homeopathy
WHAT IS THE WORST THAT COULD HAPPEN TO HOMEOPATHS?
This might seem like a strange question, but I think it is quite interesting… bear with me.
The worse, you might think, is that the we all agree that highly diluted homeopathic remedies are pure placebos. Apart from the fact that this already is a broad consensus shared by virtually everyone in healthcare (except the homeopaths, of course), I think this is not the worst that could happen to homeopaths. They simply ignore the consensus, continue much as before and carry on earning a living by fooling the public (and often themselves as well).
No, the worse is the opposite of the above. The worse is that we all accept the homeopaths’ view. The worse is to say: Very well, we agree for the moment that your remedies are highly effective. And therefore we need to regulate them just as any other medicine.
In our yesterday’s response to the German homeopaths’ statement affirming the effectiveness of homeopathy, we tried to express exactly that. Here is the passage I am referring to:
Wenn dies für Homöopathen also so eindeutig ist, dann können die zuständigen Institutionen in den Arzneimittel-Gesellschaften (BfArM, AMG) Homöopathika genau so bewerten wie normale Medikamente… die Politik sollte die Homöopathen bei ihrem eigenen Wort nehmen und sie denselben Prüfverfahren unterwerfen wie alle anderen Behandlungsverfahren auch.
And this is my (somewhat liberal) translation:
If homeopathy’s effectiveness is so crystal clear, the regulators should assess homeopathic remedies just like normal drugs… politicians and regulators should take homeopaths by their own word and should apply the same standards as for all other medicines.
In the past, homeopaths have always wanted the cake and eat it; they pleaded that their remedies are so special and therefore they need special regulations and extra considerations. Because of these, they were sheltered and escaped any legal or ethical obligations to demonstrate effectiveness. This introduced an unjustified and regressive double standard with was detrimental to good healthcare, medical ethics and scientific progress.
Now that homeopaths (the Germans are merely an example, other countries’ homeopaths are much the same) have agreed on what they think is solid scientific proof, it is right and necessary to remove the special protection which homeopathy used to enjoy. Let’s for the moment accept the homeopaths’ argument (‘homeopathy is effective just like other medicines) and then force them to deliver the proof of their opinion according to the standards all medicines must be judged by!
That would surely be the end of all this nonsense, and homeopaths would find themselves hoisted by their own petard.
The German Association of Homeopaths (Deutscher Zentralverein Homoeopathischer Aerzte) just issued a press-release explaining that they have recently determined that homeopathy works.
Well, aren’t we relieved!
Otherwise, we would have had to assume they are all quacks.
Their statement is based on what they consider a thorough analysis of the published evidence. As the whole document is about 60 pages long, I will not bother you with all the details. Instead, I will focus on what they say about systematic reviews/meta-analyses in the press-release:
Eine Betrachtung der Meta-Analysen zur Homöopathie zeigt überwiegend statistisch signifikante Ergebnisse gegenüber Placebo, die auf eine spezifische Wirksamkeit potenzierter Arzneien hinweisen. Je nach den verwendeten Selektionskriterien werden hierbei unterschiedliche Studien in die Auswertung eingeschlossen. Diese Befunde werden von den Autoren der jeweiligen Meta-Analysen zum Teil stark relativiert. Die angeführten Vorbehalte entsprechen hierbei nicht immer den üblichen wissenschaftlichen Standards.
Let me translate this for you: An assessment of the meta-analyses of homeopathy shows mostly significant results compared to placebo which indicates a specific effectiveness of potentised remedies. Depending on the selection criteria, various studies are included in the evaluation. These results are relativized by the authors of the respective meta-analyses. The listed caveats do not always reflect the usual scientific standards.
You think my English has deteriorated or my brain gone soft? No, it’s their German! It makes almost no sense at all.
Therefore, I am afraid, we need to briefly go into the hefty document after all. Their chapter on meta-analyses concludes as follows: Insgesamt ergibt sich hinsichtlich der bis dato publizierten maßgeblichen Meta-Analysen zur Homöopathie, dass in vier von fünf Fällen tendenziell eine spezifische Wirksamkeit potenzierter Arzneimittel über Placebo hinaus erkennbar ist. That makes (linguistically) a little more sense: Overall, it emerges that the currently published decisive meta-analyses show, in 4 of 5 cases, that a specific effectiveness of potentised remedies is noticeable.
In other words, it is now proven, homeopathic remedies work beyond placebo!!!
But how can this be?
Did the NHMRC not just do a similar analysis concluding that “the evidence from research in humans does not show that homeopathy is effective for treating the range of health conditions considered… homeopathy should not be used to treat health conditions that are chronic, serious, or could become serious. People who choose homeopathy may put their health at risk if they reject or delay treatments for which there is good evidence for safety and effectiveness. People who are considering whether to use homeopathy should first get advice from a registered health practitioner. Those who use homeopathy should tell their health practitioner and should keep taking any prescribed treatments.
