Is complementary and alternative medicine completely safe?
Question by pink girl: Is complementary and alternative medicine completely safe?
i need researches that demonstrates this perception.
What role can a pharmacist play in CAM therapy?
Best answer:
Answer by Gary Y
No, nothing can be completely safe, but hardly any CAM is tested for efficacy or safety. Herbs for example can contain many harmful chemicals, and have been shown to vary in quality and active ingredient quantity, and even to contain heavy metal toxins.
The pharmacist’s role should be to warn people of the lack of efficacy, lack of quality clinical trials, and the safety risks of CAM, as well the the dangers of rejecting science or evidence based medicine in favor of placebo treatments.
In Australia recently we have had a homeopath father convicted for manslaughter for rejecting conventional treatment for his 9 month old baby daughter’s eczema, and treating her only with homeopathy. The baby died a horrible and preventable death.
For your research, here is link to the Australian Skeptics open letter to pharmacists:
http://www.youngausskeptics.com/2009/03/australian-skeptics-take-aim-at-the-pharmacists-of-australia/
Other sites to look at:
http://whatstheharm.net/
http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/
http://www.quackwatch.com
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
