CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "https://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"> <html xmlns="https://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> <head><script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/bundle-playback.js?v=HxkREWBo" charset="utf-8"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/wombat.js?v=txqj7nKC" charset="utf-8"></script> <script>window.RufflePlayer=window.RufflePlayer||{};window.RufflePlayer.config={"autoplay":"on","unmuteOverlay":"hidden"};</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/_static/js/ruffle/ruffle.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> __wm.init("https://web.archive.org/web"); __wm.wombat("http://www.csicop.org:80/news/show/michigan_naturopath_bill_would_legitimize_dangerous_quack_medicine_say_scie","20180608111704","https://web.archive.org/","web","/_static/", "1528456624"); </script> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/banner-styles.css?v=S1zqJCYt" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/_static/css/iconochive.css?v=3PDvdIFv" />  <meta name="revised" content="2009"/> <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=EmulateIE7"/> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"/> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/web/20180608111704cs_/http://www.csicop.org/css/screen.css"/>   <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/favicon.png"/> <meta name="title" content="Michigan Naturopath Bill Would Legitimize Dangerous Quack Medicine, Say Science Advocates - CSI"/> <meta name="description" content="A bill passed by the Michigan State Senate would endanger the health of Michiganders by granting sweeping new powers to practitioners of unscientific bogus medicine and treatments, said the Center for Inquiry. "/> <link rel="image_src" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704im_/https://www.csicop.org/img/csi-logo.png"/> <style type="text/css">@import url(https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704cs_/https://www.google.com/cse/api/branding.css);</style> <style type="text/css">body {background-image: url(/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/ask-the-dust.jpg);}</style> <title>Michigan Naturopath Bill Would Legitimize Dangerous Quack Medicine, Say Science Advocates - CSI</title> <meta name="google-site-verification" content="CECWrLNmS2I5Dsw0UQuTkeTsxg8DjJQnrhgKSuZdCdw"/>  <meta property="og:url" content="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news/show/michigan_naturopath_bill_would_legitimize_dangerous_quack_medicine_say_scie"> <meta property="og:image" content="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/news/show/michigan_naturopath_bill_would_legitimize_dangerous_quack_medicine_say_scie"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="355"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="200"> <meta property="og:title" content="Michigan Naturopath Bill Would Legitimize Dangerous Quack Medicine, Say Science Advocates - CSI"> <meta property="og:description" content="A bill passed by the Michigan State Senate would endanger the health of Michiganders by granting sweeping new powers to practitioners of unscientific bogus medicine and treatments, said the Center for Inquiry.">  <meta name="twitter:card" content="photo"> <meta name="twitter:site" content="@SkeptInquiry"> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Michigan Naturopath Bill Would Legitimize Dangerous Quack Medicine, Say Science Advocates - CSI"> <meta name="twitter:description" content="A bill passed by the Michigan State Senate would endanger the health of Michiganders by granting sweeping new powers to practitioners of unscientific bogus medicine and treatments, said the Center for Inquiry."> <meta name="twitter:image" content="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/news/show/michigan_naturopath_bill_would_legitimize_dangerous_quack_medicine_say_scie"> </head> <body>  <script> (function(h,o,t,j,a,r){ h.hj=h.hj||function(){ (h.hj.q=h.hj.q||[]).push(arguments) }; h._hjSettings={ hjid:652364,hjsv:6 }; a=o.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; r=o.createElement('script');r.async=1; r.src=t+h._hjSettings.hjid+j+h._hjSettings.hjsv; a.appendChild(r); })(window,document,'https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://static.hotjar.com/c/hotjar-','.js?sv='); </script><script> (function(i,s,o,g,r,a,m){i['GoogleAnalyticsObject']=r;i[r]=i[r]||function(){ (i[r].q=i[r].q||[]).push(arguments)},i[r].l=1*new Date();a=s.createElement(o), m=s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];a.async=1;a.src=g;m.parentNode.insertBefore(a,m) })(window,document,'script','https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js','ga'); ga('create', 'UA-102208537-1', 'auto', { 'allowLinker': true }); ga('require', 'linker'); ga('linker:autoLink', ['centerforinquiry.org', 'secure.centerforinquiry.net', 'secularhumanism.org', 'richarddawkins.net', 'openlysecular.org', 'csiconference.org', 'reasonabletalk.tv', 'archives.centerforinquiry.org', 'centerforinquiry.live' ] ); ga('send', 'pageview'); </script> <script> !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}; if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,document,'script', 'https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', '954303458026392'); fbq('track', 'PageView'); </script> <noscript> <img height="1" width="1" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704im_/https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=954303458026392&ev=PageView&noscript=1"/> </noscript>  <div id="fb-root"></div> <script>(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/http://connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));</script> <script>!