--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [Alternative medicine is defined as] that…" description: "\"[Alternative medicine is defined as] that set of practices that cannot be tested, refuse to be tested or consistently fail tests.\" — Richard Dawkins" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg" --- # \[Alternative medicine is defined as\] that set of practices… ![“[Alternative medicine is defined as] that set of practices that cannot be tested, refuse to be tested or consistently fail tests.” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg) > “\[Alternative medicine is defined as\] that set of practices that cannot be tested, refuse to be tested or consistently fail tests.” [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Alternative medicine is described as practices that cannot be scientifically tested or consistently fail tests. **In simple terms:** Unproven health methods lack scientific validation. Key Takeaway Demand evidence for health claims. Themes science medicine skepticism evidence healthcare Mood skeptical analytical Type health science When to use this quote - Choosing treatments - policy making - public health education Key Concepts methodology validation risk assessment Questions to Reflect On - Should personal belief outweigh scientific consensus? - How to balance innovation with safety? A Different Perspective Some may argue for personal freedom over strict evidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alternative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternative/) [Alternative medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternative-medicine/) [Alternatives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternatives/) [Consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consistently/) [Defined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defined/) [Doctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctor/) [Failing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Medicine Defined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine-defined-3703421/) [Positive atheism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive-atheism/) [Practice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practice/) [Practices Tested](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/practices-tested-5445304/) [Refuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/refuse/) [Tested](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tested/) [Tests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tests/) ## Related quotes > [If any remedy is tested under controlled scientific conditions and proved to be effective, it will cease to be alternative and will simply become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/if-any-remedy-is-tested-under-controlled-scientific-conditions-and/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Medicine may be defined as the art or the science of keeping a patient quiet with frivolous reasons for his illness and amusing him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilles-menage/medicine-may-be-defined-as-the-art-or-the-science-of-keeping-a/) [Gilles Menage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilles-menage/) > [If insurance companies paid for lifestyle-management classes, they would save huge sums of money. We need to see that alternative medicine is now mainstream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/if-insurance-companies-paid-for-lifestyle-management-classes-they/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [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/) > [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/) > [“Calling holistic medicine "alternative medicine" is no longer appropriate. The best approach now is "integrated medicine" in which we take the best of both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candess-m-campbell/calling-holistic-medicine-alternative-medicine-is-no-longer/) [Candess M. Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candess-m-campbell/) > [England has a long history of supporting alternative medicine - maybe it's because they don't have such a strong pharmaceutical industry in England, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dasha-zhukova/england-has-a-long-history-of-supporting-alternative-medicine-maybe/) [Dasha Zhukova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dasha-zhukova/) > [It is time for the scientific community to stop giving alternative medicine a free ride There cannot be two kinds of medicine — conventional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-angell/it-is-time-for-the-scientific-community-to-stop-giving-alternative/) [Marcia Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcia-angell/) > [People believe the only alternative to randomness is intelligent design.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/people-believe-the-only-alternative-to-randomness-is-intelligent/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [In other parts of the world where I go, people are worried about, Jeez, you know, I really wanted to buy my kids shoes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/in-other-parts-of-the-world-where-i-go-people-are-worried-about-jeez/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [You need to understand plant chemistry, be inured to discomfort and awesomely flexible. When something breaks down-the plane, the boat, you just have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/you-need-to-understand-plant-chemistry-be-inured-to-discomfort-and/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [“In the field of medicine, Galen, the Alexandrian scientist, propounded a view that is still around, nowadays called 'alternative medicine.'It was taught in many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-f-cantor/in-the-field-of-medicine-galen-the-alexandrian-scientist-propounded-a/) [Norman F. Cantor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-f-cantor/) > [A man may esteem himself happy when that which is his food is also his medicine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/a-man-may-esteem-himself-happy-when-that-which-is-his-food-is-also/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Maca boosts sex drive like crazy. And if there's any side effect, some people just have to stop taking it because they get so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/maca-boosts-sex-drive-like-crazy-and-if-there-s-any-side-effect-some/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) > [A man doesn't need a study to know if he's feeling amorous. There is no such thing as a placebo erection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/a-man-doesn-t-need-a-study-to-know-if-he-s-feeling-amorous-there-is/) [Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/) ## More by Richard Dawkins > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“The fundamentalist Kurt Wise proclaims that all the evidence in the universe would not change his mind. The true scientist, however passionately he may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-fundamentalist-kurt-wise-proclaims-that-all-the-evidence-in-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/i-have-found-it-an-amusing-strategy-when-asked-whether-i-am-an/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Religions do make claims about the universe--the same kinds of claims that scientists make, except they're usually false.