Cyriac Abby Philips is an Indian

hepatologist Hepatology is the branch of medicine that incorporates the study of liver, gallbladder, biliary tree, and pancreas as well as management of their disorders. Although traditionally considered a sub-specialty of gastroenterology, rapid expansion ...

and

clinician-scientist A physician-scientist is traditionally a holder of a medical degree and a doctor of philosophy also known as an MD-PhD. Compared to other clinicians, physician-scientists invest significant time and professional effort in scientific research and s ...

. He is known for his views of complementary and alternative medicine. He is popularly known as "The Liver Doc" on social media where he frequently discusses his findings and research work on effects caused by

alternative medicine Alternative medicine is any practice that aims to achieve the healing effects of medicine despite lacking biological plausibility, testability, repeatability, or evidence from clinical trials. Complementary medicine (CM), complementary and ...

Early life

Philips was born in

Kottayam Kottayam () is a municipal town in the Indian state of Kerala. Flanked by the Western Ghats on the east and the Vembanad Lake and paddy fields of Kuttanad on the west. It is the district headquarters of Kottayam district, located in south ...

, in the state of Kerala, the third of four siblings.

Career

In 2019, Philips co-authored a paper analyzing the death of a woman who died after taking Herbalife's dietary supplements, which was later retracted by ''Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hepatology''. The retraction was undone, after microbiologist

Elisabeth Bik Elisabeth Margaretha Harbers-Bik (born 1966) is a Dutch microbiologist and scientific integrity consultant. Bik is known for her work detecting photo manipulation in scientific publications, and identifying over 4,000 potential cases of improper ...

and

Retraction Watch Retraction Watch is a blog that reports on retractions of scientific papers and on related topics. The blog was launched in August 2010 and is produced by science writers Ivan Oransky (Former Vice President, Editorial '' Medscape'') and Adam Mar ...

, published the paper on their respective blogs. Philips works as a senior consultant hepatologist at

Rajagiri Hospital Rajagiri Hospital is a multi-specialty tertiary care hospital in the south Indian city of Kochi, Kerala. Established in 2014, it is owned and managed by Rajagiri (CMI) group of institutions. It is one of the few hospitals in the country with bo ...

in Kochi.

Social media activism

Philips is known for airing his views of

Ayurveda Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repor ...

Homeopathy Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a di ...

and other alternative medicine systems. According to him, the "principles and practice of ayurveda are based on essentially observations from an ancient past scientific rigour”. He has a PR team on social media and has had lawsuits from Kerala State Medical Council for Indian Systems of Medicine, Ayurveda Medical Association of India, and various ayurvedic medicine manufacturers. In a research published in ''Hepatology Communications'', Philips and other researchers concluded that Homeopathic remedies can potentially result in liver injuries. He claims, "Homeopathy is not medicine, but a form of quackery." On 28 September 2023, Dr. Abby Philips' X account was suspended after an interim injunction order was passed by a Bengaluru court for defaming

Himalaya Wellness Company Himalaya Wellness Company (formerly Himalaya Drug Company) is an Indian multinational pharmaceutical company based in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. It was originally established by Mohammad Manal in Dehradun in 1930. It produces health care ...

However, Philips maintains that his allegations against Himalaya Wellness Company are " science-backed and evidence-backed" and that all the analysis which he had done are available.

Personal life

He is the son of

Padma Shri Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is confe ...

recipient,

Philip Augustine Philip Augustine, an Indian gastroenterologist, specialist in gastrointestinal endoscopy and a hospital administrator from Ernakulam, Kerala. He founded the Lakeshore Hospital and Research Centre in 2003, one of the largest multispeciality ho ...

External links

References

* {{Authority control Medical doctors from Kerala Living people Indian hepatologists Indian sceptics Year of birth missing (living people)