NationStates Jolt Archive


HeadOn scam

Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 18:08
HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead.

It seems HeadOn is actually a homeopathic (medical term for useless) remedy. If you'd like the same results as HeadOn without the price, just wipe a wet cloth across your head.

http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2005/10/10-18-05tdc/10-18-05dscihealth-04.asp

For those poor, unfortunate souls who haven't seen the commercial for this product, here you go.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=f_SwD7RveNE
Sonaj
08-08-2006, 18:12
I think my brain just died a little.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 18:15
I think my brain just died a little.
I'm glad I could help.
Minoriteeburg
08-08-2006, 18:16
Lavender works for headaches more than that headon crap ever would.....
Sonaj
08-08-2006, 18:17
I'm glad I could help.
Yea, it's been bugging me for years... They might be hoping for the placebo effect or something.
Montacanos
08-08-2006, 18:17
I was watching that commercial at a hotel and laughed at it...but not as hard as I laughed when the next commercial started with the words "Hemmeroid Cream".
Iztatepopotla
08-08-2006, 18:18
I hate those ads. Makes my head hurt every time.
Gift-of-god
08-08-2006, 18:19
Homeopathic medicine is a controversial subject. I have tried homeopathic remedies for various things, with mixed results. They don't seem to work for allergies, but they did wonders for my tendonitis.
The physical and occupational therapy I was doing made me lose power in my thumb, which I only regained after starting homeopathic treatment. I discussed this with my PT and my homeopath. The therapist said that while doctors can not explain why it should affect me, there was no doubt that it was helping. She was fine with it.
I then asked my homeopath why other homeopathic remedies didn't work for me. She explained that many people are affected differently. What you're supposed to do is take the homeopathic medicine, and if you don't feel anything right away, don't continue.
The real world is more complicated than either homeopaths or doctors can fully grasp.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 18:19
Yea, it's been bugging me for years... They might be hoping for the placebo effect or something.
I wonder if you could label a bottle of pills "Placebo" and advertize them as "Using the scientifically proven Placebo effect to potentially cure headaches, nausea, cardiac arrhythmia, even cancer!"

I'll bet some folks would pay big money for them.
A Lynx Bus
08-08-2006, 18:20
I HATE HATE HATE that commercial. They have several similar products now too, besides that junk for your ass, they have something for your back and a few other things.
Khadgar
08-08-2006, 18:20
I don't know who voices that commercial, but I wanna cut her throat. Her voice is so annoying! And they didn't even have her repeat the line three times, she did it once and they looped it.

HEAD ON APPLY DIRECTLY TO THE FOREHEAD!
HEAD ON APPLY DIRECTLY TO THE FOREHEAD!
HEAD ON APPLY DIRECTLY TO THE FOREHEAD!


No change in pitch or intonation.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 18:21
Homeopathic medicine is a controversial subject. I have tried homeopathic remedies for various things, with mixed results. They don't seem to work for allergies, but they did wonders for my tendonitis.
The physical and occupational therapy I was doing made me lose power in my thumb, which I only regained after starting homeopathic treatment. I discussed this with my PT and my homeopath. The therapist said that while doctors can not explain why it should affect me, there was no doubt that it was helping. She was fine with it.
I then asked my homeopath why other homeopathic remedies didn't work for me. She explained that many people are affected differently. What you're supposed to do is take the homeopathic medicine, and if you don't feel anything right away, don't continue.
The real world is more complicated than either homeopaths or doctors can fully grasp.
Well, since Homeopathy violates things that we know for a fact, I'm very confident in calling it bullshit. I'm glad your tendonitis is gone though.
The South Islands
08-08-2006, 18:22
I have the strangest inclination to put something on my forehead now...
Sonaj
08-08-2006, 18:23
I wonder if you could label a bottle of pills "Placebo" and advertize them as "Using the scientifically proven Placebo effect to potentially cure headaches, nausea, cardiac arrhythmia, even cancer!"

I'll bet some folks would pay big money for them.
There would probably be enough people not knowing the word "Placebo" to make it work.
Khadgar
08-08-2006, 18:24
Nah, give it a brand name, and list the active ingrediant as "Placebo" then slap a little "results not typical" note on the bottle in really tiny print.
Gift-of-god
08-08-2006, 18:25
Well, since Homeopathy violates things that we know for a fact, I'm very confident in calling it bullshit. I'm glad your tendonitis is gone though.