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");</script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704js_/https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js"></script> <div id="header"> <ul class="orgs"> <li id="csi"><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/"></a><a href=""><span> </span></a></li> <li id="cfimark"><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www.centerforinquiry.net/"></a><a href=""><span> </span></a></li> </ul> <ul class="kwicks"> <li id="kwick4"><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/about_csi"><span> </span></a></li> <li id="kwick1"><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/resources"><span> </span></a></li> <li id="kwick2"><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/publications"><span> </span></a></li> <li id="kwick3"><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news"><span> </span></a></li> </ul> </div> <div id="moreoptions"><p><span class="mag"><a href="#footer">More Options</a></span></p></div> <div id="quotespacer"></div> <div id="wrapper"> <div id="sidebar"> <div id="subscribeSI"> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://csi-store.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/si"><img src="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/subscribesi.png" alt="Subscribe to SI" style="border:none; margin-bottom:20px;"/></a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www.csicop.org/news/show/skeptical_inquirer_is_now_available_digitally"><img src="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/subscribedigi.png" alt="Subscribe to SI Digitally" style="border:none;"/></a> </div> <h3 style="margin-top:5px; margin-bottom:25px;"> </h3> <a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/donate" class="img_link"><img src="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/csi-donate-today.png" alt="Donate Today"/></a> <div id="search"> <h3 style="border:none;">Search CSI:</h3> <script> (function() { var cx = '001833901238129012569:pyvfrjzkeyy'; var gcse = document.createElement('script'); gcse.type = 'text/javascript'; gcse.async = true; gcse.src = (document.location.protocol == 'https:' ? 'https:' : 'http:') + '//web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/http://cse.google.com/cse.js?cx=' + cx; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(gcse, s); })(); </script> <gcse:searchbox-only resultsurl="https://www.csicop.org/search"></gcse:searchbox-only> </div> <a class="twitter-timeline" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://twitter.com/SkeptInquiry" data-widget-id="286527152260780033">Tweets by @SkeptInquiry</a> <script>!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/http://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");</script> <br/> <br/> <h3>News & Announcements</h3> <dl> <dt><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news/show/michigan_naturopath_bill_would_legitimize_dangerous_quack_medicine_say_scie">Michigan Naturopath Bill Would Legitimize Dangerous Quack Medicine, Say Science Advocates</a></dt> <dd> <p class="date">May 24, 2018</p> <p>A bill passed by the Michigan State Senate would endanger the health of Michiganders by granting sweeping new powers to practitioners of unscientific bogus medicine and treatments, said the Center for Inquiry. </p> </dd> <dt><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news/show/skeptical_inquirer_is_now_available_digitally">Skeptical Inquirer Is Now Available Digitally</a></dt> <dd> <p class="date">February 18, 2016</p> Skeptical Inquirer is now available digitally on Apple Newsstand and on all other major platforms through the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://pocketmags.com/">Pocketmags</a> app. </dd> <dt><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news/show/deniers_are_not_skeptics">Deniers are not Skeptics</a></dt> <dd> <p class="date">December 5, 2014</p> <p>Public discussion of scientific topics such as global warming is confused by misuse of the term “skeptic.” </p> </dd> </dl> </div> <div id="content"> <script language="javascript"> function emailCurrentPage(){window.location.href="mailto:?subject="+document.title+"&body="+document.title+"%0D"+escape(window.location.href);} </script> <div id="socialMedia"> <ul> <li><div class="fb-like" data-send="false" data-layout="box_count" data-show-faces="false"></div></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://twitter.com/share" class="twitter-share-button" data-lang="en" data-count="vertical">Tweet</a></li> <li><g:plusone size="tall"></g:plusone></li> <li><a href="javascript:emailCurrentPage()"><img src="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/email-button.png" alt="Email"></a></li> </ul> </div> <h1>Michigan Naturopath Bill Would Legitimize Dangerous Quack Medicine, Say Science Advocates</h1> <h3 class="date">May 24, 2018</h3> <div class="clear"></div> <p>For Immediate Release: May 24, 2018<br> Contact: Paul Fidalgo, Communications Director<br> press@centerforinquiry.net - 207-358-9785</p><p>A bill passed by the Michigan State Senate would endanger the health of Michiganders by granting sweeping new powers to practitioners of unscientific bogus medicine and treatments, said the Center for Inquiry (CFI), an organization that advances reason and science. Senate Bill 826 would grant state licensure to naturopaths and the authority to treat patients’ illnesses and injuries despite the naturopaths’ lack of medical training or credentials.</p> <p>SB 826, which passed the Michigan Senate 24 to 10 on May 17th, creates a license-granting board made up of alternative medicine practitioners to bestow the state’s formal approval upon naturopaths, allowing them to perform physical examinations on patients, order and perform clinical tests, treat lacerations, and prescribe scientifically unproven—and often dangerous—treatments ranging from homeopathy and hydrotherapy to musculoskeletal manipulation.</p> <p>“This bill is dangerous because it legitimizes fake medicine,” said Jennifer Beahan, executive director of CFI Michigan. “It would give the state’s blessing to unqualified practitioners of pseudoscience and their baseless remedies, meaning more people will waste their money and risk their health by pursuing quack treatments.”