Obviously ‘down under’ they don’t know how to evaluate published data!
Or could it be that the Germans are mistaken? Or are they perhaps joking?
Let’s have a look!
The Germans selected (cherry-picked) 5 meta-analyses which they believed to be ‘decisive’, while the Australian panel of independent experts (funded by government) assessed 57 meta-analyses and systematic reviews (all they found via extensive literature searches).
But the German evaluation was done by homeopaths (and financed by a homeopathic lobby group)! And they understand homeopathy best and would not have a bias or conflict of interest, would they?
[FOR A MORE COMPLETE ANALYSIS, SEE HERE (in German)]Anyone who really wants to get an insight into the ‘homeopathic mind-set’ should read the regular newsletter ‘HOMEOPATHY 4 EVERYONE’. Its current issue is focussed on cardiology. An article on coronary heart disease, a condition that kills about 40% of the population, informs us how homeopaths tackle this killer-disease:
If anything permanent is to be accomplished by treatment, a most careful examination of the individual case must be made. Not the attack alone, but the habits of the patient, his family history and environments must all be studied in every possible light. In the management, each case must be considered separately and the causes that excite an attack sought after. Many of these patients already have recognized the cause in their own case and often it is some irregularity of diet, exercise or mental condition. Many times it is not an easy matter to control the mental state, as the worry and strain of business life presses upon many of these patients, and is responsible for many cases of arterial degeneration that give rise to apoplexy, Bright ‘s disease, aneurysm or angina pectoris. The age and occupation of the patient, and the condition of the vascular system should be taken into consideration.
Following an attack the condition of the heart may require absolute rest, from a day to a week or more; this is especially true if the attacks are precipitated by a slight degree of exercise, which shows that the heart is not able to propel the blood under anything but normal conditions. Under no condition should quick movements and strong emotions be associated. Steady quiet exercise as walking upon level ground is beneficial. If the cardiac weakness is such as to forbid this, massage, or the resistance exercise of the Schott’s method may be tried. This exercise should not follow immediately after a meal.
But this is not all. There are plenty more papers on life-threatening cardiac conditions. Take the article on pericarditis for instance. This is how homeopaths are told how to treat this medical emergency:
Remedies that may be indicated are as follows: If traumatic, Arnica. For the inflammatory outset, Aconite or Vera- trum viride. The anguish of Aconite distinguishes its inflammation from that attending the stupor of Veratrum. For the pain Bryonia or Spigelia. They may be indicated in this order, Bryonia for the first stage and Spigelia for the subsequent myalgia. In these cases there may be met with indications for Belladonna (its flushed face), Arsenicum (dyspnoea on lying down), Digitalis (its weak pulse), Cactus (severe myalgia) or Kali carb (stitching pains). General symptoms may call for Colchicum, Aesculus, Kali iod., Cimicifuga, Kahnia, Squilla
A further article tackles diseases of the blood vessels. The article on thrombosis informs the homeopath that
Thrombosis is a blocking of the local circulation either spontaneously, after injuries or from slow and imperfect circulation forming a clot. In thrombosis the part becomes pale and edematous. The remedies are Aconite for first stage. Hamamelis, Lachesis or Lycopodium may be indicated. If suppuration threatens Sulphur or Hepar. Rest and a supporting diet.
The same article also tells us how to treat aneurysms:
Select the remedy carefully. Lycopodium 12 has cured aneurism of the carotid (Hughes). If the attack is due to a sudden strain or injury, Arnica; if from fear or fright, Aconite; if from syphilis, Mercurius, Kali hydr. or Nitric acid; if from alcoholism, Arsenicum or Nux vomica; if from fatty degeneration, Phosphorus; if from fibrous inflammation and degeneration, Bryonia; if there is great arterial excitement and delirium, Veratrum viride; if circulation sluggish, Digitalis. Secale has cured aneurism. Consult Carbo veg., Spigelia. See Heart Therapeutics.
After reading the entire issue, I was not sure whether this wasn’t a hoax. Are we supposed to laugh or to cry? Personally I did giggle a lot while reading this. But if I imagine for a minute that some homeopaths might take this seriously, I am not far from crying.
Yes, I think he does deserve to join this fast-expanding club which, so far, consists of the following people:
They have been admitted mostly because they have demonstrated that they exclusively or mostly publish positive results about alternative medicine. Therefore, their ‘TRUSTWORTHYNESS INDEX’ is remarkable.
