I agree with you M. Ted--you are making some very valid points. Especially about the way that doctors and laypeople cannot communicate very effectively; the system seems to have set it up this way. People do have a responsibility to educate themselves about their own health, I think.

My gripe tends to be more with people who deny there are any benefits to using alternative methods when they have not been "properly" researched and tested, etc.

As for getting advice from part-time store clerks: When I worked in a shop years ago where we sold herbs, people often asked us about medicinal uses. We did not offer such advice; we did refer them to books, or to herbalists. We also would tell them about things we had personally used ourselves, thus giving them anecdotal advice. But we always let people know we were not medical professionals or even trained naturopaths, and as such we could not legally offer such advice.If someone had a seriosu condition we urged them to see a professional about it.