Homeopathy

Twenty-five centuries ago, Hippocrates taught the principle, 'the same things which cause a disease cure it.' Around 1790, Christian Samuel Hahnemann, a brillant German physician, chemist and toxicologist, began conducting experiments with the known medicines of that particular time, aconite, belladonna, cinchona, ipecac, mercury, etc., using himself as the patient. For example, he observed that taking quinine brought on symptoms of malaria, the disease that quinine often cured. After years and many agents tested, he concluded that 'like cures like' but only when the agent was very weak or infinitesimal.

For 200 years since Hahnemann, homeopaths have studied the behavior of humans when brought into contact with a single substance. They collected data about such substances, referred to as remedies, in homeopathic repertories, including Kent's Repertory, Standard Repertory and Homeopathic Medical Repertory, to name a few.

The remedies are made from substances taken from the vegetable, mineral, and animal kingdoms. Each remedy is diluted and succussed (shaken in a stylized fashion), yielding a solution that probably contains none of the original molecules but contains the electromagnetic imprint. Each remedy has its own profile, or personality, which is matched to the patient's profile.

Europe, especially Germany, and India use homeopathy as a primary treatment modality. Even though the molecule of the original substance cannot be scientifically measured, numerous research articles have appeared, showing the effectiveness of homeopathic remedies in children and animals in double-blind studies. One research article showed homeopathic remedies contained no molecules of the original substances, and yet each remedy possessed a different lattice configuration upon freezing.

Homeopathic remedies are becoming more popular in the United States. The remedies are non-invasive, without harmful side-effects and fairly cheap compared to conventional drug therapy. Someone interested in homeopathy should consult a homeopathic physician before taking any remedies.

Natural Medical Protocols has included a Homeopathy section in each of the medical conditions. All the remedies listed are merely suggestions. The attending physician should take the whole homeopathic picture before prescribing.