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[Koren]

It used to work on me, till I learned more about it. Then it was useless. Placebo effect DO work.

Shit is insane. French people love this shit.

The pharmacy right down my street displays "homeopathie" on it. Shit blows my mind but nobody gives a fuck.

The thing is... you can't do advertisement for drugs, and drugs need to be tested. Homeopathy isn't a drug, so they don't need to be tested, and they can do TV ads. Though I don't doubt it's for the best in terms of health insurance, people using homeopathy for small things would turn toward something else, and it would probably be more expensive.

It's impressive to see how pharmacy are into it... I got a big cut on the head, so I went into one. The woman there insisted that I took homeopathy (the usual arnica). I discussed a bit (there's even research papers proving that arnica homeopathy in double blind is totally worthless, the placebo even had higher success) but she's so nice that I took it. When I came back 4-5 hours later, she said "you see, it was effective". I wasn't even willing to say her that I didn't take it (she is really helpful when I need a chemical for a chemistry experiment, for example)

Does he have an actual medical degree and a license, or is he a "doctor"?

Many people with actual degree advocate it...

 

[Occam]

No, because I'm not an idiot.

Because that's the dumbest shit I've ever heard of in my life.

Well, you pretty much ended the thread with the very first sentence. Really nothing left to discuss.

If anything, I would outlaw it because it's a scam preying on the mentally weak.

 

[Koren]

So most of the stuff that you can buy in a pharmacy is not even true homeopathic treatment since the ingredients are in a too high concentration to work. (In the form that was invented by Samuel Hahnemann)

The stuff we buy here is definitively diluted (with the proper CH) and shaked for hours...

 

[jwk94]

Speaking of which, do those oils and different kinds of tea work for stress, relaxation, and whatnot?

 

[Peccavi]

I was told I need to take half my bodyweight in ounces of homeopathic remedies every day, but that seems like overkill.

 

[Jyester]

Homeopathy is pretty common where I'm from. My mother uses it often, but only as a complimentary medicine so I'm not too worried.

However, because of my upbringing, I was initially surprised to learn that the consensus on homeopathy is that it's nonsense.

There's a lot of (understandable) snark in this thread, but would anyone care to explain how homeopathy was able to take root to such an extent? I know that my parents' GP will sometimes prescribe a homeopathic recipe, which seems bizarre to me considering the scientific consensus on the matter.

 

[Bedlam]

Speaking of which, do those oils and different kinds of tea work for stress, relaxation, and whatnot?

Herbal medicine does have actual effects and shouldn't be lumped together with Homeopathy.

Obviously herbal/natural medicine isn't a cure for everything, has generally mild effects and is certainly not sufficient for severe illnesses.

 

[Peccavi]

I thought homeopathy was any sort of "natural" remedy, what is this water stuff?

You're thinking of holistic medicine, homeopathy is a very specific brand of bullshit.

 

[RoadHazard]

Homeopathy is pretty common where I'm from. My mother uses it often, but only as a complimentary medicine so I'm not too worried.

However, because of my upbringing, I was initially surprised to learn that the consensus on homeopathy is that it's nonsense.

There's a lot of (understandable) snark in this thread, but would anyone care to explain how homeopathy was able to take root to such an extent? I know that my parents' GP will sometimes prescribe a homeopathic recipe, which seems bizarre to me considering the scientific consensus on the matter.

People are willing to believe any sort of mystic "natural" bullshit. There's also a huge, powerful business behind it, pushing it. Any GP that would prescribe this nonsense should have their license revoked.

 

[Alx]

Speaking of which, do those oils and different kinds of tea work for stress, relaxation, and whatnot?

Teas are just a way of ingesting plants that have been identified as having a specific effect. Common drugs aren't that different, except that they're more concentrated.
So yeah most teas would have the desired effects, but they probably won't save your life if you're really sick.

 

[elrechazado]

Teas are just a way of ingesting plants that have been identified as having a specific effect. Common drugs aren't that different, except that they're more concentrated.
So yeah most teas would have the desired effects, but they probably won't save your life if you're really sick.

