Jul 10 2008
How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?
This must be what it feels like to fall into a bottomless pit of inanity, also known as a parliamentary discussion about “alternative” medicine. I think the defining point of the discussion is this short note by Oliver Heald (Cons):
My hon. Friend must not forget aromatherapists. The Aromatherapy Organisations Council has done a great deal of work to move towards regulation of the profession, and would be interested to hear the Minister’s remarks on that.
And so on with other contradictory approaches to health. The important thing is not whether these approaches are effective or worth the money — but whether there is a council of idiots to represent it. In short, whether they are vocal enough.
3 Responses to “How many angels can dance on the head of a pin?”
Dude, if you’re going to be cynical then you should probably get your facts unsquiffy. Your quote is related to aromatherapy, but your link to homeopathy. They’re almost completely unrelated, the only relation they do is is casual in that some people practice both. Also: aromatherapy really isn’t without merit. Smell is the most evocative sense we have, it operates at distance and it allows chemicals to enter the bloodstream. Some of that stuff really works.
I didn’t claim that homoeopathy and aromatherapy were even slightly related, though they do share strange claims regarding “molecular memory” and the beneficial effects of “natural” versus “synthetic” compounds. I only claimed that the debaters put more weight on having an organising body than the effectiveness of the treatment. I used the Society of Homoeopaths as an example of a body who claim to be strict about their membership but whose rules are not worth the paper they’re printed on. A governing body is useless if it doesn’t govern.
I would say aromatherapy largely is without merit. Its claims about essential oils are mostly unsupported by evidence. Aromatherapists claim successes for their methods which are easily explained in other ways (why does the drop of oil in your bath make you feel relaxed, but soaking in a hot bath wouldn’t?) but you’ll never find attempts to get closer to the real causes.
“why does the drop of oil in your bath make you feel relaxed, but soaking in a hot bath wouldn’t?”
Because some smells are more relaxing than others.