I was having a chat with a colleague about the use of Herbal Medicine (Chinese specifically). It wasn’t an in depth discussion but they did make a throw away comment to the effect of:
I guess I’d rather be taking something Natural than pumping myself full of drugs ( or something close to that)
So why is this thinking fallacious?
It is an appeal to nature and a fallacy of relevance. It is assumed that what is offered as natural is good (either morally or physically ) and what is unnatural is bad. This sort of argument is taken advantage of by
- Natural/Chinese Medicine proponents
- Food companies
- Rightwing homophobic bigots
It can be easily countered by presenting something that is beneficial/desirable yet unnatural, or by showing that something natural is not beneficial/desirable
What should be the consideration when taking any active ingredient for an illness?
Does it work?
In the case above it’s irrelevant whether the ingredient is natural or not, it has no bearing on the situation.
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I've had this conversations with people many times. I tend to bring up dihydrogen monoxide as an example of a "nasty" chemical (and so far 100% of theses people have been ignorant of what it is) and reel of a list it's attributes, where it's used and it's impact, then suggest they start a petition, which they invariably want to do.
Then I wait a bit.
*snort*
The Young Australian Skeptics did a street survey on dihydrogen monoxide. Absolutely brilliant
My usual response: rattlesnake venom is natural too.
Or as some one recently suggested. Would you kiss a blue ringed octopus, they're natural too.
Don't take aspirin. Chew some willow bark instead!
I was just chatting to my bloke about foods with "all natural ingredients" this morning. Like david e, I like to remind people that hemlock and sulphuric acid occur naturally too.
(edited because I can't spell)
Aspirins better for the teeth hey
The archetypal Mad magazine reductio I saw back in the 1980s was to serve up a steaming plate of horse dung – Au Naturale!
Ew!
I haven't read Mad in ages. Do they still print it?
Except what they don't think about is that drugs are made from herbs. The dosage is just more tightly controlled. Plus sometimes "natural supplements" like plant and animal hormones cause nasty things like cancer. I'd rather have a substance that's been vetted, approved, and controlled. At least that way I know what I'm putting in my body is less likely to be dangerous and I'm more informed about the side effects.
I am also concerned about heavy metal contamination of Herbal medicines and quality control – not to mention clinical tests as to efficacy.
There's also the absurd notion that a product of human ingenuity can be classed as non-natural. Human beings have the ability to manipulate our environment. That we're able to do that to such great and nuanced degrees (and to a degree far greater than any other known organism) doesn't make those actions any less natural.
The natural-nonnatural dichotomy is a false dichotomy. And it is a (false) dichotomy that is fundamentally misanthropic. Those that support 'natural' products may well try to deny that it is misanthropic – that they revere the ancient wisdom from a time when humans were more attuned to Nature – but I maintain that what they are revering is Nature, not humans.
The core of the belief is that human beings are outsdie of Nature and impinge on Nature: human bad, Nature good. Sure, some human ingenuity is good, just not too much.
The ingenuity that is at the appropriate level belongs to those humans beings once known as Noble Savages. Such a phrase is not in fashion because it seems rather racist (probably becasue it is racist). But whether they like it or not, that's what they're promoting: veneration of the Noble Savage.
Good point. Why do we even see ourselves as outside of nature. Is symptomatic of religious belief – that we were supposedly given dominion over the earth? Is it because we can heavily influence our environment?
And the cost of those supplements! Pretty pricey when you consider how much fresh food you could buy with the money.
It's been interesting over the years since the Pan Pharmaceutical recall in Australia, to watch what vitamins/minerals/alternative health supplements have NOT made it back on to the shelves. And to see how few brands are available now in Australian health food shops & chemists. (And one hopes/trusts? that those brands left are more reputable in their practises.) We seem to be back to a more restricted range of simple vitamin & mineral dietary supplements, along with slowly increasing range of Chinese medicines. Of course, we can easily buy over the internet and many people do.
It amazes me how reluctant people are to do their own research, or to believe scientists. The internet makes it so easy. I am greatly influenced by my medical nursing training, together with advice from trusted clinical nutritionists (e.g. Dr Rosemary Stanton, Prof Jennie Brand-Miller). We don't need vitamin/mineral/herbal supplements unless our diet is lacking. And Australians should be eating a nutritionally balanced diet made primarily from fresh food sources.
People also seem sucked in by the claims by the processed food manufacturers of "all natural" etc as being good for your health. Ask any hospital doctor or nutritionist and they will tell you that it's better to cook from scratch using fresh fruit, vegies and meat when possible. It's always telling in Alice Springs if you see one of the local doctors doing their grocery shopping, check out what's in their trolley – mainly fresh fruit and veg. Then look at how healthy and fit they look.
I tend to agree that buying fresh fruit and veggies and less processed foods in better for you. Although snap frozen vegetables are just as nutritious.
Unfortunately buying something from a chemist no longer holds the same sense of security for me. I find that I have to educate myself, have to find experts like those you mention) to determine the efficacy of products – whether its homeopathic products or the recent replacement of Pseudoephedrine by a seemingly inactive agent.
On the subject of chinese medicines, I find they fall prey to the same disingenuous marketing techniques as less reputable products – that being said I have not researched the area enough to have formed an educated opinion on them.
Hi Sean. Great post. I have recently discovered your blog and am thoroughly enjoying it! Hope you don't mind if I put you on my blogroll.
Ciao
Matt
Thanks Matt and welcome to the blog