tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post1374095039560349707..comments2024-03-06T13:50:29.718+05:30Comments on E's flat, ah's flat too: Theoidiocy and other mattersRahul Siddharthanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04809667965184094636noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-78178597424783924402009-10-01T20:22:17.089+05:302009-10-01T20:22:17.089+05:30Rahul : "Wart-charming" (involving deep-...Rahul : "Wart-charming" (involving deep-trance hypnosis) is a well-documented phenomenon. A quick google-search reveals that it is particularly effective with children and described in leading medical textbooks, such as "Color Textbook of Pediatric Dermatology" by Weston, Lane & Morelli.wildflower seedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08524758486095224055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-57383862284355165912009-10-01T12:50:21.366+05:302009-10-01T12:50:21.366+05:30km, tr - thanks for the links.
The conclusion I...km, tr - thanks for the links. <br /><br />The conclusion I draw from both is that placebos can alter higher brain function. It doesn't surprise me that it helps with depression (km's link) or with puzzle-solving (tr's link) -- indeed, if I read tr's link right, they conclude that the improved performance is linked to improved expectations. As all sports coaches say, think positive. If an expensive drink makes you think more positive, you do better.<br /><br />It does somewhat surprise me that placebos help with pain relief -- but not all that much, actually. It is pain relief, not pain removal -- probably it just makes the victim tolerate the pain better, by inducing a positive frame of mind. But placebos eliminating warts (the skepdic link above)? I find that extremely surprising.Rahul Siddharthanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04809667965184094636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-38916858794242745392009-10-01T06:12:15.971+05:302009-10-01T06:12:15.971+05:30speaking of placebos, here's something from my...speaking of placebos, here's something from my field: <a href="http://faculty.insead.edu/carmon/pdffiles/Placebo%20JMR%20Lead.pdf" rel="nofollow">Shiv Carmon Ariely JMR 2005</a> (pdf).Tabula Rasahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16358094860426062297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-41834688580444949262009-09-30T01:21:47.807+05:302009-09-30T01:21:47.807+05:30Rahul, WS: Great links, great comments.
I assume ...Rahul, WS: Great links, great comments.<br /><br />I assume you guys have read this <a href="http://www.wired.com/medtech/drugs/magazine/17-09/ff_placebo_effect?currentPage=all" rel="nofollow">article</a> (link to Wired.com) on the <i>increasing</i> effectiveness of placebos?kmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16040339235134145847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-70729393404987551472009-09-29T10:39:26.328+05:302009-09-29T10:39:26.328+05:30Rahul : Point taken. There is a kind of Golden Age...Rahul : Point taken. There is a kind of Golden Age fallacy and I want to make sure that I am not committing that.wildflower seedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08524758486095224055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-23201961674324166602009-09-29T10:25:52.134+05:302009-09-29T10:25:52.134+05:30ws - depression is one of the things where I would...ws - depression is one of the things where I would give alternative therapies a chance, and mistrust Zoloft.Rahul Siddharthanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04809667965184094636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-49937278987808315052009-09-29T10:24:25.659+05:302009-09-29T10:24:25.659+05:30ws - ps. I took a look at Dr Miller's site and...ws - ps. I took a look at Dr Miller's site and it looks like fluff to me. Whatever makes sense is already there in yoga, ayurveda, etc. For the diseases they talk about -- backache, stress -- it makes sense. Most doctors spend most of their time on other diseases -- pathogenic, autoimmune, genetic -- that aren't so easily treated.<br /><br />There is great wisdom in ancient cultures, and also great foolishness. One has to evaluate everything. In a sense you are already doing that by taking the psychedelic mushrooms of the central Americans but not the human sacrifices. But I think alternative medicine practitioners have to be much more critical, of everything.Rahul Siddharthanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04809667965184094636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-67174945821706492072009-09-29T09:56:59.471+05:302009-09-29T09:56:59.471+05:30"You're not going to cure cancer or tuber..."You're not going to cure cancer or tuberculosis with these things."