Trick or Treatment
Evidence Files
In-depth analysis of popular medications and supplements — what international science actually says, why we take them, and whether we should. Every article verified through PubMed and Cochrane Library.
11 articles
Homeopathy: How a €1.5 Billion European Industry Sells Diluted Water as Medicine
In Germany, homeopathic remedies are sold in every pharmacy. France reimbursed them through its national health system until 2021. The Swiss constitution mentions homeopathy alongside conventional medicine. And every major systematic review of the evidence reaches the same conclusion: it doesn't work.
Piracetam: The World's First Nootropic Has Been Studied for 60 Years — Here's What the Evidence Actually Shows
The world's first nootropic was synthesized in Belgium in 1964. It's been studied for 60 years, prescribed across Europe, and taken by hundreds of thousands of people who found it online. The clinical evidence for its most popular use — cognitive enhancement in healthy adults — remains remarkably thin.
Oscillococcinum: France's Bestselling Flu Remedy Is Made From Duck Liver Diluted Into Oblivion
Every winter, French pharmacies sell millions of doses of Oscillococcinum — the world's bestselling flu remedy. The active ingredient is derived from duck liver, diluted to a concentration of 200C. At that dilution, not a single molecule of the original substance can mathematically remain. What remains in the tube is sugar.
Meldonium: How a Latvian Cardiac Drug Became the Most Famous Banned Substance in Sports
In January 2016, WADA added meldonium to its prohibited list. In March, Maria Sharapova announced she'd been taking it for ten years. Overnight, a Soviet-era Latvian cardiac drug became the most Googled pharmaceutical compound on the planet. But very few of those searches led to an honest answer about what it actually does.
Vitamin D: The Supplement Everyone Takes and the Evidence Nobody Talks About
One in three adults in Northern Europe has insufficient vitamin D levels. Governments recommend supplementation. Doctors prescribe it routinely. And yet the VITAL trial — 25,000 participants, $45 million budget — found that vitamin D supplements don't meaningfully reduce cancer or cardiovascular events in people who aren't severely deficient. The evidence is more complicated than the marketing.
Omega-3: The Heart Health Revolution That the 2018 Trials Quietly Complicated
For two decades, omega-3 fish oil was one of the most confidently recommended supplements in European pharmacies. Cardiologists endorsed it. Health authorities promoted it. Then three large independent trials published in 2018 showed that for most healthy people, fish oil capsules don't meaningfully reduce heart attacks, strokes, or cardiovascular death.
Cerebrolysin: The Austrian Brain Drug That Austria Doesn't Use
Cerebrolysin is manufactured by an Austrian company in Austria. It's prescribed for millions of patients across China, Ukraine, Russia, and Central Asia recovering from stroke or living with dementia. Austrian hospitals don't use it. This geographic paradox is worth understanding.
Magnesium: One of the Few Supplements That Actually Has Solid Evidence — With One Important Caveat
Magnesium is the rare supplement where the hype is partly justified. It's involved in over 300 enzymatic reactions in the human body. Deficiency is genuinely common — especially in people eating processed foods, taking certain medications, or living with type 2 diabetes. And unlike most supplements, clinical trials have actually demonstrated meaningful effects. The caveat: mostly in people who were deficient to begin with.