NEW: "Responding to a burst of Reiki from Turkey." In 2024 thirteen clinical studies of Reiki by Turkish researchers were published. Here is how seven journals dealt with critiques of the studies.
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FEBRUARY 2026 NEWS JANUARY 2026 NEWS DECEMBER 2025 NEWS
MARCH, 2026
Featured topic: vaccines
David Gorski (Science-Based Medicine): “RFK Jr. is definitely coming for your vaccines (part 8): ‘Massive epidemic of vaccine injury,’ ACIP, and a prominent oncologist [Wafik El-Deiry],” “…(part 9): ProPublica reports, and a bump in the road to remaking ACIP,” and “...(part 10): An RFK Jr. ally [Aaron Siri] tells us what's coming next.”
Edzard Ernst: “The anti-vaccine activist, Aaron Siri, his arguments and his errors: a short and easily understandable summary.”
Paul Offit (Beyond the Noise): “The 'V' word,” “The return of hib,” “A great day for children,” and “The invulnerability myth” [meningococcus vaccine].
Florida Politics: “As Trump urges GOP to retreat from anti-vax rhetoric, DeSantis doubles down on exemption bill amid rising measles cases.”
New York Times: “Parents tried to shield their children from vaccines. Instead they got measles.” [South Carolina]
New York Times: “As Kennedy turns from vaccines, MAGA allies see a ‘betrayal’.”
Washington Post: “Controversial top vaccine regulator to depart FDA” [Vinay Prasad].
New York Times: “Divisive FDA vaccine regulator is resigning” [Vinay Prasad].
Palmetto Politics: “SC lawmakers kill bill that would have ended religious exemption for measles vaccine.”
Ars Technica: “RFK Jr.’s antivaccine policies are ‘unreviewable,’ DOJ lawyer tells judge.”
Washington Post: “RFK Jr.’s advisers had a plan to target covid shots. Then it fell apart.”
Guardian: “RFK Jr’s pick to review Covid vaccines authored misleading research, experts say” [Retsef Levi].”
New York Times: “In talking to parents about vaccines, pediatricians navigate a sea of misinformation.”
The Conversation: “We study pandemics, and the resurgence of measles is a grim sign of what’s coming.”
New York Times: “Confidential report calls for sweeping changes to track Covid vaccine harms.”
Washington Post: “Federal judge blocks RFK Jr.’s vaccine policy overhaul for now.”
New York Times: “Measles is roaring back. We are not ready.”
Daily Beast: “RFK Jr. plots vaccine panel shakeup after humiliating ruling.
Science Literacy Project: “The Trump-RFK, Jr. anti-vaccine circus has yet another act, and it’s getting worse.”
Reuters: “Kennedy allies petition to broaden US vaccine injury list.”
Ars Technica: “As RFK Jr.’s anti-vaccine ways turn toxic to GOP, CDC director is hard to find.”
Bloomberg: “RFK Jr. ally says vaccines now a 'losing issue' with White House.”
Ripple: “When will the anti-vaccine fever break?”
Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy: “More people requesting 'unvaccinated' blood for themselves or their children.”
Featured topic: surgeon general nominee
Andrea Love (Genetic Literacy Project): “If Casey Means becomes surgeon general, expertise is officially optional.”
Washington Post: “MAHA’s political power tested as surgeon general pick stalls” and “Trump’s first surgeon general tries to stop nominee from becoming his second.”
Ars Technica: “Trump’s MAHA pick for surgeon general flounders among GOP doubts.”
Unbiased Science: “The nation’s doctor shouldn’t be an animatronic.” “On the absurdity of a non-doctor as America’s top doctor.”
Featured topic: other political developments
David Gorski (Science-Based Medicine): “One year of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as HHS secretary: The Lancet reacts, and so do I.”
Jonathan Howard (Science-Based Medicine): “’Vinay Prasad loves President Trump.’ That, plus 12 other thoughts on the end of Dr. Vinay Prasad’s sabbatical from UCSF.”
Edzard Ernst: “Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his harmful ideas about so-called alternative medicine (SCAM).”
Washington Post: “Scientists create autism panel, citing RFK Jr.’s politicization of research.”
Andrea Love (Genetic Literacy Project): “Viewpoint: wellness pseudoscience advocates are rewriting U.S. health policy.”
