Continuing our foray into slightly less prominent (but not necessarily less nefarious) enemies of reason and science, we present to you Natasha Campbell-McBride, a physician who is perhaps most famous for appearing in one of Joe Mercola’s videos explaining how she cured her son of autism. In her explanation, she perpetuates most of the myths concerning autism, and commits most of the fallacies associated with inductive reasoning – thus providing Mercola with another testimonial of the kind Mercola relies on. Campbell-McBride falls hard for the myth of the autism epidemic; she suggests that there is no genetic component to autism, and prefers to run with a toxins gambit instead.She’s even come up with her own syndrome: Gut and Psychology Syndrome (GAPS) (her private invention; do try to ask her about evidence), and as it turns out she has – in typical crackpot vein – developed a whole industry of dietary woo to treat it (but – of course – no trials or anything remotely suggesting that she is in any way close to correct). Her book, Gut and Psychology Syndrome Book: Natural Treatment For: Autism, ADD, ADHD Depression, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Schizophrenia, tells us how she’s apparently able to treat them all.
Yes, Campbell-McBride is another one of those woo-masters who have located The One True Source of All Disease, and on her website , Doctor-Natasha.com, you will find her claim to be able to treat anything from acne to depression to diabetes to autism to ADHD to schizophrenia to tummy pain. And in support of her hypothesis? Testimonials, of course. That, and Ancient Wisdom.
Diagnosis: I suppose that in order to count as a quack you have to intentionally mislead people, and it seems that Campbell-McBride believes that what she’s doing actually works. So we may have to have some discussion about labels.