'Creative healing' is quackery
Once again, the Post-Gazette has provided a free infomercial for pseudoscience and mysticism posing as "alternative medicine."

The health section article "Creative Healing" on March 9 claims there is a regional explosion of interest in "non-traditional medicine" such as Reiki, homeopathy and herbal cures for cancer. Why? Because there are as many as 300,000 "cultural creatives" in our community who are looking beyond standard scientific medicine -- a marketing bonanza for alt-med.

Unfortunately "cultural creative," in this usage, is a synonym for the more standard term used for targets of a scam artist -- the "mark." The truth is that alternative medicine, a mishmash of healing claims with little or no scientific backing, is enormously profitable. The national Whole Health Expo to be held in Monroeville will be filled with highly questionable and/or fraudulent products marketed to gullible true believers.

The article, backs up its explosion claims with a celebration of the opening of a South Side healing center by a Reiki practitioner with a 1,500- person mailing list. Reiki, of course, claims to heal by hand manipulating a non-existent human energy field. It is pure quackery. That so many people are on her mailing list is sad indeed. Another pitch is given for a Johnstown "holistic center" founded by someone who claims -- with no scientific evidence -- that a salve of plant materials cured his cancer. Anecdotes do not evidence make, though the alternative industry uses them effectively to bolster its profit margins.

Surely, the Post-Gazette would serve its customers better by offering scientific criticism and words of caution about such nonsense rather than free advertising for what are largely health-care scams.

E. PATRICK CURRY
Squirrel Hill

The writer is a member of the National Council Against Health Fraud.

Yes, we should license naturopaths
I am a physician who read the article on naturopathists with interest (Naturopathic doctors renew push for licensing in Pennsylvania, Feb. 17, 2004). I and a family member have been treated by Heidi Weinhold for several medical problems. She is medically well informed and knowledgeable and practices her art with gentleness and empathy.

As a traditional medical practitioner, I have been struck by the pleasure of a doctor-patient relationship unmarred by the intrusion of insurance regulators, and minimally so by malpractice concerns.

The herbal industry is enormous and growing every day. Licensure of trained professionals who can evaluate and advise people in an intelligent fashion can only be an advantage to our public. I say grant them a licensure process. It can only help to ensure quality practices.

DANIEL L. DIAMOND, M.D.
McMurray