Is Homeopathy A Suitable Remedy Or Quackery?, The debate rages on. Please share your opinion and experiences. Options

[Craig Minowa]

In the last tow issues of Organic Bytes, we have posted links to articles that discuss how homeopathy was used during the pandemic of 1918 (http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17822.cfm). We received a fair number of emails from readers who feel homeopahty has no scientific basis. Please share your opinions, experiences and links to any scientific studies you may know of below. Here is an example of a letter from one of our readers:

Hello OCA team,

I find it highly disturbing that the OCA is supporting a "treatment" for dangerous diseases which has absolutely zero basis in scientific fact. Homeopathy has never, I repeat, never stood the test of multiple peer reviewed studies. In short : it is pure nonsense.

I am expecting a reputable organization such as the OCA which has done so much to more smart farming agendas forward will quickly move to distance themselves from such non-scientific garbage. Failure to do so in a timely fashion will permanently damage your reputable and standing.

I am expecting a personal as well as public response to this issue.

thanks you,

[radicalmom]

to add a comment: i am in favour of the use of homeopathy. conventional medicine and its side effects are the main reasons i steer clear of doctors and their store-bought and corporate wisdom. the argument that there is no proof that homeopathy works is the only defense opponents have. another argument leans towards the james randi philosophy that we are not smart enough to make decisions on our own and that we are being mislead towards a dangerous practice of self-medication using ineffective treatments. i'll stick with homeopathy and herbal remedies if i have to treat myself.

[Brookmoor]

On occasion, critics of homeopathy like to make the claim that there is no evidence that homeopathy works. The facts are a bit different. Pre-clinical and clinical studies demonstrate there are clear biological effects of homeopathic remedies; multiple international observational studies on thousands of patients are overwhelmingly positive for homeopathic treatment in real world clinical practice; and randomized controlled trials and the meta-analyses based on them show mixed findings, largely due to methodologic concerns.

In fact there have been hundreds of high quality, peer reviewed studies published in journals like Pediatrics, Rheumatology, Lancet, CHEST, and others showing that homeopathy works. Add to that the research findings from laboratories at Penn State University (Roy, et al), the University of Washington, Moscow University, London South Bank University and others and we are beginning to understand how homeopathic remedies work as well. Finally - there are thousands of data points from reliable sources (public health records, hospital records, newspaper accounts, patient records, government records) that show homeopathy's effectiveness against some of the deadliest epidemics of the 19th and 20th centuries.

To individuals with a limited knowledge of current research, homeopathy seems befudling. The clinical facts show that it works and that it needs to be part of our nation's healthcare response to pandemics.

[Brookmoor]

For those with an interest in current research into homeopathy - please visit this link for an abridged listing of research papers on the subject: http://homeopathic.org/articles/view,173

[Earthmomma06]

I agree that OCA should not endorse something with so little basis in either scientific fact or even common sense.

I believe in natural and holistic solutions and way of life, but this is too much for me to swallow.

About a year ago, i took my son to a homeopathic doctor with an open mind and on the recommendation of another mom whose advice i give highest creedence. The consultation was very unbelievable almost to the point of being completely silly. I later researched homeopathy from many angles and was dismayed. The article i remember that stands out in my mind was following:
Quackwatch.org

Homeopathy is without side effects because it's essentially all placebo. Dilutions are so extreme that you are most likely (almost a statistical guarantee) to get a 'remedy' that has not even a single molecule of the acutal substance that is supposed to be effective. (you can see the calculations in the link)

Not a single molecule, just the 'essence' of whatever substance is supposed to make you better.

Come on, OCA!

