The websites Homeopathy Plus! and www.d-n-h.org have been ordered to remove information suggesting “homeopathic immunisation” is as effective as vaccination and issue a retraction following a complaint made to the Therapeutic Goods Administration.
Dr Ken Harvey, a lecturer at Latrobe University School of Public Health, who authored the complaint (read the full complaint as a pdf here), objected to claims on the website that “homeopathic immunisation is effective against poliomyelitis, chicken pox, meningococcal disease, hepatitis (all types), Japanese encephalitis, Hib, influenza, measles, pneumococcal disease, smallpox, typhoid, cholera, typhus, whooping cough, rubella, mumps, diptheria, malaria, tetanus, yellow fever, dysentery and many other epidemic diseases”.
The websites, classified as advertisements for the purposes of the complaint, also claimed that “recent research conducted at Swinburne University by Australian homeopath, Dr Isaac Golden confirmed that homeoprophylaxis provides the same degree, or better protection, than vaccines with none of their side effects or complications.”
About influenza, the websites state that the homeopathic preparation, “Anas Barbariae relieves the intensity and shortens the duration of flu symptoms better than anti-virals…..without the side effects” and “symptoms are sometimes removed in a few hours”.
In reference to the claims about the positive results of Isaac Golden, Dr Harvey noted these claims are directly contradicted by the thesis from where they are sourced. Golden’s thesis contains the statement; “the effectiveness of the homeopathic immunisation programme could not be established with statistical certainty given the small sample size..”. In spite of this, and in lieu of providing further evidence, the complainant stated (in part) that the thesis had “indeed reached a positive conclusion with a high degree of confidence”.
The findings from The Complaints Resolution Panel stated that although the complainant cited references for homeoprophylaxis, they “did not provide complete copies of the papers cited.” Further, the material on the websites was deemed “misleading”, “unverified” and “abused the trust or exploited the lack of knowledge of consumers” (my emphasis).
The Panel found that none of the material supplied by the advertiser supported claims made on the websites, and therefore the information was misleading and “likely to arouse unwarranted expectations” from consumers. The Panel ruled for Homeopathy Plus! and www.d-n-h.org to remove the misleading material and issue a retraction on their websites which is to remain for 90 days. The advertiser has 14 days to comply with the ruling.
Claims about efficacy of homeopathic immunisation are in direct contravention to statements from the National Council for Homeopathy London which “strongly supports the conventional vaccination programme..”. In Australia, The Executive Director of the Australian Natural Therapies Association said “no properly qualified natural therapist would recommend homeopathic immunisation as an alternative to conventional immunisation”.
This comes at a time when NSW Health authorities have issued a warning about meningococcal disease following the death of a woman in Sydney, and a spike in cases in NSW, with eight reported in December 2009, in Sydney.
For more information about homeopathy, see the 10:23 campaign. To participate in a mass homeopathy suicide attempt in Australia, see the events page on Facebook.
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Comments ( 47 )
[...] They demonstrate that skeptical activism can have concrete positive effects. Most recently they issued a complaint to the Therapeutic Goods Administration (the Australian equivalent of the FDA) about the claims [...]
NeuroLogica Blog » Homeopathy Victory in Australia added these pithy words on Jan 21 10 at 11:05 pm[...] » Homeopathy websites prosecuted for false advertising [...]
WPMage Online Marketing | My Web Tools added these pithy words on Jan 22 10 at 8:39 am[...] I’ve taken the liberty of including a post from Dr. Rachie herself, showing a rare example of regulatory oversight actually calling BS on claims. And finally, Bing shares a few snapshots from his tour of the Creation [...]
129th Skeptics’ Circle! « The SkeptVet Blog added these pithy words on Jan 28 10 at 4:31 pm[...] paper that had apparently found a cure for breast cancer (according to Homeopathy Plus!, yes those guys), was published in the International Journal of Oncology* and entitled “Cytotoxic Effects of [...]
