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