Medical Quackery and Traditional Medicine

What is A Quack?uack are people who perform healing procedures or prescribe remedies for illnesses even without formal education and licenses.

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What is A Quackery?

uackery involves the use of methods or remedies to cure diseases that are not scientifically accepted.

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Possible Effects of Quackery?1. A person who is terribly ill almost always

dies in the hands of a quack.2. A sick person who goes to a quack for

treatment instead of a doctor may only be prolonging his/her illness.

3. Even if no actual healing has been done, the patient gets well merely by his/her own faith, either in the quack or in the remedies given. (Placebo effect)

4. Money wasted since a patient’s condition will not improve under a quack.

5. The patient’s family may only get false hopes if the quack assures them of the patient’s complete healing.

How to identify Medical Quacks1. Some of them utilize advertisements to

promote their product.2. Most of them perform their services in their

homes. 3. Some claim to have secret formulas which

cannot be obtained from drugstores.4. Some of them perform their services w/o

regard for sanitation.5. Some utter vague prayers or incantations

while they are treating their patients.6. Most of them use the same procedure or

medicinal formula for all kinds of illnesses.

The Usual Victims of Medical Quackery

1. Suffer from serious ailment or diseases, like cancer, heart problem, etc.

2. Are afraid of doctors or refuse to undergo surgery although they have been advised to do so by doctors.

3. Suffer from severe pains, and4. Usually put high premium on vanity.

What is Health Fads?consumer craze or consumer myths

Refers to belief about health that gain instant popularity: stay on belief: then, die down eventually.

Health Fads1. Some supplementary food like

unproven herbal drinks or energy drinks that gives extra strength and increase the body’s resistance to diseases.

2. Organic or natural food is better than regular food available in stores.

3. Wearing a copper bracelet can alleviate pain and cure diseases.

Possible Effect of Following Health Fads

1. These can lead to spending money on less important or unnecessary products.

2. These can lead to wasteful spending on usually overpriced specialty.

3. These can lead to spending so much on worthless forms of therapies.

4. These can cause harm to the body.

Alternative/Traditional MedicineWHO defined traditional medicine

as “medicine that refers to health practices, approaches, knowledge and beliefs incorporating plant, animal and mineral-based medicines, spiritual therapies, manual techniques and exercises, applied singularly or in combination to treat, diagnose, and prevent illnesses or maintain well-being.

QuackeryAgree or

Disagree. Why?An old saying, "A robber demands

your money or your life; but, a quack demands your money and your

life!"

Practitioners of Traditional Medicine

Albularyo

Hilot

Practitioners of Traditional MedicineAlbular

yo• uses plants to cure illnesses.

contains substances

Medicinal plants or

herbs• Michael L. Tan – Term albularyo is misleading.• Spanish-Filipino – “herbalist”•Western countries – medicinal plants – small herbs• Philippines – medicinal plants –herbs & forest tress

Hilot

Practitioners of Traditional Medicine

• assist in giving birth• provides cure for sprains and muscle pains• recognized including DOH.

Categories of Herbal DrugsWorld Health Organization (WHO)

categorizes medicinal uses of herbal drugs as: 1. Those supported by clinical data.2. Those described in official

pharmacopoeias and in traditional systems pd medicines.

3. Those described in folk medicine not yet supported by experimental data or clinical data.

Importance of Traditional Medicine

1. Medicinal plants are cheap alternatives to expensive medicines, particularly for the poor.

2. Traditional medicines is more-holistic approach to treatment. It is said that “Western medicine treats the diseases while traditional medicine treats the person.”

3. The albularyo & hilot play, to come extent, the role of doctors in rural areas.

The End