# Homeopathy - any good?



## Glow worm (21 Feb 2014)

Just wondering if any of you good peeps in CC land have any experience of homeopathy treatments. I'm running out of medical options for a muscle problem I get every few months (that stops me cycling ) and am thinking of maybe trying some alternatives. Is it useful and worth a go - or a load of old cobblers? The World Wide Wait suggests it's both


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## Markymark (21 Feb 2014)

Cobblers. It's water. They'll try and tell you it's water with memory, but its just water. They'll also try the old "doctors treat the symptoms, we treat the source of the problem" spiel.

I'm not against alternative medicine, some has plenty of merit. Homoeopathy does not.

The human body has a remarkable ability to often heal itself. I would imagine it is often a case of ..homoeopathy distracts whilst the body cures.


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## Glow worm (21 Feb 2014)

0-markymark-0 said:


> Cobblers. It's water. They'll try and tell you it's water with memory, but its just water. They'll also try the old "doctors treat the symptoms, we treat the source of the problem" spiel.



Cheers Mark- I know nothing about it so any info is helpful.


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## ColinJ (21 Feb 2014)

There was an interesting Horizon programme recently on placebos, available on iPlayer until 3rd Mar 2014 - here. One experiment showed that even if the subjects of experiments were told that they were being given placebos which contained no active ingredients, many of them still got good results! I think homeopathy is a good example of that. If you want it to work, and somebody is being nice to you, taking an interest, and telling you that it can help then ... it _might_!


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## deptfordmarmoset (21 Feb 2014)

It works best taken in extremely small doses.


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## ColinJ (21 Feb 2014)

deptfordmarmoset said:


> It works best taken in extremely small doses.


Apparently, it works even better if you forget to take it!


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## Markymark (21 Feb 2014)

ColinJ said:


> There was an interesting Horizon programme recently on placebos, available on iPlayer until 3rd Mar 2014 - here. One experiment showed that even if the subjects of experiments were told that they were being given placebos which contained no active ingredients, many of them still got good results! I think homeopathy is a good example of that. If you want it to work, and somebody is being nice to you, taking an interest, and telling you that it can help then ... it _might_!


I read about that some time ago. Placebos were often thought to work on the basis that the mind 'thought' it was being cured. Even people being told that they may well be given placebos, they still were getting better.

As above, it's all a distraction whilst the body sorts itself out.


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## welsh dragon (21 Feb 2014)

I think it's a load of rubbish. There is no scientific reason for it to work


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## uclown2002 (21 Feb 2014)

+1 Absolute BS.


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## screenman (21 Feb 2014)

If the person administering it is nice and good looking it works far better, and makes paying the bill easier.


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## welsh dragon (21 Feb 2014)

screenman said:


> If the person administering it is nice and good looking it works far better, and makes paying the bill easier.


 
It's called being taken for a ride I think


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## screenman (21 Feb 2014)

welsh dragon said:


> It's called being taken for a ride I think


I know.


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## Nihal (21 Feb 2014)

I took them for for about two years because of wheezing and such.Never worked.I have dust allergy.He could have told me to wear a breathing mask in dusty places and take some Levocet if it got serious,but no,I had to eat those small sugar balls in which he used to put two drops of whatever "medicine" they use and follow some rules-wait half an hour after meals before taking them blah blah blah,supposedly helps in the long run.And they take more money than allopathic practitioners


And the same guy apparently used to give a homeopathic medicine to a lady who wanted her son's memory to improve,she was mental to believe that,I guess......…...should have asked her son to use more flash cards


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## summerdays (21 Feb 2014)

At one point I had to change GP's, and the practice that would accept me was a homeopathic one. I can't say that any of the specifically homeopathic medicines prescribed worked. On the other hand they prescribed some herbal ones? And they were more successful. I wouldn't knock all alternative medicines but no I'm not convinced by the homeopathic ones.


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## screenman (21 Feb 2014)

I think my wife maybe a homeopath, she tells me to get out on the bike and I will feel better, she is always right. Or is that proper medicine.


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## Julia9054 (21 Feb 2014)

View: http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3wFRBOPTQDc


I know this is quite long but well worth a watch!


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## byegad (21 Feb 2014)

The 'medicines' are almost certainly useless, but the talking side of it, each consultation lasts 30 minutes or so, is as good as CBT. I've tried both for my depression and anxiety.


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## byegad (21 Feb 2014)

True!


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## vickster (21 Feb 2014)

Surely a physio or massage therapist would help...although I expect it depends which 'muscle' is the issue


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## edindave (21 Feb 2014)

Wonder how much homeopathy I've absorbed through my skin on the many weekend soakings on the bike so far this year. Probably the equivalent of a homeopathic overdose.


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## Glow worm (21 Feb 2014)

Cobblers it is then- cheers for the replies folks. 
It's a thigh muscle thing and I can't even walk far at the mo. At my wits end if I'm honest.