» A giant leap in logic from a piece of bad science added these pithy words on Feb 14 10 at 4:32 pmBastard Sheep added these pithy words on Jan 21 10 at 7:57 pmWow, just wow. This is some of the best news I have seen in a LONG time. I’ve lost count of the number of times antivaxxers and other quacks linked to those mentions of the study on those sites, and no matter how hard I tried I could not find either the study itself or a proper critique of it so their claims were unarguable.
This is absolutely brilliant, it’s great to see these quacks caught out blatantly lieing yet AGAIN. It’s a shame they’re not getting smacked down any more than this, though. They really are extremely dangerous people.
Tyler Shepherd added these pithy words on Jan 21 10 at 8:23 pmHey,
Good piece, good news, really nice blog, will be following in the future.. I’m wondering about the image you used in this post (”SHIT AND SUGAR”), where you got it, if I can use it, and if so where I can get a quality file for print.
I was just thinking to print a few dozen and throw them up in the areas of my town most rife with quackery and shit-science outlets, next to the concert posters.
Thanks,
Tyler
AndyD added these pithy words on Jan 21 10 at 9:00 pmI wouldn’t know Dr Ken Harvey if I fell over him but looking through the TGA complaints site, he is certainly the quiet achiever. Deserves an award for patience and persistence.
Stephen Barrett, M.D added these pithy words on Jan 22 10 at 6:53 amToday I note that homeoplus.org has not yet complied with the order to remove the violative information.
Emma added these pithy words on Jan 22 10 at 8:42 amJeepers people, I’m all for dissing the mad homeopathy claims and putting them out of business, but please display ads that get their basic logic right – “if water has a memory” then homeopathy is TRUE (not full of shit). It’s a pretty obvious mistake, and when skeptics make basic mistakes we look quite as stupid as the charlatans we are trying to out.
AndyD added these pithy words on Jan 22 10 at 3:47 pmHmmm, still no obvious message on their website. But there is an ad promoting homeopathy for plants. Imagine water being useful to plants. Who would have thought?
There’s also a promise to bring news about a homeopathic cockroach repellant. Now that product should be VERY easy to test objectively. But I wonder if the cockroaches have to believe in homeopathy for it to work?
kelly added these pithy words on Jan 22 10 at 8:38 pmThis may only have proved that Dr. Harvey may be a quack – it does not prove that homeopathy is quackery.
If there was an orthodox doctor that used quackery, then, using the same “method” you did, you are also now a quack.
I look forward to better posts from you (this is supposed to be an encouragement, no an insult).
Maggie added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 12:07 amHi Emma,
I think you may have missed the point of the humorous poster displayed here. The point is, if water has a memory, then it would not only remember what homeopaths add to it, but everything else that has previously been in it, including faeces. So then homeopathy would literally be “full of shit”.
Maggie added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 12:12 amHi Tyler, the poster was created by The American Association for the Destruction of Tooth Fairy Science and is free to download and distribute. You can find a link to a high resolution version here.
Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 12:16 amOh dear…. I sent them an email reminding them that they needed to abide by the TGA’s findings and I got a caustic reply from them….. I just *had* to send something back!
Maggie added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 12:50 amHi IIijas, what kind of response did you receive? Cheers
reasonablehank added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 12:56 am@Kelly.
Difficult to respond to a conscious stream of non-sequiturs such as you have posted.
Who’s the quack again?
And you question the content from the author of the post? Oh, my.
I look forward to better comments from you (this is supposed to be encouragement, *not* an insult).
w_nightshade added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 1:24 amI notice the Immunisation section of the offending site now only has 5 linked articles (3 of which are about how TERRIFYING vaccines are).
Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 8:08 amHi Maggie,
This is the actual email I got from them:
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:44:31 +1100
From: Office@homeopathyplus.com.au
To: snifferdogx@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: CommentsDear Ilijas,
Thank you for your email but it has caused some concern for us.
Do you have a reputation for meddling in other people’s affairs? Are you known by those around you as a control freak?
Both of these rather unfortunate personality traits can be easily treated but unfortunately the ignorance that accompanies them is much harder to remove.
If we can be of any help please feel free to contact us again.
Regards,
Office Administration
The Homeopathy Plus! TeamApart from being downright insulting and hostile, doesn’t this come under the “ad hominem” logical fallacy?