</p> <p>“The stated tenets of naturopathy are no different from those of conventional medicine (first do no harm, prevention, treat the cause rather than the symptom, etc.),” said Dr. Harriet Hall, a retired medical doctor and Fellow of CFI’s Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. “They provide common-sense advice about health (diet, exercise, etc.), but they stray far beyond the bounds of science. Despite their claim to emphasize prevention, they discourage evidence-based preventive measures like vaccination and water fluoridation. What naturopaths do that is good is not different from what medical doctors do—and what they do that is different is not good.” </p><p>As Stephen Barrett of Quackwatch has said, “They choose from a smorgasbord of implausible, pseudoscientific, untested, disproven, unethical, and dangerous treatment methods.” </p> <p>The Center for Inquiry is leading the effort to see tougher regulation of homeopathy at the national level, spurring both the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission to take a tougher stance against the manufacturers and marketers of this unproven and useless pseudoscientific practice from the nineteenth century.</p><p># # #</p><p>The Center for Inquiry (CFI) is a nonprofit educational, advocacy, and research organization headquartered in Amherst, New York, with executive offices in Washington, D.C. It is also home to the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science, the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry, and the Council for Secular Humanism. The Center for Inquiry strives to foster a secular society based on reason, science, freedom of inquiry, and humanist values. Visit CFI on the web at www.centerforinquiry.net. </div> <div class="clear"></div> </div> <div id="footer"> <a name="footer"></a> <img src="/web/20180608111704im_/http://www.csicop.org/img/csi-logo-new.png" alt="CSI logo" style="display:none"/> <div id="about"> <h2><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www.csicop.org/about/about_csi">About</a></h2> <ul> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/contact">Contact</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/csicop/">Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP)</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/csi_fellows_and_staff/">CSI Fellows and Staff</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/donate_to_csi/">Donate to CSI</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/policy_on_hostile_conduct_harassment_at_conferences/">Policy on Hostile Conduct/Harassment at Conferences</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/privacy_policy/">Privacy Policy</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/about/the_pantheon_of_skeptics/">The Pantheon of Skeptics</a></li> </ul> </div> <div id="resources"> <h2><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/resources">Resources</a></h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://csi-store.myshopify.com/">CSI Store</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/resources/us_organizations">Skeptical Organizations in the United States</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/resources/international_organizations">International Network of Skeptical Organizations</a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www.centerforinquiry.net/outreach/branches">Centers for Inquiry</a></li> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www.centerforinquiry.net/forums" rel="external">CFI Forums</a></li> </ul> </div> <div id="publications"> <h2><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/publications">Publications</a></h2> <ul> <li><a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://csi-store.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/si">Subscribe</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/si">Skeptical Inquirer</a> <ul> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/si/">Archive</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/si/archive/category/volume_42.3">Latest Issue</a></li> </ul></li>  <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/specialarticles">Special Articles</a></li> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/publications/guide/">Guide for Authors</a></li> </ul> </div> <div id="news" style="border:none;"> <h2><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news">News</a></h2> <ul> <li><a href="/web/20180608111704/http://www.csicop.org/news">Recent Announcements</a></li> </ul> </div> <p class="legal">Content copyright <acronym title="Committee for Skeptical Inquiry">CSI</acronym> or the respective copyright holders. Do not redistribute without obtaining permission. Articles, reports, reviews, and letters published on the CSICOP.org website represent the views and work of individual authors. Their publication does not necessarily constitute and endorsement by CSI or its members unless so stated. Thanks to the <acronym title="European Space Organisation">ESO</acronym> for the image of the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap090303.html">Helix Nebula</a>, also <acronym title="National Aeronautics and Space Administration">NASA</acronym>, <acronym title="European Space Agency">ESA</acronym> and the Hubble Heritage Team for the image of <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://hubblesite.org/newscenter/archive/releases/2007/36/">NGC 3808B (ARP 87)</a>.</p> </div> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704js_/https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.4.2/jquery.min.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20180608111704js_/http://www.csicop.org/js/jquery.biggerlink.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="/web/20180608111704js_/http://www.csicop.org/js/jquery.kwicks.js"></script> <script src="/web/20180608111704js_/http://www.csicop.org/js/csi-master1.js?1" type="text/javascript"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://ssl." : "https://web.archive.org/web/20180608111704/https://www."); document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); </script> <script type="text/javascript"> try { var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-5311668-5"); pageTracker._trackPageview(); } catch(err) {}</script> </body> </html>