Scotsman feature article

[mummymonkey]

Do you care about your body and buy into every new health fad? Here, we rate popular trends on a star scale of one to five to help you decide if it’s money well spent.

Users report success and clinical trials confirmed that placing magnets on the abdomen eases period pain.

Scotsman link (http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/s2.cfm?id=1344772004)

I expected better from the Scotsman.

[Dr Adequate]

That is no true Scotsman.

Ah, someone had to say it.

[Ashles]

What about the homeopathy:

Technically, it shouldn’t work, but studies have found it to be remarkably effective against allergies such as hayfever.
Really? When did this happen? Which studies?

[Darat]

Originally posted by Ashles
What about the homeopathy:


Really? When did this happen? Which studies?

The study in which the journalist's partner's best friend's cousin tried it and he said it worked...

[Ashles]

Doesn't it have to be put in groovy technical format so gullible people will be convinced?

Confirmation of Homeopathy Efficacy in clinical trials for Pollen Allergy (Hayfever) – Dual set study (null hypothesis of set 1 with p0 = .5 and the null hypothesis of set 2 with p0 = .5278 ) with confirmatory opinions in a zero-researched negligable-fact content study
Scientific Homeoallergenic Journal, Publ- Bedside Table Publications, Nov 2004 - A. Journalist, J. Partner, B. Friend, A. Cousin, B. I. Metinapub

[jj]

A scotsman clad in kilts
Left a bar one evenin' fair.
You could tell by how he walked
He'd drunk more than his share
He stumbled on until he could no longer keep his feet
Then he wandered off into the grass to sleep beside the street

- Mike Cross -

Brian Bowers does the best version I know of of it.

And that's all I can say about this "Scotsman" article.

Sorry, soapy, this one'd detergent.

[Anders]

Originally posted by Ashles
Doesn't it have to be put in groovy technical format so gullible people will be convinced?

Confirmation of Homeopathy Efficacy in clinical trials for Pollen Allergy (Hayfever) – Dual set study (null hypothesis of set 1 with p0 = .5 and the null hypothesis of set 2 with p0 = .5278 ) with confirmatory opinions in a zero-researched negligable-fact content study
Scientific Homeoallergenic Journal, Publ- Bedside Table Publications, Nov 2004 - A. Journalist, J. Partner, B. Friend, A. Cousin, B. I. Metinapub
The fact the some people think that h'pathy could somehow cure or help against hayfever could actually kill people. Truly distrubing that the h'pathy people don't have bettre common sense.

Oh, well, a study like this for REAL medecin wouldn't pass phase II. It would pass phase I as it is totaly harmless! But to pass phase II you realy need at least 20% succes rate, that is 20% of the participants should respond to the treatment.

[Pragmatist]

<META name="keywords" content="Roger Coghill, liar, cheat, fraud, bad research, incompetent,scaremonger">

Originally posted by mummymonkey
Scotsman link (http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/s2.cfm?id=1344772004)

I expected better from the Scotsman.

Users report success and clinical trials confirmed that placing magnets on the abdomen eases period pain.

I believe that refers to the "work" of our old friend Mr Roger Coghill, king of magnetic woo and incompetent "research".

See here and onwards: http://www.randi.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?s=&postid=1870491074#post1870491074

And here:

From: http://www.natural-period-pain-relief.com/uk_research.htm

"EFFECTS OF A STATIC MAGNETIC FIELD DEVICE ON MENSTRUAL PAIN:
A DOUBLE-BLIND, PLACEBO-CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIAL.

Roger Coghill(1), Simon Hails(2), and Christopher Connors(1)

(1) Coghill Research Laboratories, Lower Race, Pontypool, Wales NP4 5UH.
(2) RSSL, Reading, Berks


Results

Results showed that pain lessened considerably in both groups over the duration of the trial, and also diurnally between morning and evening. A large placebo effect (compared with normal pain levels) was evident (some 48% less subjective pain). Significantly less painkillers were used, however when wearing the active device, and analysis of matched pairs found that significantly less subjective pain intensity was reported by those wearing the active device (p=0.01) than with the placebo.

Though the study design suffered from the absence of an untreated control group, it strongly suggests that attaching SMFs continually during menses can relieve menstrual pain after allowing for a powerful placebo component of the treatment. The range of additional relief, depending on the metric used, varied between 2.6 and 11.2 percent."

From the same page:


"Magnet Therapy May Reduce Disability Related to Chronic Pelvic Pain

By Karla Gale NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Jan 10

- Static magnetic field therapy appears to reduce chronic pelvic pain (CCP) and its associated disability, according to results of a small, blinded, placebo-controlled treatment. Dr. Candace S. Brown, of the University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Memphis, and colleagues followed 32 adult women who had refractory CPP lasting at least 6 months that significantly impaired their function at home or work. The physician on the research team identified two abdominal trigger points on each patient that were most sensitive to palpation, over which active bipolar magnets or sham devices were placed."

and ...

"A drawback to their study was compromised blinding efficacy, Dr. Brown's group notes. Women in the active treatment arm nearly always guessed correctly that they were receiving active treatment, even though all of the women were told at the outset that adherence to metal surfaces was not related to efficacy of the device. About half of those in the placebo group correctly guessed their assignment."

:dl:

Honey, I got stuck to the fridge! :D

[richardm]

Originally posted by Anders
The fact the some people think that h'pathy could somehow cure or help against hayfever could actually kill people.

Could it? What's the current mortality rate for hayfever?

[Darat]

Originally posted by richardm
Could it? What's the current mortality rate for hayfever?

Well I've often wished mine was fatal, especially when I was younger and the anti-histamines were not as effective and had the great side effect of making you very sleepy.

[Anders]

Originally posted by richardm
Could it? What's the current mortality rate for hayfever?
Ehh, maybe I'm confusing hayfever with astma. But aren't those related??

[richardm]

Originally posted by Anders
Ehh, maybe I'm confusing hayfever with astma. But aren't those related??

Not as far as I know, although I daresay that a bad bout of hayfever might bring on an asthma attack if you're already an asthma sufferer. Hayfever is an allergy to pollen - streaming, itchy eyes and a chronically running nose are the usual symptoms.

It can be quite unpleasant - I suffered from it for years. Seem to be growing out of it now, I'm glad to say.

[Mojo]

Originally posted by richardm
Not as far as I know, although I daresay that a bad bout of hayfever might bring on an asthma attack if you're already an asthma sufferer. Hayfever is an allergy to pollen - streaming, itchy eyes and a chronically running nose are the usual symptoms.

It can be quite unpleasant - I suffered from it for years. Seem to be growing out of it now, I'm glad to say.
About 15-20 years ago I started to suffer from asthma at night, but only during hayfever season, and when the hayfever symptoms were at their worst. I had already been a hayfever sufferer for about 5 years before that, but had never previously had any symptoms of asthma. I seem to have largely grown out of the hayfever symptoms now, and the asthma seems to have stopped coincidentally.

OK, OK, I know it's anecdotal...

[c4ts]

I used to have asthma, but one day a sat under a HUGE frikkin' electromagnet and I felt a whole lot better! Because I AM A ROBOT, and magnetic therapy makes me sing folk songs!