PS. I just went to homeopathic.org as suggested in an previous post. There's an article entitled, "Homeopathy Research Evidence Base: References" with a list of citations, many referring to trials on homeopathic methods. There are many, leading a casual reader to assume there is 'research' evidence backing homeopathy up. However, from just the titles, one cannot actually tell if any of the studies' findings back up homeopathic methods or even refute them. Of course, there were no links to any studies published online, so it would take more work to track them down and find out. So let me assume they are indeed all article whose unbiased findings actually do support homeopathy. Then there's the problem that they are almost all from homeopathic trade journals - hardly an unbiased source. Even if i give them all the benefit of the doubt and assume no bias is possible in their journals, it still makes me a bit uncomfortable that the list apparently had to be 'bulked up' with references such as this strange one:

Brizzi M, Lazzarato L, Nani D et al. A biostatistical insight into the As(2)O(3) high dilution effects on the rate and variability of wheat seedling growth. Forsch Komplementarmed Klass Naturheilkd 2005; 12 (5):277-83.

A bit of a reach! - And OCA just published an article on GMO Golden Rice, which dismisses animal studies on its effects because 'animals metabolize beta-carotene differently than humans'. Well, i think studies on WHEAT PLANTS would be even less applicable to humans.

[Dinah]

Thank you for addressing this issue. I was taken aback and disappointed to see homeopathy featured in the newsletter. It is quackery.

[Lindsay]

When I first decided to try homeopathy for myself I was skeptical that it would work. I have used it now to treat four conditions in myself (bee sting, yeast, headaches, allergies) and it has cured me completely in all cases besides the allergies. IMO, going in as a skeptic, and having it still work kills the placebo theory for me. I brought my dog to a homeopath, and her mystery cough (in an otherwise perfectly healthy, 2 year old Ridgeback) was cured! This is after taking her to three other conventional vets who just wanted to give her course after course of antibiotics always admitting they really had no idea what was wrong with her. It turns out she had vaccinosis, and a homeopathic dose of Thuya cleared her up.
I like to make my own decisions, and do not trust conventional Western medicine. I try "alternative" therapies and more often than not am pleasantly surprised that they work. If they didn't, I wouldn't use them. And even if it is the placebo effect that cures someone - well at least they're cured! For those that feel science positively backs the pharmaceuticals on the market these days - when is the last time you read a safety or efficacy study? Was it done by the company selling the product? I feel sorry for the poor souls that have blind faith in Big Pharma.

[deetrust]

Don't throw the baby out with the bath water. A lot of things have become mainstream that was once thought to be nonsense. Example acupuncture, biofeedback, honey preventive in bacterial infections, leeches for amputees and other needs to keep blood flowing, probiotics The list goes on… So I say keep an open mind. God has many things in nature that can help us. DLW (IMG:style_emoticons/default/cool.gif)

[AngelW]

Homeopathy does work and has worked for generations. It's a gentle treatment and does not do the damage to the body that the chemical substances used for allopathic treatment do. However, it does not cure everything--just like allopathy does not cure everything.

After 2 visits to an MD and 4 visits to a dermatologists and lots of lab tests to diagnose the problem--big,red,itchy, unrelenting hives, I was told that they "have never seen anything like that". I had been prescibed strong antibiotics that ate into my stomach lining, but had only enough effect to tell me it was an allergy of some kind. I was out a LOT of money and time(5 1/2 months). I went looking for a homeopathic remedy, and by the second day, I was much better--by the end of the week, the hives had quite itching and most of them were gone. I have used homeopathic remedies before on my allergy to mold with the same results. I just wish there was a homepathic dr. available where I live. There are only allopathic drs who just love to prescribe lots and lots of medications--even medications to deal with the conflict of one medication with another!

Homeopathy works great when used with common sense. If you have appendicitis, go find an allopathic dr and have your appendix taken out--then go find an allopathic dr and get some advice on your diet and how to avoid infections in your body.

Homeopathy and allopathy are like a hammer and screwdriver. If you use the screwdriver on a nail, you will have a problem. Using common sense makes a big difference.

As to homeopathic remedies failing allopathic tests--can you say set up for failure? Like feeding the ants sugar to get rid of them. The AMA and the FDA make sure the tests show that only the allopathic medications and treatments work. If you look hard enough, you will find the information that the AMA and FDA thought they had gotten rid of about homeopathy. By now, they should have learned how to play with others because there is a place for both therapies.