With Peter Fisher, things are a little different, and in a way much more convincing. He also has a remarkable publication record, of course. As the Queen’s homeopath, he is a stark defender of homeopathy. He has just under 100 Medline-listed articles in this area, and, if I am not mistaken, only one of them cast any doubt on the effectiveness of homeopathy.
Peter is also the long-term editor of the journal HOMEOPATHY, and he used this position to fire me from its editorial board. Furthermore, he has been shown to have an unusual attitude towards telling the truth. But the decider for his admission to THE ALT MED HALL OF FAME was the following recent interview for NATURALLYSAVVY where he shows himself as a fierce defender of science, evidence-based medicine and critical thinking:
Andrea Donsky: I understand you arrived yesterday from England. I’m curious what you take for jetlag?
Peter Fisher: We have a traditional combination that we use for jetlag, which is arnica montana, and cocculus indicus. So arnica is something that is traditionally used for bruises, and cocculus is used for sleep problems. So arnica and cocculus combined, 6CH every hour or two, helps with jetlag.
Andrea Donsky: I read about the incredible work you do as an Integrative Medicine Doctor so I thought we would start today’s interview with having you explain what that means.
Peter Fisher: Simply put, it means the best of both worlds: the best of conventional, and the best of complementary medicine. There is also a much longer and more complicated definition, but essentially it’s integrating complementary medicine in care packages to avoid some of the worst excesses of conventional medicines, like over-drugging, and excess use of medication.
Andrea Donsky: I know you don’t see patients with the common cold or flu, but if you did, what would be your protocol?
Peter Fisher: I’ve done quite a lot of research on the flu. It’s quite clear that conventional treatments don’t work all that well, and may even prolong the flu. Most of the conventional treatments push the symptoms down [suppress them] and actually prolong the illness.
Andrea Donsky: So something like Oscillococcinum would be a perfect thing to recommend to people.
Peter Fisher: Yes, and other homeopathic combinations that can speed up the resolution, relieve the symptoms, and make the flu go away quicker.
Andrea Donsky: Tell me a little bit about the European way of practicing medicine. I remember hearing that in Europe doctors prescribe homeopathy alongside medication. Is this true?
Peter Fisher: It varies widely between countries. In France, Germany, and increasingly in Spain, it is the case, but not so much in the UK. A lot of doctors do incorporate it in their practice and they integrate homeopathy when it seems appropriate, but they also use antibiotics and other drugs when they feel it is appropriate.
Andrea Donsky: Do you often approach these skeptics and say: “Listen, you are wrong because there is research behind it!”
Peter Fisher: I will debate with anybody, anytime. The trouble is, skeptics don’t like that because they always lose. I’ve been involved in a series of debates with “so called” skeptics. But many well-known skeptics avoid me because they lose the debate. What they prefer to do is to blog, or tweet, so they can make nasty sneering public remarks and you can’t come back at them. If it’s a proper debate, I say my piece, you say your piece, there’s somebody there to make sure that it’s fair play, and that could be in a journal, it could be in a lower court, I don’t care. There was a big court case in the U.S. that was resolved in September where that happened. An allegation was made that false claims were being made for homeopathic medicines and they lost the case…homeopathy won!
Andrea Donsky: Tell us how you came to be a physician to Her Majesty the Queen.
Peter Fisher: There’s a long tradition of the Royal Family having a homeopathic physician. It actually goes back 150 years to Queen Victoria and her beloved Prince Albert. The founder of our hospital was Prince Albert’s father’s doctor. There has been an official homeopathic physician treating the Royal Family since the 1930s. It’s been me since 2001.
Andrea Donsky: It is nice to hear that the Royal Family is open to integrative medicine. Do you just treat the Queen, or the whole family? I read that Prince Charles eats organic and has an organic garden so I am assuming he is quite open to it as well.
Peter Fisher: I treat the entire family. I think Kate and Will are too young and healthy so they don’t need medicine. But the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles, is very friendly, and he is more than willing to stick his neck out to actually say things. He has spoken at the World Health Assembly, which is the AGN of the World Health Organization. So he’s really quite fond of integrative medicine.
Andrea Donsky: I think that’s incredible. As a conventionally trained physician, how did you become interested in homeopathy?
Peter Fisher: At the end of the Cultural Revolution I went to visit China. I was a medical student at the time, and I remember the moment when it became clear to me. I was in the operating room of a small Chinese provincial town and there was a woman lying on the operating table with her entire abdomen open, fully conscious talking to the anesthetist with three needles in her left ear.
Andrea Donsky: Acupuncture needles?
Peter Fisher: Yes.
Andrea Donsky: That’s amazing.
