Homeopathy could be blacklisted

[beorhthelm]

That’s the same principle as using snake venom to make a serum to cure snake bite, or injecting people with cow-pox to give them immunity from the greater peril, small-pox. Nobody argues about those.

yep. thats because they don't dilute to beyond the point at which not one molecule would be present in the final solution. if homeopathy stopped at dilutions of 1:10, 1:100 it would be credible. but it wanders off in to magnitudes of double figures, so dilute there is no trace of the substance.

 

[GT49er]

Placeboes work in every case.

Good heavens! Really? Next time I urgently need an antibiotic I'll ask for one then.

 

[Cian]

Good heavens! Really? Next time I urgently need an antibiotic I'l ask for one then.

They have a response level in every trial.

In every homeopathy trial, the homeopathic product has had a statistically equal response.

 

[GT49er]

You have an anecdote and are fighting against facts with it. You can't give us anything stronger than that anecdote.

Actually, an anecdote is a fact (unless it is a lie, of course).

Anyway, I think I'll leave this anti-homoeopathy witch-hunt for now. They come round every few years anyway, and have had little effect that I can see.

 

[Notters]

Open your minds people

My mind is about as open as it's possible for a mind to be but I'm afraid homeopathy still doesn't work.

 

[Cian]

Actually, an anecdote is a fact (unless it is a lie, of course).

Anyway, I think I'll leave this anti-homoeopathy witch-hunt for now. They come round every few years anyway, and have had little effect that I can see.

Not in scientific debate its not.

Facts and truths are not a witch hunt

 

[Notters]

I’m a natural sceptic. Always have been.

Ten years ago my wife had a wisdom tooth out. She bruises very easily and her face was black and blue. Two months later she had the other one out. Someone recommended taking arnica homoeopathically prior to the op. The contrast was stark. You would not have known she had had anything done.

Since then I have dabbled in alternative remedies.

We use arnica cream and in homeopathic form – I just had an op and used a homeopathic combination of arnica, calendula and something else for the healing process. You can’t apply cream under plaster! The surgeon was flabbergasted with how well I had healed when the plaster came off.

My young son was suffering from persistent tonsillitis. He must have had it ten times in two years and now has a permanent inflamed tonsil. Someone recommended Merc Sol in homeopathic form. He has taken it whenever he had the first signs of a sore throat for three years and has never contracted tonsillitis since.

I was suffering with something else a little while ago. I don’t want to go into detail on here but I did not want to go down a traditional medicine route as there were addictive prescribed products with horrible side effects. I saw a professional homeopath for the first and only time and never really believed it would have any effect – but I thought it was worth a go. My symptoms were eased within 15 hours and have not returned.

As I said, I’m a natural sceptic but I’ve seen the results. I can’t argue against the scientific evidence and its against my better judgement but I believe in homeopathy. Not for everything and maybe not on the NHS (everything I have tried has been off my own back). It goes against all my natural instincts but I can’t discount what I have seen and experienced first-hand.

Isn't arnica a herbal remedy rather than a homeopathic one?!

 

[Skaville]

Isn't arnica a herbal remedy rather than a homeopathic one?!

Not when it's taken in homeopathic form. You get both.

 

[Bry Nylon]

If you want to waste your own money on this rubbish feel free but the taxpayer shouldn't fund it.

Maybe they could massage the figures?

 

[Cian]

Isn't arnica a herbal remedy rather than a homeopathic one?!

There's two dosages, one that has some arnica in it, and one that doesn't. The latter is the homeopathic one.

 

[Notters]

There's two dosages, one that has some arnica in it, and one that doesn't. The latter is the homeopathic one.

Riiiiiiiiight.

 

[BLOCK F]

Actually, an anecdote is a fact (unless it is a lie, of course).

Anyway, I think I'll leave this anti-homoeopathy witch-hunt for now. They come round every few years anyway, and have had little effect that I can see.

'and have had little effect that I can see'..................ha-ha!

 

[bristolseagull]

You don't understand medical trials.

What are your views on scientists that also hold strong religious views?

just curious.

