Karl Lauterbach (SPD) reacted to the death of singer Tina Turner on Thursday (June 24). First of all, he thanked him very personally on Twitter for his music, which apparently gave him a lot of pleasure, especially in the past. “Thank you for the nice hours, especially at parties but also long car journeys in the early 80s,” wrote the Federal Minister of Health. “Joy of life is contagious, she was the proof.”
Thanks for the nice hours, especially at parties but also long car rides in the early 80s. Joie de vivre is contagious, she was the proof. https://t.co/WjWcpkkSFi
— Professor Karl Lauterbach (@Karl_Lauterbach) May 25, 2023
While this tweet naturally caused a lot of approval – Lauterbach only joined the chorus of numerous prominent condolences – he caused heated discussions with another message in his favorite social network.
The politician shared an article about the singer’s kidney disease, which almost took her life. Her husband, Erwin Bach, donated a kidney to her a few years ago when she was in dire need. As Turner later made public, her kidneys also failed because she tried to treat her (severe) own hypertension with homeopathic remedies instead of medication. A stroke followed and later, due to the weakened kidneys, dialysis.
Impressive description by Tina Turner of how homeopathy destroyed her kidney. Dialysis came because she thought the high blood pressure could be treated with homeopathy. Stroke and dialysis followed. She then regretted the mistake and warned https://t.co/uSxk4ZvWxP
— Professor Karl Lauterbach (@Karl_Lauterbach) May 25, 2023
Lauterbach’s thoughts, which also take into account that the musician later thought about her use of homeopathy and came to a critical judgment about it, are currently being intensively discussed. Many users find it shameless that the Minister of Health should use a death to highlight the dangers of homeopathy, but others also find it an important adjunct to a period in Turner’s life that was marked by a great struggle that could have possibly gone differently .
In fact, Lauterbach’s statement also has a political dimension, as there has been public discussion for years about whether the use of homeopathic products should be paid for by statutory health insurance companies. In Germany and many other countries there is a large market for their use. However, studies on their effectiveness often show that they hardly go beyond the so-called placebo effect. At the same time, however, manufacturers of homeopathic products are not obliged to check the effectiveness, which is why investigations come from public or private institutes and pharmaceutical companies.
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