Thanks.

I would hope that we could do some extensive research into homeopathy to understand why it works in some cases and not in others. Until then, people should only use it with care and a certain amount of skepticism.
Infinite Revolution
08-08-2006, 18:31
what does it even do?
Minoriteeburg
08-08-2006, 18:34
what does it even do?

gets rid of headaches...
Deep Kimchi
08-08-2006, 18:36
gets rid of headaches...

Sorry, a good hot shower, followed by several aspirin, and a long nap on an excellent bed works to get rid of my headaches.
Minoriteeburg
08-08-2006, 18:37
Sorry, a good hot shower, followed by several aspirin, and a long nap on an excellent bed works to get rid of my headaches.


thats pretty much what i do as well.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 18:38
what does it even do?
moistens your forehead.
Sonaj
08-08-2006, 18:38
Nah, give it a brand name, and list the active ingrediant as "Placebo" then slap a little "results not typical" note on the bottle in really tiny print.
Heh, there's a painpill here which is against headaches. One of the side-effects are - headaches. It makes so much sense I want to hide.
JuNii
08-08-2006, 18:40
HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead.

It seems HeadOn is actually a homeopathic (medical term for useless) remedy. If you'd like the same results as HeadOn without the price, just wipe a wet cloth across your head.

http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2005/10/10-18-05tdc/10-18-05dscihealth-04.asp

For those poor, unfortunate souls who haven't seen the commercial for this product, here you go.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=f_SwD7RveNEactually Dcd, I found a remedy that is similar (I guess) to that. I had a really bad headache... so I did the natural thing, I rubbed the area that hurt. only this time, I had some sports cream on my fingers (Icy Hot to be exact, I pulled a leg muscle and had just applied some.) and lo and behold, the pain vanished rather quickly.

never tried it on a migrane, but for other headaches, that is what I reach for if I can't find my asprin. :D
Gift-of-god
08-08-2006, 18:51
actually Dcd, I found a remedy that is similar (I guess) to that. I had a really bad headache... so I did the natural thing, I rubbed the area that hurt. only this time, I had some sports cream on my fingers (Icy Hot to be exact, I pulled a leg muscle and had just applied some.) and lo and behold, the pain vanished rather quickly.

never tried it on a migrane, but for other headaches, that is what I reach for if I can't find my asprin. :D

If your headaches arise from muscular tension in your head and neck area, that stuff should work great. I mean the Icy Hot, not the HeadOn. Because that's what a cramp is, right? The muscle gets all tense and rigid.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 19:02
Heh, there's a painpill here which is against headaches. One of the side-effects are - headaches. It makes so much sense I want to hide.
Diphenhydramine-based sleeping pills have nervousness and insomnia listed as side effects because some people, especially kids, get the opposite effect from that sleep medication.
Gartref
08-08-2006, 20:05
HeadOn works great for me..... but I dip the stick in heroin first.
Grave_n_idle
08-08-2006, 20:29
Well, since Homeopathy violates things that we know for a fact, I'm very confident in calling it bullshit. I'm glad your tendonitis is gone though.

Really?

As a scientist - I'm curious to what you think it is that specifically obviates the potential of homeopathy.

If you are of a scientific inclination - you might want to look around for the concept of what they used to call "Memory of Water".
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 20:36
Really?

As a scientist - I'm curious to what you think it is that specifically obviates the potential of homeopathy.

If you are of a scientific inclination - you might want to look around for the concept of what they used to call "Memory of Water".
1) The level of dilution in homeopathic remedies means that there is not one molecule of the supposedly active substance left in the preparation.

2) There is no known mechanism for water to retain a "memory" of what was once diluted in it.

3) Should an unknown mechanism for water "memory" exist, my tap water would act like a blend of numerous medicines and probably make me sick. So would a bottle of spring water. In fact, most every molecule of water on earth has at one time or other had something dissolved in it. We'd be overdosing on medicine constantly if there was any truth to it.

BTW, I have read about "water with a memory". I've read about it being debunked.
Gift-of-god
08-08-2006, 20:46
We shall see. Perhaps it depends on how the solute interact with the hydrogen bonds. I am not enough of a scientist to know, or even guess.

