Dyslexia miracle cure! (Obviously not a scam)

[simonmaal]

Excellent news folks! There is an exceptionally effective cure for dyslexia! All we need to do is visit http://www.dore.co.uk/LearningDifficulties/Dyslexia.aspx, leave all of our personal details (I’m sure we won’t get spammed or receive junk mail or calls as a result of this), carry out an incredibly robust self-report test and hey presto!

I did this test 3 times and deliberately gave answers I knew should give 3 very different results (i.e. no dyslexia, moderate and severe dyslexia). What fascinates me is that each time I completed this test, I got what seemed like a generic message:

The difficulties with concentration, behaviour and attention etc. that you describe are commonly associated with the medical diagnosis of Dyslexia.

Ah that’s bad news. But fear not! Here comes the good news:

The good news, whether you have been “labelled” or not, is that you can do something about them [sic]. From what you have told us it seems that you would almost certainly be suitable for the Dore Programme.

Hmm, Ok. So what can this site/company tell us about dyslexia? The following explanation is offered:

The medical term is Cerebellar Developmental Delay (CDD). It is a neural pathway deficiency in the way that the brain is wired.
This means that the connections between the thinking brain (Cerebrum) and the Skill Centre (Cerebellum) aren’t fully developed and therefore the Skill Centre can’t process information quickly enough when it is needed, which results in problems with learning and attention.

Excellent, I think to myself; where can I follow up these claims? Research supporting these claims is shown here: http://www.dore.co.uk/Research/DoreResearch.aspx . All seems to look respectable, so at this stage I feel a bit guilty about dismissing this company.

Anyway, it would seem that we have a miracle cure! Very interesting, I think to myself, so what exactly is this phenomenal cure? It is called the Dore Programme. The following explanation seems to inform us of some miracle cure:

Through a series of tailored physical exercises, designed to stimulate the brain, it is possible to develop these connections and permanently eliminate the problems you have described. This is what the Dore Programme is about.

(cough, cough...err, evidence please?)

And finally, this is available for upwards of £74 a month (about $145 at the current exchange rate).

So now I find myself sitting on the fence. Am I being overly cynical here: is this real progress or is it nostrum of the month?

 

[Professor Yaffle]

More on Dore:

http://www.badscience.net/?cat=72

http://brainduck.wordpress.com/2008/01/14/why-are-dore-so-bad-at-research/

http://brainduck.wordpress.com/2008/01/17/dore-talk-discuss-research-critique/

http://brainduck.wordpress.com/2008/01/24/dore-breakthrough-published-in-ummm-leamington-courier/

http://holfordwatch.info/2007/10/16...-viewed-as-newsworthy-negative-stories-arent/

http://holfordwatch.info/2007/12/14...e-training-the-cerebellum-to-become-a-bucket/

http://holfordwatch.info/2007/10/08/dore-pwned-in-medical-journal-expensive-and-unproven-cure/

http://www.mentalhealthwatch.org/reports/dore.shtml

 

[Goshawk]

Just the idea that you can cure dyslexia with exercises boggles the mind. Isn't it about now that someone should say, "Hey, they laughed at Galileo, too!"

 

[Madalch]

Headline: Dyslexia for cure found!!

 

[Professor Yaffle]

Dyslexics of the World, Untie!

 

[NobbyNobbs]

I selected "never" for every single question....and got the same results you did.

 

[simonmaal]

Thanks for the links (and teh comments, oops too much time playing online rpgs and visiting lolcats has mad me mess my wrodz up). Unless I missed something, every study on Dore has been done by Dore. So neutral!

I like this the best (from the bad science article):

When you’re so out there that the guys from Star Wars have to shoot you down, then you really know you’re getting somewhere.

Speaks for itself and I couldn't have put it better!