This is a guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

The Myspace picture albums seem to capture a wonderful moment in time. The scene is idyllic. Sun-kissed palm trees are set against an azure Caribbean sky, and a happy couple delight in their holiday trip to the Florida Keys. Elsewhere, we can see photos of them with their children, a wholesome, all-American family enjoying everything life has to offer and dreaming of good times yet to come. But despite the glowing vitality that is projected in the photos, things are not what they seem. The woman you see is Karri Stokely, a 43 year old who was diagnosed with HIV infection when she was 29 years old. She is keen to share her story, and does so on several other websites and blogs. It should be a story of courage and hope, but I fear it will not turn out that way. For Karri has decided to completely ignore medical advice and forgo her HIV medication.

Back in January, London-based LBC Radio broadcast a show hosted by Jeni Barnett that has become infamous. In an hour long segment, all sorts of wild claims were made about MMR by the host, covering the full spectrum from the vaguely reasonable to the nonsensical. Health professionals who phoned-in to the show were shouted down, while a homeopath caller was given free rein to make a range of wild accusations. In short, it was a travesty, so much so that a complaint was made to OfCom, who have today issued their ruling.

[bpsdb] Guest post by British doctor DeeTee. See more by DeeTee here.

Recently, Voice of Young Science wrote an open letter to the WHO appealing for an end to the promotion and use of homeopathy for life threatening infections such as HIV, malaria and tuberculosis in developing countries. This is an appeal that is close to my heart. When I worked in Africa I saw how detrimental ineffective traditional and “alternative” forms of medicine could be, and how easily people could come to rely on totally inappropriate services for their health care. I remember one distressing case where a parent insisted on taking his small child out of the local hospital where I worked in order for the traditional healer to administer “muti” (a form of traditional medicine often made from herbs or occasionally human body parts). The child was suffering from meningitis, which was eminently treatable with antibiotics. He was brought back to us moribund the next day, when he died.

[bpsdb] Thanks to my sharp-eyed colleague at Thinking Is Dangerous, it's come to my attention that the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (aka "Ofquack") have finally posted some of the board minutes they promised to make available, from their May 2009 quarterly board meeting.