I say it's too hard for the average person to figure out the true impact of alternative medicines. The placebo effect won't let people evaluate the treatment with an impartial mind.

I've taken fish oil regularly for years yet I can't judge the impact of it on my health. I live with the idea of hope. Hope that it is helping but I will never know.

I believe that's the case with most alternative medicine since there are few independent studies that can be cited to determine the benefits.

You will always find individuals that will swear on the benefits but individual benefits don't translate to universal benefits. This is especially true now that you can find anyone that has an opinion on anything on the web. It's the confirmation bias on overdrive.