[agapegirl]

Dear OCA Readers:

I am dismayed that ANYONE would give even the slightest credence to what QuackWatch has to say! That
website is basically a curse against anyone and everyone who has used natural medicine of any sort
to cure others or to do research proving the effectiveness of vitamins and minerals!!! They even called Linus Pauling, the great researcher, a super-quack!! Actually, there are other websites that refute to the letter the slander of QuackWatch, if you wanted to search those out. If you search deeply, I have been told their commentator is connected to big pharmaceutical companies...so much for his opinion!

About Homeopathy: I have a limited experience with homeopathy, but it has always been helpful to me.
As a singer on stage (as well as trained a Certified Natural Health Professional)and a bilingual translator for 18+ years, my voice can get tired from overuse. All I can tell you is that any homeopathic remedy I have ever used for vocal distress has ALWAYS worked EXTREMELY WELL for me!

If anyone is really that concerned about H1N1 or H5N1 or whatever other flu virus is coming our way, I would recommend they look into Young Living Essential Oils, which are actually therapeutic grade (medicinal grade) essential oils. There is plenty of clinical research on them; don't bother with the junk cheapo varieties. They don't work and many have petroleum-based toxins in them from the way the oils are extracted. However, Young Living Essential Oils (organic, therapeutic) saved my life and brought my Metabolic Syndrome/thyroid disorder and waning Brain Function back in only 4+ weeks seven years ago! Since then, I have been studying all kinds of natural medicinal therapies, and am therefore open to Homeopathy as well. All I know is what I will be storing for any flu or pandemic is YL Therapeutic Essential Oils that are research proven most effective for flu and bacteria, Nano-Silver, Vits., Minerals and homeopathic flu remedies! They sure will beat the weaponized and/or toxic vaccines!!! If you do something similar and put away a little quality food and pure water in case of quarantine, you should not need to worry.

Best to all...

[Aristotle]

I have been using homeopathy with other treatment protocols in a clinical setting for almost 20 years. The positive outcomes have been stellar.

[Lydia]

I have used constituional homeopathy for over 20 years. It is a very viable modality for chronic illness. To your point, my homeopath recommended allopathic medication when I had Lyme Disease, for example.

For a little history on homeopathy, I recommend you check out this article...

http://www.seattlepi.com/archives/1988/8801220319.asp

My homeopath trained in London, where there is a homeopathic hospital. My understanding is that the European homeopathic medical schools train the doctors in surgery, etc.

Personally, if I were to get the swine flu, I would treat it with both homeopathic and allopathic medication (they can be mixed.)

[Sarah Diggins]

From personal experience of 20 years, I can say that when you get the remedy right, homeopathy works almost instantly. Eg belladonna for a childhood fever, brings a temperature down within 30 minutes.

However, the problem with homeopathy is using the right remedy, which is why it can appear not to work. When you do get it right, it's a powerful and completely safe method of bringing about healing which is far better than conventional medicine that just supresses symptoms and push the illness deeper into the body.

[ptmom]

Hey Everybody, I have been using homeopathy for over 20 years for me and my family. My two oldest children had chronic ear infections for several years and I used conventional methods (antibiotics of course). One day I told a friend of mine about this issue and she recommended a Naturopathic Doctor. Both my children had ear infections and I took them to see this N.D. He evaluated them, asked many questions, prescribed a different homeopathic remedy to each child. Next morning they were well (no antibiotics, yeah) and the most amazing thing was they never had another ear infection again! That was the scale tipper for me. I was a convert and have never looked back. I could write a book about all the healings me and my family/friends have experienced through the use of homeopathy and other natural healing methods. The proof is in the pudding for me. Western medicine/medication (medicating people into oblivion) kills thousands of people a day. Homeopathy works whether you believe in it or not. The flu shot kills people (my opinion).

