The Elusive "Registered Chinese Doctors" of Hitchin

Hitchin - the sleepy Hertfordshire town so amiable, that even the ducks walk around with smiles on their faces - is suffering from a miniature plague of quacks who think they're real doctors.

Tucked into one corner of the town's attractive market square can be found the Chinese medicine shop pictured below. 

(Image credit - own photo)

The shop window rashly claims that Traditional Chinese Medicine - a practice invented as recently as the 1950s to stop the peasants asking for real medicines - can "treat" all manner of health problems. 

Shop displays like this aren't covered by the UK's advertising codes but, luckily, the clinic has placed some handy leaflets just beside the front door.

(Image credit- scan of the leaflet)

According to the clinic, these are just "some of the problems and illnesses for which acupuncture and Chinese herbs have proven their effectiveness":

"Can Chinese medicine help you? Listed below are some of the problems and illnesses for which acupuncture and Chinese herbs have proven their effectiveness: Dermatological conditions: Eczema - Vitiligo - Psoriasis - Acne - Herpes (shingles) - Lupus - Pruritus - Hives (urticaria) - Athlete's foot - Dermatitis - Fungal infection - Hair loss... Internal disorders: Asthma - Bronchitis - Headache - Migraine - Dizziness - M.E. - Gastritis - Colitis - I.B.S. - Diarrhoea - Constipation - Cystitis - Indigestion - Ulcers - Colds and flu - Haemorrhoids - High blood pressure - M.S. ... Musculoskeletal and neurological conditions: Arthritis - Facial pain - Neuralgia - Stroke - Carpal tunnel syndrome - Lumbargo - Sciatica - Back pain - Sports injuries - Rheumatism - Tennis elbow - Stiff neck - Frozen shoulder... Genito-urinary and reproductive disorders: Menopause - P.M.S. - Period pain - Leucorrhoea - Irregular periods - Fibroids - Morning sickness - Endometriosis - Infertility - Prostate conditions - Impotence - Premature ejaculation... Mental and emotional conditions: Anxiety - Depression - Stress - Panic attacks - Insomnia - Fatigue... Ear, nose & throat conditions: Hay fever - Sinusitis - Sore throat - Bad breath - Tinnitus - Ear infections... Others: Alcoholism - Smoking - Drug addiction - Weight problems - Allergic disorders - Coping with cancer..."

(Image credit - scan of the leaflet)

Unusually, the clinic doesn't mention the names of the "doctors" it employs, but we're left in no doubts that they must be genuine, the real deal, and not at all bogus.

"The skill of the Chinese doctor lies in identifying the underlying pattern of the illness and selecting and appropriate cure..."

"After carrying out a thorough diagnosis, the doctor will prescribe a combination of herbs..."

"As treatment continues, the doctor will closely monitor your progress through regular consultations, altering the prescription and regulating the dosage accordingly."

The General Medical Council's register doesn't seem to know anything about the "Registered Chinese Doctor" employed at this "clinic". As always, it'll be interesting to see what the advertisers have to say for themselves.

ASA complaint follows!

"I'm writing to complain about a leaflet I picked up outside the "Chinese Medicine Clinic" in Hitchin. (The leaflet was in a box, attached to the clinic's front window, facing a main pedestrian thoroughfare - see enclosed photo.)

The leaflet promotes Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) treatments.

1. The leaflet claims:

"Can Chinese medicine help you? Listed below are some of the problems and illnesses for which acupuncture and Chinese herbs have proven their effectiveness: Dermatological conditions: Eczema - Vitiligo - Psoriasis - Acne - Herpes (shingles) - Lupus - Pruritus - Hives (urticaria) - Athlete's foot - Dermatitis - Fungal infection - Hair loss... Internal disorders: Asthma - Bronchitis - Headache - Migraine - Dizziness - M.E. - Gastritis - Colitis - I.B.S. - Diarrhoea - Constipation - Cystitis - Indigestion - Ulcers - Colds and flu - Haemorrhoids - High blood pressure - M.S. ... Musculoskeletal and neurological conditions: Arthritis - Facial pain - Neuralgia - Stroke - Carpal tunnel syndrome - Lumbargo - Sciatica - Back pain - Sports injuries - Rheumatism - Tennis elbow - Stiff neck - Frozen shoulder... Genito-urinary and reproductive disorders: Menopause - P.M.S. - Period pain - Leucorrhoea - Irregular periods - Fibroids - Morning sickness - Endometriosis - Infertility - Prostate conditions - Impotence - Premature ejaculation... Mental and emotional conditions: Anxiety - Depression - Stress - Panic attacks - Insomnia - Fatigue... Ear, nose & throat conditions: Hay fever - Sinusitis - Sore throat - Bad breath - Tinnitus - Ear infections... Others: Alcoholism - Smoking - Drug addiction - Weight problems - Allergic disorders - Coping with cancer..."

