The 6 harmful effects of pseudotherapies

Pseudotherapies are experiences offered as if they were a form of therapy with supposed benefits for physical and/or whose application techniques are not based on scientific evidence nor do they have the elementary safety standards for the customer.

Despite their lack of scientific rigor, these therapies are often presented as scientific and their promoters they can deceive their clients into believing that they are therapies with successful results insured.

In this sense, the use of pseudotherapies to the detriment of approved and specialized health services represents a real social problem and a risk for the health of those who request them, as well as for their relatives and any other person in their closest environment who becomes a user of the same.

To learn more about this alarming public health problem, see below. We will delve into the main harmful effects of pseudotherapies in those people who put themselves in the hands of these false health professionals.

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What are the main harmful effects of pseudotherapies in people?

At present, pseudosciences are going through one of their greatest moments of popularity around the world, due in part to the misinformation that exists among the general population about health and also the ease with which all kinds of medical hoaxes can be shared through social networks, chat groups, etc As a consequence, many people end up being attracted to these types of deceptive practices.

There are many negative and detrimental effects that pseudotherapies have on people who decide to go to them to deal with any type of problem, below we review the most important.

1. false sense of security

One of the main characteristics of pseudotherapies and of the people who promote them is that they tend to give a false sense of taking care of the health of the patient or person who has placed themselves in the hands of said therapist.

Faced with this false sense of security, many people may come to believe that psychotherapy is capable of curing their health problemsThat is why they decide to believe in the treatment with blind faith and continue spending the necessary money to follow it.

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2. Damage to one's own health

Another of the main effects of pseudotherapies is the affectation of both physical and mental health. emotion of the people who request them believing that they will be good for them or for their relatives.

These unscientific therapies can harm our health and also that of those around us, having an effect contrary to the desired one, by not being based on scientifically validated procedures and relying heavily on improvisations of the “professional”.

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3. economic damage

Many of the sellers of this type of pseudo-therapies have financial gain as their main motivation, which is why they sell their miraculous remedies to any desperate person who is willing to pay an exorbitant price to cure your illness or that of your sick family member.

That is why people who embark on this type of pseudoscience end up losing huge sums of money invested in alternative therapy without realizing the deception of which they have been participants.

4. Discourage people from seeking professional medical help

The application of pseudotherapies to cure any disorder in a person or in members of his family usually has disastrous effects that are nothing like the effects expected by users of this type of therapy.

After living a bad experience with pseudotherapies and verifying their lack of success, many people may end up disappointed or traumatized and decide never to put themselves in the hands of real professional therapists.

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5. Possible affectation at a social and family level

Some pseudo-therapies go beyond the format of sessions with a "specialist" and offer, on the contrary, a collective experience and a new philosophy of life, or even a religion. Thus, some proposals for false therapies are offered through participation in collective events of all kinds and end up functioning as real sects in which mind control of its members is practiced, although they do not require constant attendance at meetings: WhatsApp groups are promoted in which conspiracy theories, mystical experiences, etc. are discussed.

While participating in these types of events, many people may end up withdrawing from their family or social environment as response to the demands of said sect, due to the ideological polarization fostered by these groups based on manipulation psychological.

6. Development of psychological alterations

Some pseudo-therapies based on intermittent fasting or the intake of miraculous juices or other type of products can end up generating eating disorders in people, since that alter the behavior of users and their relationship with food.

In addition to that, many people who are victims of all kinds of pseudotherapies may end up developing cases of anxiety, depression, stress, low self-esteem, or disorders of all kinds.