Decoding Naturopathy's Essential Science-Mislabeled Vitalism - Godby, D. (NMD NCNM):

here, I parse ND Godby's claim -- as recently stated in Rocklin & Roseville Today and on his own web pages -- that naturopathy is "science based" [see 001.a. and 001.b., below]; while, a little web research and third-grade-level thinking reveals that naturopathy is actually obligated to and centered around the science-ejected falsely labeled as able to survive scientific scrutiny [see 002., where I decode this ND's occult vitalism]:

001. Godby, D. (NMD NCNM) writes in

001.a. "California Threatens Naturopathic Care" [also hosted on his own web page] (2009-06-30):

"naturopathic medicine is based on the belief [!!!] that the human body has an innate healing ability [IHA...we use] cutting edge natural therapies to enhance their [patients'] bodies’ ability to combat disease [BATCD...] naturopathic doctors craft comprehensive treatment plans that blend the best of modern medical science and traditional natural medical approaches to treat disease and restore health [...] a licensed naturopathic doctor (N.D.) attends a four-year graduate-level naturopathic medical school and is educated in all of the same basic sciences as an M.D. [...] a naturopathic doctor takes rigorous professional board exams [...] naturopathic physicians base their practice on six timeless principles founded on medical tradition and scientific evidence: let nature heal [LNH] by removing the obstacles to cure, identify and treat causes, first do no harm, educate patients, treat the whole person, prevent illness."

001.b. in "Naturopathy":

"as professional leaders and pioneers in science-based natural medicine, naturopathic physicians [...] integrate scientific research with the healing powers of nature [HPN]."

Note: NDs claim that HPN is science-based.

001.c. in 'homepage':

"Sacramento naturopathic doctor, Dennis Godby, has helped hundreds of patients from Redding to Fresno, Placerville to the Bay Area to heal complex, chronic diseases that most medicine can’t touch [{quite a promise!!!}...service at] Sacramento Naturopathic Medical Center [...] is always done in light of the powerful principles of naturopathic medicine: 1) first do no harm, use the most natural least invasive and least toxic therapies first, 2) identify and treat the underlying causes of illness and remove the obstacles to cure rather than merely treating symptoms, 3) use the healing power of nature [HPN], 4) treat the whole person, 5) prevent when possible."

002. overall note:

naturopathy is belief-based. IHA-BATCD-LNH-HPN are codings for naturopathy's 'purposeful life spirit bioagency' sectarian article of faith aka vitalism, which is not cutting edge, not scientific, and is supernatural archaic superstitious figmentation. Blending science with 'the traditional' is another way of saying that overarching any scientific content that naturopathy may resemble is a sectarian belief-based context. Yet, NDs absurdly claim 'we are of the same kind of science, rigor, and professionalism' as other healthcare science doctorates! Vitalism [and supernaturalism] is in no way based upon scientific evidence. In fact, vitalism is science-ejected. To actually be science-based means to reject what science does not support and honestly call it nonscientific. Is this rigorous? Is this professional? No. In naturopathy, science has been unlimited to allow any old ideation, and professionalism has been unlimited to allow deceit and misinformation.

From the inside, the vitalistic obligations of naturopathy -- falsely stated as able to survive scientific scrutiny -- are ONLY obvious [Godby does not tell you in the above!] when you look at his alma mater, NCNM, which states in "Principles of Healing":

"these principles stand as the distinguishing marks of the profession: the healing power of nature -- vis medicatrix naturae. The body has the inherent ability to establish, maintain, and restore health. The healing process is ordered and intelligent; nature heals through the response of the life force [...] the practice of promoting health through stimulation of the vital force [...] the process of healing includes the generation of symptoms, which are, in fact, expressions of the life force attempting to heal itself [...and true to form for naturopathy, they claim falsely] these principles are based on the objective observation of the nature of health and disease and are examined continually in light of scientific analysis."

Also, the supernatural obligations of naturopathy are evident on that principles page per:

"causes may occur on many levels, including [...the] spiritual [...] health and disease are conditions of the whole organism [...including the] spiritual [...] the physician must also make a commitment to [...] spiritual development."

Naturopathy indeed blends, but then falsely labels the whole thing one kind of thing, scientific.

Institute for Natural Medicine: Its Occultic, Science-Ejected Vitalism Foundation 2009:

here, a little parsing of the Institute for Natural Medicine's [INM] web pages that claim that they [naturopaths] have 'reliable, trustworthy, credible, authoritative evidence-based information' [see 001.a., below]; while, when INM explains naturopathy as scientific and HPN-based [see 001.b., below]; INM is ACTUALLY being absurd since it is not transparently and accurately contextualizing naturopathy's PROFOUNDLY science-ejected vitalistic premise [see 003., below]:

001. INM:

001.a. promises, on their web homepage (archived here):

"[per president Yirku, S. (? NCNM VP for College Relations)] naturemed.org [is] your guide to patient driven medicine [...] we at INM believe that you deserve the opportunity to make informed choices about your healthcare. The goal of this website is to provide reliable information for patients and the public about natural healthcare options [...] our guiding philosophy is our firm belief that it is vitally important for people to have access to trustworthy information about the natural treatment options that are available through naturopathic medicine [...] make informed choices [...] I urge you to be cautious, and do everything you can to make sure the information you gather is credible [...] the mission of the Institute for Natural Medicine (INM) is to assist in the dissemination of credible information about naturopathic philosophy and natural medicine [{good luck!!!}...] the Institute for Natural Medicine is uniquely positioned and qualified to provide unbiased, evidence-based, and authoritative information concerning natural and preventive approaches to health [aka naturopathy et al.]."

