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4.09 AVERAGE
4.09 AVERAGE
More people should read this. Seriously. There is so much quackery and pseudoscience out there, and people ready to take your money. Inform yourself.
He made some really good points, but it felt a little repetitive. The chapter on the campaign against anti-retrovirals in South Africa was a particularly interesting (horrifying!) read.
Nice book if you want to understand where biases in healthcare come from and how misleading data can be if you are not trained to them them.
This was excellent and super interesting- I can see myself revisiting it a lot in the future!
"Bad science" covers an important topic. In our open-minded, scientific world we rely too much on simple receipts that promise us to live longer, healthier, pain-free etc. A blue pill for this, a pink pill for that...
The honest truth is that it's not that simple. However, alternative and complementary medicine have created a huge market that makes use of our all too human hope for easy solutions. "But it works" is the most common reply, and "it has been scientifically proven"! Really? The book lets you look behind the curtain.
* It explains the methodological flaws of so-called trials.
* It reveals the pseudo-academic background of the experts.
* It explains the "Placebo effect", which is responsible for amazing results.
* It points out the disastrous influence of the media in the UK.
* It tells you something about "meta-analysis".
* It teaches you to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. :-)
"Bad science" will rob some of your illusions. Vitamin C prevents a cold? No, it supports the treatment but doesn't "prevent" it. Omega-3 fatty acid? No. The new next generation wonder-pill? Unlikely.
Unfortunately it's not easy to apply the new knowledge. Having the proper tools is one thing, investing time and effort is another. So the most important lesson I took out of the book is that the world is complex and that it pays out to be skeptical. It's all too easy to get manipulated. Arm yourself - with knowledge.
The honest truth is that it's not that simple. However, alternative and complementary medicine have created a huge market that makes use of our all too human hope for easy solutions. "But it works" is the most common reply, and "it has been scientifically proven"! Really? The book lets you look behind the curtain.
* It explains the methodological flaws of so-called trials.
* It reveals the pseudo-academic background of the experts.
* It explains the "Placebo effect", which is responsible for amazing results.
* It points out the disastrous influence of the media in the UK.
* It tells you something about "meta-analysis".
* It teaches you to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. :-)
"Bad science" will rob some of your illusions. Vitamin C prevents a cold? No, it supports the treatment but doesn't "prevent" it. Omega-3 fatty acid? No. The new next generation wonder-pill? Unlikely.
Unfortunately it's not easy to apply the new knowledge. Having the proper tools is one thing, investing time and effort is another. So the most important lesson I took out of the book is that the world is complex and that it pays out to be skeptical. It's all too easy to get manipulated. Arm yourself - with knowledge.
informative
fast-paced
I mean, this book was interesting and I enjoyed it, but I read it too soon after Bad Pharma. Definitely read this book before Bad Pharma and if you want more detail about the pharmaceutical industry then continue on and read Bad Pharma.
Bad Science is an interesting read but does focus a lot on the same topics. Bad Science also talks a lot of homeopathic remedies and fads- which was definitely interesting.
Bad Science is an interesting read but does focus a lot on the same topics. Bad Science also talks a lot of homeopathic remedies and fads- which was definitely interesting.
3.5 stars. The key points in this book are important and incontrovertible (and the chapter about Matthias Rath is a particular standout), but the writing style makes it clear that the author is kind of a smug asshole.
informative
medium-paced
Quite UK centric, a bit outdated, not very interesting from a STEM standpoint.