What is Homeopathy?

What is Homeopathy?

Homoeopathy is a system of complementary medicine where the ailments are treated using diluted and potentised medicines which can produce symptoms of the ailment in a healthy human being. Homeopathy was founded by Dr.Samual Hahnemann who was a Greek physician.  His famous ‘Cinchona bark’ experiment led to the discovery of the basic principle of Homeopathy. The system has certain cardinal principles like Law of similar, Law of Simplex, Law of minimum, Doctrine of drug proving and doctrine of drug dynamisation. As stated in the previous lines, Homeopathy is a complementary medicine; an alternative to the main stream therapy. Homeopathy is never opposed to modern medicine or any other system. The founder himself has clearly defined its scope and limits. The limitation is that it cannot be opted in cases involving immediate surgery or where pathological changes that are irreversible have happened. Otherwise, a rightly chosen medicine in its right potency when administered as per the prescription can cause permanent cure.

The basic idea of cure is simple. Homeopaths believe that cure can be so called only when the disease is completely removed from the body such that it will not reappear. A disease when not completely anihilated from the body shows chances of recurrence. Such state cannot be called cure, it is only suppression. Homeopathic remedies are deemed to be causing a permanent cure in the shortest period possible without suppressing the disease. 

Different philosophical interpretations were put forward by pioneers, throwing light into the system with easier and cognizable tools in understanding homeopathy and the modus operandi of effect of medicines on the patients.

Every substance has specific action on the body and these actions depend on its amount that goes in. Those substances that produce actions in the body resulting in changes pathologically or physiologically are capable of reversing these changes, if and only if the substance is administered again in doses which are potendized accordingly. Since the recreation of the substances that cause a disease is practically not possible, substances that produce similar symptoms are administered in the potendized form to treat the disease. This principle is called ‘Similia similibus currenter’, which means ‘Like cures like’. This forms the main principle in Homoeopathy.

Sources:

Homeopathic medicines are derived from plant kingdom, animal kingdom, mineral kingdom, nosodes(prepared from pathological products), sarcodes(prepared from a healthy specimen) and impoderablia.  Pharmaceutical companies acquire the original substances from their sources all over the world. Subsequent processes like collection, processing, manufacturing, packing, storage, dispatching etc., require highly experienced and trained personnel.

Preparation:

 A crude form of these substances with ethyl alcohol called mother tincture is prepared, which form the precursor for the dilutions of the same to be called as a Homeopathic medicine. This is achieved when the tincture undergoes a process known as Trituration. The medicinal contents are systematically reduced in quantity at the same time increasing the energy of the molecules. The resulting medicine is  labeled as a “potency”. A potendized medicine in Centesimal scale may be labeled as ‘C’ and one in decimal scale as ‘X’. ‘Q’ symbol may indicate a mother tincture. In the present scenario, science has not yet arrived at a convincing theory as to how the energization or potendization happens. We can only hope that the proof in the form of cure homeopathy has brought in many disease around the world will someday throw light on its modus operandi too.

The curative power of the drugs is ascertained through a procedure called “Drug proving”. There are guidelines for conducting this procedure. Drugs when administered in healthy human being produce changes in the form of symptoms or signs, which are recorded in a day book by the patient, and compiled by the physician in materia medica later on. This procedure is fool proof and hence the result on the sick individual is spot on.

The medicines act on the root of the disease so as to remove it permanently. Hence the speed of recovery purely depends on the severity of the disease. Acute diseases are cured in the shortest duration while chronic and long standing ones take much longer.

Homeopathic medicines barely produce side effects. To understand it better, we can take an example of enzyme-receptor complex. An enzyme acts on its specific target cells by binding to the receptor specific to the enzyme. Similarly, homeopathic medicines after entering the body acts on a specific target extremely specific for each medicine. This specific target is the disease-affected organ or cell which produces the symptoms similar to that of the medicine. If wrongly administered, it simply doesn’t act and is removed from the body. This is where the axiom ‘Like cures like’ falls in place. So there is no question of side effects or, for that matter, any effect arising out of that medicine.

A homeopathic physician is taught all the basics of medical science as in any other system and only the therapeutic part may vary. A qualified homeopath is well informed about a normal body, diseases, community and environment and its influence on health. They are introduced to patients from all walks of life and are trained to take up a proper and complete patient history through a procedure called case taking. Once every detail is gathered, the physician makes a drug picture out of it with which he selects “the medicine” which is specific to the patient.

Presently a tug-of-war is happening between the general medicinal community and homeopathy. It takes repeated discussions and experiments and most importantly an unprejudiced mind to patiently analyze and understand before making a conclusion. Let us dare to be wise. 

By Dr.Vinatha BHMS