{"id":2992,"date":"2012-12-08T11:14:53","date_gmt":"2012-12-08T16:14:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/?p=2992"},"modified":"2012-12-08T11:14:53","modified_gmt":"2012-12-08T16:14:53","slug":"someone-is-wrong-on-the-internet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/someone-is-wrong-on-the-internet\/","title":{"rendered":"Someone is wrong on the internet"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"From<\/a>I discovered an entertaining site recently called Skeptic North<\/a>. It’s a Canadian equivalent to several similar sites and blogs I read that are mostly American-based. It challenges popular assumptions, ideas, trends and pseudoscience and other claptrap. In a Canadian way, of course.<\/p>\n

Meaning that it’s usually much too polite in how it handles some of the balderdash\u00a0online. I’m less gracious. Bullshit is bullshit and should be called out.<\/p>\n

I discovered it when I was looking for some additional backup material on COLD FX, an over-the-counter, made-in-China\u00a0product (I hesitate to call it a medicine; is pseudo-medicine a proper word? or should I just call it a commercial placebo?) made from a purified ginseng extract, that claims to boost your immune system and prevent colds and flus. The discussion has raised itself on Facebook again, with the usual “I don’t care what scientists say, it works for me…” comments.<\/p>\n

CBC’s Marketplace<\/a> show did a’ expose that debunked a lot of the claims, but I found the show a little too sensationalist for my own taste. I was glad to see the article on Skeptic North<\/a> about the show shared my concerns over the presentation*<\/span>.<\/p>\n

…I was turned off by the typical \u201cconfrontation TV\u201d drama they included.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The effectiveness of Cold FX has been debated and challenged long before CBC got around to it. UBC professors<\/a> questioned it back in 2006. They found:<\/p>\n

The main purpose of these studies was to see whether the ginseng extract would reduce the incidence of\u00a0acute respiratory illnesses (flu and respiratory syncytial\u00a0virus, or RSV, a virus that causes flu-like symptoms), as defined by subjective symptoms such as cough, sore throat and runny nose. The researchers, reporting the results in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, found “no significant difference between the placebo and the ( Cold-fX) groups for the number of (acute respiratory illnesses) defined by symptoms.” They also found “no significant difference in the severity or duration of symptoms related to (acute respiratory illnesses) between the two groups in either study.”<\/p>\n

The secondary purpose of the studies was to measure the difference in the incidence of\u00a0laboratory-confirmed (typically by a viral culture) acute respiratory illnesses between the two groups. In the placebo groups, six and 12 per cent of the subjects in the two studies contracted flu or respiratory syncytial virus. In the ginseng groups, these percentages were lower — zero and two per cent — which suggests the ginseng had some therapeutic benefit. However, in each case, the “p value” — the probability that chance explained the difference — was high enough that these differences, by the researchers’ own admission, were not deemed statistically significant.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In 2009, Science-Based Pharmacy<\/a> published the results of three studies that challenged the product’s claims. Here are the results from the three studies:<\/p>\n

Bottom line: <\/strong>If we accept the combining of the two trials, we can conclude the following: In nursing home residents, when taken for 8 to 12 weeks, Cold-fX appeared to reduce laboratory-confirmed<\/em> cases of colds and flu, but had no effect when considering what patients actually reported<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Bottom line: <\/strong>A healthy adult taking Cold-fX might expect to have 0.25 less colds over a 16 week period. This has led some to question whether this result is clinically relevant<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

Bottom line: <\/strong>Over a 16 week period Cold-fx failed to demonstrate an improvement over placebo. Given the high number of study design flaws, data omissions, the poor quality journal, and long publication delay, it is difficult to draw conclusions from the results. At best, it is suggestive that Cold-fX needs to be taken for at least eight weeks, with a flu shot after four weeks, before it may have any noticeable effect.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And the conclusion in the article?<\/p>\n

\n

What if I feel like I\u2019m coming down with a cold? Will starting Cold-fX now have any effect?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

There is no published evidence to demonstrate the effectiveness of Cold-fX if started at the onset of a cold.<\/p>\n

CV Technologies offers a 300mg form of their product (\u201cExtra-Strength Cold-fX<\/a>\u201c) with the directions to start \u201cat the first sign of colds of flu symptoms\u201d. There are no published trials documenting the effectiveness of the 300mg\u00a0dosage strength, or evaluating the dosing instructions of 12 capsules over the first 3 days, in reducing the duration of colds or the flu.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Ottawa Skeptics<\/a>\u00a0site also has a good article critiquing how the studies are presented, and says, for example,<\/p>\n

Although this trial was well designed, reviewers have criticized the interpretation of\u00a0the results. For example, the study team described the combined reduction in lab-confirmed influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) as \u201can overall 89% relative risk reduction\u201d[22] (i.e., an 8% reduction compared to a 9% incidence rate), which is true but misleading. In reality, there was simply an absolute risk reduction of 8% points.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Claims that COLD FX has approval for its packaging statements have also been challenged, as this National Post <\/a>article notes:<\/p>\n

