DR BRAD MCKAY
“I thought God was punishing me for being gay,” says Fake Medicine author.
Anyone can be hoodwinked. We shouldn’t be shaming the patients; we should be calling out the charlatans who sell fake medicine.
It’s not enough for doctors to just know medicine. They need to be able to call out BS “complimentary” therapies as well – from colonic irrigation to vampire facials and, yes, even acupuncture.
As a teen, Dr Brad McKay endured anti-gay therapies and dodgy medical practices, prompting him to pen Fake
Medicine, and the timing couldn’t be better!
DNA: What prompted you to write your book,
Fake Medicine?
Dr Brad McKay: Even before the pandemic I was seeing a lot of Instagram influencers giving out health advice that wasn’t relevant or helpful. In my work on TV and radio, I was also covering many weird stories about the selling of bizarre health products. I was being confronted by pseudoscience everyday.
Looking at the figures; Australians spend about five billion dollars on alternative medicines each year and I hate seeing my patients being ripped off. I questioned who is spending this money and why? And how much of it is actually doing any good? People are taking money from others, often in ingenuous ways, and that’s what I wanted to highlight.
From another perspective, I find a lot of the books written on this subject laugh at the >>
During puberty I had a pain in my back and, being attracted to guys, I thought God was punishing me for being gay.
>> patients and their odd therapies. I wanted to be really clear in my book that anyone can be hoodwinked. We shouldn’t be shaming the patients; we should be calling out the charlatans who sell fake medicine.
You’ve had an interesting journey yourself, not just in coming out, but in terms of exposure to fake medicines.
Yes, coming from a religious background, everything that happened from our perspective was always explained with God behind it. During puberty I had a pain in my back and, being attracted to guys, I thought God was punishing me for being gay. After all, it was around the same spot as my genitals! My parents were taking me to prayer meetings where a priest would lay his hands on me and try to cure the pain. I was also sent to a physiotherapist and an osteopath for a few years without success as no one got the diagnosis right. I was even hit on the back with an activator stick, which was horrendous!
Vaccines… most gay men are pretty happy to be protected against hepatitis B, genital warts and anal cancer.
What the heck is an activator stick!? Activator adjusting instruments are handheld devices about the same size as a pen, used by osteopaths and chiropractors in an attempt to reposition joints. It’s clicked into place and a trigger mechanism releases a short, sharp force on a bony prominence. There are no moving joints in your sacrum so I don’t know why the osteopath chose to smack my painful tumour every week.
When I was finally diagnosed with a bone tumour (osteoblastoma) I still thought it was God’s punishment. But I wasn’t healed with prayer or the activator stick. I had surgery.
Was that experience an influence on you entering medicine?
Both my older sisters are trained nurses, so we would usually have nursing conversations around the dinner table, and I wanted to learn about the human body. But I also became focused and determined on what I could do for other people who were going through similar experiences to me. Being sent from one practitioner to another, without a formal diagnosis, did spark my motivation.
Some people living with HIV have sought natural therapies. Does that still happen?
One of the things I talk about in the book is when science hasn’t caught up with what’s current. That’s when fake medicines fill the gap until we figure out what’s happening.
When COVID-19 began to spread around the world, all sorts of weird things were put out there like injecting yourself with bleach and having “light therapy”. Retailers were selling out of supplements like echinacea, with everyone trying to boost their immune system but in a futile way. The HIV epidemic was very similar, with people drinking disinfectant and taking all sorts of supplements and vitamins, which were all whacky and not helpful and a lot of people died. It was when science and technology came in that we were able to keep people alive.
How does anti-vax thinking sit within the LGBTIQA+ community, in your experience?