[Calico]

Before believing anything the Quackwatch website says, you might want to do a little research into the man behind it, Dr. Stephen Barrett.

As to homeopathy, a look into its history is quite enlightening. In the early 1900s there were 22 homeopathic medical schools, 100 homeopathic hospitals and over 1,000 homeopathic pharmacies. Boston University, Stanford University and New York Medical College were among those educational institutions that were teaching homeopathy. Homeopathic doctors were actually more successful and prosperous than the allopathic . They were driven out of the market by the American Medical Association which used its political influence to get the homeopathic educational programs decertified.

The more things change....

[NaturalMedicine]

earthmomma06-
It is unfortunate you had such an experience with homeopathy. But if you see one surgeon or medical doctor and had a bad experience does that make all of conventional medicine no good?

I've had the opposite experience. I have four children and we have been using homeopathy and seeing a homeopath for 30 years with wonderful results! All my kids are extremely healthy and my wife and I are too. My wife and I come from families with much serious chronic illness but we or our children have not experienced that.

You have to understand that Quackwatch and many similar organizations are funded by conventional pharmaceutical companies. Also now most university research gets income from pharmaceutical patents and lisences for their research so they are not without bias. Since their income depends on it, they are also on the anti-homeopathy crusade.

Many individuals belonging to these quackbuster and similar organizations that are fighting homeopathy are also fighting organic foods with a similar scientism. In the case of organic foods they also say that there is no scientific proof that it is better than chemically treated and genetically altered food.

It is as if the gold standard is a double blind experiment. What is interesting is that there is a long list of drugs- Vioxx etc. that went that went through this "scientific" process and later proved to be harmful. Ditto Monsanto's stuff.

In spite of this homeopathy, has shown to be very effective with many successful studies but also lots of criticism. There are some simple studies that you can look at- one in the Chest journal, a conventional medical journal-

http://www.chestjournal.org/content/127/3/936.full

Of course, the quackbusters and other conventional pharmaceutical drug supporters question this, but the results are remarkably good.

Another interesting study took place in Cuba where homeopathy is used in a widespread way since it is the only place on earth where pharmaceutical companies do not have a presence.

This is a good web site on some of the latest for homeopathy:

http://homeopathyresource.wordpress.com/

Look at the Cuba study.

[lilbrndg]

Another converted skeptic signing in here.

Homeopathy was my last resort to surgery for a painful ganglion cyst that was steadily growing larger, and more obtrusive. Under treatment from a homeopathic practioner, it disappeared fully in less than a week, and has not returned.

Shrugs, all I ask for is the freedom to research choices for myself and my family. If I am counted as gullible by some others on this forum, so be it. We all should be free to decide for ourselves, with the understanding of the personal responsibility that comes with that freedom.

[mikester]

The anti-homeopathy crowd tends to use the so-called "evidence-based" methodology which includes things like randomized, double-blind studies. There is nothing inherently wrong with this approach and it works well in some areas. But in other areas, it is easily misused and the term "blinded" is misleading because the statistician and the research paper authors know the result and can skew the results any way they wish. And they do. Ask Marcia Angall, former editor in chief of the New England Journal of Medicine. She says you simply can't trust scientific research anymore in mainstream medical journals (see JAMA article of late last year which she presents her case). Misleading or junk science is now done all the time and Big Pharma has been proven to "file drawer" negative results and only publish positive ones. Further in the area of antidepressants, the determining methodology for efficacy is based on a 50 year old questionnaire to determine if a person is depressed or not - completely subjective and it really doesn't even delve in to depression. Contrast that with something like blood-pressure medication which uses a measured value from an instrument to determine its efficacy. That has much stronger basis.

