Category Archives: Alternative Medicine

The next time youre out in public, sandwiched in a pack of peoplepicking up groceries, dropping off dry cleaning, getting your cars oil changedlook to your left and then to your right. Of the three of you, one of you has probably indulged in some form of reflexology or visited an herbalist.

This is likely because, according to a 2015 survey conducted by the National Institutes of Health, one in every three Americans has sought out cures for their conditionsfrom chronic to purely cosmeticthrough alternative medicine. This loosely defined range of homeopathic medical therapies is often regarded as unorthodox by Western physicians.

But that hasnt prevented millions of Americans from spending billionsyes, billionsof dollars every year on books, supplements and visits to what are often called complementary health practitioners that, with certain exceptions, are not covered by insurance.

Within, we take a closer look at Houstonians options for everything from acupuncture to cupping, speaking with practitioners and patients alike to find out what makes reflexology different from massage, why youd want to stick a candle in your ear, and how aromatherapyyes, aromatherapycan aid in the care of cancer patients. Hey, who are we to argue with results?

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Holistic Houston: The Houstonia Guide to Alternative Medicine - Houstonia Magazine

NEW DELHI: India and Germany, which worked together on treating osteoarthritis with ayurveda, will collaborate further in the field of alternative medicine, the government said today.

"The Union Cabinet has approved a Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) between Germany and India regarding cooperation in the sector of alternative medicine," an official statement said. The collaboration will also enhance employment, it said.

The Cabinet was also apprised of a pact, signed here in April this year, between India and Bangladesh on cooperation in the peaceful use of outer space.

While India has well-developed systems of traditional medicine which hold tremendous potential in the global health scenario, Germany has considerable interest in such a system of medicine, it said.

Noting that the AYUSH Ministry had taken many initiatives for promoting ayurveda in Germany, the statement referred to the collaborative research project between the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) and the Charite University in Berlin on osteoarthritis of the knee.

"The results of the trial are encouraging and the clinical trial demonstrates significant improvement in patients. The study has been completed successfully and is under publication," the statement said.

Initiation of collaborative research, training and scientific capacity building in the field of alternative medicine under the JDI between the two countries would contribute to enhanced employment opportunities in the AYUSH sector, it said.

The financial resources necessary to conduct research, training courses and conferences will be met from the existing allocated budget and existing plan schemes of Ministry of AYUSH.

A delegation led by AYUSH Minister Shripad Yesso Naik had visited Germany in October last year to participate in the second European World Ayurveda Congress.

During the visit, Naik met German Parliamentary State Secretary Ingrid Fischbach and the two sides agreed to begin the process of drafting and negotiating a JDl in the field of AYUSH and natural medicine.

On the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Bangladesh, the statement said it would lead to cooperation in areas such as space science, technology and applications including remote sensing of the earth.

The pact would also enable cooperation in satellite communication and satellite based navigation, planetary exploration, use of spacecraft and space systems and ground system and application of space technology.

"The MoU would lead to a Joint Working Group, drawing members from the Department of Space and the Indian Space Research Organisation (DOS/ISRO), and the Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission (BTRC)," it said.

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India, Germany to work together on alternative medicine - Economic Times

A Baltimore judge put Maryland's medical marijuana industry temporarily on hold Thursday, granting the request of a company that alleged state regulators illegally ignored racial diversity when picking firms to grow the drug.

Circuit Judge Barry Williams said the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission is not permitted to grant any additional marijuana licenses for 10 days. He will decide after a June 2 hearing whether to extend that ban until the conclusion of a lawsuit that asks for the entire application process to begin anew.

The case has been watched closely by medical marijuana firms, regulators and patients because it has potential to upend the entire industry before it gets off the ground.

In his brief ruling, Williams said the 15 preliminary licenses to grow the drug could have been awarded in a manner that was "potentially arbitrary and capricious and possibly unconstitutional."

