Evidence-Based Medicine Matters

Professor Michael Wilson

Editor, The Journal of Horticultural Science & Biotechnology

Centuries ago, we had no choice but to seek solace (but little else) from the purveyors of “snake-oils”, magical remedies, and all manner of quackery, relics and pardons. Happily, after 200 years of sound scientific research, we are (and should continue to be) in a much better (and improving) situation – but only if the clear evidence of top-quality science-based medicine is supported.

As a professional scientist with 40 years of post-high school learning, research and broad experience, it saddens and irks me that so much credit and credibility is given to the “soft-minded” nonsense and profound ignorance that now pervades our media, our personal product advertising, and our safer, more secure and comfortable society. Without the genius and sound experimental evidence behind modern human medicine (physiology, biochemistry and pharmacology) many, including myself, would simply not be living today. Quite bluntly, I much prefer to believe in and benefit from the objective factual evidence of modern pharmacology than in the rantings and “provings” of what is now politely and mystically termed “alternative medicine”.