Essential Oils Can’t Treat Lyme Disease
Why garlic isn’t better than antibiotics
Essential oils* are a perennial favourite as an alternative to conventional medicine. Maybe it’s because they smell nice — I personally love lavender — or maybe it’s because we love the idea that you can replace expensive drugs with a few drops of oil and some positive thinking.
Either way, essential oils have been promoted as a treatment for everything from anxiety to cancer, and most things in between.
In the latest of these claims, media everywhere is reporting that essential oils are even more powerful than previously claimed. Not only can they cure cancer**, they can get rid of Lyme disease. They’re even more effective than antibiotics!
Sounds like a win for alternative medicine.
Except, of course, they can’t. There’s still no evidence that essential oils are an effective treatment for Lyme disease, or really any other health issue.
Scientific Silliness
The most recent study that’s making headlines was what’s known as a preclinical piece of research. What this means is that…