Washington Post: “The CDC is in chaos. But here’s where it’s devastating.” [local health departments]
Ars Technica: “FDA contradicts Trump admin, declines to approve generic drug for autism.”
Guardian: “Trump and RFK Jr touted leucovorin as a treatment for autism. The FDA quietly walked it back.”
Newsweek: “America is getting sicker, not healthier, under Trump and RFK Jr.”
Gary Schwitzer (Health News Review): “FDA doesn’t want advice from advisory committees.”
Ars Technica: “RFK Jr. has destroyed over a quarter of health dept’s expert panels.”
New York Times: “Inside the turmoil at Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s C.D.C.”
AP: “RFK Jr. makes food sound like a miracle drug. Researchers say he often overstates the science.”
Washington Post: “RFK Jr.’s hypocritical quackery.” “FDA scientists warn that some popular peptides are ineffective and potentially dangerous.”
NewsGuard: “RFK Jr. group revives long-debunked claim that WiFi is dangerous.”
New York Times: “Heading Kennedy’s wishes, FDA is expected to lift restriction on peptides.”
Featured topic: homeopathy
Edzard Ernst:
“Dana Ullman's ‘newest contribution to the PubMed literature’: a critical evaluation.” The article concerned the battle over homeopathy in the early 20th century. A ChatGPT analysis: “The article is best understood as advocacy-oriented revisionist history, not a neutral historical analysis…In short: The paper raises valid points about power and philanthropy in medicine but overstates the case that homeopathy was suppressed rather than scientifically discredited.”
“The 1835 Nuremberg salt trial of homeopathy: background, execution and consequences.” The controlled trial showed that effects of homeopathic salt on healthy volunteers did not differ from water. “…The trial could have established that highly diluted homeopathic remedies are pure placebos. Sadly, this fact is still being ignored by all homeopaths, most healthcare systems, and far too many consumers across the world.”
“Charles Darwin on homeopathy: ‘it is a sign of how little even the best educated people know of the laws of evidence’.” Despite the claim that Darwin “was a great fan of homeopathy,” “as a rigorous man of science, Darwin found the core logic of homeopathy hard to swallow.”
“If anyone tells you that only misinformed skeptics oppose homeopathy, show them this: a list of independent evaluations by internationally respected organisations.” “Across decades of systematic reviews and independent evaluations by scientific and medical authorities worldwide, no credible evidence has emerged to support the efficacy of homeopathy. Its principles conflict with well-established scientific laws, and its effects are indistinguishable from those of placebo in rigorous studies. The broad convergence of expert opinion is therefore this: homeopathy has no effects beyond placebo. Its continued use represents a divergence from evidence-based medicine, and reliance on it, particularly as an alternative to effective care, poses a clear risk to public health.”
“Immunisation and homeopathy are often claimed to be alike – in fact, they are not even remotely similar.” “The confusion between immunisation and homeopathy usually stems from the superficial similarity that both allegedly involve ‘small doses’ to trigger a response. However, the ‘small dose’ in a vaccine is a calculated, detectable amount of biological material designed to trigger a specific cellular reaction. In contrast, the ‘dose’ in homeopathy is non-existent in remedies beyond the C12 potency. While the response to an immunisation is quantifiable, this is not the case with homeopathy. But the most important difference between immunisation and homeopathy is, of course, this: the former is effective beyond placebo and the latter isn’t.”
“Another look at the 'nanoparticle theory' of homeopathy.” “This argument sounds ever so modern and sciency but – unless you are a bit of a dim-wit – it falls apart for several fairly straightforward reasons that almost anyone should be able to grasp.”
“Homeopathy and Bach Flower Remedies for autism spectrum disorder – is this the most misleading paper on the subject?”
“Homeopathy in the non-medical literature.” “It seems to me that, when it comes to homeopathy, the writers tend to agree with the scientists.”
Other topics
On Science-Based Medicine,
Jann Bellamy:
“Legislative alchemy: 'Naturopathic doctor' licensing is bad medicine for Florida.” “Bills licensing “naturopathic doctors” are making their way through the current Florida legislative session. Given an armamentarium of unvalidated testing, pseudoscientific diagnoses, and quack remedies, naturopathic practitioners would be allowed to call themselves ‘doctors,’ with the authority to diagnose and treat any patient of any age with any disease or health condition, all without consultation with the patient’s physician.” See also story by Melissa Masters (MSN), “Florida’s long-standing ban on naturopathy faces repeal as advocacy group calls for veto.”