Homeopathy does not lend itself to conventional studies. Why? Because a person with a headache, for example, could possibly choose from several homeopathic remedies. Most may not work and it's possible only one will. But find the one correct remedy and it works like a bomb. It is thus up to the skill of an experienced homeopathic practitioner to find the correct remedy and it may take more than one try. A conventional allopathic researcher would probably take a remedy and give it to a control group and measure the response. But that is not how homeopathy is applied. I'm not saying a double blind study would not work, but it would have to be very well-designed by someone who understands homeopathic treatment. And such studies do exist and they show it works. But when done by an allopathic researcher, all it proves is when you use homeopathy incorrectly, it may not yield results (big surprise). Most allopathic medicine is based on taking a pill. That is not homeopathy. Homeopathy is without any side effects and while the underlying science may not be well-understood, it does work. Personally, I don't understand how radio works. I know what the physicists says about how it works, but I sure can't see any radio waves with my naked eye. And I certainly have never seen a photo in the radio wave spectra, nor has anyone else. But I listen to radio all the time because it works.

For the critics, go ahead with your allopathic route - you are free to choose that. But anyone who has experienced relief using homeopathy without deleterious side effects knows homeopathy works and it works extremely well when correctly used. Our current allopathic health care system is a disgrace and is helping bankrupt our country. Alternative medicine is less expensive and very successful. Homeopathy has its place in alternative circles.

In the last tow issues of Organic Bytes, we have posted links to articles that discuss how homeopathy was used during the pandemic of 1918 (http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_17822.cfm). We received a fair number of emails from readers who feel homeopahty has no scientific basis. Please share your opinions, experiences and links to any scientific studies you may know of below. Here is an example of a letter from one of our readers:

Hello OCA team,

I find it highly disturbing that the OCA is supporting a "treatment" for dangerous diseases which has absolutely zero basis in scientific fact. Homeopathy has never, I repeat, never stood the test of multiple peer reviewed studies. In short : it is pure nonsense.

I am expecting a reputable organization such as the OCA which has done so much to more smart farming agendas forward will quickly move to distance themselves from such non-scientific garbage. Failure to do so in a timely fashion will permanently damage your reputable and standing.

I am expecting a personal as well as public response to this issue.

thanks you,

[agapegirl]

A few additional comments that I forgot earlier! Abt. 3 years ago, I had a very NASTY insect bite on my right foot. Unfortunately, no one ever saw the insect, so we had no idea what to do. The allopathic M.D. I saw gave me an antibiotic after my big toe swelled up and we began to see purple streaks spreading across my foot. The pain and burning was HORRIBLE and nothing would touch it! Then I went to see my friend who has been a (degreed) nutritionist and homeopathic counselor for over 25 yrs. She told me to take homeopathic Ledum pillules. Within hours the pain began to subside; and within 3 days, the streaks and pain were gone. So, for those of you who believe homeopathy is quackery, I would say you need to keep an open mind. I know of many degreed natural docs who say otherwise, the most prominent of them being Dr.Theresa Dale, who creates new homeopathic formulas all of the time. Dr. Dale has them tested and approved by the FDA regularly (not that I trust the FDA THAT much, but they USUALLY are opposed to passing natural regimens that don't work!). Dr. Theresa Dale is, by the way, the lady doc who is so famous for transformations in hormone dysfunctions, sterility, healing cancer and many modern dis-eases. Check out her website. You will see she is the real deal; and she is a HUGE proponent of Homeopathy!

[ejoslyn]

Homeopathy works. I was very skeptical 2 years ago but it has cured my daughter of asthma, allergies, eczema, bronchial infections & greatly reduced the occurance of febrile seizures. She had vaccine damage & was quickly heading down the autism path- Homeopathy snapped her out of it. She is a bright, healthy 3yr old & I am forever greatful to our Homeopath. I have since expanded my learning of homeopathy & have helped not only myself but also family & friends with various ailments. Homeopathy is very individualized- not a one-pill cure all like allopathic medicine.
I am a firm believer in natural remedies whether it be herbal, natural/organic living or homeopathy.

I can't give enough praise to the practice of homeopathy.