46: Snake Oil, Semmelweis, and the Sanity of Evolved Medicine

Confessions of a Male Gynecologist

There’s room in the world for all the different ideas. Unfortunately, many of my colleagues would disagree.

I’ve been on Facebook a lot lately, and I’ve noticed that many doctors who don’t share my opinion on alternative medicine jump straight to name-calling. Instead of respectful disagreement or sharing of ideas, culturally, we’ve gotten to a place where everything is so polarized that it’s them and us, and there is no room for a middle ground.

The sad part is that the patients will suffer the most as a result.

Today I’m sharing a little bit of a history lesson and talking about how I deal with the rude and condescending doctors who refuse to have an open conversation about alternative ways of thinking. I’ll also discuss different philosophical concepts and how medicine has evolved. Enjoy the episode!

Highlights

How standards of care change and the four humors in ancient medicine

Ignaz Semmelweis and his discovery of the origin of puerperal fever

The terrible backlash that Semmelweis faced before ultimately being proven right

Planck's principle and the unfortunate truth about the evolution of medicine

Joseph Lister’s struggle to get mainstream acceptance for his antiseptic practices

The dismissal of alternative medicine by modern doctors and the over-weighting of evidence-based medicine

Supporting patients’ choices and empowering patients to walk a path that’s right for them

How the thoughts and accepted norms of the medical community change over the years

Why we need to make room for different ideas and respectful disagreement in medicine

The current state of medicine and why doctors need to fight to get medicine back

Resources

Dr. Tassone's Practice https://www.drshawntassone.com/

The Hormone Balance Bible https://tassonemd.com/hormone-balance-bible/

Hormone Archetype Quiz https://tassonemd.lpages.co/hormonearchetypequiz/

Disclaimer This podcast and website represent the opinions of Dr. Shawn Tassone and his guests. The content here should not be taken as medical advice and is for informational purposes only. Because each person is so unique, please consult your health care professional for any medical questions.