The lawyer representing the commission, Assistant Attorney General Heather Nelson, declined to comment. Commission chairman Paul Davies said the ruling only applies to growers licenses and the commission will continue its work.

ForwardGro, the only company to secure a final cultivation license, will be allowed to keep growing marijuana during the temporary ban, but the company will have to argue in court next week why it should be allowed to continue.

ForwardGro won final approval last week to grow the drug, more than four years after Maryland first legalized a medical marijuana program. More than 6,500 patients have registered to receive the drug when it's available.

The industry has been beset by delays and disputes, including allegations that the commission broke the law in failing to seek racial diversity and in not following its own rules as it sought geographic diversity among medical marijuana growers. Those licenses are estimated to be worth millions.

A state law required the commission to "encourage" participation by minorities and to "actively seek to achieve racial, ethnic and geographic diversity when licensing medical cannabis growers."

Although the commission used geographic diversity as a selection criteria albeit in a way that's subject to another lawsuit the commission did not inquire about, nor consider, the racial or ethnic identity of applicants.

None of the 15 companies granted preliminary approval to grow the drug are led by African-Americans. Alternative Medicine Maryland, which is led by an African-American doctor from New York, was not ranked by the cannabis commission among the top 15 companies seeking a growing license and filed a lawsuit last fall challenging the award process.

Nelson, who represents the commission, argued in court that the law never expressly required racial diversity to be a selection criteria and that the commission satisfied the requirement to seek diversity by broadly advertising the program. She said Alternative Medicine Maryland's application was evidence the commission successfully reached a diverse pool of candidates.

"What they did was sufficient," Nelson said.

The Legislative Black Caucus disagrees, and has accused the commission of unfairly excluding African-Americans, who make up about a third of Maryland's population, from the industry.

Black lawmakers are lobbying the governor and presiding officers to recall the General Assembly to Annapolis to expand the industry to include more minority-owned firms.

Earlier this month, Gov. Larry Hogan issued an executive order to conduct a disparity study that examines whether minorities face a disadvantage getting into the lucrative medical marijuana business. Such a study is a prerequisite to legally considering race when awarding state licenses.

A lawyer for ForwardGro said the company will present their case in court next week.

"The key for us is to continue to focus on getting medicine to patients in Maryland," said Gail Rand, a spokeswoman for ForwardGro.

Brian Brown, an attorney for Alternative Medicine Maryland, said the company doesn't wish to delay the industry.

"It's our hope that this gets resolved quickly and expeditiously," he said.

The trade group representing growers and processors who have won preliminary licenses called the ruling "incredibly disappointing."

"Maryland's patients and families have waited nearly four years for access to these important medicines," said Jake Van Wingerden, the group's chairman. "We are hopeful that the Circuit Court will rule against Alternative Medicine Maryland's frivolous legal filing when all the evidence is heard on June 2."

The trade association questioned whether Alternative Medicine Maryland would even qualify for a license if race had been considered, citing a redacted document filed by the state.

That document shows none of the top 60 firms proposed locating in Talbot County, where Alternative Medicine Maryland proposed starting a growing operation in a former Black and Decker plant in Easton. The document does not identify any of the top companies by name.

The commission has argued it should not have to reveal any details about the ranking process that led to the selection of the 15 companies that won preliminary licenses to grow the drug in August 2016, citing deliberative privilege.

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Judge temporarily halts Maryland medical marijuana industry ... - Baltimore Sun

The Union Cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) between Germany and India regarding cooperation in the field of alternative medicine on 24 May 2017.

The move aims to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two nations in the areas of traditional and alternative medicine. The collaborative research, training and scientific capacity building undertaken by the nations under the declaration would contribute to increased employment opportunities in the AYUSH sector.

All the necessary funds required to conduct the research, training courses, conferences and meetings would be provided from the budget allocated to the Ministry of AYUSH and its existing plan schemes. Besides this, no additional financial implications would be involved.

