Critics of homeopathy like to throw up the term “evidence based medicine”, as if to suggest that pharmaceutical drugs are more scientifically arrived at. If they are evidence based, why are they always being withdrawn after causing injury and death? Let’s explore the actual evidence.
Drug companies test the efficacy and safety of the very drugs they profit from. To offset that obvious conflict of interest, the FDA is supposed to oversee and regulate the testing process. A new study1 by Charles Seife in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reported that the FDA found serious misconduct in almost half of all drug testing they examined. What’s more, the FDA then removed that information from their FDA reports. Thus, evidence of misconduct in testing is hidden from both doctors and patients.
This current study by Mr. Seife found: falsification of documents, lying about adverse events, fabrication of x-rays, discarding of medical records, failure to protect patient safety, protocol violations, lack of informed consent for subjects, use of experimental drugs in patients not enrolled in trials, unblinding of supposed blind studies, and much more. Here are a couple examples: In one chemotherapy study the FDA found evidence of falsification, fraud and homicide. Yet, that study was published in a peer reviewed journal with no mention of the falsification, fraud, or homicide. In another study, a document stated that all patients showed clinical improvements in their treated leg. Yet, one patient had his foot amputated 2 weeks after the treatment.
Mr. Seife stated that the FDA removes damaging information from their reports “to protect the drug company’s commercial information.” The FDA does not inform physicians or the public about research misconduct, and authors of clinical trials are not required to disclose adverse findings noted during FDA inspections.
Bottom line: Drug companies commit fraud in drug testing, lie about drug effectiveness and safety, publish positive articles in peer reviewed journals and then sell those drugs to the public. The FDA redacts the wrong doing from their reports.
Now you know…. pharmaceutical drugs are NOT evidence based… period.
1. Research Misconduct Identified by the US Food and Drug Administration Out of Sight, Out of Mind, Out of the Peer-Reviewed Literature – Charles Seife, MS1
http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2109855
In This Issue:
Interview – This month we interview Rowena Ronson, homeopath, counselor, nutritionist, family therapist and author of the popular book Looking Back Moving Forward.
Articles – Dr. Shilpa Bhouraskar shares her special “Stages Concept” of case analysis. Dr. Carmen M. Sturza discusses Jan Scholten’s huge contribution to homeopathy. Santanu Maity shares his personal tips on treating arthritis. Wm. H. King gives fascinating anecdotes about Dr. Constantine Hering. Dr. Luc De Schepper shares his concerns about new developments in Homeopathy. Dr. Ajit Kulkarni discusses dream life. Dr. Neepa Sevak presents some animal kingdom characteristics. Iman Navab shares an article by the late V.D. Kaviraj. Elaine Lewis informs and entertains with another Tidbits column.
Cases – You’ll find very instructional cases from: Dr. Miroslawa Witalis, Diderik Finne, Dr. Nilesh Maru, Maja Letić, Joan Macdonald, Allyssa Beck, Dr. Atul Patwardhan, Claire Dishman, Queenita Fernandes, Dr. Tirtha Goradia, Daniela Karsten, Dr. Suruchi Sodhani, Maria Malan, Maya Ayoub and George Christinson.
Ask the Holistic Vet – Dr. Deva Khalsa answers readers’ veterinary questions in her column.
Research – Robert Medhurst presents part 27 in his series on research into homeopathy.
Agro-Homeopathy – Our Plant Doctors Radko Tichavsky, Mark Moodie and Pawan Singhania answers readers’ questions about houseplants and crops.
There’s more – Remember to see the new Cartoon and Crossword puzzle, Elaine Lewis’s Tidbits Column and Quiz, the Tips & Secrets column, Ask the Holistic Vet with Dr. Deva Khalsa (send questions!) and the Plant Doctor (send questions!)
Get Involved! Send your questions and comments, cases, articles, book reviews and interviews to: [email protected]
Well! Maybe I should add this information to my article, “Myths About Modern Medicine”! Oh, and let’s not forget Thalidomide and DES!
P.S. Alan, you said the FDA found problems in almost half of the drug trials they examined? I read in Bartlett and Steele’s “Deadly Medicine” that the FDA only inspects 2% of the trials done inside the US and only 1% of the trials done outside the US. So does it then mean that out of the 2 or 1%, almost half are found to have major issues? And then those findings are gotten rid of? So, potentially, if they actually did the inspection job, or oversight job, they’re supposed to do, this number might be even higher? Or, are we just talking about the reports submitted to the FDA by the drug company on the drug that’s being submitted for FDA approval? I would imagine those reports must be pretty well-sanitized, since they only have to submit the trial that (finally!) comes out in the drug’s favor!
This study was “a cross-sectional analysis of publicly available documents, dated from January 1, 1998, to September 30, 2013, describing FDA inspections of clinical trial sites in which significant evidence of objectionable conditions or practices was found.”
Aside from all the fraud by drug companies, the statement that the FDA removes damaging information from their reports “to protect the drug company’s commercial information” says it all. The FDA is the handmaiden of the drug industry.
If you want to crunch the numbers more, here’s the stuldy:
http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2109855
Excellant, useful info Alan, thank you! I can use these specific facts for a book I’m writing!
One glaring example of big-Pharma/ FDA corruption is the drug Vioxx, which caused heart attack and death in hundreds of thousands — an FDA “whistleblower” came forth & revealed they knew the dangers, which were omitted from the records so the drug cld go to market
OK, that’s what I wanted to know! Inspection of trial sites: They only inspect 2 percent of them according to Bartlette and Steele! And outside of the country, 1 percent! So, on that tiny number, almost half of them show fraud! And I’m sure the fact that they don’t do inspections, for all intents and purposes, only serves to “normalize” fraud as the way to do business in this industry! What a joke!
Oh, I have an announcement to make! How many of you have made a donation to the making of the movie “Just One Drop”? It’s a movie about homeopathy, it’s almost finished, and I, for one, want to see it! In order for that to happen, the film-maker, Laurel Chiten, needs our support!!!!!!! So please, click here, watch the preview, and contribute something!
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/just-one-drop-a-film-about-homeopathy
All your favorite homeopaths are in this movie, don’t let them down!