But the debate continues.
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn3817
Grave_n_idle
08-08-2006, 20:50
1) The level of dilution in homeopathic remedies means that there is not one molecule of the supposedly active substance left in the preparation.

2) There is no known mechanism for water to retain a "memory" of what was once diluted in it.

3) Should an unknown mechanism for water "memory" exist, my tap water would act like a blend of numerous medicines and probably make me sick. So would a bottle of spring water. In fact, most every molecule of water on earth has at one time or other had something dissolved in it. We'd be overdosing on medicine constantly if there was any truth to it.

BTW, I have read about "water with a memory". I've read about it being debunked.

I've argued water with you before, my friend... you once told me you could 'purify' water with Iodine. The difference is - this is what I do for a living... you could argue this is 'my field'.

The idea behind the 'memory of water' is that water maintains some properties of contaminants, even when the dilution is such that any theoretical cup of said water cannot statistically be argued to have any potential presence of that contaminant. You say it has been debunked... as someone working IN the field, I have seen nothing that proves the idea to be categorically false.

Indeed - as someone who works in this SPECIFIC area of the environment... I can easily think of mechanisms that would allow for just such a property as 'memory' of water. The more someone knows about the science of water - the more strange and amazing a chemical it becomes.

Did you know you can make fairly basic changes to water... the mechanism is literally a box of components about the size of a welder... that enables it to 'burn' cleanly, with a flame of about 175 degrees - but which can sublimate (turn from solid directly to gas, for those who aren't science geeks) tungsten on contact?

The flame temperature is 175 degrees, but it 'burns' on contact at somewhere near 13,000 degrees?

(I believe they currently sell this technology as 'HOH gas').

Like I said - I work in this field. When you look at the tiny amount of deliberate contaminants - like Fluoride - that we add to water, you really do arrive at a level where the product seems to have certain properties that really cannot statistically be balanced by the concentration of the contaminant.

I choose to withhold judgement. If homeopathy bears positive results, I can think of mechanisms that would allow it. I am certainly not going to just throw my hands over my ears and ignore evidence, just because I've already decided I know the world better than any mere facts can illustrate.
Demon 666
08-08-2006, 20:52
HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead.

It seems HeadOn is actually a homeopathic (medical term for useless) remedy. If you'd like the same results as HeadOn without the price, just wipe a wet cloth across your head.

http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2005/10/10-18-05tdc/10-18-05dscihealth-04.asp

For those poor, unfortunate souls who haven't seen the commercial for this product, here you go.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=f_SwD7RveNE
Does this mean they'll pull the fucking ads.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 21:02
I've argued water with you before, my friend... you once told me you could 'purify' water with Iodine. The difference is - this is what I do for a living... you could argue this is 'my field'. Fine, water is not my field, but I've read a bit about quack remedies and homeopathy.

The idea behind the 'memory of water' is that water maintains some properties of contaminants, even when the dilution is such that any theoretical cup of said water cannot statistically be argued to have any potential presence of that contaminant. You say it has been debunked... as someone working IN the field, I have seen nothing that proves the idea to be categorically false. I should have posted more detail. I was talking about the French Scientist, Benvenist, claimed to have experimental evidence that water retained a memory of what was once disolved in it. His evidence was debunked. His methods were flawed. Anyway, as I've said, wouldn't that make all of our water into homeopathic medicine? Wouldn't that mean we were drinking a medicine chest full of remedies when we took a sip of water?


Indeed - as someone who works in this SPECIFIC area of the environment... I can easily think of mechanisms that would allow for just such a property as 'memory' of water. The more someone knows about the science of water - the more strange and amazing a chemical it becomes.

Did you know you can make fairly basic changes to water... the mechanism is literally a box of components about the size of a welder... that enables it to 'burn' cleanly, with a flame of about 175 degrees - but which can sublimate (turn from solid directly to gas, for those who aren't science geeks) tungsten on contact?

The flame temperature is 175 degrees, but it 'burns' on contact at somewhere near 13,000 degrees?

(I believe they currently sell this technology as 'HOH gas'). You're just splitting it into Oxy hydrogen gas, right? Technically once you split it it's not water anymore, right? Or is this something different?