2. I'd like to challenge whether the advertiser can substantiate any of these health claims, and I'd also like to challenge whether the claims might discourage essential treatment.

3. The leaflet makes a number of claims for the efficacy of Chinese medicine:

(i) "Chinese medicine emphasises a holistic approach to the curing of disease..."

(ii) "The skill of the Chinese doctor lies in... selecting an appropriate cure..."

(iii) "Both these treatment methods can be used to... correct disharmony between the organs to remove the root cause of the disease..."

(iv) "Some patients will experience the benefits of acupuncture treatment immediately; others, especially those suffering from chronic diseases, may need a longer course of treatment..."

(v) "PAIN CLINIC: INSTANT PAIN RELIEF. - All types of pain treated..."

4. I'd like to challenge whether these efficacy claims can be substantiated.

5. The leaflet makes a number of references to "doctors":

(i) "The skill of the Chinese doctor lies in identifying the underlying pattern of the illness and selecting and appropriate cure..."

(ii) "The [acupuncture] points chosen depend on the doctor's diagnosis of the patient's condition..."

(iii) "After carrying out a thorough diagnosis, the doctor will prescribe a combination of herbs..."

(iv) "As treatment continues, the doctor will closely monitor your progress through regular consultations, altering the prescription and regulating the dosage accordingly."

(v) "Our practitioners have worked for many years at leading teaching and research hospitals in China. Trained in both Western and Chinese medicine and with degrees from major TCM universities, they are also registered with recognised professional Chinese Medicine associations in the UK. With a wide range of clinical experience to draw on, they... have gained the trust and gratitude of their patients by achieving and maintaining satisfactory results in treating a wide variety of illnesses."

6. I have checked the General Medical Council's register, but found no matches; so I'd like to challenge whether these references to "doctors" are misleading."

Dr Enid Taylor's faeces fixation

It's difficult for someone like me, whose mind is pure and unpolluted, to imagine why anyone would want to spend several years and thousands of pounds training to put things up other people's bottoms.

But let's not be harsh in our judgement of colonic irrigation therapists. How many of us have successfully managed to turn our hobby into a career, eh?

(Image credit)

Sad to say that times are hard for such professional shit-stirrers. Outside of London and a few other cosmopolitan areas, there is very little call for their services, yet each year dozens of newly-qualified therapists enter a saturated market.

In addition, washing away all that faeces is terribly wasteful. If only someone could think of a way to put it to good use!

(Image credit)

Step forward husband-and-wife team Dr Enid and (Mr) Glenn Taylor who have had the novel idea of using poo to treat disease. Today the Sceptical Letter Writer blog can exclusively reveal the secrets of their success.

First, you'll need a pool of willing volunteers, each of whom must be prepared to live an exceptionally healthy lifestyle - in order to produce the highest-quality grade of crap, you understand.

Secondly, you'll need to find someone willing to collect it all up, poke around in it, and then package it up ready for insertion. 

Yes, I did say 'insertion'. The faecal by-products from the healthy volunteers are implanted into the rectum of an unhealthy patient suffering from any number of withering diseases - and before you can say "Faecal Microbiota Transplant" the diseases are magically cured. According to Glenn, Dr Enid is 

"...heading towards a 100% success rate with Clostridium difficile infections..."

(Image credit)

Amazingly, others had already had the same idea and early indications suggest that the treatment fight be more effective than antibiotics in treating Clostridium difficile. But it's difficult to be sure - just a few days ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published guidance stating that

"...the efficacy and safety profiles of this intervention have not yet been fully evaluated in controlled clinical trials..."

In other words, they're not sure whether it really works or even if it's safe - but they're willing to let doctors continue to conduct their research. And by "doctors", it's safe to assume that they mean people with, you know, medical degrees and stuff. 