Probably?

 

[Xe4]

Homeopathy is pretty common where I'm from. My mother uses it often, but only as a complimentary medicine so I'm not too worried.

However, because of my upbringing, I was initially surprised to learn that the consensus on homeopathy is that it's nonsense.

There's a lot of (understandable) snark in this thread, but would anyone care to explain how homeopathy was able to take root to such an extent? I know that my parents' GP will sometimes prescribe a homeopathic recipe, which seems bizarre to me considering the scientific consensus on the matter.

There's a lot of (understandable, to some extent) backlash against pharmaceutical industries for a lot of somewhat messed up practices (price gouging, to give one example, the occasional horrible fuck up as another), so people tend to go the complete opposite direction and support complete pseudoscientific BS.

These people don't realize the alt-medicine industry is every bit as corrupt and fucked up (and indeed far more so in my opinion) as the worst of the worst of pharmaceutical companies. Whereas drugs are heavily regulated and tested, alternative medicine is not at all, which means they can get away with far more than most drug companies.

 

[HazySaiyan]

No it's absolute bollocks, a complete scam, and has lead to vulnerable people being killed as they've been convinced to try this snake oil instead of actual medicine. Anybody who practices homeopathy should be ashamed.

 

[Bedlam]

I thought homeopathy was any sort of "natural" remedy, what is this water stuff?

Overlooked this comment earlier, but yeah, that's how Homeopathy became that big. By somehow becoming an umbrella term or synonym for natural medicine for many people.

 

[PerkeyMan]

Both placebo and nocebo is extremely fascinating, and it's interesting thinking about what it can do on a larger scale. In nutrition the nocebo is often discussed and both sugar and gluten 'suffers' from it.

 

[greepoman]

It's actually worse than just "sugar pills". My wife used to give our kids homeopathic teething tablets until I read this:

https://arstechnica.com/science/201...hic-products-linked-to-baby-sicknesses-death/

TLDR...no real control of the amount of nightshade in each tablet = potentially deadly for babies.

 

[ShiroAmakusa]

Isn't (L-)Tryptophan homeopathic?

This stuff is easily available and helped me through some tough times. I didn't find any better remedy for my depression besides some hard-hitting psychotropic drugs.

 

[Tertullian]

I use every kind of alternative medicine I can get my hands on. If one placebo effect is significant, then 20 different placebo effects all working on my gullible mind at the same time will turn me into Superman!

 

[Abstruse Moose]

After watching my father with terminal cancer go on the Homeopathy shopping spree in a desperate attempt to heal himself, I'm absolutely disgusting at the way these people take advantage of the dying by giving them false hope while turning a buck for themselves.

 

[Anarion07]

Isn't (L-)Tryptophan homeopathic?

This stuff is easily available and helped me through some tough times. I didn't find any better remedy for my depression besides some hard-hitting psychotropic drugs.

No. Thats an amino acid with real effects.

 

[M3d10n]

When I was a kid my mother fell for this BS and I was given sugar pills for a while. One day I found the flask and gorged myself. Since nothing happened to me, she gave up the bullshit.

 

[Tertullian]

I was told I need to take half my bodyweight in ounces of homeopathic remedies every day, but that seems like overkill.

Yeah, that's overkill. Better just take 3/4 of your body weight in ounces instead.

Spoiler

ba dum tsh

 

[Lister]

Unfortunately the FDA, due to influence from homeopath proponent nutjobs in government, doesn't properly regulate this snake oil bullshit.

And people are stupid/ignorant, so they buy this shit for everything.

 

[M3d10n]

Unfortunately the FDA, due to influence from homeopath proponent nutjobs in government, doesn't properly regulate this snake oil bullshit.

And people are stupid/ignorant, so they buy this shit for everything.

They don't regulate it because how would you even begin to regulate something that is based on make believe?

 

[Airola]

My aunt was a big believer in homeopathy.
She refused to take real medicine to her pains but instead wanted to use homeopathic medicines. I think she had some massive pain on her hip she tried to cure.