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/religions-do-make-claims-about-the-universe-the-same-kinds-of-claims/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“much of the Bible is not systematically evil but just plain weird, as you would expect of a chaotically cobbled-together anthology of disjointed documents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/much-of-the-bible-is-not-systematically-evil-but-just-plain-weird-as/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [The Roman Catholic Church is an institution for whose gains the phrase "ill-gotten" might have been specially invented. And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. I can think of some answers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/or-why-it-is-acceptable-to-train-fast-runners-and-high-jumpers-but/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [We have seen that living things are too improbable and too beautifully 'designed' to have come into existence by chance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-have-seen-that-living-things-are-too-improbable-and-too/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“We will not go quietly away. If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Explore all 1,239 Richard Dawkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More Alternative quotes > [The alternative comedy scene is actually pretty small, I guess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/casey-wilson/the-alternative-comedy-scene-is-actually-pretty-small-i-guess/) [Casey Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/casey-wilson/) > [In my book I specifically discussed the structural nature of injustice and offered Nine Touchstones of Goddess ethics as an alternative to the Ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-p-christ/in-my-book-i-specifically-discussed-the-structural-nature-of/) [Carol P. Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-p-christ/) > [As the future is never known with certainty, the evaluation of the prospective benefits requires the formation of expectations. An acceptable house, partner or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-t-mortensen/as-the-future-is-never-known-with-certainty-the-evaluation-of-the/) [Dale T. Mortensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-t-mortensen/) > [Maximise the alternative forms in which a user might receive a service, and the alternative sources of supply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-chipp/maximise-the-alternative-forms-in-which-a-user-might-receive-a/) [Don Chipp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-chipp/) > [In January 2012, Google Plus started to roll out support for nicknames and pseudonyms, but those registering with a name other than their real-life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mackinnon/in-january-2012-google-plus-started-to-roll-out-support-for-nicknames/) [Rebecca MacKinnon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mackinnon/) > [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/) > [There are some fantastic, brilliant alternative doctors out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hayley-mills/there-are-some-fantastic-brilliant-alternative-doctors-out-there/) [Hayley Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hayley-mills/) > [The alternative to the market process is government control, and we know where that principle leads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-richman/the-alternative-to-the-market-process-is-government-control-and-we/) [Sheldon Richman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-richman/) > [Alternative services would mean that there would be services available to compete with Google, Facebook, Amazon, Dropbox, Skype, etc., and they would be run…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikko-hypponen/alternative-services-would-mean-that-there-would-be-services/) [Mikko Hypponen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikko-hypponen/) > [I liked a lot of alternative and I like punk stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martie-maguire/i-liked-a-lot-of-alternative-and-i-like-punk-stuff/) [Martie Maguire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martie-maguire/) > [I've thought about what is an alternative word to feminism. There isn't one. It's a perfectly good word. And it can't be changed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-lennox/i-ve-thought-about-what-is-an-alternative-word-to-feminism-there-isn/) [Annie Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-lennox/) > [The Voice has always been an alternative paper. They have always understood that that was part of their role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-schanberg/the-voice-has-always-been-an-alternative-paper-they-have-always/) [Sydney Schanberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-schanberg/) > [Please don't eat less, eat right, don't hold it in, its okay to cry, do not hurt yourself there is always an alternative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/please-don-t-eat-less-eat-right-don-t-hold-it-in-its-okay-to-cry-do/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The Gospel is not an alternative, it’s an ultimatum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reinhard-bonnke/the-gospel-is-not-an-alternative-it-s-an-ultimatum/) [Reinhard Bonnke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reinhard-bonnke/) > [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/) [Browse all 400 Alternative quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alternative/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "[Alternative medicine is defined as] that set of practices that cannot be tested, refuse to be tested or consistently fail tests.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Dawkins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that-set-of-practices-that-cannot/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Alternative" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that-set-of-practices-that-cannot/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/richard-dawkins-115_alternative-medicine_alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that_1490075.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“[Alternative medicine is defined as] that set of practices that cannot be tested, refuse to be tested or…” — Richard Dawkins", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Richard Dawkins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "[Alternative medicine is defined as] that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that-set-of-practices-that-cannot/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/alternative-medicine-is-defined-as-that-set-of-practices-that-cannot/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```