Health authorities warn, through a spot ridiculing therapies without evidence, against the fact that these practices can be sold as “simple solutions to complex health problems, taking advantage of the ignorance of the population”.
The government resumes the plan against pseudotherapies and warns against “cupping”, aromatherapy and other treatments
The Ministry of Health has launched a new campaign against pseudotherapies to raise awareness of the importance of “distinguishing between treatments supported by scientific studies and practices which, although popular, lack proven effectiveness”.
Through advertising that pushes these therapies to the point of ridicule – a white scarf, a few drops of lemon or a raspberry suit – Santé wants to show how pseudotherapies “are presented as simple solutions to complex health problems, calling on emotions and emotions”. taking advantage of the population’s lack of knowledge on scientific issues”, indicates the ministry in a press release. All this, continues Mónica García’s team, carries a risk for health because it can lead people to “abandon or postpone proven medical treatments.
Health also launched a website with reliable sources of information and asks that “if you have any questions about a treatment or cure, you always consult accredited health professionals.” “Unlike real medicines and health products, which must be subject to rigorous studies and evaluations to demonstrate their quality, safety and effectiveness, pseudotherapies lack objective controls,” recalls the ministry.
The health authorities’ crusade against pseudotherapies began in 2018, when the Ministry of Health was in the hands of the PSOE. Then, the government banned by royal decree doctors – neither in public nor private health establishments – from using homeopathic products in their consultations. A few years later, in 2021, the ministry began publishing a series of reports evaluating the effectiveness of specific therapies under a plan called #contest.
In April, the current team published their findings on eight other techniques, including aromatherapy,suction cups –or vacuum therapy, consisting of the application of cups, usually glass or plastic, heated to the skin or using other cupping techniques – or tai chi. The report on homeopathy, one of the most anticipated, remained on hold.