Background

India has a well-developed system of traditional medicine that holds tremendous potential in the global health scenario.

Germany also has an advanced herbal and natural medicine industry with continuous high level scientific research concentrated on traditional medicines.

The Ministry of AYUSH as a part of its mandate to propagate Indian systems of Medicine globally has taken effective steps by signing memorandum of understanding with several nations including Nepal, Bangladesh, China, Malaysia, Myanmar, Mauritius, Hungary, Mongolia and Trinidad & Tobago.

In October 2016, a delegation led by Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of AYUSH had visited Germany to participate in the 2nd European World Ayurveda Congress (EWAC) and to interact with the German authorities.

During the visit a bilateral meeting was held between Naik and the Parliamentary State Secretary Ingrid Fischbach, in which both the sides unanimously agreed to begin the process of drafting and negotiating a joint declaration between the two nations in the field of AYUSH and Natural medicine.

The joint declaration is not only expected to boost India-Germany ties but it is also expected to enhance the existing cooperation between the two countries.

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India, Germany to work together on alternative medicine - Jagranjosh - Jagran Josh

Kolkata: President Pranab Mukherjee on Friday highlighted the importance of homoeopathy, saying it is more cost-effective as compared to modern allopathic treatment and does not have side effects.

Attending the sixth Dr Malati Allen Nobel Award ceremony here, he conferred the Dr Sarkar Allen Swamiji Award for lifetime achievement on Dr Shubhendu Bhattacharya, the world's youngest MRCP Consultant Intermits, Guinness World Record holder and member of sub-committee for medicine/physiology of Nobel Foundation, Sweden.

The President also gave away the sixth Dr Malati Allen Nobel Awards to 16 BHMS toppers from various homoeopathy colleges across the country as well as Bangladesh. On May 27, another 86 promising homoeopaths will be conferred this award in the closing function ceremony.

Mukherjee appreciated the efforts made by G.P. Sarkar, Managing Trustee, Malati Allen Charitable Trust and Sarkar Allen Mahatma Hahnemann and Swamiji Trust in spreading homoeopathy education and a system of medicine which has emerged as a powerful alternative medicine to heal a number of chronic diseases.

"Homoeopathy is more cost-effective as compared to modern allopathic treatment and does not have side effects," he said.

Citing the contribution of John Martin Honigberger, the Romanian homoeopath practitioner who cured Maharaja Ranjit Singh after arriving at Lahore during 1829-30, he recalled how Honigberger introduced the name of Samuel Hahnemann and his healing art to India.

Mukherjee, in this context, also spoke about the efforts of Satish Kumar Samanta, the freedom fighter and MP from Tamluk in introducing homoeopathy widely in West Bengal as an alternative way of treating ailments.

Even in Rashtrapati Bhavan, homoeopathy has been introduced as an alternative medicine for curing chronic ailments along with unani and siddha, he said.

--IANS

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Homoeopathy, alternative medicine systems important: President - ETHealthworld.com

The Independent News

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Arimidex joint - Arimidex alternative medicine - Why does arimidex cause sore throat - The Independent News

DENVER, CO., May 23, 2017 GoFire, a leading digital healthcare company, has created an innovative vaporization device with an intuitive dosing app that allows for controlled dose consumption of

plant-based-concentrates. The company leverages its proprietary SMART vaporization technology to help patients find a precise dose of alternative medicine that successfully relieves a specific condition. GoFire is committed to helping patients control their alternative medicine by realizing the medicinal and therapeutic potential of wellness-focused products through a new take on alternative health innovation.

GoFires patent-pending technology will change the way alternative medicine is prescribed by doctors and utilized by patients. With GoFire, standardized dosing is made possible through pre-filled SMART Cartridges containing the highest quality, plant-based concentrates available.

GoFires first initiative is recruiting participants to join their BETA community, and help shape the future of personalized medicine. The BETA program will allow participants to utilize GoFires proprietary vaporizer and experience, first hand, GoFires micro-dosing technology and personal dosing app.