Peter Fisher: The needles were connected to a little electrical box. I thought, “That doesn’t happen. They didn’t tell us about this at Cambridge.” I went to the best medical school, Cambridge, a very elite medical school, and I just thought, “This can’t happen. This doesn’t happen.” That experience is what made me think that there was more to medicine than what we were taught in medical school. Then a few years later, I became ill myself. I was still a medical student so I went to see a very distinguished professor at my medical school who made a precise diagnosis and said, “Tough, nothing can be done.” So my friends suggested I try homeopathy, and I did, and it helped. So it snowballed from there.
Andrea Donsky: Oftentimes we need to see things for ourselves and/or experience it to believe it.
Peter Fisher: Yes. I got almost obsessed by it, you know. In many ways as a scientific thing it shouldn’t work. I mean I do understand to that extent where the skeptics are coming from. There does appear to be a good reason why it can’t possibly work, and yet it does.
Andrea Donsky: Can you define what homeopathy is and how it works?
Peter Fisher: Homeopathy is based on the idea of like curing like. So you give a very small dose of something that could cause a similar illness if given an enlarged dose. Some people say it’s like holding a mirror up to nature. You’re saying to the body, “OK, this is what your problem is, this is what the disease is.” The idea is that the body has very strong self-healing capabilities; it is strong, but sometimes it can be stupid like when it comes to autoimmune diseases. In that case it is actually the body’s defensive mechanism being misdirected.
Andrea Donsky: Can you explain the difference between a single remedy and a combination?
Peter Fisher: A single remedy is one remedy and a combination is multiple. Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of homeopathy. One is the so-called “keynote prescribing way,” where you prescribe for one or two keynote symptoms like a cold, sore throat, or runny nose.Then there is “constitutional medicine” where you are not so much treating the disease, but rather the person. So for example, if someone has insomnia, muscular aches and pains or even a cold and/or flu, they can take a combination of two, three, four, or even five different homeopathic medicines, which will likely cover the symptoms. This is more for self-treatment, rather than doctor prescribed.
Andrea Donsky: That makes sense. I like that there is a role in homeopathy for both self (like for the common cold) and expert prescribing.
Peter Fisher: Yes. It is one thing if someone has a short-term health issue, but it is another thing if they have a chronic complicated, multi-faceted issue. I mean one of the interesting things about homeopathy is the idea of treating the person, and not the disease
I AM CONFIDENT THAT THE MAJORITY OF MY READERS AGREE TO ADMIT DR FISHER TO THE ALT MED HALL OF FAME.
Edzard Ernst – why he changed his mind! This is the title of a blog which I just found. It is such fun to read that I must show it to you in full [I added a few numbered footnotes in square brackets]:
BBC Radio 4 gave Professor Edzard Ernst a 15 minute slot to explain “Why I Changed My Mind’ on Wednesday 4th May 2016. It was repeated on 12th May 2016. He was interviewed by Dominic Lawson [1]. The programme demonstrates the lengths to which the BBC is prepared to go in order under undermine Alternative Medicine, and Homeopathy, in particular [2].
Lawson set the tone. Ernst, he stated, is hated by alternative health practitioners, the Prince of Wales tried to get him sacked, and he eventually lost his academic post because of the criticism he attracted for his work. Ernst was left to agree with this dreadfully unfair and unreasonable treatment [3]. So Ernst was then led to explain his ‘change of mind’ about homeopathy. As a friend and colleague of mine said,
“Ernst (says) that as a German, he was raised on Homeopathy, and later treated his patients with homeopathy. And it worked! But when he approached it ‘scientifically’, he concluded that it’s merely placebo.”
So let’s be clear. Ernst’s experience of homeopathy has been that it does work [4], but that the science he has looked at does not demonstrate that it works. (Even this is wrong [5], but leave that for now!) So people do get better as the result of homeopathic treatment, but ‘science’, or at least Ernst’s science [6], does not understand why it should [7]. Ernst also said that he was convinced, at the time, that he was ‘helping patients’.
Lawson then asked his most difficult question (sic). If he knew that homeopathy worked, why did it work? Ernst’s response was that it was charlatanism and quackery, and was “quite puzzling’ really [8]. So as homeopathy worked, but science said it should not work [8], he went on to study this in his post at Exeter University.
Lawson, in the great tradition of BBC impartiality [2], (sic), continued to lead him on. “When did you decide that homeopathy was useless, delusional?”
Ernst said that when he ‘did the science’ it became clear that homeopathy is placebo.
Now, lets look at this word, placebo. The Oxford English Dictionary defines ‘the placebo effects’ as”
“A beneficial effect produced by a placebo drug or treatment, which cannot be attributed to the properties of the placebo itself, and must therefore be due to the patient’s belief in that treatment”
So by using the term ‘placebo’ Ernst is once again saying the homeopathy has a ‘beneficial effect’ on patients who are ill [9]. Lawson did ask Ernst whether there was anything wrong using placebo if this brought positive benefits to patients. Ernst said that people got better anyway! (Is it really is a simple as this?) [7]
Lawson, now thoroughly convinced of Ernst’s arguments, asked his whether he thought homeopaths were lying. With some apparent grace, Ernst said that lying was a strong term, by the were ‘deluded’, and ‘treated homeopathy as a religion’.
