The Consumer Guide to Homeopathy

In this guide...
  Development of Homeopathy
  Safety and Dose Response
  Scientific Evidence
  What can Homeopathy Treat?
  Preparation and Prescription
  Choosing a Remedy
  Homeopathy Around the World
  References and Further Reading
Browse Our Wide Selection of Homeopathy Products

Homeopathy is a 200-year old system of holistic healing that claims to stimulate the body's own recuperative powers. Homeopathic remedies contain extremely minute amounts of substances which, in larger quantities, produce symptoms similar to the conditions they are intended to treat. (The quantities are so small that homeopathic remedies are considered completely safe and non-toxic.) This principle is known as the Law of Similars. The term homeopathic means "that which is similar to the suffering".
For example, nux vomica, a common homeopathic remedy used for nausea and upset stomach, contains minute traces of a plant that causes nausea and upset stomach when eaten in large quantities. The term allopathic, used to describe conventional western medicine, means "that which is other than the suffering". For example, medical doctors use an anti-inflammatory allopathic drug such as cortisone to treat inflammation.
Conventional vaccines and allergy desensitization shots resemble homeopathic remedies, in that they contain substances that can produce symptoms of the illnesses they are intended to prevent or treat. However, when it comes to prescription, dosage, and basic principles, homeopathy and vaccines differ sharply.

Development of Homeopathy
The German physician Samuel Hahnemann developed the theory of homeopathy in 1790, following experimentation with the anti-malaria drug quinine. He found that ingestion of sufficient amounts produced symptoms similar to malaria itself. Hahnemann and his followers then conducted experiments called "provings", in which they ingested substances, chiefly plants, to reveal the symptoms they would produce in a healthy person. Several volunteers, both male and female tested each substance, to discover any variations in the effects experienced by different sexes, physical types, and personalities.
Subsequent experiments showed that sick people could be cured or improved by small doses of the substance which prior provings had shown to produce similar symptoms in healthy persons. These findings lead Hahnemann to propose his "Law of Similars." The results of decades of subsequent provings were compiled into the Materia Medica, a homeopathic pharmacopeia.
By the time Hahnemann began propounding his theories, many patients and physicians were seeking alternatives to the brutally unsafe and ineffective medical practices of the time. Homeopathy spread quickly, and received a major boost when it proved highly effective during epidemics in the 1840's.
Allopathic and homeopathic doctors fought bitterly throughout the 19th century. By World War II, the discovery of antibiotics seemed to ensure that homeopathy would become a quaint anachronism. Over the past decade, interest in holistic medicine and evidence of homeopathy's effectiveness has grown. As a result, this safe, holistic method of healing has become an increasingly credible and popular complement to conventional medicine.

Safety and Dose Response
In pursuit of the safest, least toxic remedies, Hahnemann experimented with increasingly dilute remedies. He found that remedies increased in potency and efficacy even as the amount of active substance in them was decreased. Even the least dilute homeopathic remedies contain only minute microdoses of their active ingredients.
The highest potency (i.e., most dilute) remedies contain virtually none of the active substance, so their demonstrable efficacy seems to defy the known laws of chemistry and physics. However, there is some scientific support for the effects of extreme microdoses. For example, a 1977 study published in the journal Science showed that microdoses of fertilizer could dramatically enhance crop yields.
Because even the lowest potency (i.e., least dilute) remedies contain only traces of active substance, they are the safest drugs available. In fact, the U.S. government does not even require safety testing of homeopathic remedies.

Mixed Scientific Evidence
The precise means by which homeopathic remedies work remains a mystery. However, the same can be said of many conventional drugs. Ultimately, what matters is a medicine's efficacy. Evidence in homeopathy's favor, independent of the placebo effect, continues to grow, but not in a strongly convincing or unambiguous fashion. Here are a few examples:

In 1999, German researchers examined 89 clinical trials involving homeopathy, and concluded that the highest quality studies showed the least evidence of efficacy. As the authors stated, "We conclude that in the study set investigated, there was clear evidence that studies with better methodological quality tended to yield less positive results."