We are extremely excited to launch this BETA community, and look forward to our partners using the device to understand how GoFire might help them find relief and improve their process of consuming plant-based medicine., says Peter Calfee, founder and CEO of GoFire.

Individuals will be selected for the private BETA program beginning this Fall. Applications are currently being accepted, and will remain open until August. The selection process will take place shortly thereafter, followed by a four week, extended-use testing period beginning in September. Over the duration of the testing period, participants will have the opportunity to guide how GoFire products look, function, and feel. Participants will be the first to optimize their dose, quantifying their mind and bodys needs to feeling their best with alternative medicine.

Interested applicants should apply at http://www.gofire.co/beta/ to be considered as 1 of 100 Beta Testers to experience the future of personalized medicine. Questions regarding the opportunity may be directed toward the GoFire BETA Team at: help@gofire.co. For more information about GoFire, visit http://www.gofire.co/.

About GoFire

GoFire is a digital healthcare company delivering a safe, reliable platform to consume and manage alternative medicine(s). GoFires proprietary micro-dosing technology enables precise control of plant-based concentrates in metered, controllable increments. A connected vaporization device with mobile app and intelligent cloud enables a Big Data application, which provides a method of learning consistency for patients and caregivers who rely on or recommend alternative medicine. Now, patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals can quantify dosing regimens based on the chemical profile, size of dose, and patient condition with confidence.

About Peter Calfee

Peter Calfee is a health-technology entrepreneur and investor. His focus on structure and organizational development has helped develop multiple Colorado start-up companies, including a medical device company and an alternative health research facility.

Peter has more than 9 years of experience in the life sciences and alternative health industry, and is a private equity investor of multiple wellness-based companies. He believes research-based initiatives are the only way to unlock the inherent value of alternative medicine, and intends to continue laying new clinical frameworks that validate the medicinal efficacy of phytomedicine. Peter intends to leverage his keen understanding of extraction and molecular science to further clinical research initiatives surrounding phytopharmaceuticals.

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HEALTHCARE TECHNOLOGY STARTUP LAUNCHES STANDARDIZED DOSING PLATFORM: GoFire Seeks Beta ... - Dope Magazine

The review has been prompted by complaints that some organisations make unfounded claims about CAM therapies. Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

Charities that promote unproven treatments for sick patients could be stripped of their charitable status under proposals being considered by the UK governments regulator.

The Charity Commission is reviewing how it decides which organisations qualify as charities a status that brings authority as well as tax breaks after it received complaints that some organisations make unfounded claims about complementary and alternative (CAM) therapies.

Hundreds of charities registered in the UK promote CAM therapies for all kinds of ailments, and while some interventions have demonstrable benefits such as hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome many more are unproven.

The Commission has received more than 300 responses to a public consultation on the issue, which closes on Friday, with many submissions coming from charities themselves. The British Homeopathic Association, which believes that CAM charities are being unfairly targeted by the review, points out that doctors and nurses around the world use CAM therapies in daily practice because they believe they help patients.

But an investigation by Les Rose, a clinical science consultant with the charity HealthWatch, claims to have found that dozens of UK-registered CAM charities offered dubious advice to people. Some discouraged vaccinations while others promoted homeopathic remedies for serious illnesses or invited donations to treat people at a distance by transmitting healing energy.

The assumption is that charities are regulated and the regulator will make sure that they are bona fide, but the regulator doesnt do anything of the kind, Rose told the Guardian. The Commission has to give these charities notice that they will be expected to provide evidence for any claims they make and that theyll be de-registered if they dont do it.

The Charity Commission already requires health charities to provide reliable evidence of their public benefit, but critics allege that these guidelines are not properly applied to CAM charities. To be registered as a charity, the benefits of an organisations work must outweigh any potential harms.