Ilijas.
Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 8:13 amAnd here is the entire trail of emails between us and homeopathy plus, including my original email to them, and my response to their response.
RE: Comments?
From: Sniffer Dog (snifferdogx@hotmail.com)
Sent: Friday, 22 January 2010 8:24:27 PM
To: office@homeopathyplus.com.au
1 attachment
header_sh…jpg (21.1 KB)Thank you for the unsigned email.
I sincerely hope that you will have the decency and courtesy of adding your name to any further correspondences otherwise I will have to escalate this matter to the appropriate government agency.
It is particularly disconcerting to me that you have taken the approach of insulting me when I have provided you with a reminder of your obligations under the Code.
I will take this opportunity to remind you that the primary objective of the Code is to protect the consumer, i.e. the people that you are trying to sell your products to.
Furthermore I will also take this opportunity to remind you that you have engaged in a marketing strategy that has been deemed as a breach of the Code, and has been considered not to be in the best interests of the consumers.
The finding of the TGA is a public document, and it is made public so consumers can read it and direct any queries or concerns they have. This does not preclude your company from any comments, suggestions or concerns.
What I have written to you is out of concern that you are not abiding with a guideline that you must operate within.
Insulting people who have expressed such concerns does not serve to further your business.
Lastly, it is most objectionable and disingenuous of your company to disseminate information that is not supported by literature in the form of formal studies.
Rather than insulting me, you may choose to take the more mature and sensible option of actually providing information that you have based your assertions on so that any reader is able to have more thorough understanding of why and how you have come to take this position.
The absence of this information (and presence of insults) in your email suggests that your position is ideological rather than factual, and therefore cannot be in the best interests of the consumers.
Your correspondence has not indicated any inclination to engage in any intellectual discourse or even demonstrate common courtesy.
Yours sincerely,
Ilijas.
Date: Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:44:31 +1100
From: Office@homeopathyplus.com.au
To: snifferdogx@hotmail.com
Subject: Re: CommentsDear Ilijas,
Thank you for your email but it has caused some concern for us.
Do you have a reputation for meddling in other people’s affairs? Are you known by those around you as a control freak?
Both of these rather unfortunate personality traits can be easily treated but unfortunately the ignorance that accompanies them is much harder to remove.
If we can be of any help please feel free to contact us again.
Regards,
Office Administration
The Homeopathy Plus! Team
Ph: (612) 4304 0822
http://www.homeopathyplus.com.auilijas wrote:
Please ensure that you comply with the TGA ruling to take down the advert that you have on your website and provide evidence to the TGA that you have done so within 14 days of the date they issued their decision.Furthermore, I would like to point out that the page on the link between vaccines and autism is misleading due to demonstrable scientific evidence to the contrary, lacks credible or substantive sources.
Please ensure that you amend or remove this page should you risk a further complaint being lodged to the TGA.
Thanks,
Ilijas.
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Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 23 10 at 9:01 amI think I may have made a few terrible miscalculations…. I’m in deep hot water now!
dreadpiratemick added these pithy words on Jan 24 10 at 8:49 amA fantastic win for health, science, and truth in advertising. Hurrah.
Mike added these pithy words on Jan 24 10 at 8:49 amWhat a wonderful win for science and reason. Stand strong, skeptics, we will push these airheads into obscurity and the world will be better for it.
Jay added these pithy words on Jan 24 10 at 4:02 pmHomeopathy saved my life after being poisoned and almost dying from a pharmaceutical injection. One that the FDA did not require to list highly toxic and carcinogenic chemicals. I am a chemist who has experienced the miracle of homepathy, IV chelation, IV nutrition therapy and many other natural remedies that you likely call bogus. Big Pharma is where the deception lies. I nearly DIED by their hands!
ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 24 10 at 6:34 pmJay, I think “miracle” is the operative word in your comment here. One thing I do feel compelled to say is that your allegation of “Big Pharma” is not really consistent: CAM therapies are a multibillion dollar industry.
