He is a Professor Emeritus of Complementary Medicine at the University of Exeter (UK) and a co-author of notable works such as “Trick or treatment? Alternative medicine on trial” (2008), and “More harm than good? The moral maze of complementary and alternative medicine” (2018), among others. He has contributed as a Columnist to numerous publications, including BMJ, GP, MMW, PJ, The Guardian, The Independent, The Spectator, Publikum, Skeptic Magazine, Die Welt, L’Express, Der Spiegel. His work has been awarded over a dozen prizes, including the “John Maddox Prize 2016”. His research interests focus on critically evaluating various aspects of complementary and alternative medicine.
He studied Psychology and Medicine at the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich (Germany). In 1977, he qualified as a physician in Munich, where he also completed his MD and PhD theses. His training includes acupuncture, autogenic training, herbalism, homoeopathy, massage therapy, and spinal manipulation.
He served as a Professor of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) at Hannover Medical School (Germany) and was the Head of the PMR Department at the University of Vienna (Austria). In 1993, he joined the University of Exeter (UK) to create the world’s first Chair in Complementary Medicine.