Latest news with #alternativeMedicine
ABC News
02-06-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Adelaide fashion entrepreneur dies after using magic mushrooms as alternative treatment
In the lead-up to her death, Carol Foord was desperate to be healthy. The Adelaide fashion industry icon, who founded Toffs and later Wild Child Style Lab, had fought breast cancer and symptoms of motor neurone disease. In June last year, as she had done before, she turned to alternative treatments — seeking out magic mushrooms to help with anxiety. But, in the hours after ingesting the hallucinogens, Ms Foord went into cardiac arrest and needed resuscitation at home. She was taken to hospital, where she died a short time later. Nearly a year on, her devastated family is speaking out to warn others about the risks of undertaking alternative treatments. A post-mortem report supplied to the family could not pinpoint why Ms Foord had gone into cardiac arrest. "There were no acute findings to account for sudden death," it said. Her cause of death was recorded as "cardio respiratory failure on a background of motor neurone disease and substance use (psilocin and diazepam)". Diazepam is used to treat anxiety, while psilocin is a hallucinogen found in magic mushrooms. Samples showed both substances were present in Ms Foord's blood when she died. The report also noted an alternative health practitioner was reportedly with her when she "deteriorated". Following Ms Foord's death, the practitioner was charged with supplying or administering a controlled drug to another person. But the charge was dropped during a hearing in April. Outside court, the practitioner declined to answer questions from the ABC. In an email to Ms Foord's sister Barbara Komazec, a SA Police detective said there was insufficient evidence for anyone to be charged. According to a 2024 National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre study, deaths caused by magic mushrooms are rare and occur mostly due to traumatic accidents or self-injury while under the influence of the drug. It found, over a 23-year period, a very small number of deaths were caused by an apparent acute toxic reaction after psilocin ingestion. But Ms Foord's family said her case highlighted the risks associated with undertaking alternative treatments away from medical settings. Ms Komazec said those who use drugs at home do not have access to immediate assistance if something goes wrong. She said, in this case, medical professionals treating Ms Foord did not know she had ingested magic mushrooms. "The paramedics were not told. At the hospital, when she arrived at the RAH, the hospital was not informed," she said. Since Ms Foord's death, her family has attempted to access records to find out exactly what time paramedics were called — but have so far been unsuccessful. In a statement, SA Ambulance Service said no Freedom of Information request had been received concerning the records of Ms Foord. Ms Komazec said her sister was battling a serious illness when she first embraced alternative treatments. She feared others in a similar situation might be tempted to do the same out of a desperation to be well — but she urged caution. "I would like to see further investigation of this," she said. Mr Foord said, despite perception, magic mushrooms were not risk-free drugs. He said, of particular concern, was the potential for serious side effects to be dismissed as "a bad trip". "Hallucinogens are dangerous, they really are," he said. In a statement, SA Health said it could not respond to questions about Ms Foord's death due to patient confidentiality. "People who are considering engaging with alternative therapies are strongly urged to do so in consultation with their qualified and registered health practitioner," the statement said. "Additionally, the distribution or consumption of illicit substances is strongly discouraged by all health professionals." SA Police referred queries to the coroner, telling the ABC "the investigation is now with the Coroner's Office for review". A spokesperson for the Coroner's Office said, "the coronial investigation into this death is ongoing". "The prosecution of criminal charges is a matter for SAPOL," they said. Ms Foord's family said they live every day with questions about how her final hours played out. Ms Foord's eldest sister, Jenny Howland, said it had been difficult to navigate those questions while grieving. "I miss her all the time, I'll often find something at home that reminds me of her," she said. "But it's the way she died that I can't quite cope with." Their focus has also been on honouring the memory of their sister and daughter, who was 72 when she died. Earlier this year, a memorial plaque was installed in Ms Foord's honour at Heywood Park in Unley. It remembers her as a style icon, an entrepreneur and a beautiful spirit. Mr Foord said his sister's legacy was wide-reaching. She built an extensive property and business portfolio, with Wild Child Style Lab remaining a King William Road institution to this day. She was adored by her family, and built meaningful connections throughout her life. "She brought a lot of joy to a lot of people," he said.