Lawson came back, asking why there were lots of qualified doctors who believe in homeopathy, and whether they should they be struck off, or stopped from practising? No, said Ernst, they were just not thinking critically, and needed to be educated out of their delusions.
Presumably, for both Lawson and Ernst, using a medical therapy that worked and brought benefit to patients [7], but which science could not explain, should be restricted, if not banned altogether.
Lawson’s final question clearly demonstrated his impartiality. “Can we justify homeopathy, or any other kind of quackery? (My emphasis). “No”, said Ernst, predictably!
The BBC regularly broadcasts these kind of anti-homeopathy, anti-alternative-medicine programmes, with never an attempt to redress the balance [2]. They will never broadcast a programme that provides an alternative medical view. The BBC appears to be firmly in the camp of the conventional medical establishment [2], and committed to providing time to anti-homeopaths without any ‘right of reply’.
Why, for example, was there no question about the quality of the ‘science’ Ernst is associated with? Certainly, his science has come under serious scrutiny. For instance, I blogged about “The contribution of Professor Edzard Ernst to disinformation about Homeopathy” in September 1915 [!!!]. This followed an assessment made by Professor Robert Kahn about the quality of Ernst’s science. This was his conclusion [10].
“I have never seen a science writer so blatantly biased as Edzard Ernst: his work should not be considered of any worth at all, and discarded.”
Kahn’s paper shows, in his view, how ‘science’ has been taken over by ideology, (or as I suggested the financial interests of Big Corporations like Big Pharma). He revealed that in order to demonstrate homeopathy is ineffective over 95% of scientific research into homeopathy has to be discarded or removed! [10]
There was, of course, no mention of this in the BBC programme! [11]
So if Ernst’s change of mind was ‘scientific’, it was based on bad science [12], the kind of science much discussed in this blog, bought science, cheque book science, the kind of science based on university faculties funded by the pharmaceutical industry [13]. Ernst’s funding dried up when his academic position had become untenable [14], and he lost the support of his financial backers [15]. As my friends and colleague said, in response to the programme:
“Ernst’s religion is Science, not the well being of the patients. I wonder how many listeners will
be influenced by him as he does come across as an experienced and rational man?”
I agree with her assessment. Anyone can come over as an ‘experience and rational man’ when given an uncritical platform, such as this BBC programme proved to be. Certainly, Peter Fisher, the Queen’s homeopath, was one of his main critics. Why, Lawson asked Ernst, did homeopathy have ‘such a grip’ on the Royal Family? Ernst did not know, but he did know that “when they get really ill they do not go to a homeopathy, otherwise they would not get so old!”
At this point I began to wonder on what knowledge Ernst used to know how the Royal Family were being treated, and scientific basis his belief that their longevity was nothing to do with homeopathy? The question was never asked, so we will, I fear, never know! [16] [1] you can listen to the programme here
[2] a serious allegation for which no evidence is provided, and I suppose none exists [3] this is the truth [4] not true, my experience was that patients got better for which there are good, scientifically sound explanations that do not involve homeopathy [5] no, it’s not [6] the best available evidence today which has little to do with ‘my’ science; might this be a little attempt at an ad hominem? [7] no, science does understand the phenomena involved well: placebo, regression towards the mean, natural history of the disease etc. [8] a wilful misinterpretation of my words [9] no, this is not what I said, homeopathic remedies are ineffective and the observed effects are due to other phenomena [10] not Kahn but Hahn; and his criticism is laughable, see here [11] the programme is a series of interviews with people who have changed their mind on an important subject; such questions do not belong there [12] any proof for that other than Hahn? [13] false and libellous allegation [14] no, when HRH had filed his complaint; this is all described in detail in my memoir [15] poor logic: if I had been funded by the ‘enemies of homeopathy’, my funding should have increased [16] anyone who follows the news bulletins about the Royals will know where they go when seriously ill.It has been reported in most newspapers that Prince Charles has proposed a solution to the problem of antibiotic over-use in animals and humans. He told an international gathering of scientists and government officials in London that he treats his own cows and sheep with homeopathy. Many people reacted with dismay. I, however, plead for more understanding of this thoroughly good-willed man.
In fact, I intend to go one step further.