<br /><br />You mean, you're prepared to call the results of the JHU study even before it has happened? There are many dimensions to cancer - you should spend some time watching the video of the lady on that website.<br /><br />I speak from personal experience. After a year of trying Zoloft (first 50 mg and then 100mg, daily), I was able to beat all symptoms of depression (18 months and counting) with psychoactive plants. The dosage is miniscule compared to the dosages of SSRIs that psychiatrists will prescribe. So I take a very different view.wildflower seedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08524758486095224055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-77883325048125794292009-09-29T09:37:59.281+05:302009-09-29T09:37:59.281+05:30ws: I think self-healing, naturopathy, ayurveda, p...ws: I think self-healing, naturopathy, ayurveda, psychedelic mushrooms, etc all have their place and the good practitioners know their limits. You're not going to cure cancer or tuberculosis with these things. My wife and I have recently been going to a yoga place, and I was interested to see the guy who first "evaluated" me write down medical-sounding terms in his sheet (after making me do what looked like traditional yoga postures). One of them, "mild scoliosis", rung a bell: I looked up an old file and found that a "traditional" doctor had said exactly the same thing some years ago. As for my wife, they actually suggested she get a medical checkup. They don't claim to cure everything. And if any "alternative medicine" practitioner <i>does</i> claim to cure everything -- run away and don't go back.<br /><br />Mind-healing? It may help with some conditions (for reasons similar to the placebo effect) but not with others.<br /><br />Homeopathy? If real (ie, follows Hahnemann), it's bogus. At best a placebo, but there are better placebos available. It is water, or sugar, and will not do anything different from what you get in your tap and your supermarket. The danger is not in the medicine but in believing that it will cure all ills.Rahul Siddharthanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04809667965184094636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-77203986917114736622009-09-29T04:50:37.686+05:302009-09-29T04:50:37.686+05:30That Mazatec reference at the end of my comment re...That Mazatec reference at the end of my comment relates to Psilocybin ceremonies among the Mazatec Indians of northern Oaxaca, Mexico. While the Mazatecs and mushrooms have been around for centuries, the Christian iconography is a recent addition, thanks to the Spaniards.wildflower seedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08524758486095224055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-77718222861594225452009-09-29T04:13:00.660+05:302009-09-29T04:13:00.660+05:30Rahul : Your point about "belief" is wel...Rahul : Your point about "belief" is well taken. I would say belief is predicated upon intention, and that's important, too. <br /><br />Here is a <a href="http://www.consciousmedianetwork.com/members/emiller.htm" rel="nofollow">point of view</a> that puts all of this (what is sickness? what is healing?) in context.<br /><br />Also, your post raises the profound question of whether or not modern medicine can integrate some of these alternative healing therapies. IMO, this is an imperative, not a choice. Attempts in this direction are already taking place. Recently, <a href="http://www.bpru.org/cancer-studies/" rel="nofollow">Johns Hopkins</a> announced a new Psilocybin (psychoactive mushrooms) study for cancer patients. I do not expect a rapid assimilation of these alternative technologies into the orthodox canon, though. For one, consider that in many alternative traditions which work with psychoactive plants (which are the only traditions I am familiar with), the doctor takes the medicine <i>with</i> the patient, and "divines" the diagnosis and its cure. Whether or not you believe that this divination strategy works, this is a totally different ethic of medicine. Can modern medicine take what is useful from such traditions and leave behind the regressive (as, for example, in Mazatec ceremonies, one is surrounded by Christian paraphernalia)? <br /><br />I am cautiously optimistic.wildflower seedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08524758486095224055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3112258799568696095.post-33781963909418578972009-09-27T23:18:19.165+05:302009-09-27T23:18:19.165+05:30Ooooh. I foresee Andrew Sullivan being the next &q...Ooooh. I foresee Andrew Sullivan being the next "guest scriptwriter" for <a href="http://www.jesusandmo.net/2009/09/15/logos/" rel="nofollow">Jesus and Mo</a>...Sunil D'Montehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11930243702764871949noreply@blogger.com