Have you thought that maybe an industry where there is essentially self-regulation, that does not abide by the standards of science, that relies on anecdotes as a form of evidence, that proposes a mechanism is in action that is unknown to any other field of study, and that have no substantial record or literature of any efficacy whatsoever, have you thought that maybe they might be part of a conspiracy too?
Has it occurred to you that there are manufacturers of homeopathic produts, such as Brauer who are fundamentally exactly the same sorts of companies (without the appropriate level of science, of coures) as Pfizer, Roche, Bayer etc?
The double standard you are applying here is astonishing.
Ilijas.
Crocoduck added these pithy words on Jan 25 10 at 8:54 amNever heard of Dr Ken Harvey but the guy deserves a medal! Well done.
Ichthyic added these pithy words on Jan 25 10 at 12:16 pmI am a chemist who has experienced the miracle of homepathy, IV chelation,
you don’t say?
then describe exactly how chelation works in situ, from start to finish, and show the chemical reactions, the byproducts, and which products/byproducts are actually bioreactive.
cite sources for reactivity.
well?
surely you can do that, being a chemist and all, right?
Balance added these pithy words on Jan 25 10 at 1:53 pmWhile this isn’t DIRECTLY aimed at this article, I’m not sure where else to put it…
I have been trying to find a balanced site for health, or anything related to it.
To say that Naturopathy is completely true is ridiculous. But to claim everything in it is false, is also ridiculous. Same goes for Pharma, it has some valuable uses and some failures.
Homeopathy has never interested me, yet that does not mean ALL of it is not worth looking into.Each of these claim to be for health and yet all these area’s (Pharma/Natural/Homeo/) are in it to make a buck for themselves.
No Kidding. What’s really sad is how much time people spend trying to completely discredit either side while forgetting that ALOT of people having helped by both Natural/Alternative Medicine AND/OR Pharma.This site is just another disappointment.
It is another example of ‘you’re either with me or against me’ division creating nonsense. It’s easy to feed off other peoples rage and disillusionment, from either side.
Funny to see the word ‘quacks’ CONSTANTLY tossed out there, again from both sides, when honestly a single side is never always right, nor always best for your health, and really, the only true ‘quacks’ out there are the one-sided people using the word.
Maggie added these pithy words on Jan 25 10 at 2:49 pmHi @Balance, I reserve my right to call people who says that clay wraps will cure cancer, a magic pendant can turn water into sunscreen for children, and drinking your own urine will cure AIDS, quacks. And for this, I make no apologies.
Balance added these pithy words on Jan 25 10 at 3:10 pmI never questioned your ‘right’ as you call it.
This is the typical defense I see, you pick the extremes and then say something like ‘HOW DARE ANYONE TELL ME DIFFERENT’. You make your point by yelling loudest, but your point isn’t USEFUL.
This is just a site that reaches an audience that already believe the points that it to makes (how useful), or do you really believe people are being changed by one sided rants?
Really, Clay Wraps Don’t Cure Cancer? No Kidding.
Maggie added these pithy words on Jan 25 10 at 4:14 pm@ Balance, I was simply addressing your questioning of my use of the word “quacks” on this site.
The point of this site is to analyse all types of medical treatments for which the evidence is either lacking or controversial. It just happens that the majority of products that fall into this category come under the umbrella of “alternative medicine” or “CAM”. This is precisely because once medicine has been proven to work, it is called medicine.
This does not mean that errors do not occur in conventional medicine, they do. For example, mammograms do increase your risk of getting breast cancer, if you are already susceptible, by a factor of about 2. This is known because science has tested it, acknowledged the fact and is developing better way to perform breast analysis for women at risk. But because mammograms are risky however, does not necessarily mean that thermography is a good alternative.
You will not find a lot of evidence on here to support of alt. med. because, sadly there isn’t all that much. The examples I cited are extreme, I agree, but I used them because they are examples of alt. med. modalities that are all in current usage. And they do harm. I agree with you that there are good things in alt. med., but there are also a lot of unproven and frankly dangerous, modalities.
