I hope they are not withdrawn. Then Charles can be taken to court under the new Consumer Protection from Unfair Commercial Practices Regulations...

Tessa K, London,

This is an outrageously destructive attack on therapies that to my knowledge have not proved harmful to anyone even though they may not have proved to heal all illnesses.When we look at the startling statistics for rates of heart disease and cancer in the UK-1:2 and 1:3 respectively- there is little comfort or complacency for advocates of conventional medicine either.In his book "Questioning Chemotherapy" Ralph Moss when looking at the supposed life-prolonging effects of chemo. states that"...proof is simply non-existent for the majority of cancers".In the "China Study" Campbell and Campbell show that in the US alone 225,400 people die from physician error and adverse events from drugs or surgery.
Even with the use of "approved " medicines and correct medication procedures over 100,000 people (US) die every year from unintended reactions to the medicine that is supposed to be reviving their health.
The effects of alternative therapies are nothing like as serious as these.

J Davis, Faversham Kent, UK

I am in agreement that more research should be done to examine the effectiveness of complementary and alternative medicine but it is happening; that is why we had the CAM report in 2000; there are now professional bodies for many Therapies which have a dedicated research support team.

Conventional medicine does save lives in acute and serious cases of illness but less acute problems are treated with a cocktail of medication to suppress the symptoms and not locate the source of the problem or take into account the lifestyle impact on the individual.

Alternative/complememtary therapies treat a person as a whole not because they have more time but because they work to a different model that understands the importance of being holistic and therefore has more success with less acute conditions.

Each therapy including conventional medicine has its place in healthcare; infighting does nothing to achieve what we all are aiming for; to restore health and wellbing to others.

Felicity Bevell, London, England

There is no such thing as "alternative medicine". There is medicine that works and medicine that doesn't. Whenever a so called "alternative" treatment is found to actually work it is included in standard medical practice. Aspirin, for example, is derived from a compound originally found in willow bark. The problem is, when an "alternative" therapy is found not to work, it is not dicarded but continues to be pushed by it's practitioners.

Homeopathic cure for a cold: drink this expensive tonic (containing only water) and you'll be fine in 5-6 days.

Medical cure for a cold: drink lots of water and you'll be fine in 5-6 days.

What's the difference?? Price. Nothing more.

Joshua, Norwich,

The distinction between allopathic medicine and 'alternative health' is artificial. It is supposedly drawn up along the lines of evidence based vs unproven therapies but this is overly simplistic. In reality the divide is grey and porous: allopathic medicine has varying levels of evidence basis and some CAM therapies are strongly supported by research. All therapies must be subject to scientific scrutiny to justify their claims, but the only conclusion that can be drawn from the thriving alternative health industry is that allopathic medicine does not have all the answers to a patient's needs and until they do, an open mind would be a good thing. Viewing health through the lens of randomised controlled trials provides a limited and mechanistic view of health which is left wanting.
Ernst and Singh are trying to sell their book using a critical eye on CAM that should also be cast at the limitations of medical alternatives inorder to deliver a balenced approach.

Harry Kauntze (Chiropractor), Bristol, UK

The distinction between allopathic medicine and 'alternative health' is artificial. It is supposedly drawn up along the lines of evidence based vs unproven therapies but this is overly simplistic. In reality the divide is grey and porous: allopathic medicine has varying levels of evidence basis and some CAM therapies are strongly supported by research. All therapies must be subject to scientific scrutiny to justify their claims, but the only conclusion that can be drawn from the thriving alternative health industry is that allopathic medicine does not have all the answers to a patient's needs and until they do, an open mind would be a good thing. Viewing health through the lens of randomised controlled trials provides a limited and mechanistic view of health which is left wanting.
Ernst and Singh are trying to sell their book using a critical eye on CAM that should also be cast at the limitations of medical alternatives inorder to deliver a balenced approach.

Harry Kauntze (Chiropractor), Bristol, UK

"Because scientists cannot prove that some complementary therapies have beneficial effects, or they do not have the equipment to measure the energitic effects of Reiki, does not mean that these therapies are no good."