We have often heard that he is a considerate and caring man. We ought to give him the benefit of the doubt. I have tried therefore to empathise with his situation, put myself into his shoes and repeat the considerations that made him say what he said. My empathy went so far that I tried to re-live and formulate his thoughts in the first person singular (or should I have used the ‘Royal We’?). The result is the following little monologue where I categorised the considerations under 7 headings.
THE OCCASION
I wonder why they invited me to give a speech. True, I am a farmer at heart and I know all about husbandry, but I have no real expertise in the field of antibiotics.
Perhaps it is an occasion to tell them a bit about homeopathy. Yes, that subject would surely fascinate the audience!
THE INTELLECTUAL ENVIRONMENT
They tell me that the conference will be packed with very bright people. That sort of thing always makes me a bit self-conscious. Perhaps I should decline the invitation after all? Sometimes, I have the impression that people make fun at me.
No, I must not think like that – after all, I have had a very expensive education too, and I know my stuff.
THE ISSUE
Homeopathy is such a wonderful subject. I must try to win them over and make them appreciate its beauty. These experts should realize that homeopathy is the future.
I have heard rumours that some blinkered scientists doubt that homeopathy works. But my advisors tell me that it is best to ignore this sort of thing. And my advisors know their stuff even better than I.
POTENTIAL IMPACT
This conference is going to have a very high impact. The press will be there. It will be reported across the world. And government’s chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies (why can we not have more holistic doctors in position like these; I must remember to discuss this with Michael Dixon asap); she once called homeopathy ‘rubbish’ – enough to throw her in the Tower!
Mustn’t think like that! On the contrary, I will make sure they all get the message. I will bowl them over! The press will surely be on my side. This will be a victory for homeopathy.
THE RISKS
Mother might be upset; she does not like me to stick my neck out like that…goes on about constitutional role and such trivia…she thinks we should not put our nose into things that are none of our business. And the Royal PR team will not like it either. They do what they can to distract from the image of ‘THE MEDDLING PRINCE’ might think that my speech is a hindrance to their efforts. I better don’t tell anyone in advance about this, they might try to stop me.
But now I feel quite unstoppable.
THE SPEECH
This is what I will tell them about homeopathy: “It was one of the reasons I converted my farming operation to an organic – or agro-ecological – system over 30 years ago and why we have been successfully using homeopathic – yes, homeopathic – treatments for my cattle and sheep as part of a programme to reduce the use of antibiotics.” I think this will convince everyone. Who needs science when there is powerful rhetoric like this?
LAST DOUBTS
What if it does not go well? They will not dare to contradict me, I am the future King, for heaven’s sake! Even if they disagree, they will not show it. They just don’t have the guts. And anyway, I will not take questions, I never do enter into any debate on homeopathy. It is simply too tedious to argue with people who do not understand the issues involved.
It is decided – I’ll do it. I’ll do it for homeopathy and for the good of mankind. If they then chose to misunderstand me, that’s their problem, and my people will issue a statement for the press saying “Homeopathy is used on a case-by-case basis at Home Farm, in combination with more conventional medicine, to minimise dependence on antibiotics.”
*In case you are a lawyer hired by HRH to check out this post: it is pure satire through and through, there is not a factual sentence here; if you want to sue me, please find another reason.
Homeopathy is not blessed with many geniuses, it seems. Therefore, it is all the more noteworthy that there is one who seems to be so extraordinarily gifted that everything she touches turns to gold.
Her new and remarkable study intended to measure the efficacy of individualized homeopathic treatment for binge eating in adult males.
This case study was a 9-week pilot using an embedded, mixed-methods design. A 3-week baseline period was followed by a 6-week treatment period. The setting was the Homeopathic Health Clinic at the University of Johannesburg in Johannesburg, South Africa. Through purposive sampling, the research team recruited 15 Caucasian, male participants, aged 18-45 y, who were exhibiting binge eating. Individualized homeopathic remedies were prescribed to each participant. Participants were assessed by means of (1) a self-assessment calendar (SAC), recording the frequency and intensity of binging; (2) the Binge Eating Scale (BES), a psychometric evaluation of severity; and (3) case analysis evaluating changes with time.
Ten participants completed the study. The study found a statistically significant improvement with regard to the BES (P = .003) and the SAC (P = .006), with a large effect size, indicating that a decrease occurred in the severity and frequency of binging behaviour during the study period.
The authors concluded that this small study showed the potential benefits of individualized homeopathic treatment of binge eating in males, decreasing both the frequency and severity of binging episodes. Follow-up studies are recommended to explore this treatment modality as a complementary therapeutic option in eating disorders characterized by binge eating.
While two of the three authors have not ventured into trials of homeopathy before, the third and senior author (Janice Pellow from the Department of Homoeopathy, University of Johannesburg, South Africa) already has several homeopathic studies to her name. They seem all quite similar:
Number 1 was a clinical trial that concluded:
The study was too small to be conclusive, but results suggest the homeopathic complex, together with physiotherapy, can significantly improve symptoms associated with chronic low back pain due to osteoarthritis.
