Joseph M. Mercola
Dr. Joseph Mercola is an alternative medicine guru, New York Times best-selling author, and founder of the natural health website Mercola.com. Dr. Mercola's provocative work has elicited debate from the medical and non-medical community alike.
Dr. Mercola completed his family practice residency at Chicago Osteopathic Hospital in 1985.[1] After acquiring his Illinois state osteopathic physician's license, Mercola practiced conventional medicine and also worked as a paid speaker for a drug company.[2] During his first decade as a physician, Dr. Mercola shifted his practices towards natural medicine, founding The Natural Health Center and eventually launching his website Mercola.com in 1997.[3]
Through his website and work, Dr. Mercola aims to transform the "fatally flawed health care system in the United States" and empower people to put health in their own hands.[4] Mercola.com is currently the world's most visited natural health website, drawing in 14 million visitors each month.[5] With over 950,000 likes on Facebook, Dr. Joseph Mercola's page attracts more traffic than that of WebMd.
Dr. Joseph M. Mercola has appeared on The Today Show, CNN, ABC's World News Tonight, The Dr. Oz Show, The Doctors, CBS, NBC and ABC local news shows, Time Magazine, Forbes Magazine, and dozens of nationally broadcast radio shows. Dr. Mercola is also the author of two New York Times Bestsellers, The Great Bird Flu Hoax and The No-Grain Diet. He has authored over 30 publications on topics ranging from HIV and AIDS to aspartame, omega-3's and calcium.[6] He is also a contributor to Huffington Post.[7]
Dr. Mercola's work does not come without controversy. In March 2011, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a third warning to Dr. Mercola to stop making "unfounded claims." The warning specifically demanded that Mercola "cease touting a thermographic screening he offers - which uses a special camera to capture digital images of skin temperatures - as a better and safer breast cancer diagnostic tool than mammograms." Mercola described the FDA's claims as "without merit."[8] Science Based Medicine has accused Mercola of "tabloid journalism, late-night infomercials, and amateur pre-scientific medicine."[9] The medical watchdog site Quackwatch has criticized Mercola for making "unsubstantiated claims and clash with those of leading medical and public health organizations [and making] many unsubstantiated recommendations for dietary supplements."
Mercola.com is a member of the Health Liberty coalition. According to Mercola, "a portion of the profits generated from the sale of the products I recommend goes to a variety of non-profit organizations. These organizations are geared towards protecting your health freedom and providing you with valuable information to help you Take Control of Your Health! These organizations include:" [10]
- National Vaccine Information Center
- Food Democracy Now
- Consumers for Dental Choice
- Fluoride Action Network
- Institute for Responsible Technology
- Organic Consumers Association
- Rabies Challenge Fund
- American Holistic Veterinary Medical Foundation
- Cornucopia Institute
- Vitamin D Council
- Grassroots Health
- Alliance for Natural Health
Affiliations [1]
- Fellow at the American College of Nutrition
- Member of the International Academy Biological Dentistry and Medicine
- Advisory Board member American Nutrition Association
- Advisory Board member Price-Pottinger Nutrition Foundation
- Advisory Board member Weston A. Price Foundation
- Advisory Board member Bio-Solar Proto
- Advisory Board, Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation [11]
Resources and articles
Related Sourcewatch
- Bush Administration Plan for Flu Outbreaks
- New Dawn (magazine)
- Natural News
- Cory Mermer - Mercola's medicial researcher
- Sayer Ji
- Steve Kroschel
References
- ↑ "Dr. Joseph Mercola's Qualifications," accessed October 6, 2014
- ↑ Bryan Smith, "Dr. Mercola: visionairy or quack?" Chicago Magazine, January 31, 2012.
- ↑ "Dr. Joseph Mercola," Huffington Post, accessed October 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Dr. Joseph Mercola," Huffington Post, accessed October 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Dr. Joseph Mercola," Huffington Post, accessed October 6, 2014.
- ↑ "Dr. Joseph Mercola's Qualifications," accessed October 6, 2014
- ↑ "Dr. Joseph Mercola," Huffington Post, accessed October 6, 2014.
- ↑ Bryan Smith, "Dr. Mercola: visionairy or quack?" Chicago Magazine, January 31, 2012.
- ↑ Joseph Albietz, "9 reasons to completely ignore Joseph Mercola," Science-Based Medicine, October 16, 2009.
- ↑ Joseph M. Mercola Affiliations, organizational web page, accessed May 11, 2014.
- ↑ Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation Board, organizational web page, accessed June 14, 2014.
