Yep, very much so. And when its just adults who should know better than I'm more forgiving of it. But when kids or the inexperienced are subjected to it? That sucks.

The drug companies could optimize delivery - in ways they could patent. And do fancy marketing and packaging . . . and make a fortune! Except, as soul-less as those companies are, something at least has to perform better than a placebo. It doesn't. The great thing about our bodies, they are amazing at healing from nearly anything themselves, and whatever we are doing at the time we get better -- is what we give credit. But double-blind testing is very clear, and undeniable, in controlled test and after test - homeopathy performs no better - at all - than a placebo.

Now, lets not confuse homeopathy with "herbal" medicine. Not even slightly the same thing. There are herbs that can kill you, can help you, and can do nothing too. Homeopathic "medicines" have nothing in them except sugar and water.

Yep, medicine that works is just called "medicine".

Yep, and I must admit to having done evil involuntary human experimentation on this subject! My ex and her family, it was a farm, were really into Homeopathy - and so . . . I found salves and vitamins and such that in color and texture exactly matched the Homeopathic ones. And would alternate in things like a plain veggie oil for Arnica rub and etc. And you can already guess where this is going, it worked just as well as the Homeopathic crap they were paying a fortune for.

*Note: I did the same thing with MSG. Finding that if folks who "are sensitive to it" don't know they are getting it? They are fine. If they think there was some in the food, but there wasn't, they had headaches and other crap from it. Our minds are powerful!

@Observer-Effect Give them loads of Parmesan cheese in a meal. Next day let them know that you have just been told that Parmesan cheese is really rich in mono-sodium glutamate and ask, innocently, if they have had any adverse reactions.
[oureverydaylife.com]

@Petter Yep. And asking "when is the first time you think you were exposed to MSG?" Mothers milk. And other things with lots of it: blue cheese, ripe tomatoes, bananas, seaweed and more. The first time MSG was marketed, in Japan, it was made by boiling seaweed and then adding salt and water. Thats it!

@Observer-Effect However, with msg so plentifully available in nature, I see no reason to add it to food, unless it is to disguise a lack of flavour on the part of the food processor, who is cutting costs on ingredients.

@Observer-Effect I like to use msg.

@Petter Ok - its a smart ass answer, but only because it hits at the issue . . .

So, more than half - 4+ billion people on earth are of Asian heritage. Not all of them, but billions of them are used to seeing salt shakers of MSG sitting around. Are those billions of folks just not as wise then? Just lacking in as much culinary wisdom, despite their much older cultures?

Just like adding salt or sugar to a dish, wanting more of the 5th flavor, umami, seems more like personal preference than anything else.

@Observer-Effect It was first created in 1908, by a Japanese man. He touted it as a new flavouring, made from sea kelp.
It is not a traditional Eastern food, just a recent addition to salt and pepper. Manufacturers would like it to become as widespread as these two, of course.

Here's a good essay on the stuff.
[deliciousliving.com]

@Petter "Recent" compared to like -- salt But 100 years of it being bottled, and of course millions of years as a "natural" addition to stuff, its been around the block. Anyway, it seems very clear that the people MOST sensitive to it happen to mostly be middle class+ and/or hippy white Americans.

However, mostly I guess it just doesn't matter what anybody else eats, boiled eggs gross me out - so I stay clear. What I do find that is folks negative opinions about MSG, much like veganism and such, often strays into clearly being another good reason to feel superior!

A picture of mine - just for fun (I think it was for a New Age food debate and I knew this would send it off the rails! )