Like I said - I work in this field. When you look at the tiny amount of deliberate contaminants - like Fluoride - that we add to water, you really do arrive at a level where the product seems to have certain properties that really cannot statistically be balanced by the concentration of the contaminant.

I choose to withhold judgement. If homeopathy bears positive results, I can think of mechanisms that would allow it. I am certainly not going to just throw my hands over my ears and ignore evidence, just because I've already decided I know the world better than any mere facts can illustrate.
Let's just say that until I see some hard evidence I assign homeopathy a very low chance of being true.
Drunk commies deleted
08-08-2006, 21:03
Does this mean they'll pull the fucking ads.
Nope. Congress passed a law many years ago that protects homeopathy.
Grave_n_idle
08-08-2006, 21:16
Fine, water is not my field, but I've read a bit about quack remedies and homeopathy.


And all of that reading means little, if you don't understand the field, don't you think?

Shouldn't you be making up your own mind about the judgments people make about these issues?


I should have posted more detail. I was talking about the French Scientist, Benvenist, claimed to have experimental evidence that water retained a memory of what was once disolved in it. His evidence was debunked. His methods were flawed.


One event in what... 1988? I've seen research this decade that suggests otherwise.

Anyway, as I've said, wouldn't that make all of our water into homeopathic medicine? Wouldn't that mean we were drinking a medicine chest full of remedies when we took a sip of water?


Is that a problem? Do you honestly have any idea what is in the water you drink anyway?

I do.


You're just splitting it into Oxy hydrogen gas, right? Technically once you split it it's not water anymore, right? Or is this something different?


Matter of opinion or matter of definition? If the paired hydrogens are still affiliated with the oxygen, the molecule is still water, isn't it?

There have been anomolous 'water' gases previously - like "Brown's Gas"... the new product I'm talking about claims a different provenance.


Let's just say that until I see some hard evidence I assign homeopathy a very low chance of being true.

Which is actually fairly unscientific of you. And - I'd be willing to bet you are making a special exception of doubt, just because specific suggestions that way have been presented to you.

After all - no doubt you've heard the old idea that every cup of water you drink has already passed through five people. Statistically it must be true, given the low amount of drinkable water on our planet... but does that mean that EVERY literal cup MUST have followed such a path?

There is evidence that seems to offer support for homeopathy. The subject refuses to be gracefully put to rest... wouldn't it be wisest to assume that the evidence MIGHT correspond to something... rather than trash any possibility just because it doesn't match common received wisdom?

Otherwise - we are back in an Earth-centred universe, no?
Eris Rising
09-08-2006, 16:13
One of these days I'm going to track down the source of that ad campagin and aply a sledge hammer directly to the forehead . . .
Dinaverg
09-08-2006, 16:15
Matter of opinion or matter of definition? If the paired hydrogens are still affiliated with the oxygen, the molecule is still water, isn't it?

There have been anomolous 'water' gases previously - like "Brown's Gas"... the new product I'm talking about claims a different provenance.

I was relatively certain that compounds with the same atoms organized differently were different compounds, but I wouldn't know...
Super-power
09-08-2006, 16:19
Just out of spite I'm going to create a product called HeadCrab, and ask people to apply it to their forehead :D
Grave_n_idle
09-08-2006, 16:20
I was relatively certain that compounds with the same atoms organized differently were different compounds, but I wouldn't know...

Not really - l and r dopamine are identical, except for their chirality, for instance. Maybe we are talking isomeric water... but that wouldn't automatically equate to it being a chemically different compound.
Darknovae
10-08-2006, 00:32
HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead. HeadOn Apply directly to the forehead.

OH GOD! Those commercials give me a headache...

I think I've figured it out: The commercial gives you a headache so you can buy their stuff to cure your headache.

Shame it turns people off, though. :mad:

The only thing I'll apply to my forhead is acne cream. :mad:
Katganistan
10-08-2006, 01:01
Just remember: willow bark is a homeopathic remedy for headache, inflamation, and a blood thinner....

oh right, what do they call the easy-to-swallow compound they make of acetylsalicylic acid?



Aspirin.
Wilgrove
10-08-2006, 01:52
Why is anyone suprise that something sold in an informerical is a scam?