The problem is that the Commission does not follow its own policy, which effectively allows organisations to promote unproven, disproven and even dangerous therapies under the respectable banner of charitable status, said Simon Singh, founder of the Good Thinking Society, which threatened the Charity Commission with a judicial review if it failed to review CAM charities. In its own submission to the consultation, the Good Thinking Society calls for organisations that fail to provide good evidence for their therapies to be removed from the charities register until such time as good evidence is available.

Margaret Wyllie, chair of the British Homeopathic Association, said the Charity Commissions guidance had served it well for years and that it had only launched the review because of a legal threat from a small group of activists committed to depriving people of the choice of using CAM as part of their healthcare.

There is no evidence that demonstrates increased danger to anyone from using CAM, which would necessitate this consultation. While the Charity Commission must ensure that charities are not promoting therapies or lifestyles that cause harm, the evidence they should consider is that of public benefit and here CAM charities can point to the millions of people worldwide who regularly use these therapies and find them beneficial to health, she added.

Doctors have reported cases where CAM therapies have proved harmful. These include infections, trauma and even death caused by acupuncture, and medical complications caused by herbal remedies being used alongside conventional medicines. They also raise concerns that patients might delay or completely avoid effective treatments and use unproven alternatives instead.

Another charity, Sense about Science, wants the Charity Commission to adopt a peer review system that draws on expertise from medical bodies such as the royal colleges to assess charities claims. One of the reasons that quackery succeeds is because it wears so much of the garb of medicine and of legitimate medical charities, said Tracey Brown, the charitys director.

John Maton, head of charitable status at the Commission, said the regulator was aware of the considerable public debate around complementary and alternative medicines. Our approach has been to seek a wide range of views to inform our future approach to CAM, he said. It is clear that there are strongly held but conflicting views on the types and level of evidence that should be required.

The Commission expects to publish its analysis of the consultation in August and confirm any new policy in the autumn.

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Regulator could strip alternative medicine charities of their status - The Guardian

A medical marijuana company filed an emergency motion Monday asking a judge to forbid the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission from issuing any final licenses to grow the drug.

If granted, the request could put on hold an industry that was poised to get off the ground this month after years of delay and controversy.

Alternative Medicine Maryland asked Baltimore Circuit Judge Barry G. Williams to issue a temporary injunction against the commission, arguing the entire licensing process should be stopped because the commission appears poised to grant final licenses.

The company first wants the court to weigh in on whether the law was followed during the process. In the motion, the company's lawyers argued that a lawyer for the state admitted during a deposition last week that regulators did not consider applicants' race when awarding preliminary licenses as required by law.

The request for an emergency halt to the process comes as the marijuana commission is scheduled to meet Wednesday to discuss the progress of 15 companies that did win initial approval to grow marijuana a meeting that is among the final steps in the process to begin legal cultivation of medical marijuana.

None of the 15 companies that won initial approval to grow the drug are led by African-Americans, who make up about a third of the state's population.

"Time is of the essence," Alternative Medicine Maryland's lawyers wrote to Judge Williams. "It is undisputed that the commission made no attempt to ... actively seek racial and ethnic diversity throughout the licensing process."

The commission's chairman, Paul Davies, did not respond to a request for comment.

The leader of a medical marijuana industry group said in a statement that the filing would delay making medical marijuana available to patients in the name of "money and power."

"This is a frivolous legal filing by an out-of state company and its lobbyist that threatens to delay Maryland's medical cannabis program even further," said Jake Van Wingerden, chairman of the Maryland Wholesale Medical Cannabis Association. Alternative Medicine Maryland "was unsuccessful in its home state of New York, did not even finish in the top 20 in Maryland's double-blind application process, and is now seeking to disrupt Maryland's medical cannabis program to satisfy its own greed."

The state law legalizing medical marijuana required the commission to "actively seek" racial diversity among approved growers and distributors. Alternative Medicine Maryland, which is led by an African-American and did not receive a preliminary license, filed a lawsuit last year alleging the commission broke the law by failing to use a race-conscious application process.

