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Consumer Health Digest #09-15
April 9, 2009
Consumer Health Digest is a free weekly e-mail newsletter edited by
Stephen Barrett, M.D., and cosponsored by NCAHF and Quackwatch. It
summarizes scientific reports; legislative developments; enforcement
actions; news reports; Web site evaluations; recommended and
nonrecommended books; and other information relevant to consumer
protection and consumer decision-making. Quackwatch and Dr. Barrett
need your help. If you haven't already done so, please read
http://www.ncahf.org/digest07/07-48.html and send a contribution to
support our work.
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Kurt Donsbach arrested again.Kurt Donsbach, 73, whose dubious health-related activities have
spanned more than 50 years, is facing 11 felony counts including
treating patients without a license, misbranding drugs for sale,
grand theft, unlawfully dispensing drugs as a cure for cancer, and
falsely representing a cure for cancer.
http://www.casewatch.org/crim/donsbach/declaration.shtml The declaration in support of his arrest warrant states:
**In literature and his weekly online radio broadcast, Donsbach
identified himself as a chiropractor and a naturopathic doctor. He
has no license to practice any health profession in the United States.
**In 2001, Donsbach's Mexican clinic advised one patient to inject
herself with "neuropeptides" to treat arthritis, saying it would
"re-program" her body's T-cells. FDA tests revealed the
"neuropeptide" contained a steroid not disclosed on the packaging or
labels. The patient paid thousands of dollars for the drugs and
injected herself for six years, leading to severe bone-density loss.
**Donsbach advertised that he had a 60% success rate with pancreatic
cancer and sold an undercover agent a home treatment protocol that
included a product that contained nimesulide, a nonsteroidal
anti-inflammatory not approved by the FDA. Marketing of the product
(Leppin Miradin, a/k/a Fortodol) has been suspended in Sweden because
of high rates of liver failure that resulted in deaths and liver
transplants.
The investigation leading to Donsbach's arrest was was conducted by
the FBI, the the FDA, and the San Diego District Attorney's Office.
For a detailed report on Donsbach's shady history, see
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/donsbach.html###
Three British universities stop issuing "CAM" degrees.
Three British universities have stopped or suspended degree programs
in "complementary and alternative medicine." One said that the
courses were not a good academic fit and the others attributed the
their decision to low enrollment:
**In January, the University of Salford announced that it would drop
its undergraduate degrees in acupuncture and complementary medicine
because it no longer considered them "an academic fit." More than 70
students were registered in its BSc. Chinese medicine course. [Newman
M. Salford to shut complementary medicine BSc. Times Higher
Education, Jan 15, 2009]
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=405005&c=1**Westminster, the largest provider of CAM degrees in the UK,
suspended its BSc programs in homeopathy and in remedial massage and
neuromuscular therapy. It had attracted only 14 full-time-equivalent
students last year. Westminster's School of Integrated Health, which
ran the courses, will merge with the School of Biosciences. The
university had already announced it was overhauling its BSc degrees
in CAM to boost their scientific content.
**The University of Central Lancaster has stopped enrollment for its
degree programs in herbal, homeopathic and complementary medicine
because it had not met its target to recruit 20 students per program
since 2005. Students already enrolled will be able to complete their
degrees. [Corbin Z. Recruitment problems kill off CAM courses. Times
Higher Education, April 9, 2009]
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=406111&c=1All three universities will continue to offer some "CAM" courses in
other programs.
###
Detox scams summarized.
Quackwatch and it affiliated sites have information on many types of
scams related to "detoxification." The products and procedures
include "colon cleansing"; other powders and potions; colonic
irrigation; "ionic cleansing"; "detox" foot pads; methods that
increase sweating; unnecessary amalgam removal; chelation therapy;
and the urine toxic metals test. All involve the use of misleading
scare tactics. [Barrett S. "Detoxification" schemes and scams,
Quackwatch, April 8, 2009]
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/detox_overview.html###
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PEASE SUPPORT GEORGE LUNDBERG FOR SURGEON GENERAL
A petition has been posted to Facebook to support George D.
Lundberg, MD, PhD, for Surgeon General. Dr. Lundberg, an expert on
medical ethics and the need for healthcare reform, edited the Journal
of the American Medical Association for 17 years and the Medscape
Journal of Medicine for 10 years. To support the petition, go to
http://www.gopetition.com/online/26137.html This is not the petition
mentioned 2-4 weeks ago in Consumer Health Digest, so even if you
signed the first one, please do this one too.
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--
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Stephen Barrett, M.D.
Consumer Advocate
Chatham Crossing, Suite 107/208
11312 U.S. 15 501 North
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Editor, Consumer Health Digest
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