They definitely weren't referring to some bloke off the street like Dr Enid who, it turns out, isn't a real doctor at all. In fact, her most impressive medical qualification is an "Advanced Diploma" in colonic irrigation from something called the "Chi Centre"!

(Image credit - site no longer available)

"Dr" Enid doesn't let this unfortunate fact get in the way of making money. Her services cost up to £4,000 and, besides curing infections, she boasts that

"Faecal Microbiota Transplant treatments have a history of being applied to the following conditions: Ulcerative Colitis - Crohn’s Disease - Clostridium difficile Infection - Pseudomembraneous Colitis - IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) - CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) & ME (Myalgic Encephalopathy) - MS (Multiple Sclerosis) - Parkinson’s Disease - Autism - Salmonella Typhimurium infection..."

Is the phrase "history of being applied" a round-about way of trying to say "treat"? Well, it certainly appears so:

"Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn’s Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome respond best with 10 treatments over two weeks.  The same applies for some Neurological conditions such as CFS/ME, MS, Parkinson’s, Autism etc. although it must be noted that Neurological conditions respond over a longer period of time and longer individual treatment protocol may have to be designed..."

"IBS and bacterial dysbiosis usually respond favourably in five treatments over five days..."

 "Clostridium difficile treatment is effective over a shorter period of time but still has the same pre-treatment costs such as donor Screening built in to the treatment..."

Most readers will know that pretending to be a doctor and then performing invasive medical procedures is very illegal indeed. It's time "Dr" Enid closed the doors to her "clinic" and got her cheap thrills from swingers' parties and fetish clubs - just like the rest of us.

In the mean time - ASA complaint follows!

I'm writing to complain about "Dr" Enid Taylor whose website promotes "Faecal Microbiota Transplant (FMT)", a medical procedure which involves transplanting faecal material from a healthy donor into the gut of an unhealthy patient. 

I'm concerned because Taylor does not appear to hold any medical qualifications.

1. Taylor's website describes the procedure:

http://www.taymount.com/faecal-bacteriotherapy.php

"[FMT] is the process of isolating the beneficial intestinal bacteria and yeasts (The Faecal Microbiome) from the stool of a healthy, disease-free person and implanting it into a gut of a person whose gut has bacteria and yeasts that have been damaged by antibiotics, compromised by pathogenic parasites or “starved out” by poor diet , thus lacking the essential Microflora needed to maintain numerous normal and vital healthy gut functions..."

2. There appears to be a lack of rigorous clinical evidence supporting the use of FMT. In the United States, the FDA has just published the following "Guidance for Industry":

http://www.fda.gov/BiologicsBloodVaccines/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/Guidances/Vaccines/ucm361379.htm

"Fecal microbiota collected from healthy individuals are being investigated for use in the treatment of C. difficile infection. Published data suggest that the use of fecal microbiota to restore intestinal flora may be an effective therapy in the management of refractory C. difficile infection. However, the efficacy and safety profiles of this intervention have not yet been fully evaluated in controlled clinical trials..."

3. Taylor's website does not discuss her qualifications. She is not registered with the General Medical Council. (Unless Taylor achieved her medical degree at the age of four, a registration in the same name refers to someone else.)

4. Another of Taylor's websites (no longer visible, but screenshot attached) stated that Taylor qualified as a "Naturopathic Doctor" at the non-accredited Clayton College of Natural Health in the USA.

5. Despite this, the website refers continually to Taylor as a doctor:

http://www.taymount.com/about-taymount.php

"The Taymount Clinic was founded by Mr Glenn Taylor and Dr Enid Learmount (now Dr Enid Taylor) in 2003... both Dr and Mr Taylor qualifying as mentor/instructors with globally recognised governing bodies..."

http://www.taymount.com/booking-appointment.php

"In all instances, please contact Dr Enid Taylor for an appointment..."

http://www.taymount.com/kefir-probiotics.php

"Dr. Enid Taylor from the Taymount Clinc has written an eBook... The suggested uses and applications for Kefir are based on tradition and case studies and are the personal opinion of Dr. Enid Taylor..."

