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Journal of Consumer Health Onthe InternetPublication details, including instructions forauthors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/wchi20

ALTERNATIVE ANDCOMPLEMENTARY THERAPIESLillian R. Brazin MS, AHIP aa Library Services, Albert Einstein HealthcareNetwork , 5501 Old York Road, Philadelphia, PA,19141, USA E-mail:Published online: 03 Oct 2008.

To cite this article: Lillian R. Brazin MS, AHIP (2007) ALTERNATIVE ANDCOMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES, Journal of Consumer Health On the Internet, 11:2,91-96, DOI: 10.1300/J381v11n02_08

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ALTERNATIVEAND COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES

Esther Y. Dell and Suzanne M. Shultz, Column Editors

This column is intended to be a guide to Internet resources dealing withalternative and complementary therapies, also known as unconventionalor unorthodox therapies. According to a landmark study published inthe New England Journal of Medicine in 1993, these non-traditionalmethods for health and healing are sought after by one-third of all personssurveyed.

Each article in this column will focus on an Internet site, a specific di-agnosis, or a therapeutic modality. Anyone interested in submitting com-ments or material for publication should contact: Esther Y. Dell, TheGeorge T. Harrell Library, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Pennsyl-vania State University, P.O. Box 850, Hershey, PA 17033 (e-mail:eyd1@psu.edu).

DISCLAIMER: This column serves only as a resource guide. Read-ers are not to assume that the coverage of subjects is comprehensive.The column editors and the journal do not vouch for the validity of theinformation from sources described.

Column Co-Editors:

Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, Vol. 11(2) 2007Available online at http://jchi.haworthpress.com

© 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.doi:10.1300/J381v11n02_08 91

Esther Y. DellThe George T. Harrell LibraryMilton S. Hershey Medical CenterPennsylvania State UniversityP.O. Box 850Hershey, PA 17033-0850

Suzanne M. ShultzPhilip A. Hoover, M.D. LibraryWellspan HealthYork Hospital1001 S. George StreetYork, PA 17405

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Quackwatch:Valuable Resource Despite

Anti-Alternative Medicine Slant

Lillian R. Brazin

ABSTRACT. Quackwatch <http://www.quackwatch.org> is the Website created and maintained by Stephen Barrett, MD, a retired psychia-trist and current vice-president of the National Council Against HealthFraud. The site displays an obvious bias against all forms of alternativemedicine, but the information on, and links to, the traditional medicalsites are very thorough and informative for consumers. The contribu-tors to Quackwatch have excellent credentials, and Barrett keeps theresource current. doi:10.1300/J381v11n02_08 [Article copies available fora fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH.E-mail address: <docdelivery@haworthpress.com> Website: <http://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.].

KEYWORDS. Alternative medicine, quackery

INTRODUCTION

Quackwatch: Your Guide to Quackery, Health Fraud, and IntelligentDecisions <http://www.quackwatch.org> is the Web site created andmaintained by Stephen Barrett, MD. The mission of Quackwatch is “tocombat health-related frauds, myths, fads, fallacies, and misconduct.”Barrett is a retired psychiatrist who is currently vice-president of the

Lillian R. Brazin, MS, AHIP (brazinl@einstein.edu) is Director, Library Services,Albert Einstein Healthcare Network, 5501 Old York Road, Philadelphia, PA 19141.

Journal of Consumer Health on the Internet, Vol. 11(2) 2007Available online at http://jchi.haworthpress.com

© 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved 93

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National Council Against Health Fraud. He has written books pub-lished by Consumer Reports and has appeared on national televisionnews and interview programs. He first became interested in health fraudand quackery in the 1960s and later formed the Lehigh Valley Commit-tee Against Health Fraud, a group of physicians and others interested inthe subject. Over the years he focused more and more on writing andbegan Quackwatch.org in 1997.

BACKGROUND

Quackwatch is a nonprofit corporation, soliciting contributions fromviewers and selling publications. Quackwatch.org features links to spon-soring sites, including Amazon.com, HealthGrades, and Netflix. Barrettstates that it costs $7,000 a year to support Quackwatch and relatedsites. He credits his wife, a “scholarly” family physician, and colleagueexperts in the fields of dentistry, medicine, nutrition, podiatry, and vet-erinary medicine, and an extensive personal library as the resourcesupon which he relies. He does not mention librarians, but from his un-derstanding of the intricacies of search engines and search strategy, andhis choice of the best medical Web sites, he must have had some work-ing contact with skilled medical librarians. Indeed, the arrangement ofQuackwatch and many of the featured sections and links (“How to Spota Quacky Web Site,” “Internet Health Pilot: Your Gateway to ReliableHealth Information,” and “Seven Warning Signs of Bogus Science”)could have been written by academic health sciences or consumerhealth librarians. Quackwatch includes more than a dozen affiliatedsites, but about half of these are currently under construction and havelittle content.