This is the point of this site – to make consumers aware of such treatments. Conventional medicine also makes mistakes, but not as frequently as alt. med. because it is science-based, thoroughly tested and self correcting. For example, computer-aided detection systems for mammography have made diagnosis more accurate. Yes, Vioxx turned out to be not as safe as it was initially thought, so it was withdrawn. Unfortunately alt. med. does not have the same self checking mechanism.
Paul G added these pithy words on Jan 27 10 at 7:49 amBalance – Tamar’s dead. I’ll see your moonbeam and raise you a shrunken head, that is the reason for you new found thinking skills. Even ignoring your “Pharma” slip, that’s crass, cruel and paper thin. Sorry – don’t buy it.
Um… No Kidding.
Some excellent fiction:
Fran Sheffield’s “Fact [ahem] Sheet” boasting of Golden’s “largest study in the world”:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/24437453/Homeopathy-as-immunisation-Fiction-SheetResulting in WA’s Elements of Health writing the sequel;
http://www.scribd.com/doc/25689377/Homeopathic-Immunisation-Program-HomeoprophylaxisGolden – rumour has it – kept a straight face up to 5% of the time:
http://www.lifehealthchoices.com/the-center/health-options/homeoprophylaxisShudder…
Myk added these pithy words on Jan 28 10 at 9:07 amNot seeing any retraction posted on Homeopathy Plus!, yet. And they still have pages like this one: http://homeopathyplus.com.au/hplus/immunisation-issues/fact-sheet—-homeopathic-immunisation.html full of misinformation.
Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 28 10 at 5:56 pmMhmmm… and the TGA’s decision was dated 15 Jan, and gave them 14 days to comply.
Should be interesting to see if they do anything tomorrow.
Halley added these pithy words on Jan 29 10 at 9:40 amOut of curiosity – isn’t immunization spelled with a z, not the s (’immunisation’)that homeopathy plus has on the website?
Maggie added these pithy words on Jan 29 10 at 2:58 pm@Halley, in Australia, everywhere Americans use a ‘z’ we use an ’s’.
Still no sign of a retraction from them.
Michael Kingsford Gray added these pithy words on Jan 29 10 at 3:20 pmEight hours to go, and they still haven’t displayed even a hint of the required retraction.
Is there a penalty for non-compliance?
weez added these pithy words on Jan 29 10 at 6:12 pmHalley, the spelling depends on what mob issued your passport. Those who have US & Commonwealth passports tend to spell for their intended audience’s nationality, but on the ‘net, that’s more difficult to ascertain.
Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 29 10 at 6:44 pmStill no sign of that retraction. I’ll be up until midnight with a bottle champagne waiting for it, just like new year’s eve.
I’m still amazed at the rudeness of their email. No warm and fuzzy spirituality there.
Mark added these pithy words on Jan 30 10 at 9:23 amThey have yet to comply but it is quite possible nothing will happen. The following is from an interview with Mark Butler is the federal Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ken Harvey:
“Mark Butler: In a general sense, can I say the advertising regulations in these areas are deeply, deeply unsatisfactory, and the sorts of examples that Ken has raised are just a few examples of that. The complaints resolution mechanisms are unsatisfactory, what we’ve found in the last year, worryingly, is that over half of the advertisers found to be in breach of the code by the panel, have refused to comply with the panel’s directions. Those complaints are then sent out to the TGA which has no effective sanctions mechanism really, and I don’t blame the TGA for that and no-one should blame the TGA for that.”
Full interview here: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/nationalinterest/stories/2009/2696989.htm
Balance added these pithy words on Jan 30 10 at 11:02 am“Balance – Tamar’s dead. I’ll see your moonbeam and raise you a shrunken head, that is the reason for you new found thinking skills. Even ignoring your “Pharma” slip, that’s crass, cruel and paper thin. Sorry – don’t buy it. Um… No Kidding.
Some excellent fiction:
Fran Sheffield’s “Fact [ahem] Sheet” boasting of Golden’s “largest study in the world”:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/24437453/Homeopathy-as-immunisation-Fiction-SheetResulting in WA’s Elements of Health writing the sequel;
http://www.scribd.com/doc/25689377/Homeopathic-Immunisation-Program-HomeoprophylaxisGolden – rumour has it – kept a straight face up to 5% of the time:
http://www.lifehealthchoices.com/the-center/health-options/homeoprophylaxisShudder…”
My ‘Pharma slip’ yeah, I sure went on a rant. Anti-Pharma this and that. The ‘No kidding..’ from “Paul G” was also…clever.
