Friday, November 27, 2009

Boots 'labels homeopathy as effective despite lack of evidence'

From the Times Online (UK):
The chief pharmacist at Boots today admitted the company markets homeopathic remedies as effective cures despite there being no medical evidence that they work.

Addressing the House of Commons parliamentary science watchdog, Paul Bennett said: “I have seen no evidence that these products are efficacious. It’s about consumer choice and a large number of our customers think they work.”

High street chemists were criticised by scientists and MPs at the meeting for putting business interests above patient care and the reputation of the medical profession.

However, Mr Bennett said that the responsibility to properly regulate the marketing of homeopathic products lay with the UK drug regulator, the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

The comments were made at an evidence session of the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee, part of an ongoing inquiry into the regulation of homeopathic medicine. ...more

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