Telegraph
02-06-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
Influencers ‘putting cancer patients' lives at risk with fake cures'
Cancer patients are dying after following fake cures peddled online, according to the world's top doctors. AI and online influencers have persuaded cancer patients to reject conventional medicine in favour of intermittent fasting, essential oils, oxygen treatments and the Mediterranean diet, doctors said. In an unprecedented intervention in Chicago at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting, the world's largest cancer conference, they said they were 'losing the battle for communication'. Dr Julie Gralow, ASCO chief medical officer, said the global body wanted to counter the ability of AI to 'hallucinate' and spit out false information, and to guide patients towards the facts. In her own practice, she has faced repeated tragedies when patients had gone online to search for alternative medicines for cancer, ending up finding a clinic in Mexico promising vitamin C infusions, and caffeine colonics. She said she tried to 'gently ease' patients into more evidence-based treatments, often after a scan showed their tumour was not shrinking, but in several cases it was too late by the time patients changed their mind. 'It's tragic, we mourn,' she said. 'You think about what could we have done differently? What should we have offered? But we can't force anybody to do anything.' 'Miracle cures' warning England's most senior doctor last night said the same trends were sweeping the UK, warning of 'an alarmingly high level of misinformation' about cancer online. Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said lives were at risk because of 'miracle cures' and 'fairy tales' on the internet. He said social media could help to provide a supportive community for those diagnosed with cancer – but was instead fuelling 'an alarmingly high level of misinformation'. 'I would urge people to be sceptical of any 'miracle cures' you may see on social media around cancer, and use trusted, credible sources like the NHS website or your care team to verify anything you are unsure on – because these fairy tales aren't just misleading, they can be harmful,' he said. Meanwhile, Richard Simcock, chief medical officer at charity Macmillan Cancer Support, warned of an 'exponential' increase in misinformation. The oncologist said: 'I have recently seen two young women who have declined all proven medical treatments for cancer and are instead pursuing unproven and radical diets, promoted on social media. 'As a doctor, I want to be able to use the best available therapies to help people with cancer. 'A person is perfectly entitled to decline that therapy but when they do that on the basis of information which is frankly untrue or badly interpreted it makes me very sad. 'It's clear that we have work to do to build back trust in evidence-based medicine.' One paper presented at the conference found that all of the videos analysed on TikTok about prostate cancer screening presented 'low or moderate quality content' about the topic. Another study found that half the population surveyed 'did not trust' information from scientists about cancer. Doctors Rohit and Rahul Gosain, who gave a presentation on social media to the conference, warned of a rise in social media-fuelled alternative medicines, with some patients delaying treatment until their cancer has metastasised. The pair, who are both oncologists, create content on social media with the aim of bringing the latest scientific research to community doctors, under the handle The Oncology Brothers. They said patients who adopted approaches with no evidence to support them returned to seek help only when cancer was incurable, by which time 'we have missed the boat'. Such patients were 'in a lot of distress', they added. Texas University's Dr Fumiko Chino, co-author with Dr Brandon Godinich on the research about trust in doctors, warned that oncologists were 'losing the battle' against misinformation. Dr Liz O'Riordan, retired breast surgeon and breast cancer survivor, said her own book The Cancer Roadmap; Real science to guide your treatment path, was inspired by a reel on Instagram which claimed that mushrooms cure cancer. She said: 'There is a huge amount of cancer misinformation online – and that includes podcast clips as well as videos and Facebook posts. 'In my book I'm trying to educate the public by calling out the red flags that signal information is misleading and tackle some of the big myths – like sugar causes cancer, the keto diet can cure cancer, deodorants cause cancer etc. 'Every day I get messages from scared women who want to know if they need to stop eating dairy/soy/flaxseeds, do they need to stop wearing underwired bras/using deodorants, is it true that juicing can cure cancer?' Speaking at ASCO, the British medic said many doctors were 'clueless' about the extent of misinformation on the internet, saying her own eyes were opened when she became a cancer patient.
South China Morning Post
23-05-2025
- General
- South China Morning Post
What is mace? All about nutmeg's less known twin, how cooks use it and a recipe idea
I am not sure why mace is not as well known as its twin, nutmeg. The two spices come from the fruit of the Myristica fragrans tree – mace is the seed coating and nutmeg the seed. But while nutmeg is quite common – which cook, after all, does not have a nutmeg in the spice cupboard for grating onto eggnog or adding to a béchamel sauce? – mace is not. The two spices are prised together out of the fruit, and the mace, which tightly surrounds the nutmeg, is removed. When processed, nutmeg is a hard kernel that is easy to grate. The thin, delicate piece of mace remains flexible and leathery, which makes it hard to grate – I have tried without success to use a rasp grater, a hand-cranked spice grinder and an electric grinder. Store pre-ground Mace in an airtight container in the freezer, so the spice keeps its flavour for longer. Photo: Shutterstock If you are not using the mace whole, in stews or braised dishes, it is better to buy ground mace and store it in an airtight jar in the freezer. As with all pre-ground spices, the flavour and fragrance will fade over time. Mace is used in alternative medicine, to treat digestive disorders, insomnia and anxiety. Like nutmeg, mace goes well in milk-based dishes.
