Science Meets Alternative Medicine: What the Evidence Says About Unconventional Treatments [Paperback]

Wallace Sampson (Editor), Lewis Vaughn (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 2000

With all the recent promotion of herbal remedies and alternative therapies - acupuncture, therapeutic touch, aroma therapy, magnet therapy, homeopathy, naturopathy, Ayurvedic medicine, and many others - how can the average consumer find objective, scientific information evaluating these products and treatments? Without reliable information from objective, scientifically qualified sources, consumers run the risk of wasting their money, or worse, endangering their health. This anthology of research articles by reputable scientists is dedicated exclusively to the careful scrutiny of the claims of alternative medicine. Using scientific and rational criteria, well-respected scientists and physicians review available evidence for therapeutic claims, critique published studies, present original research, and discuss the methods and principles of valid research. Among the topics covered are: the origins of alternative medicine and current trends; the theories and therapies of Andrew Weil, naturopathy, therapeutic touch, and colloidal silver treatment; the psychological dimensions of belief in unconventional treatments; and, the ethics of promoting unproven treatments.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...packs in many fine tips for understanding alternative medicine's claims." -- Midwest Book Review, September 2000

About the Author

Wallace Sampson, M.D., is a clinical professor of medicine at Stanford University and editor of the Scientific Review of Alternative Medicine (SRAM).

Lewis Vaughn is the executive director of SRAM and coauthor (with Theodore Schick) of the critical-thinking text HOW TO THINK ABOUT WEIRD THINGS.

Product Details

• Paperback: 246 pages
• Publisher: Prometheus Books; 1st edition (June 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1573928038
• ISBN-13: 978-1573928038
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,571,544 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lewis Vaughn is the author or coauthor of several books, including: Bioethics: Principles, Issues, and Cases (OUP, 2008); How to Think About Weird Things: Critical Thinking for a New Age, Fifth Edition (2007); Doing Ethics: Moral Reasoning and Contemporary Issues (2007); Doing Philosophy: An Introduction Through Thought Experiments, Third Edition (2006); and Writing Philosophy: A Student's Guide to Writing Philosophy Essays (OUP, 2005).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Used as text in pharmacy college course, January 8, 2009

By 

Michael R. Harris "Pharmacy Professor" (New York City) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Science Meets Alternative Medicine: What the Evidence Says About Unconventional Treatments (Paperback)

I teach a course on Complementary and Alternative Medicine to 4th and 5th year pharmacy students.
There are two assigned texts. One is on alternative medicine and the second is this book.
The book gives the student a broad range of articles from different authors. It presents it's arguments using a science based route of inquiry. It has made my students think about a subject that most of their future patients believe in.

I will use this book again.

7 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Must" reading alternative medical therapies and trends., September 8, 2000

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Science Meets Alternative Medicine: What the Evidence Says About Unconventional Treatments (Paperback)

How can consumers find objective, scientific information for evaluating new treatments and products? This provides an anthology of research articles by scientists, and is devoted to examining the claims of alternative medicines. From therapies to trends and the psychological ramifications of belief, this packs in many fine tip for understanding alternative medicine's claims.

20 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Misleading Title, March 5, 2008

By 

Katie Claybaugh "defender of hamsters" (seattle) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Science Meets Alternative Medicine: What the Evidence Says About Unconventional Treatments (Paperback)

The title should be something like, "I Hate Alternative Medicine: Why You're a Moron if You Disagree with Me." The author goes out of his way to argue against every type of alternative or complementary medicine he can think of with sketchy-at-best "scientific statistics" to back up his claims. I found the book to be an enormous waste of my time, which is sad since I was excited to read what I thought would be some much needed guidance on how to decide which alternative therapies to buy into and which to avoid. It's not that the author is necessarily wrong, it's just that he presents his case in a way that's almost as hysterical and paranoid as the case by alternative practitioners against conventional medicine. I couldn't even get through the whole thing...I made it about 80% of the way through before I gave up because my eyes hurt from rolling them so frequently.