9 Reasons to Completely Ignore Joseph Mercola

[HuckleB]

http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=2116

"Some of our more astute readers may have noticed that we are paying influenza slightly more attention than other topics of late. That’s because this situation is new, rapidly changing, and covers more areas of science and medicine than one can easily count. It’s also a subject about which the general public and media are keenly interested. This is an outstanding learning and teaching opportunity for us as a professional community. Unfortunately, it is also fertile ground for confusion, fear, and misinformation, and a playground for those who would exploit such things.

Mercola.com is a horrible chimera of tabloid journalism, late-night infomercials, and amateur pre-scientific medicine, and is the primary web presence of Joseph Mercola. Unfortunately, it is also one of the more popular alternative medicine sites on the web and as such is uncommonly efficient at spreading misinformation. I am not a fan, and have addressed his dross in the past.

Joseph Mercola has recently posted an excerpt from an individual he evidently holds in high regard, Bill Sardi. Bill published “18 reasons why you should not vaccinate your children against the flu this season.” Mercola chose his nine favorites (one would assume the nine best reasons), and re-posted it on Mercola.com. There are so many mistakes, so much misinformation in so little space, it’s almost a work of art. You know, like that crappy art that you might expect to find on the wall at an hourly motel.

...

Most people who contract influenza are miserable for about a week, but recover, usually without the need for medical care. The ICU experiences I relay here thankfully do not represent the population at large, but are meant to serve as a reminder that while you may not suffer from influenza this season, your neighbor may not be so lucky. Influenza is a real threat, it deserves our respect, and our fellow citizens deserve to be properly informed and empowered to protect themselves and their loved ones. Influenza is not benign, and neither is the medical advice being distributed by Joseph Mercola. The stakes are measured in human suffering and human lives, and Mercola bears responsibility for undermining the public health."


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Yes, it's true. This covers Mercola's nonsense on one topic, and one topic only. Still, can we please stop using Mercola as a source at DU?

:shrug:

[trotsky]

1. But he says what a lot of people WANT to hear.

These folks don't like the facts, they KNOW what they want to believe, and Mercola tells them exactly that. In return, he gets their attention and money. It's a phenomenon not limited to medical information but right-wing politics (Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Hannity, Beck, et al playing the exact same role) as well.

[CanSocDem]

2. Sure...

"...can we please stop using Mercola as a source at DU?"

As long as you and your army of ModernMedicineInc. advocates stop using Mercola as a 'whipping boy' whenever you want to promote your own particular brand of "snake oil".

.

[HuckleB]

3. So you think it's smart to ignore those who are pushing lies upon the public?

Sorry. No sale.

Oh, and, yes, your blind attempt to paint scientists as snake oil sellers is quite humorous, at best.

[cleanhippie]

5. Please point to where I can read that for myself. I think you made it up.

whenever you want to promote your own particular brand of "snake oil".


Please point to an example of that.

[diane in sf]

8. Agreed, patent drug companies are responsible for a long trail of deaths and public theft along

with some life saving. Standard western medicine doesn't do much for metabolic problems. It's great if you get shot, burnt, cut, or crushed and need emergency treatment or surgery.

I've found Dr. Mercola's advice quite useful and will continue to use it, thank you.

[uppityperson]

13. I'd be dead if it weren't for western medicine treating my metabolic problem of hypothyroidism

As are a lot of other people. Yay for western medicine having thyroid replacement medicine. Diabetics are glad there is insulin and oral hypoglycemics.

[xchrom]

4. ...

:applause:

[astral]

12. I second that.

:applause:

[LeftishBrit]

6. And reason number 10...

His general views on healthcare:

http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=377098398731

Note in particular:

As many of you know, my philosophy of government’s role in health should be extremely limited – I believe in personal responsibilities and the freedom of choice.

Forcing the purchase of insurance on every individual is not something I can agree with, adding more taxes to feed the existing broken health care system will only make the existing problems worse.

...Congress does have the ability to collect taxes under the constitution which is why it was done this way – so it should be called what it is, the Health Care Tax Bill. If they used that name however, they likely would have received more opposition.

While I am in favor of some type of system to address those in our society without health care coverage, to me it is morally reprehensible to extract money from those in the culture that have worked hard to earn it and use it to pay for drugs, which for the most part, in no way shape or form address the cause of the illness, but merely foster a dependency of more of the same..'


In other words, he is, on health issues, A MONSTER OF PURE RIGHT-WING EVIL!!!!

If there are still any doubts after reading this, look at the following:

http://www.aipnews.com/talk/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=19252&posts=1

This is not the only one of his articles that is recorded on the America's Independent Party website. It may be that they are doing so without his approval; nevertheless the message here is hard-right - not to mention plain wrong - in itself.

He has endorsed Ron Paul, and is a member of the hard-right anti-public-healthcare Association of American Physicians and Surgeons.

Should his views on health issues really be given credence on a progressive - and hopefully sane - board?

[diane in sf]

7. His health advice is different than his political opinions. Henry Ford thought Nazis

were great, he also thought paying his workers a good wage was great.

[HuckleB]

9. Well, both are quite despicable.

http://scienceblogs.com/denialism/2008/08/mercola_still_lying.php

http://thelanguageguy.blogspot.com/2009/04/dr-mercola.html

http://www.skepdic.com/mercola.html

http://www.science20.com/countering_psychology_woo_and_science_asds/mercola_and_fisher_antivaccine_rhetoric_and_fearmongering

http://scienceblogs.com/insolence/2010/07/joe_mercolas_shampoo_woo.php

I could go on and on, but it's quite clear that Mercola is a scam artist who thrives in a system that is unregulated, which makes it all the more clear why his politics are what they are.

[LeftishBrit]

10. However, in this case, it's his political opinions *on health* that I'm quoting

If, for example, someone supported the Iraq war, or opposed the trade union movement, this would be highly regrettable, but would indeed be irrelevant to their health advice.

However, in this case, his anti-vaccination, anti-modern medicine views seem to be embedded in a general distrust of accepting government-sponsored healthcare, with the implication that modern medicine will make people 'dependent' (something I've frequently heard before with regard to welfare).

And apart from that: if someone is still, in 2011, spouting that filth about abortion being a major cause of breast cancer, how can one trust anything else that they say about health?

[trotsky]

16. Sorry I missed this post! Mercola is no dummy.

He knows full well that if everyone had affordable healthcare and the medicine they need, his business would go DOWN. A lot of people turn to him and to other quacks because they have no other options. People getting the healthcare they need is BAD FOR HIS BUSINESS.

[laconicsax]

11. Only nine?

I'm sure he's opened his mouth more times than that.

[SidDithers]

14. I only need one...

he's a fucking loon. :hi:

Sid

[mzteris]

15. mercola is a quack and an idiot

not necessarily in that order.