Montreal Children's Hospital yanks book offering crystal therapy to young cancer patients

The Montreal Children's Hospital has removed a book from the oncology department that offered crystal therapy to young cancer patients.

The Montreal Children's Hospital has removed a book from the oncology department that offered crystal therapy to young cancer patients.

Medical professionals liken it to pseudo-science with no evidence that it works.

The children's book, Crystals of Hope, explains the alleged healing power of crystals in easy-to-understand terms. Crystals are a big part of esoterical beliefs, homeopathy, acupuncture, and self-healing manuals, adopted by millions of believers in alternative medicine circles.

Despite serious scientific research, crystals have never been proven to work.

"Healing crystals do not heal, it is magical thinking pure and simple", says Jonathan Jarry, a member of McGill Univesity's Office of Science and Society, which promotes critical thinking.

"It legitimizes a practice that is no different than magic because it took place in a hospital and it was offered by an employee," says Jarry, who fears using such material sends the wrong message to the population by legitimizing pseudo-science.

The book's author is a social worker named Lynda Blanchette, who is well-respected by the medical staff at the Children's. After she retired, the hospital foundation gave her a small grant to help her write her book.