David Gorski:
“Using alternative medicine to treat cancer, even alongside conventional therapies, is still a bad idea.” See March 2 item below.
Steven Novella:
“Latest science on origins of SARS-CoV-2.” See also Feb. 26 item in FEBRUARY 2026 NEWS.
“An unimpressive Reiki study.” “I really don’t think additional research is needed. This was a negative study of a highly implausible (nigh impossible) hypothesis. Even with some wiggle room provided by questionable blinding (unblinded treatment providers with a highly subjective outcome) they couldn’t achieve statistical significance.”
“Liver failure from alternative medicines.” The study “confirmed a high level of contamination (unintentional inclusion of a substance), mostly with heavy metals. It also found adulteration, which is the deliberate inclusion of an unlabeled pharmaceutical or animal product. It also found substitution, replacing the labeled ingredient with something else. If the product causing ACLF [acute-on-chronic liver failure] included an unlabeled ingredient, that significantly correlated with death from liver injury.” The study (Philips et al. Front. Gastroenterol. 5:1784785) involved products from India, but many of these are exported to the U.S.
Edzard Ernst:
“Acupuncture: too good to be true?” “Acupuncture’s trial proliferation signals cultural and patient-driven demand rather than mechanistic or evidential triumph. Its broad therapeutic claims by far overreach evidence (Staud & Price, 2014). Rigorous advancement would require objective biomarkers (e.g., cytokine assays, EEG), dose-response optimization, adaptive sham designs, and large pragmatic trials stratifying contextual from specific effects. Until compelling evidence exists, acupuncture remains a testament to human suggestibility’s power, but not a biomedical panacea.”
“Does coffee and tea consumption reduce the dementia risk and improve cognitive function?” “The new study seems to settle at least some of the uncertainties and makes a causal link more likely.”
“Testing the implausible: clinical trials of so-called alternative medicine (SCAM)?” “Highly improbable claims should first demonstrate compelling preclinical signals – biochemical, mechanistic, or reproducible physiological effects – before human trials are considered. This proportionality upholds methodological rigor without foreclosing the possibility of genuine empirical discovery. It respects Bayesian reasoning: extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.”
“Herbal remedies for improving the performance of football players.” “So, would I advise World Cup footballers to take Rhodiola rosea? No – not so much because of the reasons just mentioned, but because the findings of the above-quoted tiny study obviously require independent replication before we can take them seriously.”
“'Quantum bullocks' in so-called alternative medicine (SCAM).” “By adorning every unverified practice with the mantle of ‘quantum,’ they deftly sidestep the mundane demands of reproducible evidence, suggesting that subatomic phenomena might indeed orchestrate the restoration of elusive vital energies through SCAM. How elegantly proponents extrapolate from the tunneling of electrons across potential barriers – observed under meticulously controlled laboratory conditions – to the purported realignment of human bioenergetic fields and restoration of ill health. Yet this analogy falters when confronted with biological reality, wherein macroscopic scales render quantum coherence untenable amid the decohering chaos of aqueous cellular environments.”
Ken McLeod: “Prosecution follows ayahuasca and kambo death.”
“The effects of multivitamin-multimineral and cocoa extracts on aging.” “Experts who were not involved in the new study urged caution. While the researchers saw an effect with two epigenetic clocks, three other epigenetic clocks included in the study showed no statistically significant change to their speed…’That makes the finding interesting, but it is still far from showing that multivitamins broadly slow aging or improve longevity’.”
“Regulation of so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) in different countries.” “What ever the regulatory details are, we should, I think, bear in mind something that I state whenever SCAM regulation is being discussed: Even the most rigorous regulation of nonsense must result in nonsense.”
“Ayush systems of medicine in India’s COVID response.” Ayush refers to Ayurveda, yoga & naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and homeopathy. “Sound evidence for Ayush benefits does not exist. One might therefore speculate that the promotion of Ayush may have diverted resources from proven measures like vaccination and antivirals. In other words, it seems likely that it cost many lives.”