She did that for maybe nearly 20 years. Turns out whatever she tried to cure with that stuff had slowly grown into something that nearly killed her. The doctors weren't anymore able to remove what she had because it always came back twice as hard. Her blood was nearly useless, inflammation everywhere, and she ended up getting brain damage so severe that she had to learn to talk again and she was never able to walk again.

She went through that for about 10 years, sometimes feeling better, sometimes worse, but just a couple of weeks ago whatever medical problems she had finally beat her and she passed away.

I wonder if she would still be walking and talking normally, and alive, if she hadn't used the homeopathic stuff instead of real medicine.

 

[NewGame]

It doesn't work.

No wait, it does work. It dilutes the market with useless medicine that actively harms people with snake oils that allow problems to fester unattended. Which is exactly the goal of the entire operation.

 

[Lister]

They don't regulate it because how would you even begin to regulate something that is based on make believe?

By regulate I mean not allow it to make the claims it makes or advertise making those claims. In Other words, the fda has given the industry a licence to lie. An actual drug cannot make claims not supported by evidence and numerous double blind trials, but homeopathy can.

 

[Wiped89]

Yeah, I think some people need to check out the facts.

http://www.howdoeshomeopathywork.com/

Educate yourself.

How does homeopathy work? It doesn't.

People who refuse medicine and die while taking homeopathic 'cures'? Well, that's just natural selection at work.

 

[greepoman]

They don't regulate it because how would you even begin to regulate something that is based on make believe?

Because make believe can kill you?
In the cases like I linked above where they are just "diluting" possible toxic substances and then don't rigorously control the amount they put in.

That's the huge problem with this and supplements in general... there's no real enforcement saying what's they say is in them is really in them at the correct amounts.

 

[NekoFever]

Anyone tried chiropracty? I went to one to sort out my bad back, just thinking they were the same as an osteopath, and the guy started the initial appointment (which was to be the first of many according to him, probably to extract as much money as possible) by measuring my "vibrations". I was polite and went along with it, but I didn't go there again.

Such nonsense.

Chiropractic is the same as osteopathy in that they're both nonsense.

They can relieve muscle pain in the same way that a massage can, but you're still essentially using an unlicensed physical therapist if that's what you're after.

It doesn't work.

No wait, it does work. It dilutes the market with useless medicine that actively harms people with snake oils that allow problems to fester unattended. Which is exactly the goal of the entire operation.

So you're saying it makes the market more effective?!

 

[M3d10n]

By regulate I mean not allow it to make the claims it makes or advertise making those claims. In Other words, the fda has given the industry a licence to lie. An actual drug cannot make claims not supported by evidence and numerous double blind trials, but homeopathy can.

By that metric homeopathy would either be wholly banned or have to be sold labeled as something else (nutritional supplement? Beverage? Candies?).

I'm not disagreeing anyway. Such alternative medicine and nutritional supplements keep making wild claims that isn't backed up by any proper research (if any). At the very least I would expect them to be forbidden from doing so by simple consumer protection laws.

 

[Aurongel]

For all of the pharmaceutical industry's greedy bullshit, they still pale in comparison to the actual damage dealt by pseudoscientific snake oils.

 

[Linkstrikesback]

They don't regulate it because how would you even begin to regulate something that is based on make believe?

I mean, you can't regulate the product which is basically water, I guess, you can absolutely regulate the advertisements and bullshit surrounding it though. Anyone, anywhere claiming Homeopathy cured anything needs to be slapped down immediately.

 

[ShiroAmakusa]

No. Thats an amino acid with real effects.

Weird. It's sold as a homeopathic remedy in my pharmacy (in Germany).
Maybe the Germans have different criteria for what counts as a homeopathic medication.

 

[Chairmanchuck]

Weird. It's sold as a homeopathic remedy in my pharmacy (in Germany).
Maybe the Germans have different criteria for what counts as a homeopathic medication.

Yeah. German homeopathy also includes natural remedies.

My doctor prescribes natural stuff for colds if the cold isnt that serious, because if you take a normal nasal spray you might get addicted to it.

