--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is time for the scientific community…" description: "\"It is time for the scientific community to stop giving alternative medicine a free ride There cannot be two kinds of medicine — conventional and altern..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/25e/marcia-angell-19102_accepted_it-is-time-for-the-scientific-community_1440000.jpg" --- # It is time for the scientific community to stop giving… ![“It is time for the scientific community to stop giving alternative medicine a free ride There cannot be two kinds of medicine — conventional and alternative. There is only medicine that has been adequately tested and medicine that has not, medicine that works and medicine that may or may not work…” quote by Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/25e/marcia-angell-19102_accepted_it-is-time-for-the-scientific-community_1440000.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/25e/marcia-angell-19102_accepted_it-is-time-for-the-scientific-community_1440000.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/25e/marcia-angell-19102_accepted_it-is-time-for-the-scientific-community_1440000.jpg) > “It is time for the scientific community to stop giving alternative medicine a free ride There cannot be two kinds of medicine — conventional and alternative. There is only medicine that has been adequately tested and medicine that has not, medicine that works and medicine that may or may not work. Once a treatment has been tested rigorously, it no longer matters whether it was considered alternative at the outset. If it is found to be reasonably safe and effective, it will be accepted.” [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Medicine should be judged by rigorous testing, not by labels of "alternative" or "conventional"; efficacy and safety determine acceptance. **In simple terms:** Only tested, effective medicine should be used. Key Takeaway Demand evidence for all treatments. Themes medicine evidence science public health Mood cautious analytical Type policy inspirational When to use this quote - healthcare policy - clinical practice - pharmaceutical development Key Concepts clinical trials regulation patient safety Questions to Reflect On - How to balance innovation with safety? - What role should patient experience play? A Different Perspective Rigid standards may limit innovative therapies. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alternative medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternative-medicine/) [Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Treatment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treatment/) ## Related quotes > [It's American Alternative radio stations that bug me. We're considered Alternative, but don't expect us to be played next to Blink 182 and Offspring.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurston-moore/it-s-american-alternative-radio-stations-that-bug-me-we-re-considered/) [Thurston Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurston-moore/) > [Some consider bicycling an 'alternative' mode of transportation, but it should not be considered alternative. It should be an easy choice for getting around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-breed/some-consider-bicycling-an-alternative-mode-of-transportation-but-it/) [London Breed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-breed/) > [You see, when medicine works, it is blessed science, and when it fails, it is witchcraft. - Polidori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-oppel/you-see-when-medicine-works-it-is-blessed-science-and-when-it-fails/) [Kenneth Oppel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-oppel/) > [No one would say, 'Hey, I think this medicine works, go ahead and use it.' We have testing, we go to the lab, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sendhil-mullainathan/no-one-would-say-hey-i-think-this-medicine-works-go-ahead-and-use-it/) [Sendhil Mullainathan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sendhil-mullainathan/) > [Alternative medicine plays into this exaggerated notion that you can prevent disease simply by doing the right thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/alternative-medicine-plays-into-this-exaggerated-notion-that-you-can/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [You see that the people who are drawn to alternative medicine are often fairly healthy and they go to alternative medicine for what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/you-see-that-the-people-who-are-drawn-to-alternative-medicine-are/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [“This premise of the CSBI should not be given a free ride, for to leave it as is implies that people who wish to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zondervan-publishing/this-premise-of-the-csbi-should-not-be-given-a-free-ride-for-to-leave/) [Zondervan Publishing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zondervan-publishing/) > [I would come here, too. 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Millard > [“I am the Trolley of Love. Free rides before noon and after 11:58 am! ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dark-jar-tin-zoo/i-am-the-trolley-of-love-free-rides-before-noon-and-after-11-58-am/) Dark Jar Tin Zoo ## More by Marcia Angell > [Alternative medicine plays into this exaggerated notion that you can prevent disease simply by doing the right thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/alternative-medicine-plays-into-this-exaggerated-notion-that-you-can/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [I do think that we are an overmedicated society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/i-do-think-that-we-are-an-overmedicated-society/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [There's a certain libertarian right-wing view that there should be no FDA, that people can decide for themselves whether medicines are safe and effective.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/there-s-a-certain-libertarian-right-wing-view-that-there-should-be-no/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [For all of life's discontents, according to the pharmaceutical industry, there is a drug and you should take it. Then for the side effects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/for-all-of-life-s-discontents-according-to-the-pharmaceutical/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [When death is imminent and dying patients find their suffering unbearable, then the physician's role should shift from healing to relieving suffering in accord…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/when-death-is-imminent-and-dying-patients-find-their-suffering/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [In economic terms, health care is a highly successful industry - profitable, growing, and virtually recession-proof - but it's a massive burden on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/in-economic-terms-health-care-is-a-highly-successful-industry/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [Obamacare is simply incapable of doing what it is supposed to do - provide nearly universal care at an affordable and sustainable cost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/obamacare-is-simply-incapable-of-doing-what-it-is-supposed-to-do/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [Pharmaceutical companies have too much influence over the education of physicians in this country. 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