Anti-woo commentators are a bunch of smug and condescending...

[ohheckyeah]

341. There have been drugs released to the public

that pharmaceutical companies were aware of the fact they kill people. That's a helluva a side effect. Vioxx is a good example. It wasn't removed from the market until after 60,000 people died. Science didn't protect those 60,000 people.

I worked as a pharmacy tech and I was amazed at the number of drugs that offer no better or little more efficacy than placebos according to the Physicians Desk Reference. The point is, and which is being ignored, is that pharmaceuticals are often approved because of the influence of pharmaceutical companies, not because medical science (FDA) have found them to be either safe or effective.

Are there harmful herbs and supplements on the market? Yes, there are, but there are many harmful pharmaceuticals as well. Neither industry is free of guilt. I personally don't use homeopathic stuff because it makes no sense to me that something that diluted is in any way effective. I do take some supplements such as magnesium, potassium, vitamin D, and vitamin E....all at the direction of my doctor. I do use DMSO for back pain because I can't take anti inflammatory medicines very often. DMSO was thought to be "woo" until the FDA approved it for use in interstitial cystitis, yet many people have known for years the benefits of DMSO for certain conditions.

It's not all black and white......we don't live in a black and white world.