Big Pharma are outdoing themselves at the moment. They are using their huge resources on a two-pronged PR campaign - to convince women that HRT is safe (which is debatable) while, at the same time, denigrating complementary therapies, particularly homeopathy. This has prompted the UK Department of Health to set up a costly consultation process to decide whether or not to continue offering homeopathic medicine through the NHS.
Herbalism, Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda, Energy medicine, Homeopathy, are all health options that have been used for centuries. Agreed, at one time they might have been the only option; this, of course, doesn’t mean that they are the only sensible choice today. No-one can disagree that modern medical science offers some truly life enhancing procedures.
But, when it comes to some of our non life-threatening ailments, complementary therapies offer not only a cheaper alternative but also options that carry fewer side effects. Throughout Europe majority of pharmacies carry homeopathic remedies and in France the most popular cure for a cold is homeopathic, whilst in Germany when the hay fever season sets in they reach for their favourite homeopathic remedy So, why are some people so dismissive or, in some cases, antagonistic towards safe and complementary forms of medicine that can work so successfully alongside modern medicine?
In the case of Homeopathy people are sceptical about a remedy which contains little or none of the original substance. But Luc Montagnier, the French virologist who jointly won the Noble Prize in 2008 for the discovery of HIV, supports the case for Homeopathy. Montagnier, who is also founder and president of the World Foundation for AIDS Research and Prevention, surprised the scientific community with his strong support for Homeopathy following his research, which proved that water has “memory.” He commented, "I can't say that homeopathy is right in everything. What I can say now is that the high dilutions (used in homeopathy) are right. High dilutions of something are not nothing. They are water structures which mimic the original molecules, thereby proving that homeopathy has substance.”
For those of us who look to Wikipedia for the answer to just about everything… there are two topics on which the text verges on the vitriolic: Jesus Christ and Homeopathy. In his piece on the latter in the Huffington Post Dana Ullman says, “the editors" at Wikipedia have deemed homeopathy to be a pseudoscience “even though randomized double-blind and placebo controlled studies that have been published in many of the best medical journals in the world have shown efficacy of homeopathic treatment for many common and serious health problems.” SEE HERE.
So why is a certain sector determined to undermine its benefits? Could it be that Big Pharma fears it might lose some of its revenue stream? On the face of it that would appear to be absurd. However, the globally growing popularity of homeopathy may well be at the root of Big Pharma’s fears.
Homoeopathy is currently used in over 80 countries. It has legal recognition as an individual system of medicine in 42 countries and is recognized as a part of complementary and alternative medicine in 28 countries. World-wide homeopathy currently has 450 million patients. And in the UK alone a survey conducted in 2011 claimed the market for homeopathy had grown by 18% since 2008, and was expected to rise to £282 million by 2014. Yes, insignificant numbers when compared with Big Pharma’s global profits but nevertheless the pennies might grow into pounds.
This David and Goliath story has been going on for years but todays defining factor is that there are doctors in general practice who can prove that including homeopathy in their practice as a complement to conventional medicine has had a hugely beneficial effect. These are medics who can bridge the gap between conventional and homeopathic medicine and are not afraid to use both systems for the benefit of their patients despite the normally opposing views on the treatment of disease. And if the proof is in the pudding - they have the proof.
