Dear Editor:

Just when I thought the Record's coverage of science and medicine
couldn't get any worse, it printed a truly egregious and
irresponsible endorsement of iridology on Aug. 28, The Eyes Have It.

This therapy -- based on the belief that many illnesses can
be diagnosed by examining patterns in the iris -- is not science, but
pure quackery.  It has repeatedly failed scientific testing.

For example, in 1979 the leading U.S. iridologist and two others 
failed a test in which they were asked to distinguish between 48 
persons with kidney impairments and 95 without.   One iridologist
concluded that 74% of the sick patients were normal.  Another said
88% of the normal patients were sick.

The Quackwatch site on the Internet -- www.quackwatch.com -- contains
valuable information on iridology and many other therapies.  It
should be required reading for anyone interested in "alternative"
medicine -- not to mention for reporters.

Jeffrey Shallit