The Independent UK: Homoeopathy - a Sweeter Pill

[Guest guest]

" Zeus " <info

The Independent UK: Homoeopathy - a Sweeter Pill

Thu, 16 Jun 2005 14:11:45 +0100

 

 

 

Homoeopathy - a sweeter pill?

There's no proof that homoeopathy works. So why is the NHS spending

millions on it?

By Miranda Levy

 

14 June 2005

 

Five years ago, while she was expecting her third child, Nina Barnett

started to suffer excruciating lower back pain. It was caused by

loosening of the ligaments - a common problem during pregnancy - but

Nina, 39, a pharmacist from North London, found that even after she'd

given birth to her son, the situation did not improve. " There were

episodes of three to four days where I couldn't even hold my baby, "

she says. " It was so bad that I had to spend some time in a nursing

home after the birth and for six months afterwards, I found it hard to

get out of bed, walk or go down the stairs.

 

" My GP referred me to a physiotherapist, but the pain was still

there, " she says. " I did pilates, Alexander technique, and of course I

sought conventional medical help to deal with the agony - but the only

treatments available were very strong painkillers, which I didn't want

to take regularly. Painkillers masked the symptoms, but didn't get to

the root of the issue. So my GP sent me to the Royal London

Homoeopathic Hospital. "

 

Each year some 470,000 Britons spend £25m on homoeopathic remedies,

and sales are rising between 15 and 20 per cent annually. And this

week, the RLHH, one of five such specialist centres, is moving back to

its Queen's Square site after an £18m refit. This coincides with the

recently published - and widely publicised - guide to complementary

medicine by the Prince of Wales' Foundation for Integrated Health,

which has been funded partially the Government. Which raises the

question: does homoeopathy work, and does it justify this investment?

 

Homoeopathy, invented in the 18th century by the German physicist

Samuel Hahnemann, is based on the principle that " like cures like " , so

that pollen, for example, might be used to treat hay fever. Hahnemann

used more and more dilute recipes to make his remedies safer,

eventually discovering that if he shook his remedies, they would

remain effective even when no trace of the original substance

remained. It is this idea, that water can " memorise " the imprint of an

active ingredient, that is most troubling to scientific minds. A

famous French trial in the 1980s appeared to validate the principle,

but this has never been replicated since.

 

Alternative medicine has always had its detractors. " To anyone

educated in mainstream science, the mechanisms that are advanced for

some complementary medicines seem just bizarre, " wrote Andrew Lawson,

a consultant at the Royal Berkshire Hospital, recently. But Dr Saul

Berkovitz, a consultant at the RLHH, has had as good an education as

mainstream science can offer, studying at Cambridge University and

Charing Cross Hospital in London.

 

During my training, I began to feel there was something lacking in

hospital medicine, " he says. " When serious disease had been excluded,

the drugs were often too strong, like using a sledgehammer to crack a

nut. Side-effects of orthodox medication consistently rank amongst the

leading causes of hospital admission, ill health and death. "

 

Berkovitz also saw a potential " domino effect " . " Say, for example,

codeine had been prescribed for arthritis. This can cause

constipation, so another drug is prescribed to treat that. Where does

it stop? Homoeopathic treatment is a subtle process, like retuning a

violin which has gone slightly out of key. "

 

One criticism often levelled at complementary medicine is that it is

full of " wackos " giving negligent advice. Much of complementary

medicine is unregulated and often mercenary. At the RLHH, however,

there is a strong ethic to work hand in hand with orthodox medicine.

 

First appointments are generally 45 minutes long; follow-ups last 20

minutes. This allows for extensive questioning about lifestyle, diet

and stress in addition. " Such details, which may mean little to a

conventionally trained doctor, are vital for a tailor-made

homoeopathic prescription, " says Berkovitz.

 

Importantly, all the doctors are conventionally trained. " We wouldn't

use homoeopathy to treat cancer per se, but it is safe to take

alongside cancer drugs, and can reduce side-effects, " says Berkovitz.

" We have realistic expectations of our treatments. They are not

suitable for all ailments: genetic conditions or high blood pressure,

for example. Homoeopathy doesn't help everyone

 

The conditions it does treat read like a list of general

practitioners' " heart-sink " complaints: allergies, headaches,

premenstrual syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, stress, insomnia,

back pain. Some have put the high level of referrals to homoeopaths

down to GPs' anxiety to rid their consulting rooms of hopeless cases.

There may be some truth in this, Berkovitz admits. There is even an

acronym, TEETH - " Tried Everything Else - Try Homoeopathy " . But this

is now much more rarely the case. Many of the RLHH's patients have

referred themselves.

 

At a time when patient choice is at the heart of NHS policy-making,

this alone might be seen to justify the millions in public money spent

on homoeopathy. Patients are increasingly requesting homoeopathy and

other complementary therapies (the RLHH also provides therapies such

as herbalism, acupuncture and nutritional medicine).

 

Up to 40 per cent of GPs are providing access to them, though whether

your GP can refer you to a homoeopath is something of a post-code

lottery, depending on how local funding is allocated). Surveys show

that rates of patient satisfaction with their experience at the RLHH

are consistently high and the reduced time these patients spend at

their GP's surgery or at specialist clinics makes homoeopathy a

cost-effective option.

 

For now, an important way of judging homoeopathy's effectiveness is

perhaps through the anecdotal evidence of patients. Since she first

visited the hospital four years ago, Nina Barnett is in good health.

She took two homoeopathic pills twice a day until the pain eased, to

" tighten the ligaments " , a treatment not available in conventional

medicine. If the pain comes back, she needs to take them again until

it eases, and for two weeks afterwards.

 

" I'm not saying they waved a magic wand because that didn't happen, "

she says. " But five years down the line, I'm much better. Since my

treatment, I hardly ever need any painkillers, despite cutting back on

exercise and having no physiotherapy. "

 

Maybe the effect of " rubbing it better " is more powerful than we

realise. " The word 'placebo' means 'I will please', and although it's

often used as a criticism of complementary medicine, it can have

amazing effects, " says Berkovitz. " Otherwise, why would people travel

to see us from all over the country? What's more, why would they keep

coming back? "

 

The Royal London Homoeopathic Hospital, despite its name, also offers

therapies including acupuncture and Western herbal medicine. Referral

by GP is required. 020 7391 8833; www.rlhh.org.uk

 

Need to know

 

* Homoeopathy is based on treating " like with like " , which means a

substance that can cause certain symptoms in a healthy person can cure

similar symptoms in a sick person.

 

* Homoeopathic doctors don't think of illnesses and cures. There is a

range of ways of treating each condition.

 

* A homoeopathic approach aims to address the patient's emotional and

spiritual needs.

 

* Most trials have failed to show a solid scientific basis for

homoeopathy. But studies show that most people have a reduction in

symptoms and in the need to use orthodox medicines.

forwarded by

Zeus Information Service

Alternative Views on Health

www.zeusinfoservice.com