Introducing
– Homeopathy
The Miracle of Healing
3.
Does
homeopathy rely on placebo treatment ?
4.
Is
homeopathy of use in treatment of all types of diseases ?
5.
Isn’t
homeopathy too slow as a system of treatment ?
6.
If
homeopathy is so effective, why has it not overtaken allopathy ?
7.
Can
homeopathy be practiced by anyone ?
8.
What
are the different types of medicines used in homeopathy ?
Homeopathy is the system of
medicine which works on the principle of ‘like cures like’ (Similia Similibus
curanter). This system of holistic healing was founded by Dr.Samuel Hahnemann, a
German physician. Hahnemann, who was translating the a book on the medicinal
properties of drugs, was reading the properties of the medicine Cinchona,
when he read that Cinchona cures malaria, because of its bitter taste. Hahnemann
was surprised by this statement and when he read on, he found a footnote which
said that cinchona poisoning leads to malaria-like symptoms. This set him
thinking and he decided to test the medicine of himself. He experienced the
symptoms of malaria, by repeatedly taking the Cinchona medicine and after
continuing his experiments found that those medicines which cause disease-like
symptoms in healthy individuals are capable of curing the diseased individuals.
So, homeopathy relies on the Materia Medica – a book containing the properties
of medicines, properties which have been proved on healthy individuals.
Homeopathic doctors rely on the materia medica as the authority for it contains
not empty theories, but details of symptoms which were experienced by hundreds
of provers. It is thus a system based on sound principles and as a result of
solid experiments.
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The theory behind the working of
homeopathy is that the body of every human being contains a vital force within
the body which regulates the functioning of the body. Due to reasons such as
heredity, environmental conditions, stress etc, this vital force weaken causing
disease. So, disease is nothing but a complex of certain symptoms observed in
the human body. The homeopathic physician make a study of not only the symptoms
the patient is complaining of, but of the entire patient himself. This leads to
a picture of the patient. The physician then prescribes homeopathic medicine,
which matches this picture. Now, the medicine so prescribed would have caused
the same symptoms in healthy person during ‘drug provings’. This medicine is
given in a highly diluted dose, so as to prevent side effects. This minute dose,
creates a similar disorder in the vital force and provokes the vital force to
react to the symptoms and overcome. (The same system is used in vaccines, where
vaccination against small-pox is done by injecting the small-pox disease-causing
organism, so that the body can build up its natural immunity).
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3.
Does homeopathy rely on placebo treatment ?
Now, all homeopathy medicines are
given in a very low dosage. This is called as ‘potentisation’. Hahnemann
discovered that the more the medicine was diluted (with alcohol or lactose), the
more potent it became. So, homeopathy makes use of medicines in a very low form.
For eg: a doctor may prescribe a medicine with potency C. What it means is that
the medicine has been diluted to C (100 times), i.e: for every ninty-nine parts
of the diluent, there is one part of the medicine. The question is how does such
a small dose work ? The medicines contain an internal energy which is
transferred to the vital force leading to cure. Generally, there is a canard
against homeopathy, that it relies on placebo treatment, which is totally false.
While the medicines may contain so less of the substance that it cannot be
detected in a lab, it has been proved that these medicines are highly effective.
While, it is easy to say that men who take the medicine may feel that they are
getting better due to auto-suggestion, homeopathy has just as effective in
curing animals. Can anyone say that animals can be cured by placebo treatment ?
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4.
Is homeopathy of use in treatment of all types of diseases ?
Homeopathy is the best way to cure
both acute and chronic diseases. Right from fever, cough, cold to asthma, skin
diseases, cancer and diabetes. All these are not only just curable but the cure
is mild(without side effects) and permanent. While allopathy makes use of strong
medicines to cure, which cause severe side effects, homeopathic medicines are
not only sweet and east to take, they work highly effectively without any side
effect. The danger of allopathic medicines is that they do not cure but
suppress. For eg : a cough and throat infection is not cured by allopathic
drugs, but is suppressed and the disorder may move to the lungs causing asthma
and other severe problem. Homeopathy works on the principle of ‘Cure the person,
not the disease’. It takes into account the totality of symptoms of the
individual and treats each individual separately.For eg: there may be two
patients suffering from fever. While an allopath would prescribe the same
medicine for both, the homeopath observes the overall symptoms. The first
patient may be suffering from fever caused due to exposure to cold wind, also
the patient is full of anxiety and fearful of death. This corresponds to a
homeopathic medicine Aconite, which when given results in immediate cure.
