What does Coca Cola, the Pharmaceutical Industry and the Anti-homeopathy Group ‘Sense About Science’ Have In Common?

The Alliance for Natural Health International reports that the anti homeopathy group Sense about Science has been “busted by The Times of London” for once again secretly supporting corporate giants.  This skeptic group has been for years taking contributions from Pharmaceutical Companies.  In turn, they have authored actions and reports that seem independent and equal minded but are an attempt by the pharmaceutical industry to destroy homeopathy and the right of consumers to choose alternative health  modalities.

The alliance for natural health reports that “On the 9th & 10th October 2015 respectively, The Times published two consecutive, highly revealing articles by its special correspondent, Alexi Mostrous. In the Saturday piece, Alexi Mostrous exposed Sense About Science’s association with Coca-Cola. Sense About Science is the charity with which anti-alternative medicine skeptics like Simon Singh and Ben Goldacre are associated, that claims to be independent yet often acts as a voice for Big Food, Pharma and Biotech.”

According to the article, Sense about Science used its so called “scientific voice” to debunk a study that showed the dangers of drinking sugar-sweetened beverages.  The research evidence that triggered this situation was entitled “Estimated Global, Regional, and National Disease Burdens Related to Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption in 2010”. The background of the research was described as follows:

     “Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) are consumed globally and contribute to adiposity. However, the worldwide impact of SSBs on burdens of adiposity-related cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), cancers, and diabetes mellitus has not been assessed by nation, age, and sex…”

As mentioned, Sense about Science has been complicit in inciting and spreading negative and false opinions about homeopathy and alternative health modalities. It was revealed that it is funded by the pharmaceutical industry and other corporations needing a seemingly “independent” scientific voice.

Pharmaceutical Industry Funding of Anti-homeopathy Skeptic Groups Uncovered

Sense about Science, a well funded anti-homeopathy skeptic organization in the United Kingdom, complained about a consumer’s group’s assertion that they represent and are funded by the pharmaceutical industry.  After further investigation, even more funding than previously revealed was uncovered.

A spokesperson for the consumer group investigating Sense about Science said, “In investigating their complaints we looked more closely at the sources of funding of Sense About Science, and have found that our original figures for the charity’s support by the pharmaceutical industry were too conservative.”

The consumer group, H:MC21 also wrote in response to Sense about Science complaining:

You quote us as saying that Sense About Science “received over 35% of its donation funding from the pharmaceutical industry between 2004 and 2009”, but then refer only to funding “from pharmaceutical companies”. As a result of the investigation following your email, we have found that our original claim about Sense About Science’s funding was too conservative. In fact Sense About Science appears to have received an average of 42.3% of its total income between 2004 and 2010 from pharmaceutical companies or organisations clearly linked to the pharmaceutical industry. In 2006, the year [the anti-homeopathy] ‘Sense About Homeopathy’ was published, there was a huge leap in such funding, from £37,300 (36.9% of total income) to £102,165 (51.2% of total income). Full details are included in Appendix 1.

The Canadian and USA skeptic organization called Centre for Inquiry, which is another anti-homeopathy skeptic group, is almost entirely funded by a director of a pharmaceutical company. They initiated a law suit against a homeopathic manufacturer and retail pharmacy selling homeopathic remedies which was unsuccessful. Now they are attempting to block the sale of homeopathic remedies in pharmacies.

Both groups are attempting to stop consumers’ choice of alternative health modalities and stop the sale of homeopathic remedies.

Anti-Homeopathy Letter Writers Sponsored By Large Pharmaceutical Companies

Anti-homeopathy letters and emails from Voice of Young Science  innundated officials at the World Health Organization complaining about the few homeopaths treating patients in Africa. It prompted an unofficial response by some individuals in W.H.O.

Voice of Young Science as part of Sense about Science is directly sponsored by pharmaceutical companies such as GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer Plc who have joined together to deal with the emerging African HIV drug market. Sense about Science also has links to a number of prominent online blogs,  magazines and other media outlets.

Many of the directors and workers in this “non-profit” Sense about Science organization previously worked or consulted as public relations representatives for drug companies.One of the directors was a specialist  in what is called “reputation risk management” and “crisis management” public relations and has been involved in “countering campaigns by environmental, health and development NGOs”. Her public relations company’s clients “were previously nearly all pharmaceutical, oil or biotechnology companies”.(SourceWatch)

Sense about Science is also a lobbying organization for the pro-genetically modified food lobby in the UK. They  are currently attempting to inundate UK Members of Parliament with anti-homeopathy letters in a similar fashion to their WHO anti-homeopathy campaign. This is also similar to the Sense about Science pro-genetically modified food  and anti-environmental campaigns.