Number 2 was an RCT which concluded:
The homeopathic complex used in this study exhibited significant anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving qualities in children with acute viral tonsillitis.
Number 3 was a pilot study concluding:
Findings suggest that daily use of the homeopathic complex does have an effect over a 4-week period on physiological and cognitive arousal at bedtime as well as on sleep onset latency in psychophysiological onset insomnia sufferers.
Number 4 was an RCT that concluded:
The homeopathic medicine reduced the sensitivity reaction of cat allergic adults to cat allergen, according to the skin prick test.
See what I mean? Five studies and 5 positive results!
Considering that they were obtained with different types of homeopathy, with different patients suffering from different conditions, with different trial designs and with different sets of co-workers, this is an even more remarkable achievement. In the hands of Janice Pellow, homeopathy seems to work under all circumstances and for all conditions.
I feel a Noble Prize might be in the air.
Pity that she would not score all that highly on my (self-invented) TI.
The current issues of ‘homeopathy 4 everyone’ (April 2016) carries several articles on homeoprophylaxis, the use of homeopathic remedies for the prevention of mostly infectious diseases promoted by homeopathy as a safe and effective alternative to immunizations. They are worth reading – but watch your blood pressure! Here I will give you a flavour by citing from one of these articles:
“…As I have been teaching about Homeoprophylaxis (“HP”) throughout the United States and in Europe, some things have become unmistakably clear. One is the ever increasing desire of people to know that there is a nontoxic alternative when it comes to disease prevention. Another is a profound misunderstanding or, perhaps better said, a lack of education among many regarding HP…
The effectiveness of HP is being shown fairly consistently to be about 90%1, which is comparable to any vaccine. With this in mind, too, those who utilize homeoprophylaxis work to help their clients understand fundamentally that disease is generally not to be feared—that disease-causing pathogens are a necessary part of our environment and that the body generally becomes healthier once it has been exposed to a disease and has worked its way through it…
My passion regarding spreading the word and helping people learn about homeoprophylaxis led to my becoming the co-founder/director of the first international conference of its type in the world—Homeoprophylaxis: A Worldwide Choice, which took place in Dallas, Texas, USA in October, 2015. Isaac Golden was our keynote speaker…
Frequently seen is the protocol Isaac Golden utilizes. This is a once monthly method, where one single remedy/nosode is introduced at potency. If following, for example, a pediatric regimen that lists several nosodes, it will be the next month that either a larger dose of that same nosode is taken, or the next nosode is introduced. For pediatric HP, this is cycled through until all nosodes in the protocol are taken, the higher potency being started after the lower potency is completed. A booklet is provided to the clientele to keep track of these…
Ultimately, homeoprophylaxis has been in use since the days of Hahnemann. What is apparent when one considers the entire picture, noting the meticulous studies that have been and are yet being done as well as the current increasing demand of people worldwide— perhaps especially parents— for a nontoxic alternative for disease prevention, it truly makes sense to be promoting homeoprophylaxis. Our children are the most vulnerable in our society and deserve our utmost attention and concern. Not every practitioner needs to utilize HP. However, because there are many who do, support of this should be encouraged. It is an alternative people deserve to know about so that they can make an educated choice, and health for our society, especially our children, can be promoted.”
END OF QUOTE
By now, you are probably wondering who wrote this article. It was Cathy Lemmon, BA, C.HP, D.Psc, Co-Founder/Director of Homeoprophylaxis: A Worldwide Choice for Disease Prevention, she is also working on future conferences for the promotion of HP. She has studied HP with Isaac Golden of Australia and Ravi Roy and Carola Lage-Roy of Germany. She also has certificates in homeopathic treatment of vaccine injury as well as, through the ARHF in the Netherlands, treatment of epidemics and trauma. She completed studies at the School of Homeopathy and is completing specialized homeopathic studies through Gesundes Bewußtsein in Germany as well as post-graduate work in homeopathy through the College of Practical Homeopathy in London.
With all these ‘qualifications’, she has obviously escaped any education in real science and evidence-based medicine; if not she would know that her views are not just wrong but also dangerous. To Be clear:
- Homeoprophylaxis is not biologically plausible.
- There is no evidence that it works.
- The concept misleads people to think that conventional immunizations are superfluous.
- This has the potential to kill thousands.
The madness of some homeopaths who claim they can cure cancer has irritated me and others repeatedly, for instance here and here. Many apologists of homeopathy say that responsible homeopaths would never make such a claim. They may be right – but the sad reality is than there are far too many irresponsible homeopaths.
