Good GP in ChCh?

[quadrant6]

Looking for a good male GP in christchurch who isn't totally closed to natural medicine (looks at the cause and can recommend safe natural things to try before just prescribing drugs)

Most natruopaths I've seen have been pretty flaky so I think a GP with an eye toward the natural stuff would be better.

[cantygirl]

My husband goes to Neil Averis at Gloucester Sports Clinic, he is great and very supportinve to sporting needs, unlike my queer as doc, she throws her arms up in the air when i mention whey protein powder.

[Chillicat]

Good luck with that. Doctors are trained to be believers in science based medicine. That is, treatments that are backed by scientific study and have been shown to be effective. Not by placebo medications that people would like to work because they are 'natural' but which despite being around for centuries have very little research to back them up, other than anecdotal evidence.

You say 'Most natruopaths I've seen have been pretty flaky' - well duh.

IMO, if you have a medical problem and you'd like to fix it, go to a doctor. If you want flakey homeopathic stuff that is nothing but a placebo but which you'd like to work because it's natural and you don't want to put synthetic stuff in your body, go see a naturopath, homeopath or whatever they like to call themselves. A responsible medical doctor shouldn't be prescribing that kind of thing, and if they're called doctor and are doing so, they're probably not a medical doctor but a PhD (not that there's anything wrong with PhD doctors, since I'm one myself ) - either that or they don't think there's anything wrong with you, hence prescribing a placebo.

There's a reason why you can't overdose on homeopathic medicine - it's not effective. Remember what an idiot Billy Joel's daughter recently made of herself, trying to commit suicide with homeopathic 'medicine'

[teamfatboy]

Ah, but can people effectively distinguish "homeopathy" from non-traditional medicine?

With new research into non-Western medicines every day, we are learning that the use of those remedies was often born out of fact. Just as white willow gives acetylsalacylic acid (aka aspirin), not every non-Western remedy is pure bunk.

Homeopathy, on the other hand.. well - check this out :doh:

[Chillicat]

As long as there is genuine research to demonstrate effectiveness, I'm all for it, whether it be natural/synthetic, eastern/western. Science based medicine, not quackery.