 

[ShiroAmakusa]

Yeah. German homeopathy also includes natural remedies.

My doctor prescribes natural stuff for colds if the cold isnt that serious, because if you take a normal nasal spray you might get addicted to it.

Thanks for the clarification!

Makes sense@bolded. I've seen that happen more than once.

 

[JettDash]

In the US, the FTC decided recently:

Accordingly, it recognizes that an OTC homeopathic drug claim that is not substantiated by competent and reliable scientific evidence might not be deceptive if the advertisement or label where it appears effectively communicates that: 1) there is no scientific evidence that the product works; and 2) the product's claims are based only on theories of homeopathy from the 1700s that are not accepted by most modern medical experts.

 

[Carn82]

Weird. It's sold as a homeopathic remedy in my pharmacy (in Germany).
Maybe the Germans have different criteria for what counts as a homeopathic medication.

It's a problem. Natural remedies have been used for ages. They are lumped into the Homeopathic category and storeshelves these day while they have zero to do with the actual (bullshit) homeopathic principles.

 

[WorriedCitizen]

Yeah. German homeopathy also includes natural remedies.

Not true. Lot of people don't know the difference tho. I had to explain this to my parents once.

 

[Conkersbadfurday]

The closest I get is brandy and orange juice when I have a cold or the flu.

But it's really to just another excuse to get weekday drunk.

 

[entremet]

No. I’m rarely sick, thankfully. And I generally avoid interventions and let my body heal itself.

If I get really bad I see a medical doctor.

 

[Jyester]

People are willing to believe any sort of mystic "natural" bullshit. There's also a huge, powerful business behind it, pushing it. Any GP that would prescribe this nonsense should have their license revoked.

There's a lot of (understandable, to some extent) backlash against pharmaceutical industries for a lot of somewhat messed up practices (price gouging, to give one example, the occasional horrible fuck up as another), so people tend to go the complete opposite direction and support complete pseudoscientific BS.

These people don't realize the alt-medicine industry is every bit as corrupt and fucked up (and indeed far more so in my opinion) as the worst of the worst of pharmaceutical companies. Whereas drugs are heavily regulated and tested, alternative medicine is not at all, which means they can get away with far more than most drug companies.

Thanks for the replies. This is my experience as well. Big pharma is sketchy, so the natural alternative becomes automatically true. It's a difficult conversation to have to have with a family member, especially when said person is convinced to have experienced tangible results. I met some of these doctors when I was younger, and they struck me as kind and loving individuals. In any case, I'll do some more reading, so I can hopefully educate myself as well as my family.

 

[Platy]

There is lot of misinformation on this thread.

It is not pure water!


...because it tastes like shit.

Also yeah it does not work

 

[ty_hot]

I've used them my whole life, always helped me even though I understand that they shouldnt work. Call it placebo if you like, they are great for me.

 

[Greddleok]

I've used them my whole life, always helped me even though I understand that they shouldnt work. Call it placebo if you like, they are great for me.

I sincerely hope you never get a serious illness and turn to homeopathy.

 

[shawnbuddy]

What I never got was if water can remember vibrations of everything it's been in contact with, wouldn't all water be a homeopathic remedy for pretty much every single thing?

Wouldn't all water be full of shit?

 

[Glass Shark]

I'll admit that even knowing full well that they're complete bullshit, I had a weird ear pain a while back that I was desperate to fix and nothing was working, so I tried homeopathic ear drops. Surprise, they didn't work.

 

[JettDash]

There is lot of misinformation on this thread.

It is not pure water!


...because it tastes like shit.

Also yeah it does not work

I think they also use alcohol.

 

[Redrable]

Ridiculous pseudoscience.

I don't even think homeopathy is the biggest offender when it comes to all the crazy medical voodoos people get deceived by, and people's tendency to still trust these things over science and experts are much well-documented.

 

[Panthalassic]

Oh this thread isn't what I thought it would be. I had no idea homeopathic medicine was like that. Was definitely thinking about long-known natural alleviation for certain things (i.e. ginger for stomach issues) but I guess I didn't realize they were different.



Yikes.