/oss/taxonomy/term/439/all en /oss/article/health/calling-pharmacists-back-order-homeopathy <p>Did you know that some of our Montreal pharmacies employ naturopaths who give advice to customers, even though this is forbidden? This is one of the many upsetting facts uncovered by Philippe Mercure for his<a href="https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/sante/201903/14/01-5218188-homeopathie-du-sucre-contre-la-grippe.php"> <i>La Presse </i>investigation</a> on the sale of homeopathy in drugstores.</p> Fri, 15 Mar 2019 16:50:58 +0000 Jonathan Jarry, MSc 7650 at /oss /oss/article/health-quackery/two-thirds-montreal-pharmacies-sell-quack-flu-buster <p><img height="880" width="998" style="width: 600px; height: 529px;" class="file-original " src="/oss/files/oss/figure_1_1.png" alt="" /></p> <p>If your child has the flu this winter, you may be tempted by an all-natural treatment that has a Health Canada approval number and that is sold in many pharmacies. Its name is so challenging to the human eye, its maker has capitalized on this bafflement for one of its marketing slogans: “unpronounceable but effective.”</p> Fri, 11 Jan 2019 17:00:00 +0000 Jonathan Jarry M.Sc. 7529 at /oss /oss/article/controversial-science-health-news-quackery/if-it-quacks <p>If it quacks …well it can’t quack anymore because its liver was removed by a homeopathic “remedy” producer. And that duck liver is enough to provide the world with “Oscillococcinum” for years. Hopefully those sales will be impaired in the future. I've been informed that the lawsuit that was launched last year against Shoppers Drug Mart and Boiron labs for false labeling of homeopathic products is set to go before the courts in Ontario next year. It is a bit of a roundabout way of getting these scientifically bankrupt products out of pharmacies.</p> Mon, 22 Dec 2014 06:28:03 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 2222 at /oss /oss/article/science-science-everywhere/stopping-pucks-and-spreading-myths <p>I like Carey Price. He’s become the heart of the Montreal Canadiens. Carey is an excellent goaltender with a lot of gumption. But something he doesn’t have is a scientific background. That of course is par for the course for most athletes. But Carey is now set to become the spokesperson for Oscillococcinum, a homeopathic product that claims to treat the common cold as well as the flu. Don’t do it Carey! This is not a valid claim and homeopathy, simply put, is bunk. Let me provide something to back up my claim. Something that homeopaths are not familiar with. It’s called “evidence.” </p> Tue, 10 Jan 2012 16:46:54 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1628 at /oss