In 1991, Dutch epidemiologists reviewed 107 controlled studies examining the effects of homeopathic remedies on respiratory diseases, gastrointestinal complaints, and pain. Despite their personal skepticism, the researchers concluded there is evidence warranting further research: "The evidence is to a large extent positive: of the better studies 15 trials [68%] showed positive results . . . Overall . . . 81 [75%] indicated positive results. The evidence presented in this review would probably be sufficient for establishing homeopathy as a regular treatment for certain indications."

A double-blind study on rheumatoid arthritis found: "There was a significant improvement in subjective pain, articular index, stiffness and grip strength in those patients receiving homeopathic treatments . . . [compared with] . . . patients who received placebo."

Double-blind studies involving 487 subjects found that early administration of Oscillococcinum (a quasi-homeopathic flu remedy) produced 70% more recoveries within 48 hours than among the control group. Similar studies in France involving 400 subjects produced comparable results.

Among the 144 hay fever sufferers participating in a double-blind study at Glasgow University, those receiving high-potency homeopathic doses of pollen (i.e., no molecules remaining in solution) reported far fewer symptoms than those receiving a placebo, and used antihistamines half as often.

European studies show effects in animals, and European farmers frequently use homeopathic remedies to treat livestock. For example, infectious diseases occurring in hundreds of thousands of hens under the care of the Poultry Health Service of Heidelberg, Germany have been treated with homeopathic remedies since 1983.

What is Homeopathy Used to Treat?
In the United States, and many other countries, homeopathic remedies are allowed to make claims to treat a wide variety of conditions, including acne, allergies, arthritis, asthma*, bronchitis, bruises, colds, colic, coughs, cramps, cystitis, depression*, diarrhea, diabetes*, earache, fatigue, flatulence, flu, headache, hiccups, indigestion, insomnia, laryngitis, lumbago, menstrual disorders, nausea, piles, psoriasis, rheumatism, sciatica, stress, teething, toothache, varicose veins, vomiting, and worms.

*Homeopathic remedies are not scientifically proved to alleviate any of the above, and conditions that are potentially life threatening or could cause permanent injury should never be treated by homeopathy alone. These include AIDS, auto-immune disorders, cancer, heart disease, diabetes, serious infection, trauma, shock, head injury, internal bleeding, and the like. While homeopathic treatment may have very positive effects on some patients suffering these conditions, they should also consult a licensed medical doctor.

Preparation and Prescription
Preparation of homeopathic remedies is a rigorously controlled and standardized process. First, a "mother tincture" is made by soaking the active substance in set amount of alcohol for several weeks. (Most remedies are plant tinctures, but some contain an animal extract or mineral.)

The mother tincture is then diluted in an alcohol and water solution, according to the potency desired. Potency is indicated by use of a standard label code, in which the number indicates the number of dilutions performed, and the letter indicates the ratio of each dilution The letter "X" stands for a 1:10 dilution, while "C" indicates a 1:100 dilution.

For example, "Pulsatilla 3X" on a remedy label indicates that a mother tincture of this plant has been diluted in ten parts liquid, three times, until there is only one part per thousand left. "Pulsatilla 3C" indicates a dilution to one part per million. (Most remedies come in small pills made of a refined sugar such as lactose or sucrose, to speed absorption and passage across the blood-brain barrier.)

Dosage is a function of frequency as well as potency. Acute conditions (headaches, colds, bee stings, etc.) often call for frequent consumption of low-potency remedies over a few days or hours. This is also true in cases where the match between remedy and acute condition is inexact.

Hahnemann also discovered that the potency of remedies is enhanced dramatically when they are shaken, or "succussed". It is theorized that succussion somehow imparts to the remedy the essence of the active substance. (A 1986 U.S. government study found that the molecular bonds in nitric oxide are strengthened when it is shaken.)

Note: Strong aromatics or stimulants (menthol, coffee, etc.) are said to neutralize the effects of homeopathic remedies. Avoid them for 30 minutes before or after taking one.

Choosing a Remedy
There are two basic types of remedies - single and combination. Single remedies, which contain one active substance, are generally the most effective. However, selection of the right one can entail trial and error experimentation or a visit to a trained homeopath - a problem when time is of the essence. Combination remedies, with two or more active substances, are designed to offer the greatest relief to the greatest percentage of sufferers, without delay. Each active substance is intended to alleviate a distinct symptom, with some overlap built in to ensure a higher rate of therapeutic success.

