Homeopathic Medicine

Daniela Hrizo, 8/20/24

What is homeopathy?

Homeopathy is used as a holistic alternative to conventional medicines and pharmaceutical drugs. It is based on the idea that using a highly diluted version of natural substances (e.g. plants, minerals) will stimulate the body to heal itself. Homeopaths tend to shake these substances to achieve a certain potency (strength). Essentially, if someone has a headache, they would highly dilute (up to a ratio of 1:100) something that is known for causing those symptoms and ingest it to treat the headache. The theory is that exposing the body to these substances would trigger the body’s innate healing response and help natural defenses “kick in”.

For instance, poison ivy causes rashes. Thus, if someone had a rash, they would dilute and potentize poison ivy to produce a treatment. Furthermore, if someone had a runny nose with watery, irritated eyes (common cold), they might use Allium cepa, which is derived from red onion, and causes similar symptoms.

Some other substances used in homeopathy include:

• Chamomile

• Arnica

• Hypericum (St. John’s wort)

• Aloe

• Belladonna (derived from nightshade - a deadly plant - to treat headaches)

• Euphrasia (aka eyebright - used to treat eye infections)

• Gelsemium (derived from yellow jasmine plant to treat fevers and chills)

Common conditions people seek homeopathic medicine for:

• allergies

• cold and flu

• respiratory issues

• digestive disorders

• skin conditions

• anxiety and stress

• pain management

• menstrual issues

• muscle soreness and bruising

• minor injuries

• headaches

• insomnia

• arthritis

• diabetes

Popularity

Homeopathic medicine remains popular worldwide, with 5 million adults and 1 million children using homeopathy in the nation (as stated in the 2012 National Health Interview Survey). Many people (aka homeopaths) use homeopathy because they believe there are many limits to conventional medicine. Plus, these individuals argue that pharmaceutical drugs tend to only treat the symptoms, not the person, and they don’t agree with the factory-like approach to medicine. Since homeopathic medicine is considered to be individualized for each person, homeopaths believe homeopathy to be the better approach since it adheres to the body’s specific needs.

Criticisms

Despite homeopathy’s popularity, it is widely disputed that it is not effective. In reality, it is not heavily backed up by science. Critics have claimed that there is no actual benefit, and it doesn’t work beyond the placebo effect. The placebo effect is when someone sees improvement in their condition although they used fake or nonexistent treatment. The idea is that if someone expects the treatment to work, their body may produce the chemicals or undergo processes that produce results similar to what the treatment should have done. For example, someone could take a pill full of sugar (fake medicine) to treat their headache, and they may feel better because of this psychological effect. On that note, homeopathic medicine is still debated on its effectiveness, with parties claiming there are positive benefits or no therapeutic effect whatsoever.

References

Cleveland Clinic, "What Is Homeopathy and Does It Work?"

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/what-is-homeopathy

Healthline, "What Is Homeopathy?"

https://www.healthline.com/health/what-is-homeopathy#evidence

Healthline, "What Is the Placebo Effect and Is It Real?"

https://www.healthline.com/health/placebo-effect