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What's the harm in naturopathy?
Naturopathy is a medical discipline that relies entirely on "natural" remedies. Because many of their methods are not backed by scientific testing, naturopaths often get into trouble. Read more about naturopathy
Here are 200 people who were harmed by someone not thinking critically.
Anne M. AdkinsWichita, Kansas |
Kidney failure |
| She traveled to Utah to be treated by a holistic naturopath. She received large doses of vitamin C, chelation therapy and colonics among other things. Within weeks she was suffering from kidney failure. Read more & more | |
Lorie AtikianAge: 17 months |
Died (malnutrition, pneumonia) |
| Lorie's parents, concerned about modern food additives, were advised to give her an organic vegetarian diet. She was also treated with herbal & homeopathic remedies and an energy machine. Her parents were convicted of neglect. Read more | |
Cameron AyresAge: 6 months |
Died |
| Cameron was born with a rare but treatable disorder, but his parents distrusted conventional medicine. A nurse/homeopath begged them to take him to a doctor, but they refused. He died. Read more & more | |
Raj BathijaAge: 69 |
Both legs amputated |
| He saw a "natural health practitioner" famous for treating celebrities. He was given nutritional advice and massages. Later, he was taken to a hospital where his legs had to be amputated. He is suing the practitioner. Read more | |
Debbie BensonAge: 55 |
Died (cancer) |
| She had a deep distrust of traditional medicine, so she sought out naturopaths and other alternative practitioners for her breast cancer. It raged out of control and she died. Read more | |
Catherine "Cat" Elizabeth BresinaAge: 17 |
Cardiac arrest |
| Cat's family took her to Colorado for what they thought was an inventive therapy for her disease. An injection she was given during the treatment caused her heart to stop. Charges were later filed against the naturopath. Read more | |
Ruth ConradIdaho |
Facially disfigured |
| An unlicensed naturopath gave her a "black salve" to deal with a bump on her nose. The eventual damage to her face took 3 years and 17 plastic surgeries to repair. Read more | |
Lucille CravenAge: 54 |
Died (untreated cancer) |
| Lucille concealed the diagnosis of breast cancer from her family. She secretly consulted a naturopath and took homeopathic remedies. She also used quack treatments like blood irradiation. Her cancer raged out of control and she died. Read more | |
Steve Crowder & 100 othersNampa, Idaho |
$10,000 each for useless treatment |
| Steve was paralyzed in a pool accident, his doctors hold out little hope for recovery. He sought out a new therapy from a naturopath in Idaho. It turns out the treatment he was sold was bogus, and the naturopath was later prosecuted. Read more & more | |
Sean FlanaganAge: 19 |
Died |
| Sean was dying of cancer, there was no stopping it. His parents sought out alternative therapies simply to ease his pain. A naturopath claimed he could cure him. Nine days after starting treatment, he was dead. The naturopath was sentenced to prison. Read more & more | |
G. FowdenSandy, Utah |
Died |
| A lifelong believer in natural cures, she shunned conventional medicine. When she got sick she saw nearly every form of alternative practitioner. When she finally allowed herself to be taken to a hospital, it was far too late to help. Read more | |
Rory GallegosAge: 45 |
Died |
| Rory was battling colon and liver cancer. A naturopath told him he had never lost a cancer patient. He also told him "black salve" rubbed into his skin could raise tumors to the surface. The naturopath was later sentenced to prison. Read more | |
Betty HarlanAge: 76 |
Died |
| Betty had multiple chronic health problems including diabetes. Seeking treatment for a leg ulcer, she went to a wellness center run by a naturopath. Her daugher feared she stopped taking her conventional medicine. Read more | |
John HeningerAge: 69 |
Died |
| Seeking help with his degenerative muscle disease, he turned to a self-proclaimed "Qi Gong Master" and naturopath who was not licensed to practice in Alberta. He was given a concoction containing strychnine, and died of respiratory paralysis. Read more | |
Helena Rose "Rosie" KolitwenzewAge: 8 |
Died (untreated diabetes) |
| A naturopath convinced her mother to stop administering insulin to her, in favor of herbal remedies. She began vomiting, and died. It turns out his "degrees" were fake. He was sentenced to prison. Read more & more & more | |
Vecko KrsteskiAge: 37 |
Died |
| Vecko saw a naturopath for his chronic kidney condition. He was put on a "detoxification" program and lost 11kg in 10 days. The naturopath is on trial. Read more & more | |
Mitchell James LittleAge: 18 days |
Died (untreated heart defect) |
| A naturopath perscribed herbal remedies & energy machine treatments for a congenital heart defect, and advised against surgery. The baby died, and the naturopath was sentenced to five years in jail. Read more & more | |
Lisanne ManseauAge: 12 |
Died (untreated diabetes) |
| After consulting a crystal ball, a pendulum and an angel, a naturopath replaced Lisanne's insulin with a variety of natural remedies to "detoxify" her. She died only three days after beginning treatment. The naturopath was convicted of manslaughter. Read more & more | |
Sean MillerAge: 36 |
Ineffective treatments |
| In the grips of severe depression, he tried many treatments. Included in this were acupuncture, vitamin regimens and "a shop's worth of naturopathic remedies," none of which worked. A conventional medical procedure called DBS eventually cured him. Read more | |
Michaela, Caleb, Zion & Lily ParkerAge: 11, 9 and 3 |
Malnourished for years, family broken up |
| Their parents fed them a vegan diet and subjected them to enemas, under the direction of a naturopath who had never seen the children. The mother was sentenced to 30 years, the father awaits sentencing. Read more & more | |
Diane ShepherdProvo, Utah |
Died (untreated cancer) |
| She refused surgery for breast cancer and went to a naturopath. There she was diagnosed using muscle tests, treated with an energy machine and given homeopathic remedies. She died within five months. The naturopath was arrested. Read more | |
Gladys ShoemakerColorado |
Died |
| Jimmie Shoemaker paid an unlicensed naturopath $17,000 for treatments for her cancer. The naturopath was later sentenced to prison in connection with another patient's death. Read more | |
Jaspar TomlinsonAge: 0 |
Brain injury during childbirth |
| Jaspar's father is one of England's leading naturopaths. He was warned by a GP that his wife's pregnancy could end in stillbirth. At home, the "homeopathy assisted" birth went horribly wrong. He suffered brain damage and now has cerebral palsy. Read more & more | |
"Jane Doe"Mannheim, Germany |
Died (untreated breast cancer) |
| She felt a lump in her breast and turned to her local naturopath. He used an energy machine to diagnose it as non-cancerous, and maintained this as it grew to 24cm in size. When she finally saw a doctor, it was too late. His license was revoked. Read more & more | |
"John Doe"Age: 84 |
Died |
| He was injected with a mineral solution by his homeopath/naturopath. He died the next day of a heart attack, and it was ruled a homicide. The naturopath faces charges. Read more & more | |
"Jane Roe"Age: 47 |
Serious thyroid illness |
| Naturopathy Read more | |
"Jane Roe"Age: 56 |
Died (liver failure) |
| A naturopath prescribed an herbal anti-anxiety pill containing kava. She later suffered fatigue, nausea and jaundice and went to the hospital. Her liver failed five days later and she had an emergency transplant, but died. Read more | |
"Jane Roe"Age: 13 |
Untreated illness |
| She has a rare illness that interferes with her kidneys and breathing. Her mother put her on a regimen of wheat-grass juice and raw foods and was withholding some of her medication. A court intervened and put her in the hospital for surgery. Read more | |