Because the people promoting these therapies cannot prove that they have beneficial effects /does/ mean that they're no good.

Suppose I charge people £5,000 a time to cure their cancer by rubbing toothpaste in their hair, and a scientist points out that not only does every study ever performed demonstrate that my treatment has no effect, but there is no possible way it /could/ work, then would you say "well, it might still work. You don't know"? Somehow I doubt it.

Why should homeopaths not be held to the same high standards?

Ross Thompson, Monroe, Ohio, USA

Regarding this silly comment: "there is a place for both allopathic and alternative modalities."

There is only a place in the minds of the lint-brained.

Regarding "alternative" medicine, I'm with former New England Journal Of Medicine editor-in-chief Marcia Angell, who, with Jerome Kassirer, wrote:

"It is time for the scientific community to stop giving alternative medicine a free ride... There cannot be two kinds of medicine — conventional and alternative. There is only medicine that has been adequately tested and medicine that has not, medicine that works and medicine that may or may not work."

Amy Alkon, Santa Monica , California, USA

Prescription drugs often mask symptoms, which is good when you are in abject pain. However, they often don't get at the root cause. And, a good many come with a dizzying array of side effects - bloating, diarrhea, constipation, headaches, blood pressure increases, insomnia, anxiety, depression, hair loss, blindness, heart problems, kidney failure...and have to be recalled!

I grew up taking Western meds. It got to a point where they no longer worked for me, and naturopathic, chiropractic, massage, acupuncture, colon hydrotherapy, etc. did, and without the side effects. I've warded off many a cold, flu, neck pain, shoulder pain, low back pain, tendonitis, upper respiratory infection, sciatica, and depression with these alternative avenues.

I respect the advances in healthcare made by Western medicine, especially in acute care, but there is a place for both allopathic and alternative modalities. Why one side has to cut the other down is nonsense.

Jolie Sage, Albany, California

The Newtonian medical industry is based on crisis management for profit. It therefore will be inclined to be narrow-minded, defensive, aggressive, arrogantly prejudiced and agenda driven. Its opinion on matters outside its own interests cannot be trusted. Sadly, medical science & expediency are long-time bedfellows and this is unlikely to change anytime soon. It took approximately 300 years for the respective authorities to allow the earth's flatness to be generally accepted by the public. The need to control economies and people can have a paradoxically debilitating effect on scientific and medical progress. People just need to be aware, cautious and judge for themselves.

Eddie., London., England.

Scientists once said that the world was flat.
Because scientists cannot prove that some complementary therapies have beneficial effects, or they do not have the equipment to measure the energitic effects of Reiki, does not mean that these therapies are no good.
Currently the health system worldwide is an illness based system, treating the symptons but not the person.
Integrative Health is a person based system and should be encouraged.
scientists should spend more time publicising the already proven facts that pharmaceutical medicines kill more people than they cure and less time on trying to convince the public that complementary therapies are no good.
If complementary therapies do not work then nobody will use them.
John Coleman
Melbourne, Australia

John Coleman, Melbourne, Australia

The debate about medical evidence for CAM misses the key point that the major contribution made by CAM practitioners and Integrated Medicine doctors is in meeting the emotional, social, and spiritual needs of patients which otherwise get medicalised within the current health system, at enormous cost to the tax payer. Added to this are the huge benefits to patients and society of self-help approaches which have been shown to improve coping, quality of life and survival, the evidence for which is often to be found in the psychology and psycho-neuro-immunology, rather than medical journals.

IH practitioners also play a major role in preventive medicine, helping the public to take personal responsibility for their health and well-being. As such, we have a vital role to play in helping to avert the looming health crisis due to Western lifestyle which health economists warn could bankrupt our government and insurance companies in 20 years if current rates of chronic illness continue.

