I would like Harry Kauntze to name a single CAM therapy that is strongly supported by research. Certainly, chiropractic, acupuncture, and homeopathy are not.

Steve Hilliard, Avon Lake, OH,

Thanks for releasing this book. Most people dont know that they themselves have the power within them to promote healing and that antibiotics and other medications accelerate the healing effect. Most alternative therapists work on people's gullibility and their vulnerability when they are sick.

Gnani, Sydney, Australia

Scientific research is all about the cold hard repeatable facts and I think this is the point that Prof. Ernst et al continually try to sledge hammer us with. The point that he consistently dismisses is that we deal with whole people, not just afflicted bits and you can't measure that.

Poppy Burgess, Moretonhampstead, UK

P Race clearly doesn't understand the 'quantum entaglement' of which s/he speaks. Andrea Hochgatterer may not have heard of Occam's razor. Brenda Hawkes doesn't seem to know the difference between angular momentum and energy. Is this typical of the scientific ignorance of CAM apologists?

Daniel Rendall, Leamington Spa,

what about quantum entaglement whereby if substance A touches Substance B and are then seperated both are subtley changed - overcomes over dilution issue

p race, pulborough, west sussex

Another case of biased or ill informed reporting. The Acupuncture trial mentioned did indeed demonstrate that genuine & sham acupuncture were equally good at treating migraines. It also showed that they were twice as effective as conventional treatment! Why is this proven fact so little mentioned?

Andy Green, Penzance, UK

It is my honest view that if todays science cannot find any proof for why alternative methods work its because the instruments and methods of trial are just not advanced enough.
Best regrds

andrea hochgatterer, bristol, uk

I am amazed this discussion still goes on!
As far as nutrition is concerned, have a look at http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/
Look at the pages and pages of refrences with "proper" research done.

Do journalists ever feel responsible for the information they select? Why not select some research from this website. sorry it is so positive. Might not sell very well.....

Bodil Mjoelkalid, Charmouth, UK

If Professor Ernst had any genuine concern for the health of the public he would be better directing his efforts towards the soft drinks and junk foods industries whose products are scientifically proven to be harmful.
The recent hysteria against alternative medicine is a strong indication that powerful vested interests know it is effective and safe, and see it as a threat to their financial and political status

Mike Rawlinson, Taunton, Somerset

The distinction between allopathic medicine and 'alternative health' is artificial. It is supposedly drawn up along the lines of evidence based vs unproven therapies but this is overly simplistic. In reality the divide is grey and porous: allopathic medicine has varying levels of evidence basis and some CAM therapies are strongly supported by research. All therapies must be subject to scientific scrutiny to justify their claims, but the only conclusion that can be drawn from the thriving alternative health industry is that allopathic medicine does not have all the answers to a patient's needs and until they do, an open mind would be a good thing. Viewing health through the lens of randomised controlled trials provides a limited and mechanistic view of health which is left wanting.
Ernst and Singh are trying to sell their book using a critical eye on CAM that should also be cast at the limitations of medical alternatives inorder to deliver a balenced approach.

Harry Kauntze, Chiropractor, Bristol, UK

The distinction between allopathic medicine and 'alternative health' is artificial. It is supposedly drawn up along the lines of evidence based vs unproven therapies but this is overly simplistic. In reality the divide is grey and porous: allopathic medicine has varying levels of evidence basis and some CAM therapies are strongly supported by research. All therapies must be subject to scientific scrutiny to justify their claims, but the only conclusion that can be drawn from the thriving alternative health industry is that allopathic medicine does not have all the answers to a patient's needs and until they do, an open mind would be a good thing. Viewing health through the lens of randomised controlled trials provides a limited and mechanistic view of health which is left wanting.
Ernst and Singh are trying to sell their book using a critical eye on CAM that should also be cast at the limitations of medical alternatives inorder to deliver a balenced approach.

Harry Kauntze Chiropractor, Bristol, UK

Scientists can't yet prove what lays beyound space but we know its there, most scientists are none beleivers in any faith but for most people their faith gives them hope, most scientists cannot explain the energy that keeps the world turning , we know why it is but we do not know why it ever was. Not all drugs work without causing other problems and sometimes those that have been trialed and tested in laboratories years down the line are found to be dangerous if not fatal. Why is it then that scientists always feel the need to put themselves above others and assume that every thing has to be a proven science. Chemical reactions within our bodies to emotions are a powerful source not to be overlooked and if holistic therapies trigger a response in helping to keep the body healthy then surely they are worthy of celebration as much as a successeful heart transplant or a drug that fights disease. Maybe as with all things we should try to work together! And yes it can cure some Asthma's.

Brenda Hawkes, Bournemouth, England

For a start, why does the placebo effect only seem to be relevant to alternative treatments? Surely it will play a similar role in conventional medicine but doesn't.
Also, why do many people become CHRONICALLY ill over their lives, needing more and more conventional drugs to 'keep them alive'? It is because conventional treatment, more often than not, is suppressive, i.e., people do not get better, their symptoms are just changed, with the body getting progressively worse as its forms of healing (expressed through the production of symptoms) are sabotaged by drugs.
Doctors should learn the Law of Cure (Hering - check it out).
People who scoff at the dilution of homoeopathic remedies miss the point of potentisation - a process which makes the remedy more powerful the more it is diluted. If there is enough power in an atom to destroy a city, then maybe there is enough power in a diluted remedy to enable a person's body to complete the process of healing it is going through.

Clare Chapman, Bruton, Somerset, UK

Isn't the placebo affect what it's all about, complemantary therapy is all about relaxing the mind and body and starting the natural healing process. I believe that all physical illness comes about due to negative emotions. The best example of this is cancer. It is a known fact that a fighting spirit and positive outlook is the best cure. If you give up your body will give up to. What patients need is support and the knowledge that their life is in their own hands and complementary therapists especially energy therapist can help with this simple process. I know that alternative medicine is more popular than ever. People are tired and fed up with being subscribed more and more pills and don't get me started on the drug companies. It's a sorry state of affairs.

Sharon Beer, Weston-super-mare,

If we are coming at this from a scientific basis why not read Energy Medicine, James L. Oschman for the other side of the scientific debate. We can all write books that denigrate and find the 'evedence' to back it up. I am a Bowen therapist and remember treating someone with frozen shoulder, when I finished treatment her range of movement wasn't much greater than before, so it must be an 'evedence based' failure! But wait, she now slept well, had more than halved her pain killers and felt much brighter and happier. In her words 'You've completely changed my life, I was in constant pain and life wasn't worth living'. Science wouldn't have measured that, just the range of movement!

Keith Cherrington, Bristol, England