The other patient suffering from fever, has his conditions worse after
midnight. Despite the high fever and thirst, he wants to drink just little
quantities of water. This corresponds to a homeopathic medicine Arsenic.
So, the same medicine may not cure two cases of the same disease. Homeopathy
thus, treats the individual and not the disease. The name of the disease is not
important to the homeopathic physician.
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5.
Isn’t homeopathy too slow as a system of treatment ?
Cases of acute diseases/disorders
like headache, fever, cold, cough, etc can be cured within minutes through the
proper selection of the homeopathic remedy. However chronic diseases like
asthma, heart problems, cancer etc need time to cure. There is a belief that
allopathic medicines give immediate relief, but at what cost ? The use of strong
medicines and steriods weaken the body’s natural immune system. Homeopathy
restores the body to it’s original state of health. If a disease is chronic in
nature it means that it would have been in the human body for a long time, so it
requires some time to be cured. This can vary depending on the problem and the
patient. Generally, a strict diet is required while taking homeopathic
medicines. Homeopathic medicines must always be taken on an empty stomach and
stimulants like coffee, strong tea, nicotine, alcohol, etc must be avoided as
they interfere with the working of the medicine. If the patient does not follow
the diet prescribed, the healing process is slowed down. There are numerous
cases of diseases of long-standing and of serious nature like kidney failure,
heart failure, severe asthma which has been cured within a few days.
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6.
If homeopathy is so effective, why has it not overtaken allopathy ?
Whatever criteria you may use,
there is no doubt that homeopathy is much more effective than allopathy, but the
sad fact is that homeopathy has lagged behind in popularity. The failure is not
of the system, but of the physician. Homeopathy is a science and has its
principles which have to properly applied to find the right remedy (the
similimum). Homeopathy has more than 2000 remedies to choose from. Even if you
filter out the not-so-used ones, you get more than 200 remedies. Choosing one
among them is not so easy and requires the application of great skills on the
part of the physician. Also, the homeopathic colleges have totally failed in
teaching homeopathy as per the principles laid down by Hahnemann. This has
resulted in doctors prescribing compound drugs (which is prohibited by
Hahnemann, who calls for only one remedy to be prescribed at a time). Thus,
their treatment is a hit and run affair. A number of homeopaths who neither
understand nor are able to apply this treatment, prescribe allopathic medicines
and thus discredit homeopathy. In fact the number of doctors who properly apply
the scientific principles of homeopathy are but a few. This is the only reason
why homeopathy has not overtaken allopathy. To quote Mahatma
Gandhi – “Just like my principle of ahimsa(non violence)
homeopathy can never failure. Failure if any is of the person who practices
it”. Go
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7.
Can homeopathy be practiced by anyone ?
The answer to this is YES !! Anyone
who has truly understood the principle of Simplex, Similimum,Minimum and anyone
who is committed to the system of holistic healing, can practice homeopathy,
even if they are not certified doctors.What is required is a knowledge of
biology, knowledge of the human anatomy and physiology and most importantly the
knowledge of symptomatology,i.e : diseases and their symptoms. This knowledge
coupled with the mastery over the principles and a thorough understanding of the
materia medica, will help in the practice of homeopathy. However, the fallacy
that homeopathy can be practiced by reading books is totally FALSE. It is not
reading books, but by understanding and applying principles that homeopathy can
be
practiced.
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8.
What are the different types of medicines used in homeopathy ?
Homeopathy uses an array of
medicines whose source ranges from animals to plants and chemicals. Plants like
Onion (Allium),Capsicum,Belladonna, Cactus, etc are used for preparation
of homeopathic medicines. A large number of chemicals like Nitric acid,
Arsenious acid, Iron, Phosphorous are popular homeopathic remedies. There
are also a large number of animal sourced medicines like Naja & Lachesis
which are snake poisons. Medicines are also prepared from substance like milk (Lac
def) and sand (Silica). The products of diseases are used to prepare
homeopathic medicines called as nosodes.These nosodes include Carcinosin
(prepared from the cancer cells), Tuberculinum (prepared from the
cells of the lungs of cow infected by tuberculosis), etc. While there may be a
few people who are apprehensive of taking such medicines, they need not fear,
because the process of preparing homeopathic medicines ensures that they are
diluted such that they lose their original form and are rendered harmless.
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[ Also see principles
of homeopathy ]
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Deepak M R