For instance, a combination remedy for hay fever might contain allium cepa (onion) for watery burning eyes, euphrasia officinalis (eyebright herb) for ocular redness and nasal discharge, and sabadilla officinarum (cevadilla seed), for spasmodic sneezing and runny nose. For a condition of short duration, combination remedies help ensure some degree of relief before the illness or injury has run its course.

Prescription involves choosing the remedy that most closely mimics the sufferer's symptoms - regardless of their cause. Before prescribing remedies for new patients, homeopaths conduct in-depth interviews designed to determine their basic physiological and psychological characteristics. These mind/body characteristics, called typologies, are important factors in prescribing the right remedy - especially for chronic conditions.

You can effectively self-prescribe remedies, simply by using any one of several good books written for this purpose. In fact, homeopaths traditionally encourage patients to become active participants in their own health care. However, it is wise to seek professional guidance when dealing with a serious or chronic condition.

Homeopathy Around the World
Europe

In France, 30% of the population uses homeopathic remedies, 90% of pharmacies offer homeopathic remedies, six medical colleges offer degree programs, one-third of French physicians prescribe remedies, homeopathy is taught in every university school of pharmacy, and the most commonly used flu medicine (Oscillococcinum) is homeopathic.

In Britain, homeopathic remedies are covered by the National Health Service, and about 30% of physicians refer patients to homeopathic practitioners.

Germany has over 5,000 homeopathic practitioners.

Approximately 20% of Russian health care is homeopathic.

Twenty percent of the Dutch people report using alternative healing modalities, citing homeopathy as one of the most popular.

Asia and South America

About one-fifth of all doctors in Argentina and Brazil prescribe homeopathic remedies, and Brazilian pharmacists must study homeopathy to graduate.
India has 120 homeopathic colleges (19 state-supported) and 100,000 trained practitioners. In many areas, it is the most common form of medicine practiced.

United States

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration estimates that sales of homeopathic remedies grew by 1,000% from the late 1970s to the early 1980s, and are growing by up to 20% per year.
There are an estimated 2,000 homeopathic health practitioners, including more than 300 MD's.
Remedies listed in the Homeopathic Pharmacopeia of the U.S. (HPUS) are legal drugs, permitted to make therapeutic claims. This extraordinary status is based not on scientific evidence or consensus, but congressional action that "grandfathered" homeopathic remedies into U.S. drug law.

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References and Further Reading

Linde K, et al. Impact of study quality on outcome in placebo-controlled trials of homeopathy. J Clin Epidemiol. 1999 Jul;52(7):631-6.

Linde K, et al. Randomized controlled trials of individualized homeopathy: a state-of-the-art review. J Altern Complement Med. 1998 Winter;4(4):371-88. Review.

Ernst E, et al. Efficacy of homeopathic arnica: a systematic review of placebo-controlled clinical trials. Arch Surg. 1998 Nov;133(11):1187-90. Review.

Weiser M, et al. Homeopathic vs conventional treatment of vertigo: a randomized double-blind controlled clinical study. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 1998 Aug;124(8):879-85.

Linde K, et al. Are the clinical effects of homeopathy placebo effects? A meta-analysis of placebo-controlled trials. Lancet. 1997 Sep 20;350(9081):834-43.

Hart O, et al. Double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial of homoeopathic arnica C30 for pain and infection after total abdominal hysterectomy. J R Soc Med. 1997 Feb;90(2):73-8.

Reilly D, et al. Is evidence for homoeopathy reproducible? Lancet. 1994 Dec 10;344(8937):1601-6.

Jacobs J, et al. Treatment of acute childhood diarrhea with homeopathic medicine: a randomized clinical trial in Nicaragua. Pediatrics. 1994 May;93(5):719-25.

Schutte A. [Is research in veterinary homeopathy justified? Thoughts concerning principles and synopsis of 5 years of research on the subject, "Use of homeopathy in domestic animals," at the branch of the Free University of Berlin in Schwarzenbek]. Berl Munch Tierarztl Wochenschr. 1994 Jul;107(7):229-36. German.

Kleijnen J, et al. The comprehensiveness of Medline and Embase computer searches. Searches for controlled trials of homoeopathy, ascorbic acid for common cold and ginkgo biloba for cerebral insufficiency and intermittent claudication. Pharm Weekbl Sci. 1992 Oct 16;14(5):316-20.