Homeopathy
HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINE
Homeopathy, also known as
homeopathic medicine, is a medical system that was developed in Germany
more than 200 years ago. It’s based on two unconventional theories:
- “Like cures like”—the notion that a disease can be cured by a substance that produces similar symptoms in healthy people
- “Law of minimum dose”—the notion that the lower the dose of the medication, the greater its effectiveness. Many homeopathic products are so diluted that no molecules of the original substance remain.
Our use of homeopathic products come from plants (such as red onion, arnica
[mountain herb], poison ivy, belladonna [deadly nightshade], and
stinging nettle), minerals (such as white arsenic). Homeopathic products are often made as sugar
pellets to be placed under the tongue; they may also be in other forms,
such as ointments, gels, drops, creams, and tablets. Treatments are
“individualized” or tailored to each person—it’s common for different
people with the same condition to receive different treatments.
Classical homeopathy and homeopathic medicine rests on three principles:
- The law of similars states that a disease is cured by a medicine that creates symptoms similar to those the patient is experiencing. Hence, an important part of the prescription of a homeopathic medicine is a lengthy interview to determine all the symptoms. The homeopathic physician then prescribes the medicine that best matches the symptoms.
- The principle of the single remedy states that a single medicine should cover all the symptoms the patient is experiencing: mental, emotional and physical.
- The principle of the minimum dose has two parts. First, the homeopathic doctor prescribes only a small number of doses of the homeopathic medicine and waits to see what effect the medicine has. Second, the medicine is given in an infinitesimal dose.