“The effects of TCM [traditional Chinese medicine] on the outcomes after mastectomy: a large population-based study.” “Much research has demonstrated that people who use so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) in addition to conventional therapies differ from those who don’t. In general, they tend to be more health conscious – if not, they would not go to the trouble of using and paying for SCAM. This difference alone suffices to bring about the observed outcomes – even if TCM has no or perhaps a slightly negative overall health effect…What I am trying to point out such research is meaningless; it has zero practical consequences, even if its results were real – which they probably are not. In the end, it boils down to one main thing: the promotion of unproven (and occasionally dangerous) TCM.”
“Reiki for stress relief? No, more likely for comic relief!”
“'Sliding Cupping Therapy' for psoriasis…or: How to cheat with seemingly reliable research.” “Sliding cupping therapy is a form of cupping in which cups producing mild suction are placed on oiled skin and then moved along the body surface, generating a ‘reverse massage’ that lifts rather than compresses the subcutaneous tissues…The new study is a text-book example of how to mislead people with seemingly reliable research. The fact that it was grossly under-powered – and not the effectiveness of the sliding cupping therapy – is obviously the cause of the lack of a difference between the effective therapy (NBUVB) and the sliding quackery.”
“Why many people do NOT use so-called alternative medicine.” “Non‑use, then, is a principled stance grounded in satisfaction with conventional care, skepticism about unproven claims, and a desire to minimise both medical and financial risk. In a word: non-use of SCAM seems to be a sign of prudence, common sense and an ability to think critically.”
On McGill Office for Science and Society:
Patricia Brubaker:
“BPC [Body Protection Compound]-157 no proof required!” “Despite a near-total lack of evidence that BPC 157 is effective or even safe for use in humans, this peptide is being touted for use to repair muscle, tendon and ligament damage in athletes, for recovery from surgery, and to improve gut health, amongst other indications.”
Jonathan Jarry:
“Your poop is not reliable, at least for now.” “Gut microbiome kits you can order online promise to analyze your stool sample and tell you how healthy your gut is and how to improve it. A recent study tested seven companies offering these kits with samples from the same stool, and results were significantly different, even for multiple samples sent to the same company. [see February news] Our understanding of the gut microbiome is too preliminary right now for these kits to be useful, and the entire process of collecting stool and analyzing it needs to be standardized before these kits can be anything other than a waste of money.”
“White noise may worsen sleep.” “If you use a continuous noise generator (e.g. white noise or pink noise), ensure that the volume is not too loud, as some devices as well as smartphone apps are capable of delivering a very loud sound that is problematic in the long term. A new study tested pink noise on its own and as a way to mask disruptive environmental sounds at night and found that the pink noise made sleep worse and more superficial. Better and longer studies are needed to see if these results can be replicated or if the brain habituates to pink noise and sleep improves after a while.”
“HIV/AIDS denialism is back, courtesy of Joe Rogan.” “Joe Rogan, the biggest podcaster in the world with an audience larger than major television news outlets, does not believe that HIV causes AIDS. Rogan has recently promoted a long list of thoroughly debunked arguments: that HIV is a harmless virus; that AIDS is caused by promiscuous sex and recreational drugs; that the first HIV medication was an old cancer drug that was killing cancer patients; and that heterosexual people don’t get AIDS.”
“TLZA plasma healing: the anarcho-capitalist cure-all.” “Plasma is a state of matter, like solid or liquid, that results when gas is given enough energy that its atoms become electrically charged The field of plasma medicine is still very much in its early, experimental days. Devices like the TZLA and Theraphi claim to deliver healing plasma, but they are unproven, unregulated, and based on the conspiracy theory that famous inventor Nikola Tesla figured out how to heal all diseases before he died.”
Joe Schwarcz:
“There are lots of longevity regimens. One stands out for me.” Bryan Johnson, Peter Attia, and Eric Topol were discussed. “To me Johnson is just a curiosity, Attia is too much of a mixed bag, but Topol is the real deal."
On Skeptical Inquirer:
Matan Shelomi: “Delusion or dentistry: The pseudoscience of Neurocutaneous Syndrome.” “Despite his constant claims to the contrary, [Omar] Amin is not world-renowned in any field, and NCS rarely appears in scientific literature compared to other forms of DI [delusional infestations] denial such as Morgellons. Many NCS papers are duplications by Amin, and nearly all the references he cites are his own.”