Attorneys for the company said last week's deposition marked the first time that the state acknowledged in court proceedings that it did not dispute that regulators did not consider race.

The commission's failure to consider race when picking the winning companies also sparked a prolonged fight in the Maryland General Assembly over whether to expand the industry. The Legislative Black Caucus pushed for at least five more marijuana growing licenses to be issued, in order to make sure minority-owned firms had a fair shot a potentially lucrative industry. The issue was not resolved before the annual legislative session adjourned last month.

Del. Cheryl Glenn, chair of the Legislative Black Caucus and a leading medical marijuana advocate, said the company's motion to halt the process because of racial disparity was "wonderful."

"I don't want to keep this drug out of the hands of patients any longer than necessary," she said. "Delays are never good, but delays are sometimes necessary."

Gov. Larry Hogan has issued an executive order asking for disparity study on whether minority companies face a disadvantage in the medical marijuana industry. Such a study is a precursor to giving preference on the basis of race.

The governor and legislative leaders also are considering whether to recall lawmakers to Annapolis for a special legislative session to consider how to increase diversity among medical marijuana growers.

The state legalized medical marijuana in 2013, but it has taken more than four years for the program to launch.

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Medical marijuana firm seeks emergency ruling to halt Maryland ... - Baltimore Sun

Although there are exceptions, such as hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome, in the majority of cases alternative therapies are unproven, disproven or worst of all actively harmful. Photograph: Alamy

Right now, the Charity Commission is in the middle of a public consultation, asking whether or not organisations that offer complementary and alternative therapies should continue to have charitable status. This review presents an unprecedented opportunity for the public to turn the tide, and to make it clear to the Charity Commission that it is not enough to make a medical claim, but that such claims have to be backed up by reliable evidence.

There are currently more than 167,000 charities registered with the Charity Commission, each of which must meet one of 13 pre-defined charitable purposes, as well as operating for the public benefit. One such purpose is the advancement of health or the saving of lives. It is this purpose that most complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) charities currently registered with the Charity Commission claim to have as an objective, arguing that the promotion of CAM treatments is a benefit to the public.

However, last year scientists and medical professionals, working alongside the Good Thinking Society (ourselves a registered charity - #1147404), wrote to the Charity Commission in a letter also published in The Times (paywall). The letter urged the Commission to reconsider whether organisations offering or promoting alternative therapies should qualify under this purpose, given the lack of evidence of efficacy for the overwhelming majority of alternative therapies. In September last year, the Commission agreed to the review, and plan to announce their conclusions by 1 July 2017. As part of that review, the Commission is currently inviting interested professional bodies and members of the public to share their thoughts.

Although there are exceptions, such as hypnotherapy for irritable bowel syndrome, in the majority of cases alternative therapies are unproven, disproven or worst of all actively harmful. This means that some alternative medicine charities not only fail the public benefit test, but may result in harm, especially if patients delay seeking effective, conventional medicine.

Take, for instance, Cancer Active (registered charity #1102413), who describe themselves as the UKs number 1 Complementary Cancer Charity and whose charitable purpose is to provide information from all published scientific sources around the world so that people wanting to beat cancer can make more informed choices. The charity has written in praise of the highly dangerous and caustic black salve, a topical ointment which burns the skin, leaving many users with severe scarring.

Another example of advice that does not meet the standards of mainstream science was republished by Cancer Active in 2012, in a lengthy article from the magazine What doctors dont tell you entitled Much more than placebo: Homeopathy reverses cancer, which claimed:

Several homeopathic remedies are as effective as powerful chemotherapy, according to clinical trials, and thousands of cancer cases are being reversed by homeopathy alone.

