Tuesday, March 13, 2001; Page HE04
Homeopathy: Wronged While "Homeopathy: The Debate Continues" [Intake, March 6], which reports on my recent study on ear infections, is fairly accurate overall, it does contain some inaccuracies. The first is Adriane Fugh-Berman's assertion that most recent, well-designed trials have shown negative results for homeopathy. There have been many studies, both positive and negative, that have been well-designed, but she chose to focus only on two of the negative ones. Both she and your reporter failed to mention the meta-analysis published in The Lancet, which looked at all of these studies together and determined that on the whole, studies of homeopathy were 2 1/2 times more likely to show a positive effect when compared to placebo. More troubling was Fugh-Berman's assertion that the homeopathic group had more symptoms at 48 hours. This statement is patently untrue. In fact, as can be seen by reading the article, we found the symptom improvement consistently better in the homeopathic group during the first 72 hours of treatment, although it was only statistically significant at 24 and 64 hours. Finally, I must complain about the reference to the "quackbusters" Web site at the end of the article. All of my studies published in conventional medical journals have been subject to their peer review process. The assertions on this Web site have not been peer-reviewed and represent only the opinions of a highly biased group of people who are not representative of the medical mainstream. Jennifer Jacobs, MD, MPH Clinical Assistant Professor Department of Epidemiology University of Washington Seattle For Worse or Better "For Men, Older Women May Hold the Key to Longer Life" [Second Opinion, March 6] reminds me of the woman who scolded a male evolutionary biologist about male mating behavior, and who then demanded to know "when men would stop acting that way." The scientist's reply was short and factual: "When women stop rewarding men for that behavior." Like the scolding inquisitor, Abigail Trafford seems eager to blame men but somehow forgets about the female role -- for better or worse -- in marriage and mating patterns that involve two interdependent genders. To blame one or the other gender for matrimonial mismatches is both unfair and sexist.To do it in response to a proposal that will help men live longer is simply unconscionable. Stanley B. Gaver McLean While the column approached this topic with the appropriate amount of humor, I think this is a very serious issue. It has long-term ramifications for our society in terms of gender roles and expectations and the impact on the children of these May-December marriages. Eileen O'Brien Alexandria The column says: "Nearly 90 percent of grooms aged 50 and up marry younger and younger women, according to 1990 government data." I have not seen the data, but it's safe to say that half the people involved in these marriages are women. Don't they bear some of the responsibility? Shouldn't we also ask why so many women want to marry father images? Or sugar daddies? Or for security over love? Mark D. Berg Gettysburg, Pa. As long as men look for someone to care for them, they will always look for a younger woman. Logically or illogically, men assume that younger women have more energy, are more mobile, are more healthy, and are also more visually appealing. In a nutshell, our society is not very kind to the older woman. Wrinkles, extra pounds and gray hair do not attract men. It does not matter if she is a wonderful, loving, caring companion. Bette Burgess Washington As for the notion that this pattern is due solely to male "prehistoric mating ways" that require an "office of men's behavior" to correct, there is an equally likely explanation that seems to have been overlooked entirely. To put it bluntly, perhaps we need an "office of women's behavior" to stop women from marrying old men with large bank accounts and one foot on a banana peel. For this man's tax money, the first task of an office of men's health should be to help men learn to survive in a world where women actually go to college to learn to hate men but insist upon marrying them anyway. Woodrow Dick Springfield The Future of Healthcare Clair Rosse, the founder of the company profiled in "Head of the Class" [Cover Story, March 6], should be given a medal for having the fortitude to start a health insurance company that will support wellness and prevention. Your article came out the day after I had spent a very frustrating morning on the phone trying to get an insurer to approve coverage in our cardiac rehab program for a 46-year-old man who had suffered a heart attack two weeks before. Because the man's heart attack wasn't severe enough, the insurer denied coverage. As a former critical care nurse and now a staff member of a cardiac rehab program, I have witnessed the stunning results that diet, exercise and tight lipid management have on patients with heart disease. Programs that teach patients about their illness, how to eat right, manage their lipids and how to exercise does keep them out of the hospital and on the road to wellness. It continues to mystify me why insurance companies willingly pay for bypass surgery and heart transplantation but deny coverage for health and wellness programs that could prevent the need for these surgeries in the first place. Anne M. Pontuso, RN University of Virginia Cardiac Health and Fitness Charlottesville The cover poses the question: "What's the most efficient way to contain healthcare costs for everyone?" This is followed by four choices, none of which shows any recognition of the fact that an answer to the question has already been found in Canada and countries of Western Europe, namely national health insurance. I believe that the omission of this choice from your list represents not a medical decision of any kind, but rather a political decision. National health insurance is seen as a threat to the U.S. medical establishment and an ideological affront to true believers in free enterprise, but neither of these considerations should influence your section. William Blum Washington To Fight Yeast Infections, Flush Twice "Women and Yeast: A Sensitive Subject" [Treatment of Choice, March 6] was very nice, but I am puzzled as to why you left out the simplest way to deter yeast infections: flush twice. I had my first and only yeast infection while living in Chicago. My gynecologist told me that nearly 95 percent of her patients had yeast infections, and that public toilets are a major conduit for transmission. I told her I did not use public toilets. She just stared at me until I realized that the ladies' room in my office qualifies as "public." She told me in no uncertain terms to flush before using any public toilet, and to sit all the way down on the seat. Both measures are meant to deter a phenomenon called "urine splashback." I have followed her recommendations, and have never had to worry about a yeast infection since. Valerie E. Alexander Columbia Rucumbent Bikes: In the Fast Lane I enjoyed "Making Yourself Comfortable" [Fitness, March 6] but was disappointed in its short dismissal of the recumbent bike. The article could have easily described the many benefits of recumbents, which far outweigh the issue of peddling uphill. I commuted by bike as much as I could during my entire working career, always using competition-grade road bikes. When I retired in 1990, I began a several-times-a-week ride either around the airport (a 17-mile loop) or out to Vienna and back (24 miles). I converted my bike to a hybrid, resulting in a more upright position and hence less pressure on somewhat arthritic hands, but I could not escape the cold and had to pretty much shut down during the late fall and winter. In 1993, I bought a long-wheelbase recumbent and was shortly making these same trips with no discomfort and far less fatigue. At the age of 70, I could still briefly beat anything on the road, catching up with riders who had passed me and passing them in turn. Are they slower going uphill? Yes, but it is a small price to pay when all other circumstances are taken into consideration. John W. Martin Arlington