6. I'd like to challenge whether:

(i) The claims that Taylor is a doctor are misleading

(ii) The promotion of an experimental medical procedure performed by a person who apparently holds no medical qualifications is misleading and irresponsible

(iii) Any of the following health claims can be substantiated:

http://www.taymount.com/index.php

"[FMT is a] simple elegant solution with no recorded side-effects that is rapidly heading towards a 100% success rate with Clostridium difficile infections..."

http://www.taymount.com/cost-treatments.php

"10 FMT treatments over 2 weeks - UK £4,000 - Ulcerative Colitis, Crohn’s Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome respond best with 10 treatments over two weeks.  The same applies for some Neurological conditions such as CFS/ME, MS, Parkinson’s, Autism etc. although it must be noted that Neurological conditions respond over a longer period of time and longer individual treatment protocol may have to be designed... IBS and bacterial dysbiosis usually respond favourably in five treatments over five days... Clostridium difficile treatment is effective over a shorter period of time but still has the same pre-treatment costs such as donor Screening built in to the treatment..."

http://www.taymount.com/testimonials.php

(iv) Whether any of the testimonial claims can be substantiated

(v) Whether the promotion discourages essential treatment for serious medical conditions

http://www.taymount.com/supplement-shop.php

http://www.taymount.com/kefir-probiotics.php

(vi) Whether any of the health claims made for various food supplements, available to purchase on Taylor's website, have been approved

How to Preventa Cancer

Are you tired of that pesky cancer that's been troubling you in recent weeks?

Have you given up on quack therapies like homeopathy, which promise an effective treatment but which turn out to be nothing but water?

Then you should try Preventa, the new product from Northants-based Blue Gold Ltd.

Preventa is promoted as a treatment for many different kinds of cancer, despite being nothing more than, errr, water!

(Image source)

Preventa sells for the princely sum of £12.77 per bottle - which works out as £919.20 for a "3 month pack". This bargain-basement price doesn't include postage, which is £36 for us Lutonians but a staggering £144 for anyone unfortunate enough to be living in the Scottish town of Paisley.

Why so expensive? Well, you see, Preventa isn't just any ordinary old water. 

No, it is "deuterium-depleted water" or DDW. (Perhaps you'll remember from your post-doctoral chemistry studies that deuterium is a slightly-heavier type of hydrogen which can be found, in relatively small quantities, in all the world's oceans.)

According to the advertiser's website:

"In 1993, HYD [a Hungarian company] discovered a new method to treat patients with cancerous tumours. This new method is the depletion of deuterium in drinking water. Researchers... found that deuterium depleted water inhibits the growth of cancer cells in living organisms, and ultimately causes these cells to die..."

What's more, we're told, the process is completely safe.

"Deuterium depletion is completely safe and innocuous for healthy cells, and there were no adverse reactions or toxic side effects related to deuterium-depleted water during the 18-year-long history of DDW research and its 12-year-long application..."

(Image credit)

Interestingly, the claims above are not complete nonsense. There is some research which suggests DDW has potential as a cancer treatment, if not actually killing off cancer cells then at least slowing their growth.

The most important (or, to put it another way, "only") relevant study is a 2010 clinical trial conducted on people with prostate cancer in Hungary. At first glance, it looks like DDW helped to significantly improve their average life expectancy.

A closer examination reveals several problems. The study seems to be rigorous (another way of saying that it's free of obvious methodological flaws). However, it's only what we call a phase 2 trial. New medicines are always subjected to a further, more extensive period of study - called a phase 3 trial - before they're unleashed on the general public.

A second problem is that the 2010 trial is the only such study. Medical research demands that new discoveries should be independently verified and, for a claim that cancer can be cured simply by drinking water, we would expect lots of independent research before handing out the Nobel prizes.

(Image source)

Blue Gold, perhaps sensing an opportunity for gargantuan profits, don't seem to have been able to restrict their marketing appeals to those claims which are actually true.

For instance, we have this nugget:

"'The biological efficacy of the consumption of [DDW] is confirmed by research and clinical investigations. The most significant effect of deuterium depletion is the anti-tumor effect, but it was also proved that regular consumption of Preventa® optimizes the function of the immune system and slows down the processes of aging... The consumption of Preventa®-125 is recommended... as a regular drinking water for diabetic patients...'"

None of the health claims about the immune system, anti-ageing effects or benefits for diabetic people seem to be anything more than wishful thinking - I haven't been able to find a jot of evidence to support them.