Dr Rosy Daniel, Bath, UK

Can all the people who spend a great deal of money on Complementary Therapies be nuts? I think not. I have personal experience of being helped by Reiki, as a result of which I became a practitioner and have seen many people find help through this and other Therapies. Because our science cannot adequately prove something ,does not mean it is rubbish or does not exist. Viruses existed long before we could see them, what we can prove is limited by our current understanding.
Why is there so much animosity towards Complementary Therapies? Can it be that they may eventually prove to be more effective, less dangerous and far less expensive than the Drugs big business want us to buy ?

Jeannette, Cambridge,

This is an important debate which runs the risk of becoming obscured by people's personal experiences. First off, we all like having an unhurried consultation with a lovely, empathic person who listens to our woes and, yes, of course there's a benefit to that when doctors are now so rushed and pressed. And, yes, the placebo effect exists, but only so long as the patient doesn't realise that they are mislead and fed a line. Which then leads one to wonder whether it is justifiable to con a patient into believing that, say, a homeopathic pill contains anything at all. The truth is that normal medicine works far better, and more effectively, for pretty much all medical conditions. That is a fact. And, yes, most 'alternative' practitioners are lovely people who believe in their talents - the only problem is that they are, basically, dangerous. try harnessing the placebo to TB or an early onset melanoma, for instance, and you risk death.

Verrushka McTaggart, Gstaad, Switzerland

If Prince Charles got taxpayers money (surely the 900 000 pounds figure is a mistake) then he should ensure that his material is accurate and truthful.

He has every right to pursue his own agenda with his own vast wealth, but he shouldn't be using public money to do so.

Woody, Newcastle ,

"Alternative Medicine" is nearly all bunk.
If something originally termed "alternative" turns out to work, it then becomes part of the body of modern medicine. Any therapy which has undergone peer-reviewed, double-blind tests in a respected academic medical journal (eg Lancet) and is still not accepted can almost certainly be dismissed.

Indeed, homeopathy could actually be termed a supernatural belief system, as most of the preparations do not actually contain any of the so-called "active ingredient" and are just water. Homeopaths then say that the water has "memory" or that an "essence" of the ingredient remains. If this were true, everyone on the planet would be dead or at least very ill, due to the massive amounts of toxic waste "essence" and mercury that the water "remembers" after being dumped in the Oceans. Read up on the water-cycle.

Diatribe over. Seriously, like the article says, a couple of the uses are legit, eg acupunture for pain, but it's not alternative anymore!

Chris, Cardiff, Wales

It's amazing that the medical establishment will do anything they have to to maintain their money and power. Here in the U.S., the American Medical Association (AMA) is one of the most powerful lobbying groups. Even if you've had a "pre-existing condition" and are now cured, legally insurance companies here can deny you coverage. Almost all of them refuse to pay for holistic treatment. Even when there's evidence that much of it does work. And privately, these same doctors say, please don't tell me patients about this.

Like almost everything else, it's money and power.

Tom, Kansas City, US

I am a bitter old sceptic, but this article is ridiculous. To say there is no evidence that any of these practices have benefit is just wrong. You need to do more research. Start off with New Scientist.

On a slightly different note, even if homeopathy is only placebo, placebo has been found to be more effective than nearly 40% of over the counter medicines. The placebo effect is still as yet not completely understood, but it shows the power of the human mind.

If people can be cured by believing in sugar pills, i say subscribe away, and tell people whatever they want to hear is in them.

Steve, Reading,

Most alternative medicines may not work but they have less chance of killing you than the NHS. when the Royals really have something wrong with them they usually make it hot foot to a private hospital and use modern medicine.

George Sign, Nice, France

I personally have had serious shoulder and back problems in the past. Both kinds have been effectively resolved by manipulation by a chiropracter and an osteophath.

I believe the evidence is very obvious to many people which is why some of these practitioners are now associated or reside in doctor's surgeries.

Regarding placebo effects of homeopathy. This could well be true. I personally have a problem with the concept of homeopathy but fully believe that the brain can cure the body so if it works, who cares ? The same applies to spiritual healing.

Stephen Lee, Beer, Devon

I'm sure that scientists will always withdraw their guidance if they make misleading and inaccurate claims about benefits of their science. Or maybe they don't?.

Mike Poulsen, Reading, Berkshire