Health Canada has not authorized COLDfX’s long-standing claim that consumers can obtain “immediate relief” from colds and flu by dramatically increasing the dosage, the Vancouver Sun has learned.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

You can read the company’s own comments about their battle over claims with Health Canada in 2007, here<\/a>. Back then, the Center for Science in the Public Interest<\/a>, a well-respected organization, cautiously noted that,<\/p>\n

Bottom line:<\/strong>\u00a0Until more studies are done, it\u2019s too early to conclude that Cold-fx can shorten\u2014or cut your odds of catching\u2014a cold or the flu. Even so, Cold-fx is the only remedy we found with any<\/em> evidence that it might improve your chances of getting through the cold and\u00a0\u00a0flu season without coming down with something.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This lukewarm endorsement has not been repeated since\u00a0 to my knowledge (I subscribe to their excellent newsletter, Nutrition Action<\/em>). In general, CSPINET has been critical of all herbal remedies<\/a> and done a lot of work researching their claims and effectiveness (which generally is none<\/strong>). Nonetheless, some of\u00a0the claims made by COLD FX have been the subject of a recent class-action lawsuit<\/a>, which, as far as I know, is still being decided.<\/p>\n

It’s curious to me that people who swear by COLD FX and other non-medicinal products like echinecea <\/a>– another herbal product proven ineffective – yet will not get a flu shot, which is backed\u00a0up by considerable research and science and endorsed by every national and provincial health organization and medical association in Canada and the USA. COLD FX is endorsed by Don Cherry. Which do you believe is the more credible? As The Paltry Sapien<\/a> blogger (another entertaining skeptic) wryly comments.<\/p>\n

We like to talk about science and proof and rationality, but in the end belief in hockey and maple leaves and the coldness of winter wins out. Cold FX, this \u201cstruggling true-blue Canadian company,\u201d in Cherry\u2019s words \u2014 producing a product in China, not Alberta \u2014 deserves our allegiance.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Flu shots are free in Canada. COLD FX is expensive<\/a>\u00a0(emphasis added):<\/p>\n

Over a four-month period, subjects in the ginseng group experienced, on average, one-quarter of a cold less than the placebo group. That means each person has to spend a total of $86 to prevent one-quarter of a cold<\/strong>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I ascribe a lot of this to the New Age belief that so-called “natural” products (a nebulous term of little value, like “organic,”\u00a0both degraded by slippery definitions, lax regulations and unscrupulous marketers and – ironically – corporations) are better than manufactured ones. That counterintuitive leap has extended into all sorts of silliness, from belief in astrology and Feng\u00a0Shui to crystal therapy and magnetic bracelets over astronomy,\u00a0 architecture, science, and medicine. And let’s not forget UFO abductions, creationism\u00a0and the Mayan apocalypse – or flu-shot paranoia.<\/p>\n

I have yet to find an all-natural computer or iPad on which I can post that observation.<\/p>\n

But as for these herbal concoctions – many people want a pill to do for them what they would better\u00a0get from proper hygiene (frequent hand washing), good nutrition and exercise – without having to do all the work. It’s like the herbal-diet-fat-burning pills: instant gratification without the sweat. Won’t happen.<\/p>\n

~~~~~<\/span><\/p>\n

*<\/span> For the sake of balance, not everyone thinks the CBC Marketplace show was either accurate or good journalism. For example, blogger Shireen\u00a0Jeejeebhoy<\/a> says,<\/p>\n

By the end of the twenty-two-odd minutes, Marketplace\u2019s entire piece, when read between the lines and engendering Herculean effort not to be\u00a0distracted by the bells and whistles, boils down to COLD-FX prevents colds. The claim it provides immediate relief\u00a0needs further study; the China connection is no different than every other product we buy (have you checked where your frozen\u00a0veggies are\u00a0grown lately?),\u00a0thus is not COLD-FX specific and is a separate topic;\u00a0the\u00a0bacterial contamination is old news and a non-starter. In other words, Marketplace told its alert\u00a0viewers to\u00a0take COLD-FX daily if you want to prevent colds.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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I discovered an entertaining site recently called Skeptic North. It’s a Canadian equivalent to several similar sites and blogs I read that are mostly American-based. It challenges popular assumptions, ideas, trends and pseudoscience and other claptrap. In a Canadian way, of course. Meaning that it’s usually much too polite in how it handles some of the balderdash\u00a0online. I’m less gracious. Bullshit is bullshit and should be called out. I discovered it when I was looking for some additional backup material on COLD FX, an over-the-counter, made-in-China\u00a0product (I hesitate to call it a medicine; is pseudo-medicine a proper word? or should \u2026…… click below for more \u2193<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[155,69,5,96],"tags":[239,238,240,29,22],"class_list":["post-2992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-balderdash-and-hoaxes","category-internet-memes","category-science-technology","category-social-order-disorder","tag-cold-fx","tag-medicine","tag-research","tag-science","tag-superstition"],"a3_pvc":{"activated":true,"total_views":6008,"today_views":0},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2992"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2992\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3013,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2992\/revisions\/3013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ianchadwick.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}