Note: so, according to INM, we'll be "informed" with "reliable information" and "trustworthy information" per what's "credible information" and "evidence-based" per a source that is "unbiased" and "authoritative". Therefore, we can make an informed choice.

001.b1. defines naturopathy in "Naturopathic Medicine" as science:

"[naturo. is] an approach to medicine based on the human body's innate ability to heal itself, [aka] the healing power of nature [IATHI-HPN...that is] guided by modern scientific medical diagnostic science and standards of care [...] naturopathic physicians cooperate with all other branches of medical science [this 'naturopathy is a medical science branch' claim is also stated by INM here]."

Note: so, naturopathy with its IATHI-HPN, is claimed to be explicitely science. Notice that naturopathy is labeled "scientific" "science", which is a claim of being very VERY scientific indeed.

001.b.2. defines naturopathy's key principles in "Principles of Naturopathic Medicine" including:

"the healing power of nature [...] it is the naturopathic physician's role to support, facilitate and augment this process."

Note: and that's all you get at INM regarding HPN, a key premise of naturopathy.

003. presenting the 'scientific science-ejected' / the naturopathic absurd aka the 'scientific vitalistic':

003.a. NDs Murray, Pizzorno, & Bradley and PhDs Levin, Bland, & Schmidt graciously clarify naturopathy's HPN context per "The Textbook of Natural Medicine" (ISBN 0443059454, 1999 - 2nd ed.):

"[per Levin, Bland, and Schmidt] naturopathic medicine has consistently aligned itself with the vitalistic side of [...the] argument [{as if there is one}...] between 'vitalistic' and 'mechanistic' approaches to life and health [...] naturopathy recognizes a vital force – vis medicatrix naturae, or healing power of nature – that is present in all living things, including the human body. For naturopaths, it is this vital force which is ultimately responsible for healing [...] this recognition of vital force in naturopathy [...] the spirit of vitalism [{literally!} p.004...and per Bradley, R.S. (ND NCNM 1981-ish) naturopathy] has always identified the Latin expression vis medicatrix naturae (the healing power of nature) as its philosophical linchpin [...] the expression vis medicatrix naturae, by itself, does not provide a clear picture of naturopathic medical philosophy [p.041...] the foundations of naturopathic medical philosophy are found in vitalism [...] the principles of naturopathic medicine: [#1] the healing power of nature: vis medicatrix naturae [p.047...] the practice of naturopathic medicine is grounded in vis medicatrix naturae [p.047...] a thorough grounding in vis medicatrix naturae [p.048]."

Note: vitalism, galore. Murray and Pizzorno are the editors of this central ND textbook. So, naturopathy is essentially vitalistic, and this was not told to us on the INM page though they promised quite a lot of guidance for us! Instead, INM [falsely] used naturalistic language and [falsely] promised us 'naturopathy is science'; that they were trustworthy, and that the public would be reliably informed.

003.b. yet [me don't thinks so!], the National Association of Biology Teachers at the National Center For Science Education states in "National Association of Biology Teachers Scientific Integrity Statement" regarding the nonscientific status of vitalism:

"nonscientific notions such as geocentrism, flat earth, creationism, young earth, astrology, psychic healing and vitalistic theory, therefore, cannot be legitimately taught, promoted or condoned as science in the classroom. "

Note: hmm, naturopathy's vitalism is essentially science-ejected. INM didn't tell us this actuality, either -- in order for us to make an 'informed choice'. INM said naturopathy is evidence-based and scientific. Ain't -- and our choices regarding naturopathy would be based upon falsehood, therein.

004. obviously, naturopathy drips with absurdity, wherein the profoundly nonscientific is labeled scientific and all the while naturopathic premises are often occultly portrayed to the public as naturalistic and scientific [coded]. Many would call this strategy a 'bait and switch', and a 'confidence game'.

Uncoding Naturopathy's Essential Science-Ejected Vitalism Premise - NCANP, UBCNM:

here, I use my amazing powers of mundane rational thinking to decode naturopathy's central premise by employing the University of Bridgeport's Naturopathic College site [see 02. below] to show that the North Carolina Association of Naturopathic Physician's site is, as usual for naturopathy, not being contextually complete [to be polite; see 01. below] in representing naturopathy's central sectarian principle:

01. the North Carolina Association of Naturopathic Physicians [NCANP] states the "The Principles of Naturopathic Medicine":

"[#1, foremost and centrally, we believe in] the healing power of nature. Naturopathic medicine recognizes an inherit [sp., inherent] self-healing process in the person which is ordered and intelligent. Naturopathic physicians act to identify and remove obstacles to healing and recovery, and to facilitate and augment this inherent self-healing process";

Note: the terminology is "inherent self-healing process," and NCANP directs us in "Other Resources" to the University of Bridgeport College of Natural Medicine.

02. the University of Bridgeport states in "Six Guiding Principles: Guiding Principle # 1: The Healing Power of Nature":

"viz [sp., vis] medicatrix naturae: the body has the inherent ability to establish, maintain, and restore health. The healing process is ordered and intelligent [teleological]; nature heals through the response of the life force [vitalism]. The physician's role is to facilitate and augment this process";

Note: so, you are now 'in the know' about naturopathy's central principle -- a particular science-ejected belief.