I’ve made a blog post over on Weightology regarding an alleged pump-and-dump company and a natural sweetener that they sell. Check it out here.… Read More
Nov 072010
Sep 082010
RationalWiki has an excellent summary of the various characteristics of pseudoscience. I bring this up because a reader alerted me to a series of messages on Yahoo Finance about me and Cobroxin, a product which I’ve written about in past blog posts (see my past posts here, here, and here). Combine that with some of the comments recently left on one of my past Cobroxin blog posts, and you have an outstanding example of pseudoscience in the health industry. This example is too perfect to pass up, so I have decided to use it as an example for my readers on how to spot pseudoscience, and the degree of absurdity that comes along with it. … Read More
Sep 052010
I’ve written an article on the ad hominem over on Weightology Weekly. Personal insults do not make people’s arguments stronger, but unfortunately this tactic is common in the health industry. Click here to learn more.… Read More
Aug 272010
Sorry for the lack of posts lately…I’m hoping to have some soon. In the mean time, here’s a few things for you to check out.
Refusing to vaccinate your children could have serious legal consequences
The Straw Man….a very prevalent fallacy in the health industry
Why bother trying to expose quackery?… Read More
Aug 022010
In 2006, I was in Chicago attending an A4M conference. A4M Is the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine.
Yes, this was an anti-aging conference. Might as well call it a PAA conference….People Against Aging. This is a conference of people who don’t want to get old. I was expecting to see an angry mob of old people carrying picket signs outside the conference center.
“NO TO AGING!”
“JUNK YOUR GERIATRISM!”
“HELL NO! WE WON’T GROW!…OLD”
Like foreign countries burning posters of George Bush, they probably burn posters of themselves. Just when you thought Beverly Hills was the only place where everyone and his mom has had plastic surgery, along comes one of these conferences. Except in this case it’s the … Read More
Jul 282010
“All-Natural!”
“No Artificial Colors or Flavors!”
“No Harsh Chemicals!”
…so reads the labels of many foods marketed towards your health and well-being. The implication, of course, is that natural food ingredients are inherently safer than artificial ingredients. Artificial ingredients are supposed to be bad for us. They are supposed to cause cancer, and headaches, and hyperactivity in kids, and depression, and unemployment, and poverty, and traffic jams, and Paris Hilton.
OK, maybe they’re not that bad, but you get the idea. Natural ingredients are supposed to be safer, and healthier. We eat an “all-natural” product and we feel good and confident that we are doing something healthy for us. Natural ingredients are supposed to make us glow and bring … Read More
Jul 272010
Jamie Hale recently interviewed me on his website. You can check out the interview here.… Read More
Jul 242010
I’ve written an article on the concept of false cause (or non causa pro causa) over on Weightology Weekly. Too often we assume because two things are correlated, that one caused the other. This leads to beliefs in health products that have no true effect. Click here to read the article.… Read More
Jul 112010
I’ve written an article on Confirmation Bias over on Weightology Weekly. Understanding the phemonena of confirmation bias is important when examining claims and products in the health industry. Click here to read the article.… Read More
Jul 072010
I’ve started a new series of articles over on Weightology. It is entitled “Thinking Better”, and delves into common fallacies in our thinking. Recognizing fallacies is important when examining claims made in the health and wellness industry. Check out the first article, “The False Dichotomy”, by clicking here.… Read More