FEATURES

At the very least, Quackwatch is entertaining and a useful resourcefor trivia buffs, public librarians, and consumer health librarians.Barrett includes a link to dozens of urban legends and hoaxes, most ofwhich are on medical or health topics (why Altoids mints are curiouslyrefreshing, the belief that Febreze fabric sheets are toxic to pets, theexistence of kidney thieves, etc.).

Browse topics such as alternative cancer treatment, chelation therapy,faith healing, iridology, magnet therapy, and a dictionary and glossary of

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alternative medicine methodologies. Jack Raso, MS, RD, who is on theboard of the National Council Against Health Fraud, compiled an exten-sive dictionary and glossary. It lists terms, procedures, and philosophiesrelated to alternative medicine. Raso’s bias is reflected in the frequent useof qualifiers (“purported,” “supposed,” “claims,” and “apparent”). Manyof the other topical sections are written or co-written by Barrett and arevery thorough, well documented, and well organized.

Quackwatch meets the criteria of credible Web sites because of thefollowing hallmarks:

• The identity and contact information of Stephen Barrett, MD, isclearly indicated.

• Much of the content is current, and the creation or revision date isposted.

• Quackwatch follows the HONcode principles of the Health on theNet Foundation.

• Credibility or validity is documented by references to articleswritten by a variety of health experts.

• It is non-commercial (for the most part).• Purpose or mission is clearly stated.• Audience is evident.• Site is easy to navigate.• Content is thorough, although biased against alternative medicine.

THREE QUIRKY SITES:PRAISE AND CRITICISM

No matter what their opinion of Barrett or Quackwatch, librari-ans will admire the extensive documentation of material posted onthe site. Criticize Barrett or Quackwatch, and be prepared to have allskeletons unearthed from one’s closet. He has read and analyzed thearticles, research, public statements, financial dealings, and creden-tials of Nicholas Perricone, Gary Null, and Deepak Chopra, amongothers. Note the section “Non-recommended Sources of Health Ad-vice,” which covers individuals, books, Web sites, schools, periodicals,and organizations. Medical librarians will be pleased to note thatQuackwatch recommends HONcode, KidsHealth, and MedlinePlus,among other well-known sites. Barrett advises consumers, however,to ignore references to alternative medicine that are present on some ofthese Web resources.

Alternative and Complementary Therapies 95

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It should come as no surprise that this feisty sleuth has enraged some ofhis critics. One, Tim Bolen, maintains the Web site Quackpotwatch.org<http://www.quackpotwatch.org>, the archive of Millions of HealthFreedom Fighters–Newsletter. Bolen, owner of JuriMed, representsnon-mainstream health practitioners who are being sued or probedby the government or law enforcement groups. He refers to Barrettand his associates as “quackbusters,” underwritten by the medical andpharmaceutical establishment. Visit both colorfully written sites andjudge for yourself. Also view Physicians Committee for ResponsibleMedicine <http://www.pcrm.org>. The founder and president, NealD. Barnard, MD, like Barrett, is a psychiatrist by training. PCRM’sfocus is nutrition, specifically the virtues of a low-fat, vegetarian diet.PCRM also supports alternatives to animal models in research andtraining of medical students. PCRM is generally very low keyed in itsmedia campaigns, with the notable exception of its anti-Atkins Dietcommercials. Each of these three Web sites has valuable informationfor consumers, but Quackwatch has the largest amount of usefulmaterial.

CONCLUSION

For the patient facing a bleak prognosis, particularly advanced can-cer, it is difficult to advise any one path to follow, knowing that there isa natural inclination to grasp at anything offering hope. The patient’sown health care provider should be the final authority, but decisions re-garding nutritional therapy and other alternative therapies should bebacked by credible information. Quackwatch can provide some of thisinformation.

REFERENCES

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. Available: <http://www.pcrm.org>.Accessed: October 13, 2006.

Quackpotwatch. Available: <http://www.quackpotwatch.org>. Accessed: October 13,2006.

Quackwatch. Available: <http://www.quackwatch.org>. Accessed: October 13, 2006.

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