Seeking asthma and allergy treatment from a naturopath: A wise decision?
Channel: HLI Alberta
Date: 2016-12-20

Annie, fed up with her nagging asthma and allergies, seeks treatment from a naturopath based on a friend's recommendation. Is that a wise decision? Will the naturopath be able to help? 

A Sciencing Health Video from the Health Law Institute at the University of Alberta: 

http://www.hli.ualberta.ca/ 

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Links in the video:

0:27 - 0:37: Canada’s wait time performance is poor compared to many other countries:
(https://secure.cihi.ca/free_products/HCIC2012-FullReport-ENweb.pdf) 

0:32 - 0:36: An international survey found that 2/3rds of patients feel disrespected by their physicians (http://www.clinical-innovation.com/topics/analytics-quality/surveys-patient-dissatisfaction-global) 

0:36 - 0:41: Many (44%) also feel that physicians don’t spend enough time with them (http://www.clinical-innovation.com/topics/analytics-quality/surveys-patient-dissatisfaction-global)

0:41 - 0:46: Involvement with industry does impact research and physician behaviour (http://www.bmj.com/content/354/bmj.i4189; https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14970094; http://news.nationalpost.com/news/world/doctors-more-likely-to-prescribe-drugs-from-companies-who-buy-them-dinner-american-study-claims)

0:47 - 0:50: Public trust in the pharmaceutical industry continues to decline (http://www.nature.com/nbt/journal/v32/n10/full/nbt.3036.html#ref5)

0:51 - 0:54: In 2006, of the  29% of Canadians who reported allergies, 62% had used alternative therapies and 34% and been to a CAM provider (https://www.fraserinstitute.org/sites/default/files/ComplementaryAlternativeMedicine.pdf)

0:54 - 0:57: Approximately half of all Canadians use some form of CAM (complimentary and alternative medicine) (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2585340/) 

0:58 - 1:03: People’s medical decisions can influence others (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0738399111000723; http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0060373) 

1:00 - 1:03: Celebrities can also have influence (The “Angelina Jolie effect”) (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4303122/) 

1:03 - 1:08: The reasons people turn to CAM are complex. Dissatisfaction with conventional medicine is just one of many factors (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20180690; http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08870440903440707?src=recsys ) 

1:05 - 1:08: Some of these reasons include wanting a “treatment of the whole person” and “taking an active role in one’s health” (http://bmccomplementalternmed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6882-8-16) 

1:08 - 1:12: 73% of Canadians take natural health products (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/prodnatur/index-eng.php)

1:19 - 1:26: There is little evidence to support the allergy testing used by naturopaths (https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/igg-food-intolerance-tests-what-does-the-science-say/)

1:23 - 1:31: IgG tests, often used by naturopaths "have not been demonstrated to have clinical relevance…lack sufficient quality control and should not be performed" (https://www.aaaai.org/Aaaai/media/MediaLibrary/PDF%20Documents/Practice%20and%20Parameters/allergydiagnostictesting.pdf)

1:26 - 1:31: 94% of Alberta naturopaths market homeopathy on their websites (https://aacijournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1710-1492-7-14 )

1:32 - 1:35: Australian National Health report: Homeopathy not an effective treatment for any health condition (https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/mar/11/homeopathy-not-effective-for-treating-any-condition-australian-report-finds;   (http://www.bmj.com/content/350/bmj.h1478.short) 

1:36 - 1:48: The efficacy of many CAM therapies remains disputed, particularly in context of allergy and asthma (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1081120610614871; http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199810083391501#t=articleResults;  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1081120610625690)

1:52 - 1:58: http://bmccomplementalternmed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6882-8-13; http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/0E9129B3574FCA53CA257BF0001ACD11/$File/Natural%20Therapies%20Overview%20Report%20Final%20with%20copyright%2011%20March.pdf) 

2:00 - 2:08: The placebo effect is real and powerful   (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/the-placebo-effect-a-new-study-underscores-its-remarkable-power/article16281897/)

2:04 - 2:08: Few CAM treatments show effectiveness beyond the placebo effect (http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/complementary-alternative-medicine/Pages/placebo-effect.aspx)