Homeopaths: Does this Taste Like Water to You?

[rugbywolf]

I thought a few of you might appreciate this article on the Daily Mash:

TEN IN TEN HOMEOPATHIC PRESCRIPTIONS CONTAIN MISTAKES

Comments

[yingguoren]

I agree with the sentiment, people getting better is what we want (or wasting a little of their money and not getting any worse is also no great crime).

The problems are:

1) If say, NHS resources were going towards homeopathic remedies rather than actual medicine, then that's a waste of resources and some people will be worse off medically. The NHS does fund, I believe, 3 homeopathic clinics.

2) True, but they could just take the actual medicine and get the benefit of actual pharmacological effects plus the placebo effect.

3) It's water, of course it's cheaper. Actually, this isn't always true either, homeopathic medicines are 'meant' to be tailor made by consultation, and some water that's meant to cure your headache will cost many times that of a pack of Neurofen.

4) Unfortunately the placebo effect is a double edged sword, and can also produce side-effects, again often those congruent with expectations. It's perfectly common for people who believe in homeopathy to say, have reduced headache after taking a remedy, but also report drowsiness (in clinical trials).

It's a dangerous road to start going down, accepting that it's ok to fool yourself and others about the medical effects of a treatment, as it leads to misunderstanding, waste of resources, time and effort misspent etc etc.