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## Markymark (21 Feb 2014)

Glow worm said:


> Cobblers it is then- cheers for the replies folks.
> It's a thigh muscle thing and I can't even walk far at the mo. At my wits end if I'm honest.


Osteopath?


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## ColinJ (21 Feb 2014)

How did you develop the thigh muscle problem?


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## Kies (22 Feb 2014)

I used a chinese doctor to treat my acute exzema in my 20's at the suggestion of my hospital doctor. Nothing else had worked in calming down the flare ups which would hospitalise me, so they could apply cold tar bandages on my arms and legs.
This chinese doctor gave me a fist size bundle of herbs to boil in water and drink the cup full of "black tea" after it had then simmered for an hour. Tasted disgusting, and i took it for a year.

My eczema is 90% better, and the 10% i do get is more my drinking, and crap food on occasions.

So for me homeopathy DOES work


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## Glow worm (22 Feb 2014)

ColinJ said:


> How did you develop the thigh muscle problem?



It just appeared one day in1998 and I've had it ever since. It pops up every few months or so, sometimes not too badly but other times like now its debilitating. I've had 3 biopsies and no end of tests down in that London, and they can't figure out what it is, but at least they've ruled out a few nasties. Im contemplating a diet of strong lager - that should knock it on the head!


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## winjim (22 Feb 2014)

Kies said:


> I used a chinese doctor to treat my acute exzema in my 20's at the suggestion of my hospital doctor. Nothing else had worked in calming down the flare ups which would hospitalise me, so they could apply cold tar bandages on my arms and legs.
> This chinese doctor gave me a fist size bundle of herbs to boil in water and drink the cup full of "black tea" after it had then simmered for an hour. Tasted disgusting, and i took it for a year.
> 
> My eczema is 90% better, and the 10% i do get is more my drinking, and crap food on occasions.
> ...


1. That ain't homeopathy.
2. People have *DIED* from taking strange herbs given to them by Chinese "doctors"


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## ufkacbln (22 Feb 2014)




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## ColinJ (22 Feb 2014)

Kies said:


> I used a chinese doctor to treat my acute exzema in my 20's at the suggestion of my hospital doctor. Nothing else had worked in calming down the flare ups which would hospitalise me, so they could apply cold tar bandages on my arms and legs.
> This chinese doctor gave me a fist size bundle of herbs to boil in water and drink the cup full of "black tea" after it had then simmered for an hour. Tasted disgusting, and i took it for a year.
> 
> My eczema is 90% better, and the 10% i do get is more my drinking, and crakp food on occasions.
> ...


That sounds more like herbal medicine than homeopathy!

I don't think many people would completely dismiss using natural products as medicines - there are lots of examples that are known to work. It is the dilute-to-vanishing of homeopathy that is the problem.


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## Rob3rt (22 Feb 2014)

Kies said:


> I used a chinese doctor to treat my acute exzema in my 20's at the suggestion of my hospital doctor. Nothing else had worked in calming down the flare ups which would hospitalise me, so they could apply cold tar bandages on my arms and legs.
> This chinese doctor gave me a fist size bundle of herbs to boil in water and drink the cup full of "black tea" after it had then simmered for an hour. Tasted disgusting, and i took it for a year.
> 
> My eczema is 90% better, and the 10% i do get is more my drinking, and crap food on occasions.
> ...



That isn't homeopathy, also people often "grow out of" eczema so given the time frames suggested, your improvement might have just been naturally occurring with age. Or the medicine might have worked. Very hard to say given the time frames and the nature of your complaint tbh.



ColinJ said:


> There was an interesting Horizon programme recently on placebos, available on iPlayer until 3rd Mar 2014 - here. One experiment showed that even if the subjects of experiments were told that they were being given placebos which contained no active ingredients, many of them still got good results! I think homeopathy is a good example of that. If you want it to work, and somebody is being nice to you, taking an interest, and telling you that it can help then ... it _might_!



2 of my clubmates we part of that study, one was only filmed in the background warming up on the rollers (in club kit) and sat listening to the brief (wearing ADR kit), the other being the guy who did a PB (wearing ADR kit).


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## PK99 (22 Feb 2014)

my best friend went to a homeopath with a persitant cough. homeoath diagnosed selenium deficiency and prescribed pills and diet changes. Despite cynicism from friends he followed the advice.

a few months later on emergency admission at a&e he was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer with secondaries on lung and liver. he was dead 9 months later.


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## ColinJ (22 Feb 2014)

PK99 said:


> my best friend went to a homeopath with a persitant cough. homeoath diagnosed selenium deficiency and prescribed pills and diet changes. Despite cynicism from friends he followed the advice.
> 
> a few months later on emergency admission at a&e he was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer with secondaries on lung and liver. he was dead 9 months later.


There was an awful example of that kind of thing here in the 1990s - link.