The LGBTIQA+ community has relied on science to keep people alive. Gay men, particularly with HIV, will see their GP every couple of months and there’s a lot of empathy and understanding involved. There’s a relationship that builds up with gay men and their physicians – one that often isn’t seen in the heterosexual community. Heterosexual guys might see their GP once a year, if that. Vaccines fall under that, too, but most gay guys I come across are pretty happy to be protected against hepatitis B, genital warts and anal cancer. So there’s much more of an acceptance and understanding on how important vaccines are.
It’s hard to understand anti-vaxers when a COVID-19 vaccine could save their lives. Why are they so militant?
It’s a combination of things. Often they will believe more in alternative therapies or that natural substances are healthier, or that it’s all a hoax to sell products. Some also worry about side effects. Yes, you could have side effects from a vaccine but you’re far more likely to have health issues if you get infected with COVID-19.
In the book you talk about the ancient practice of acupuncture, which is quite a popular alternative these days and widely accepted. Should it be?
That’s one of the more controversial parts of the book! I looked at the studies and weighed up the evidence versus the risks, and the evidence for acupuncture therapy isn’t very strong. For some musculoskeletal problems, there may
be a little bit of benefit but it depends on the problem. People also get acupuncture for weird things like sinusitis, but I can’t see how putting needles in the face will benefit a sinus problem.
Professional doctors have even offered acupuncture to women for fertility and, again, how can that help make a uterus receptive for childbirth? There may be an effect of lying relaxed in a room where you’re less likely to move around with needles stuck in you, but my overall summary is that acupuncture is a “theatrical placebo”.
There are so many so-called medical treatments around – from colonic irrigation to ear candling and cupping to vampire facials. Is there one that stands out to you as the silliest, or even dangerous?
Colonic irrigation is pretty ridiculous and very dangerous. People say they feel much lighter afterwards and that the scales show they’ve lost weight. That’s because they’ve irrigated out their entire poo! But as soon as they eat again, the intestines will fill and the same weight will return. In terms of danger, water can pierce through the intestines and leak fecal fluid into your abdomen, which would require an operation. It could also get into your blood stream and into the heart valve causing more problems. For the magic trick of emptying your bowel, it’s not worth the potential abdominal surgery.
You include a great Tim Minchin quote in the book: “You know what they call ‘alternative medicine’ that’s been proved to work? Medicine!”
Yes, I’m a big fan of Tim Minchin. Alternative medicine seems to have now become a dirty word in medicine, so we’re seeing complimentary medicine clinics popping up. There’s this idea that you still have your chemotherapy but then you have some turmeric and sage to compliment it. But if it’s not proven medicine, then it’s just wasting time and money.
We also now have “integrative medicine” clinics, which sound lovely, but I’m hearing stories of people being offered lots of expensive vitamins. It’s just preying on vulnerable people.
COVID-19 has generated many crazy conspiracy theories, fake news and anti-vax websites. As a doctor, what can you say to people who believe these things to help them see reason?
If someone is a hardcore believer in conspiracy theories and alternative medicines it’s hard to change their minds. But that’s not the crowd I’m going for with my book. It’s more for people who are sitting on the fence, such as those who are vaccine-hesitant. It’s about finding that middle ground with people who may have questions to ask their GP.
Where do you think the world is headed in regard to fake medicine? Will it eventually die down, or possibly escalate?
When COVID-19 appeared I was optimistic we would focus on science very quickly and get some control. On the one hand we have, but on the other we’ve seen this rise in misinformation. Unfortunately, there’s a lot of complexity and politics going on in the background. At this stage of the pandemic I think science is winning and more people understand the importance of a vaccine. Those who are alternative are very much the minority.
What do you hope people will take away from reading Fake Medicine?
I don’t provide all the answers for every complimentary treatment out there, but what I’m hoping is that the book will help people think about what’s going on. Hopefully it will open up the conversation to remind people there are those who want to take advantage. I hope it helps people think before they purchase pills and such online, and look critically at what’s out there. •
MORE: Fake Medicine is available now at your preferred bookseller.
There’s this idea that you have your chemotherapy but then you have some turmeric and sage to compliment it.