But well-conducted scientific experiments are needed to determine whether a medical treatment or health practice is really beneficial. Tendency to infer that two events are causally related just because one happened after the other. 6b How to Evaluate a Medical Claim 1. Toxins cause fatigue. A cures B. E.g. antibiotics cure strep throat.
Magnets cure arthritis.
A prevents B. E.g. exercise prevents heart disease. Garlic prevents colds. E.g. placebo effects, incompetence, fraud. Fits with medical knowledge. Back to Phil 145.