It is not hard to imagine that someone suffering from cancer could follow this advice, with potentially disastrous consequences. Although the Cancer Active has added a disclaimer, in the end, the piece has been republished and promoted by a registered medical charity, with all of the credibility and legitimacy charitable status confers. The charity may be offering some sound information, but it is also making disturbing claims about some alternative therapies.

Other organisations are also deeply concerning. The Maun Homeopathy Project (registered charity #1109958) is run by a board member of the Society of Homeopaths with the charitable purpose of Providing a free homeopathic service for women, men and children living with HIV and AIDS and/or traumatised by rape in Maun, Botswana. Given the lack of convincing evidence and total absence of plausibility that homeopathy is effective for any condition at all, it is in our opinion hard to see how the Maun Homeopathy Projects work aimed at some of the worlds most vulnerable people can be said to offer any real public benefit.

There are financial issues with granting CAM organisations charitable status too: The Vaccination Awareness Network (registered charity #1072794) defines its goal as To advance the education of the public in all matters relating to vaccination and immunisation . However, its website betrays a bias: its url is not vaccinationawareness.com, but vaccineriskawareness.com and the sites banner slogan is the Latin quotation Qui medice vivit misere vivit which translates as He who lives medically lives miserably.

There is little sign of this charity presenting balanced scientific information; instead, their efforts involve spreading anti-vaccine advice such as is contained in their article Your Immune System, How It Works and How Vaccines Damage It:

Vaccination the act of artificially acquiring a disease so as to become immune to it is flawed in a number of ways. Firstly, a vaccine contains many hazardous chemicals and not just the viruses to immunise against. These each have their own toxic affect [sic] on the body.

This anti-vaccination rhetoric in the Vaccination Awareness Networks material can be very persuasive to parents of young children as the current re-emergence of the anti-vaccination movement in the UK and elsewhere demonstrates. It raises the question of whether it is right, at a time when Public Health England is working hard to raise vaccination rates across the country, that an organisation which discourages vaccination by spreading misinformation should be given charitable status and afforded tax benefits. The organisation has a right to free speech, of course, but it does not have an automatic right to charitable status. It is hard to see how it can be convincingly argued that the government should, through tax breaks and eligibility for Gift Aid, be subsidising the spread of dangerous vaccine misinformation.

The review by the Charity Commission is long overdue, particularly as Commissions existing policy already states that claims to offer public benefit should be backed by more than anecdotal evidence. The review needs to acknowledge this policy and emphasise the importance of applying it in order to protect the public and patients.

This is also an opportunity for the Commission to protect public confidence in the charity sector as a whole after all, those people who are generous enough to make donations to charitable organisations need the reassurance that charities are acting for the public benefit, and in particular that health charities are promoting treatments that are based in evidence.

If the Commission actually implements its policy in relation to requiring evidence of public benefit, then it may mean that some organisations lose their charitable status. However, organisations which do not meet the criteria for charitable status will not be shut down, they simply will not be given the credibility and the financial benefits that come from being a registered charity. In some cases, it may mean that a charity stops its non-evidenced activities, and focuses on its projects that have a demonstrable public benefit.

In turn, the public will have more confidence that when they give their money to charities especially health charities those organisations will have shown their treatments offer a public benefit, which ultimately means more people will be helped more effectively, and fewer people will be harmed unnecessarily.

The Charity Commissions CAM consultation closes on 19 May, and the public are invited to respond. As project director at the Good Thinking Society, I have submitted a response, which is available to read via our website. We know that supporters of alternative therapies will be responding to the review, so it is vital that doctors, nurses, scientists, those who care about evidence-based medicine and evidence-based philanthropy, as well as everyone who donates to charity, make their voices heard by taking part in the consultation.

In prompting and contributing to this review, we feel we are making a very fair and reasonable request, namely that those who want charitable status to promote or offer an alternative therapy should be able to present an appropriate level of evidence to show that they offer a public benefit, in accordance with the law. Is that too much to ask?

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Should complementary and alternative medicine charities lose their charitable status? - The Guardian (blog)