Jonathan Simmons: “Epistemic laundering: How universities sell pseudoscience.” “Once elite institutions normalize integrative offerings, the effect cascades down the prestige hierarchy. After Harvard or Mayo adopts a practice, the method becomes ‘modern healthcare.’ To justify this expansion, administrators rely on a subtle linguistic shift. They replace ‘evidence-based’ with ‘evidence-informed’…allowing scientific data to be treated as just one input among many, weighted equally with patient preference and market demand.”
Thomas Wheeler: “Responding to a burst of Reiki from Turkey.” In 2024 thirteen clinical studies of Reiki by Turkish researchers were published. Here is how seven journals dealt with critiques of the studies. “…Papers on Reiki, like other forms of ‘energy medicine,’ often escape careful reviewing and editing, leading to the medical and nursing literature being degraded with nonsensical claims.”
Nick Tiller: “Is it time we stop publishing acupuncture research from China?” “99 percent of acupuncture studies conducted in China reported beneficial outcomes.” Problems include poor blinding, lack of prospective trial registration, and failure to report most trial outcomes. In addition, “Most acupuncture reviews from China don’t even bother to assess publication bias, allowing weaker trials to be submerged in a flood of pooled results.”
March 1 – Joe Wilkins (Futurism): “Meta reels is filling up with AI slop of faith healers performing miraculous cures.”
March 2 – Ayoade et al. (JAMA Netw Open 2026;9(3):e260337): “Use of complementary and alternative medicine in the management of breast cancer.” As expected, use of CAM alone or no treatment instead of conventional treatment led to the highest level of mortality in the groups being compared. However, patients who used a combination of CAM and conventional treatment also had higher mortality than those who used conventional treatment alone. This may be because patients in this group were less likely to receive endocrine and radiation treatment.
March 2 – Paul Knoepfler (The Niche): $24M verdict against Seattle Stem Cell Center clinic in man’s death.” “More broadly, it’s important to remember that there are still likely more than 1,000 clinics in the U.S. selling scientifically and medically unproven ‘stem cells.’ Sometimes the cells given aren’t even alive. They also may not be stem cells even if the cells are alive. Some procedures appear technically FDA-compliant, but generally there still aren’t good clinical trial data to support them.”
March 5 – Lindsey Bever (Washington Post): “Should you take a supplement for heart health? Here’s what the science says.” “A laundry list of supplements such as fish oil, which is rich in omega 3s, as well as coenzyme Q10, magnesium and others have been touted as having cardiovascular benefits such as preventing heart attacks. In most cases, these claims are not backed by science, experts said. ‘There are no adequate data that support cardiovascular benefit for supplements in healthy people who eat a healthy diet,’ said Eric Topol, a cardiologist and founder of the Scripps Research Translational Institute.”
March 9 - Ken Bensinger and Tiffany Hsu (New York Times): “An Amish avatar and an A.I. monk are pitching supplements on social media.” They are “part of a growing vanguard of entrepreneurs taking advantage of rapid advances in A.I. to promote their brands using people who don’t actually exist.”
March 13 – J. Michael Menke (Skeptic): “Confessions of a former chiropractor.” “Many of my former classmates reached the same conclusion, some more quickly than I did. Privately, several admitted that much of what we had been taught was baloney. They were not amused. A $200,000–$400,000 investment over four years had produced clinicians who knew just enough medicine to realize how little they could safely treat.”
March 26 – Lynne Peeples (Nature 2026. 651(8107):871-4): “The surprising science behind red-light therapy — and how it really works.” “The wellness industry has rushed ahead with little regulation, and scientists fear that this trend has clouded legitimate science. Consumers can now buy red-light wands, masks, helmets, panels, full-body mats and even units that resemble tanning beds. The devices often come with bold promises that rest on weak data. ‘They are giving us a bad name,’ says [Glen] Jeffery. ‘You’ve got all these companies saying, “You’ll live forever,” and people like us saying “This is a very important, interesting area of science”.’ Scientists who have begun testing commercial products find that, although some are beneficial, they often fall short of their claims. Many fail to deliver a therapeutic dose.”