References

Barrett, S. (n.d.). Homeopathy: The Ultimate Fake. Quackwatch. Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.quackwatch.org/01Qua ckeryRelatedTopics/homeo.html

Additional Notes

Homeopathy
Not an Effective Form of Alternate Medicine

Homeopathy: an Introduction. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Retrieved April 11, 2012 from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/homeo pathy

Ramey, D. W., & Wagner, M. (n.d.). Homeopathy and Science. University of Colorado Boulder. Retrieved April 11, 2012, from http://www.colorado.edu/philosoph y/vstenger/Medicine/Homeop.html

Questions

Bhavika Girdhar

Shelton, J. (2004). Homeopathy: How it Really Works. Amherst, N.Y.: Prometheus Books.

SBI 4U

Extremely Similar to a Placebo

A placebo is a substance containing no medical ingredients. Homeopathy is based on the principles of extreme ingredient dilutions as well as the Law of Similars. The Law of Similars states that that if a substantial amount of a certain substance can cause certain symptoms in somebody who has good health, smaller amounts of the same substance would have the potential to treat those symptoms in someone who is ill. The minimum dose and dilution is referred to as the Law of Infinitesimals, which can be compared to assuming that the less sugar you put in a cup of coffee, the sweeter it will taste. When these initial substances are diluted, it is highly unlikely that the remedy would contain even a single molecule of the original substance.

Only a Single Remedy is Prescribed

When patients go to consult their homeopathic doctors, only a single remedy is prescribed to cover all symptoms a patient may have. Homeopathic physicians treat their patients based on their personality, as well as their general family and medical history. They also take into account the patients current physical state, emotional state, and any mental symptoms they may be experiencing. The treatments are specialized and cater to the symptoms of an individual, but at the same time only one kind of medicine is provided to deal with a number of occurring symptoms. This causes the medicine to not fully work on all symptoms, but only the main ones that were caused by the illness.

Not Consistent with the Current Understandings of Science

Homeopathy does not keep up with the current understandings of: physics, chemistry, or biology. Some critics and allopathic doctors state that if everything that is believed about homeopathy were true, then the laws of science would be defied completely. Many scientists and critics have stated that it is a treatment philosophy that is essentially based on the treatment of symptoms.

Doctors argue that the allopathic medicines treat the symptoms of disease as well as the disease itself, whereas homeopathic medicine does not.
The principles have been unchanged over the past two centuries, while science has advanced very rapidly.