientific inquiry over the past two centuries has not gone unchallenged. In his 1976 book, The Occult Establishment, James Webb uses the apt phrase "rejected knowledge" for the ideas that, at a given point in history, prevailed, then were opposed by science, and finally were rejected as false. Though vitalism (the belief in some form of "energy" or "lifeforce" at work in all things) has been rejected by the mainstream of science over the last two centuries, this "rejected knowledge" became central to beliefs such as organic agriculture and alternative medicine.

This piece appeared in the New York Post,

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia (general mental deterioration) in the United States today. AD occurs primarily, though not exclusively, in the elderly. Although there currently is no established way to prevent or cure AD, a new report by the American Council on Science and Health(ACSH), Alzheimer's Disease: A Status Report For 2002, points out that the current spate of research into new diagnostic methods and pharmaceutical treatment holds hope for the future.

Scientists associated with the American Council on Science and Health once again have analyzed the natural foods that make up a traditional holiday dinner and once again have found that they are loaded with "carcinogens": chemicals that in large doses cause cancer in laboratory animals. None of these chemicals are made by man or added to the foods. Indeed, all of these "carcinogens" occur naturally in foods. But ACSH scientists have good news: these natural carcinogens pose no hazard to human health.

To the Editor:
While the debate continues on when to begin smallpox vaccinations, there is no public discussion at all about our state of readiness to deal with a large-scale bioterrorist assault using weaponized anthrax ("New Plan to Meet Smallpox Threat," front page, Sept. 24).
This is illogical, as the threat of smallpox is still hypothetical, while not that long ago we sustained a real attack using anthrax spores.

Some people are deeply moved by the idea that there is a more holistic way of viewing human health, that there is a warm, friendly alternative to cold, institutionalized medicine as I learned while conducting interviews for a new "e-monograph" about unconventional medical practices.

In an unprecedented move, a cooperative apartment building on the Upper West Side of Manhattan has voted to bar cigarette smokers from purchasing apartments. New co-owners will be permitted to purchase only if they accept the co-ops terms: no cigarette smoking, even in their own apartment. If new residents violate the no-smoking code, they will be subject to eviction. The new rules will not apply to current apartment owners who purchased their residences prior to the new non-smoking code.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently warned pharmacies selling "nicotine lollipops" and "nicotine lip balm" to stop, calling them illegal. According to the FDA, these products are being promoted as smoking cessation treatments or therapeutic drugs and therefore must gain FDA approval before public consumption. The lollipops and lip balm also contain a specific form of nicotine, nicotine salicylate, which has not been approved for smoking cessation.

Cancer caused by mouthwash? Lethal doses of toothpaste?

Interested in losing weight? Want to do it without: (1) moving, (2) counting calories, (3) restricting food intake, or (4) any change in lifestyle whatsoever, and do it without any detrimental health effects? Well, step right up there are many products designed just to help you accomplish that goal. Then I have some Enron stock to sell you.

"This quarter, when many life insurers missed earnings estimates, they blamed 'adverse mortality.' Like there's another kind?"
Jesse Eisinger, Wall Street Journal, May 6, 2002.

Only about one-third of women know that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women, according to an AHA-sponsored survey in 2000, while almost two-thirds of female respondents thought cancer was their chief health threat. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) kills nearly half a million women each year, with over 240,000 women dying of heart attacks, twice the number of all female cancer deaths combined.

Whether you are traveling around the world or relaxing at home, a safe, healthy vacation will add to your enjoyment. Here are some health and safety tips to keep in mind when planning your summer vacation.
The Dark Side of Summer Sun

The National Council Against Health Fraud, Inc. (NCAHF) has concluded that policies prescribed in the report issued March 25th by the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy (WHCCAMP) would lead to widespread adoption of unproven, disproven, and irrational methods and would cost the American public billions of dollars and thousands of human lives.
The 1910 Flexner Report set the standards for medical education. The WHCCAMP report does the exact opposite by outlining the agenda for establishing quackery.

Michael Judge's commentary about our nation's schizophrenic attitudes about alcohol was right on the mark ("Drinks All Around; It's Our 'Sacred Rite'," editorial page, March 27) .
Given that our society prefers simple "good" vs. "bad" dichotomies on most social issues, alcohol, no matter what the pattern of use, consistently gets the "bad" rap despite the overwhelming collection of medical data confirming that regular, moderate use of alcohol by those of middle age and older contributes to long life and good health.

It is with deep and profound sorrow that the American Council on Science and Health announces the death of its Director and Co-Founder, Dr. Fredrick J. Stare on April 4, 2002.
Born in 1910, Dr. Stare was one of the nation's foremost and leading nutritionists, who contributed much to the field of nutrition during his lifetime. Besides founding, and for many years chairing the Department of Nutrition in the Harvard School of Public Health, Dr. Stare was extremely active in providing sound, scientifically-based nutrition information for the public.

Consumers today are inundated with ads for so-called "functional foods" that will supposedly improve their health. But scientists and physicians associated with the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) find that many of the supposed health benefits of these foods are not backed by substantial scientific information.

Statistics can easily be manipulated to yield a desired message, and they often are, concludes Matthew Robinson in Mobocracy: How the Media's Obsession with Polling Twists the News, Alters Elections, and Undermines Democracy. Though Robinson is mainly interested in politics and elections, his conclusions have especially dire implications for issues of public health. It's an important reminder that the conventional wisdom isn't so wise.

Defenders of cloning are up against fears that are more deeply rooted than anything born of modern science or politics, I suspect. This worries me, since I've written in defense of therapeutic cloning and, away from my official ACSH duties, have helped organize a petition protesting the ban on cloning that is being considered by Congress.

This week, the lingerie company Victoria's Secret is no longer under threat of investigation by the Federal Communications Commission, but it will still have to contend with Greenpeace.

How fat do Americans have to get and how fast do they have to get that way before they are threatened with legal penalties for being immense?

Who has time to eat breakfast anymore?

Last week, an upstate New York judge ordered Johnita DeMatteo to stop smoking in her home and in her car if she wanted to maintain her visitation rights with her thirteen year-old son, who lives with his father.
The judge said he made the decision to protect the health of the child.
This case has generated enormous discussion about individual rights. And it has raised some very provocative issues, particularly when the basic facts behind the judge's decision are sorted out.

Hey, look! The secret to happy parenting has been known since the 1950s. Smoking may be very bad for Mom and Junior's lungs, but it can do wonders for alleviating stress in their relationship...
Responses:
April 5, 2002

The Inuit, or Eskimo, population of Canada has a lower rate of death from cardiovascular disease than their Northern European counterparts. Is it because fish dominates their diet? Three recent studies support the claim that the omega-3 fatty acid found in fish can reduce the risk of death from heart disease. Now the U.S.