>> > ... fairy stories ... such as homeopathy.
>> ... Homeopathic remedies are made by taking a substance, often the toxic
>> factor or antigen thought to give rise to the malady,
>
>Incorrect. The concept is that by administering a substance which creates the
>same symptoms as those accompanying the malady, this will provide a cure, when
>done in dilute doses.
The suggested mechanism is that it stimulates the body to produce natural
defences
I myself do not claim the concept is valid, nor
>invalid; nor does the concept make much sense to me personally and in fact
>homeopathic remedies have not provided positive results for me on those
>occacions I've tried them.
They have worked for me in some situations - specifically to speed the
healing of damaged tissue in the case of bruises, sprains, damaged
ligaments and breaks - all cases in which one would expect a lower rated
than normal of placebo effect - we've used them for things like this ever
since my husband took them in desperation on a friends recommendation when
he tore all the ligaments from ankle to hip a week before we had a
transatlantic house move to organise - his leg was black from toe to hip
the day after it happened, completely healed seven days later - I don't
believe in it but i saw it. We've also had good results for hay fever but
not for anything else
It's also true that different persons who
>prescribe homeopathic remedies can prescibe vastly different remedies for the
>same malady - but I supose the same can be said for allopathic doctors in some
>(probably fewer) instances.
As I understand it different physical types require different remedies
None of this matters in relation to the point
>being made here. Please read on.
>
>> and diluting it, a lot. When homeopathic remedies say "30X" on the label,
>> they mean the material was subjected to 30 sequential (serial) 1/10
>> dilutions. So the
>> substance in that case is diluted by a factor of ten to the 30th power!
>> That is pretty dilute!
>>
>> Committed homeopaths believe that something like a ghost, or essence of
>> the substance is transmitted through the dilution, and produces efficacy
>> in the remedy. Finding people who feel they have benefitted from such
>> remedies is not difficult, since even placebos are known to produce 10 -
>> 20% positive responses in many trials.
See above
>
>Some years ago Scientific American magazine published an article that
>substantiated the fact that dilutions far too low to "work" according to known
>scientific principles, in fact do work. The proofs were not health based, as
>health is a complex field with a myriad variables and many unknowns. The
>proofs were therefore more clearcut (in the context of chemical reactions, I
>vaguely recall).
On Misha's original point I understand that the researcher who published
this work was sacked by their institution because the institution in
question felt that it threatened research funds from pharmacology
manufacturers - can't remember the details but BBC carried a programme on
it.
>
>This post has nothing to do with the value of homeopatic medicine, nor do I
>have an opinion beyond that just given - if it works for (generic) YOU, that's
>enough. And if it doesn't, at least it's likely to cost less and less likely
>to do harm (unless an more effective alternative is supplanted as a result).
>I invite anyone interested to search for the article mentioned above.
On the point of the pigs - I know several organic farmers who use only
homeopathic medication on their livestock - without exception they say that
they get better results for less money than they did with conventional
treatments. I have successfully used nosodes for mastitis in dairy cattle
myself. It is possible that this success is because we are more observant
of our animals and therefore catch problems earlier. Or maybe it works. I
also know several homeopathic vets whose practises seem to be expanding
faster than they can handle the business. I haven't seen any studies on
placebos in animals - has anyone else?
kathryn
ps - I still don't "believe" in homeopathy
>
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