There is also a series of rash claims that Preventa can be used to treat mesothelioma, rectum cancer, breast cancer, leukemia, ovarian cancer and lung cancer. The single study mentioned above was restricted to DDW's possible effect on prostate cancer.

We should also bare in mind that Blue Gold apparently lacks the appropriate authorisation from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), without which it would be illegal to sell Preventa in the UK.

There's also the trifling matter of the Cancer Act 1939 which would seem to escalate Blue Gold Ltd's business practices to the level of a crime. Anchors away!

"I'm writing to complain about preventawater.com, a website for Blue Gold Ltd. 

The website promotes a product called "Preventa" which is marketed as a treatment for cancer.

1. Preventa is a drinking water product which has been treated to remove deuterium (heavy hydrogen), hence the term "deuterium-depleted water" or DDW.

2. The evidence for DDW as a potential cancer treatment rests mainly on two studies: a 1999 study on mice (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11797936) and a 2010 phase-2 clinical study on prostate cancer in humans (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20739263).

3. The website claims: 

(http://store.preventawater.com/)

"In 1993, HYD [a Hungarian company] discovered a new method to treat patients with cancerous tumours. This new method is the depletion of deuterium in drinking water. Researchers at the HYD Company found that deuterium depleted water inhibits the growth of cancer cells in living organisms, and ultimately causes these cells to die. Deuterium depletion is completely safe and innocuous for healthy cells, and there were no adverse reactions or toxic side effects related to deuterium-depleted water during the 18-year-long history of DDW research and its 12-year-long application..."

4. (http://store.preventawater.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=61_62)

"'The biological efficacy of the consumption of [DDW] is confirmed by research and clinical investigations. The most significant effect of deuterium depletion is the anti-tumor effect, but it was also proved that regular consumption of Preventa® optimizes the function of the immune system and slows down the processes of aging... The consumption of Preventa®-125 is recommended... as a regular drinking water for diabetic patients..."

5. The site also contains a series of testimonials: 

(http://store.preventawater.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=65_66)

"My 37-year-old wife was diagnosed with mesothelioma in the pleura... She started consuming Preventa in May 2005 in addition to the chemotherapy.... and today her doctor said: 'I have to tell you something of great consequence, according to your wife’s current CT scan there is not detectable tumor in her body, practically, it has been regressed.'"

6. (http://store.preventawater.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=65_70)

"After the diagnosis of breast cancer in 1988, the first bone metastasis was verified in September 1992. Until the patient started drinking DDW, examinations verified progression, and her pain and disability increased.Following the administration of DDW, her pain subsided within 1–1.5 months, and bone scintigraphy carried out two months later could not verify several small metastases that had earlier been present. The patient consumed Dd-water until January 1994 and noted an improvement in the quality of life..."

7. (http://store.preventawater.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=65_72)

"Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) was diagnosed in February 2006... DDW consumption was initiated upon diagnosis. One month later the WBC count started decreasing and by the 7th month of the cure the WBC count reached the physiological level... To sum up, during the last one and a half year of DDW consumption there was a significant improvement in the patient’s condition and not any forms of conventional therapy was applied."

8. On the same page, the site notes:

"The Preventa® deuterium depleted drinking water has not yet been recognised as a medicine..."

9. I'd like to challenge whether the advertisement:

(i) Is misleading because it promotes a treatment for various forms of cancer

(ii) Offers a treatment for conditions for which qualified medical supervision should be sought, which might discourage essential treatment

(iii) Is misleading because it promotes a product which has not been approved by the MHRA as a medicine

(iv) Is misleading because it uses the word 'cure' on several occasions (such as the quote in paragraph 7 above)

10. I'd also like to challenge whether the health claims made can be substantiated, because

(i) The evidence for a treatment for prostate cancer appears to rest on a single phase-2 clinical trial which has apparently never been replicated, nor proceeded to a phase-3 trial

(ii) There appears to be no clinical evidence regarding DDW as a treatment for any other form of cancer in humans

(iii) There appears to be no evidence supporting the claims that Preventa "optimizes the function of the immune system", "slows down the processes of aging" or is helpful for "diabetic patients".

11. Finally, I'd like to challenge whether the testamonial claims for mesothelioma, rectum cancer, breast cancer, leukemia, ovarian cancer, prostate cancer and lung cancer can be substantiated with rigorous clinical evidence."