See it anyway you want, I want a balanced position from anything I read. I support neither, even if a cyber-detective ‘outs’ me.
I just don’t see the point, from either side, fighting like dogs for no purpose (and really, this has NO purpose). The issue is people getting better. If Naturopathy works for people then so be it, if “Pharma” (as apparently that is SO VERY crass, instead of being an easier way to say it) works then so be it. But, this site does not have an answer, and instead it’s fans rant and pick on things that OBVIOUSLY don’t live up to the claims (I don’t support Homeopathy either, Paul ‘clever’ G), and I say BIG DEAL. Waste of time. ‘No Kidding’ The only people who will listen ALREADY won’t be fooled by these things. So why not have a site that see’s the mistake in both ‘Natural’ and ‘Pharma’ (that bad word again). Whats paper thin is the opinion here and the clear support for one side of an industry, even though that industry also lies and also makes mistakes. It’s not a perfect world, science can also be bought, for Natural or Man-Made products, and currently one has much more money to buy. Without bias, it’s simply the truth. This site still disappoints. But have ‘fun’ with it, as you sure won’t solve anything.
Mark added these pithy words on Jan 30 10 at 3:05 pm@Balance – We skeptics are opposed to fraudulant claims made by anyone including Big Pharma. However due to the way things are regulated the products of Big Pharma require testing and scientific proof that they work. We don’t see the years of research and testing that has gone into their products but the info is available. This testing continues after approval to see if there are any long term affects. And if a product is found to be ineffective or harmful it is withdrawn and those harmed are usually compensated.
On the other hand homeopathy makes no such efforts – homeopaths do no controlled testing and when confronted with independant trials that show no effect ignore them. Homeopaths are selling water at a high price to unsuspecting people with the fraudulant promise that it will protect them from fatal disease.
Ilijas added these pithy words on Jan 30 10 at 3:12 pmBalance, this “balanced position” as you called it is in itself a logical fallacy called a “false dichotomy”. If you want to have a genuine and meaningful balance it should be between medicine that has the science to support that it works, and medicine that doesn’t.
Your messages read as though you espouse the “big pharma” vs “alt med” debate, and it is superfluous.
Regrettably, “alt med” has quite a lot of science showing that it doesn’t work, and this is what the skeptical movement at large objects to: therapies being marketed as having medicinal benefits when they have been clearly demonstrated not to.
Michael Kingsford Gray added these pithy words on Feb 04 10 at 3:28 pmI emailed arnica.com.au on Jan 29 2010 advising them they had little time left in which to display the disclaimer as ordered.
On the 2nd Feb 2010, I recieved this quite bizarre response:
The retraction notice was put up on the front page
in June and taken down in September 2009.*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*!*
The Physician’s Prayer
>From inability to let well alone,
From too much zeal for the new
And contempt for what is old;
From putting knowledge before wisdom,
Science before art,and cleverness
before common sense;
For making the cure of disease more
grievous than the endurance of the same;
Good Lord deliver usSir Robert Hutchison
I’ll ignore the babbling at the end and ask myself WTF???
June 09 – Sep 09???
They must be referring to a previous ‘take-down’ notice, not the current one surely?
Michael added these pithy words on Feb 04 10 at 7:17 pmStill doesn’t seem to be any sign of the retraction anywhere. Another “huge surprise”.
BTW, just to let you know your copyright in the footer is 2 yrs out of date
Maggie added these pithy words on Feb 07 10 at 6:46 pm@Michael Kingsford Gray, these people are different to arnica.com.au, they are homeopathyplus.com.au. Still doesn’t explain those ramblings though.
.
We are currently pursuing the retraction with the CRP. I’ll keep you updated.
Dan added these pithy words on Feb 15 10 at 12:05 amStill no retraction, perhaps it’s time for another complaint.