This article by Dr Pankaj Aggarwal, a ‘senior homeopathic physician’, marks in my view a new record in homeopathic ineptitude and irresponsibility. Here is an excerpt (it seems that the actual article has disappeared; luckily I saved it before):
“In homeopathy, non-toxic medicines are used to treat this cancer. There are no side-effects associated with homeo medicines for cervical cancer. If this problem is diagnosed at earlier stages, it becomes easier to treat and takes very less time. In advanced stages, more time is required to improve the situation. It is actually possible to treat cancer with homeopathic medicines. In fact, homeopathy is the only treatment method that can completely cure this disease. There are different approaches to treat this disease in homeopathy. Good homeo practitioners usually use a combination of these approaches while treating a cancer patient.
Treatment Approach 1
The first philosophy to treat cancer is to directly target the cancer tumors. In this way, the practitioner selects the proper medicines that match the symptom picture of tumors. An example of such medicine is Conium Maculatum, which can be used to treat immovable, hard and slowly developing tumors. In this approach, other symptoms of patient are also taken into consideration and are treated. This approach targets tumors and reverses their growth to the point where they no more exist or become harmless.
Treatment Approach 2
The second or indirect approach is to strengthen the cell detoxification process and eliminative channels of patients like liver, lymphatic system, urinary tract and kidneys. From this approach, the homeopathy practitioner uses low potency drainage remedies that detoxify particular substances like heavy metals or target particular body systems. The particular medicines used for this drainage is selected after thorough analysis of the particular cancer case.
Treatment Approach 3
In this approach, a complete interview of the patient’s emotional, physical, and mental symptoms is conducted. After that, best matching remedies are selected to address the complete constitution of the patient. Most of the times these homeopathy medicines will affect and target the cancer tumors directly. This treatment, if done properly, can result in complete removal of cancer tumors, resulting in full recovery.”
END OF QUOTE
The facts about homeopathy are very clear and tell a totally different story:
- the assumptions that underpin homeopathy are implausible,
- homeopathic remedies usually are far too dilute to have any effects whatsoever,
- there is no evidence to support any of the above claims,
- believing such claims will almost inevitably cause great harm to patients.
What follows is simple: HOMEOPATHS WHO MAKE THERAPEUTIC CLAIMS BEHAVE UNETHICALLY, ARGUABLY EVEN CRIMINALLY
‘Homeopaths without Borders’ have been the subject of this blog before. I repeat what David Shaw, senior research fellow, Institute for Biomedical Ethics, University of Basel, Switzerland, wrote about this organisation in a BMJ-article: Despite Homeopaths Without Borders’ claims to the contrary, “homeopathic humanitarian help” is a contradiction in terms. Although providing food, water, and solace to people in areas affected by wars and natural disasters certainly constitutes valuable humanitarian work, any homeopathic treatment deceives patients into thinking they are receiving real treatment when they are not. Furthermore, training local people as homeopaths in affected areas amounts to exploiting vulnerable people to increase the reach of homeopathy. Much as an opportunistic infection can take hold when a person’s immune system is weakened, so Homeopaths Without Borders strikes when a country is weakened by a disaster. However, infections are expunged once the immune system recovers but Homeopaths Without Borders’ methods ensure that homeopathy persists in these countries long after the initial catastrophe has passed. Homeopathy is neither helpful nor humanitarian, and to claim otherwise to the victims of disasters amounts to exploitation of those in need of genuine aid.
Now ‘Homeopathy without Borders’ seem to promote the idea – or should I say madness? – that homeopathy offers a cure for the Zika virus infection. Given their track record this was to be expected. Whenever the world is facing a serious medical problem, homeopaths are at the ready to help. Only that they don’t really help; they make false promises and distract from the task of solving the problem. Need I to remind you of the disaster they almost caused when they set out to treat Ebola?
Tragically, ‘Homeopaths without Borders’ are not alone. Other homeopaths seem to agree with them and promote the madness of a homeopathic cure fro Zika. For instance, Dr Vikas Sharma, a homeopath from India, informs us that “Homeopathic medicines Eupatorium Perfoliatum, Belladonna, Rhus Tox can be safely used in Zika virus infection treatment. These medicines come the closest in treating the symptoms of Zika virus infection. In an epidemics when a huge number of person are attacked by acute and similar sufferings from similar cause, Homeopathy can be of great prophylactic help. Homeopathy has been highly successful in treating epidemic diseases. Among them are cholera, dengue fever, yellow fever typhus, and conjunctivitis. “
Confronted with stupidity on such a scale, I am lost for words. Luckily, David Shaw already said it all: Homeopathy is neither helpful nor humanitarian, and to claim otherwise to the victims of disasters amounts to exploitation of those in need of genuine aid.