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## Herzog (22 Feb 2014)

I understand (not believe) how water is supposed to 'remember' exposure to toxins/bacteria/viruses etc., the fundamental premise of homeopathy, but nobody has quite managed to explain how water manages to forget these exposures once it re-enters the water cycle and becomes available again for subsequent exposure...


Kies said:


> I used a chinese doctor to treat my acute exzema in my 20's at the suggestion of my hospital doctor. Nothing else had worked in calming down the flare ups which would hospitalise me, so they could apply cold tar bandages on my arms and legs.
> This chinese doctor gave me a fist size bundle of herbs to boil in water and drink the cup full of "black tea" after it had then simmered for an hour. Tasted disgusting, and i took it for a year.
> 
> My eczema is 90% better, and the 10% i do get is more my drinking, and crap food on occasions.
> ...



Regression to the mean...?


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## Rohloff_Brompton_Rider (22 Feb 2014)

ColinJ said:


> There was an awful example of that kind of thing here in the 1990s - link.


WTF?!!!!


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## Rohloff_Brompton_Rider (22 Feb 2014)

byegad said:


> The 'medicines' are almost certainly useless, but the talking side of it, each consultation lasts 30 minutes or so, is as good as CBT. I've tried both for my depression and anxiety.


Homeopath = proven to be fake and nonsense and requires no formal training...

CBT = years of training, clinical supervision and formal qualifications. Is proven beyond doubt scientifically to be a robust talking therapy for many many mental disorders.


Please do not ever try to lump me in with those slimey snake oil salesman again!...


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## Globalti (22 Feb 2014)

Doctors - and homeopaths - know that 95% of problems will resolve themselves anyway.

Take it easy and that muscle problem will sort itself out.


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## User169 (22 Feb 2014)

winjim said:


> 2. People have *DIED* from taking strange herbs given to them by Chinese "doctors"



Shed loads of people have DIED taking every day medicaments prescribed to them by the orthodox medicate (see what I did there) profession.


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## User169 (22 Feb 2014)

You need to be a little careful. There are preparations sold as homeopathic which clearly contain enough of an active ingredient to have some kind of effect. Not homeopathic in the strict sense, but they nevertheless have "homeopathic" on the packaging.


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## jay clock (22 Feb 2014)

+1 for a load of bollox


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## ColinJ (22 Feb 2014)

User13710 said:


> Really? In the UK? I'm surprised the college of homeopaths or whatever they call themselves haven't been protesting about these products being too strong.


I thought the remedies are supposed to get stronger as they are diluted more? 

Anybody drinking distilled water should probably overdose and die on the spot!


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## byegad (23 Feb 2014)

bromptonfb said:


> Homeopath = proven to be fake and nonsense and requires no formal training...
> 
> CBT = years of training, clinical supervision and formal qualifications. Is proven beyond doubt scientifically to be a robust talking therapy for many many mental disorders.
> 
> ...


I saw a slimey snake oil salesman for some time and he did me at least as much use as two courses of CBT. Trained he probably wasn't.


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## ufkacbln (23 Feb 2014)

The confounding factor in all of this is the well documented "Placebo efffect"

It could be suggested that an "alternative" healer listening to the patient, devoting time and attention, as well as reassurance has as much, if not greater effect then any medicine / drug that they give


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## ColinJ (23 Feb 2014)

Cunobelin said:


> The confounding factor in all of this is the well documented "Placebo efffect"
> 
> It could be suggested that an "alternative" healer listening to the patient, devoting time and attention, as well as reassurance has as much, if not greater effect then any medicine / drug that they give


*cough*


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## surfdude (23 Feb 2014)

i have a neighbour who buys bottled water from a homo doc down the road for £5 a bottle he gets from his garden spring . he reckons it comes from a glacier in Norway and is good for your health and can cure most things . i live in Cornwall . what a load of bull.


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## LCpl Boiled Egg (24 Feb 2014)

Another vote for woo woo nonsense here.


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## theclaud (24 Feb 2014)

For anyone who'd like to ignore all these cynics and learn a little more about homeopathy, there's this handy website:

http://www.howdoeshomeopathywork.com/


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## uclown2002 (24 Feb 2014)

theclaud said:


> For anyone who'd like to ignore all these cynics and learn a little more about homeopathy, there's this handy website:
> 
> http://www.howdoeshomeopathywork.com/


 No thanks


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## MissTillyFlop (24 Feb 2014)

byegad said:


> The 'medicines' are almost certainly useless, but the talking side of it, each consultation lasts 30 minutes or so, is as good as CBT. I've tried both for my depression and anxiety.



I think CBT is different - it works for some, it doesn't for others. It dramatically improved the quality of my life, whilst dealing with OCD and bipolar disorder but it's not effective for averyone. Same as psychiatric medicines. (I also cannot recommend occupational therapy enough).

But you are right, over here if one thing works it suddenly becomes a "Miracle cure-all", which nothing is.


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## Custom24 (24 Feb 2014)

uclown2002 said:


> No thanks


Did you click on the link?


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