 

[bristolseagull]

My mind is about as open as it's possible for a mind to be but I'm afraid homeopathy still doesn't work.

you've tried it? I haven't myself, but those closest to me have and are very positive about its benefits. Wasn't it first established as a principle in the late 1700's? seems like a lot of people have been duped over the years then.

 

[Notters]

What are your views on scientists that also hold strong religious views?

just curious.

I know you weren't asking me but it's a good question. A lot of the early great discoveries were made by Islamic scientists and more recently by Christian ones. I also had some good friends on my (science) degree course which included lectures on evolution. It's difficult to understand how they're compatible, so I guess you'd have to ask a religious scientist.

 

[robinsonsgrin]

the usual homeopathy is shite media campaign...
yes, i use it, yes it has been brilliant. it is always my first port of call after diagnosis... but it doesnt mean it needs to be used in isolation. even my father...was an advocate and he was someone who i thought id never get to try!
what makes me laugh is very often the source of some of these campaigns....who sits on the boards of the bodies who issue their mantras?... dig around a little.. and there pops up mr big of a drug company. diss all you like....but see both sides and dont always believe the spoon-feeding.

 

[Notters]

the usual homeopathy is shite media campaign...
yes, i use it, yes it has been brilliant. it is always my first port of call after diagnosis... but it doesnt mean it needs to be used in isolation. even my father...was an advocate and he was someone who i thought id never get to try!
what makes me laugh is very often the source of some of these campaigns....who sits on the boards of the bodies who issue their mantras?... dig around a little.. and there pops up mr big of a drug company. diss all you like....but see both sides and dont always believe the spoon-feeding.

Wow, you're even more cynical than me! There's a list of alternative therapies here under the categories of "proven...", "potentially provable", "useless benign and "useless and dangerous"... and no I don't work for a drug company. Probably not a perfect list but there you go.

http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Alternative_medicine

 

[Baldseagull]

Prozac is no more effective than placebo in most trials, but you can get that on the NHS.

Some trials of homeopathic remedies have shown better than placebo results. Others have shown only Placebo levels of effectiveness. The evidence for stating that Homeopathy is no better than a placebo comes from aggregating all these studies into different remedies and showing that on the whole they are not doing anything more than a placebo.

The premise of Homeopathy would appear to be proven as bollox, but the efficacy of the remedies for some conditions does seem to be above a pure placebo and should be looked at, dismissing the whole of homeopathic remedies based on the average of all studies would be like saying Huddersfield can not win a game of football because their aggregate total of points equates to only draws.

Personally I cant see how it could work, but not all remedies for all conditions have been shown to be no more effective than placebo, so the door is still open there.

 

[BigGully]

Prozac is no more effective than placebo in most trials, but you can get that on the NHS.

Some trials of homeopathic remedies have shown better than placebo results. Others have shown only Placebo levels of effectiveness. The evidence for stating that Homeopathy is no better than a placebo comes from aggregating all these studies into different remedies and showing that on the whole they are not doing anything more than a placebo.

The premise of Homeopathy would appear to be proven as bollox, but the efficacy of the remedies for some conditions does seem to be above a pure placebo and should be looked at, dismissing the whole of homeopathic remedies based on the average of all studies would be like saying Huddersfield can not win a game of football because their aggregate total of points equates to only draws.

Personally I cant see how it could work, but not all remedies for all conditions have been shown to be no more effective than placebo, so the door is still open there.

Well Huddersfileds form might be more scrutinised if those players wages were funded by tax payers money whilst promising promotion to the Premiership.

Its fairytale stuff that should not be anywhere near the public purse.

 

[Cian]

What are your views on scientists that also hold strong religious views?

just curious.

As irrelevant to the thread as it is: I don't have any. If they let any external factor sway their work it'll be noticed, basically

you've tried it? I haven't myself, but those closest to me have and are very positive about its benefits. Wasn't it first established as a principle in the late 1700's? seems like a lot of people have been duped over the years then.

Blood letting and trephanation were from that era too. Bit harder to convince people that doesn't obviously damage them is useless, but its still useless.