Some of you may have heard or read recently about homoeopathy, naturopathy, acupuncture, chiropractics etc, and how they are not valid systems of medicine or approaches to health. I have had quite a few people ask me about this, as these sort of comments can stir up some uncertainty about the worth of such approaches to health care. In order to respond to these criticisms, we need to take a bit of a philosophical approach and look deeply into this issue with an open and questioning mind. Yes, we need to try and adopt some of the attributes of the great thinkers of humanity, like Aristotle, for example!

I want to make clear 2 really important facts about these criticisms. When we are assessing the validity of any body of knowledge, I’m sure you will realise that it is not always a simple process. I will use homoeopathic medicine as an example, but the issues apply to other forms of treatment. Assessing the validity of homoeopathic medicine requires much consideration and thought. There is a lot at stake here – making decisions and drawing conclusions about a system of medicine can have massive consequences at many levels. I want you to become the ‘wise health consumer’, understanding the ‘hows and whys’ of natural health and healing.

As you look for ways to improve your own health and the health of your loved ones as well as help yourself to prevent the onset of illness and disease, you need keep pushing the limits of knowledge and understanding about health and disease. Now I know many of you have been to the clinic for naturopathic and homoeopathic treatments and have enjoyed the health-promoting benefits that they bring. I don’t have to try and convince you of the validity of these approaches. But I think it is really helpful to think through some of the arguments for and against homoeopathy, if not for yourself then for others so that your can clearly articulate the salient issues.

But before I do I just want to make the point that none of the criticisms that have been reported are new. For the last 200 years there have been groups and individuals criticising homoeopathy and the objections put forth are the same now as they were 200 years ago. For that reason, I am a little blasé about what has been said about homoeopathy – I’ve heard it all before. Before long it will all die down until the next wave of reporting against this system of medicine.

So Is Homoeopathy Is Scientific?

Simply, there are numerous studies showing the efficacy of homoeopathic medicine. For example the Swedish government has just concluded that homoeopathic medicine is a viable system of medicine after assessing the scientific data available on homoeopathy. In some situations concluded that homoeopathy is more effective than traditional “Western” medicine.

Having a well thought out, sophisticated definition of science is really important. Defining that which is scientific is not clear-cut – t is not straight forward in any way and many different factors need to be considered. When we arriving at a point where we can say that something is scientific, we have to then decide is that valid, or how is that valid and then ask if something is not scientific does that mean it is not valid, or is not a useful piece of information.

I will not go into too much detail here in this blog, but for example, here are two criteria that need to be met for something to be deemed scientific: 1. its ability to be duplicated. Experiments or studies must be repeatable so that some one else can duplicate the results. 2. Also variables must be reduced as much as possible so that the effect on one thing or one action can be better ascertained.

I realise this is a little simplistic but these two points need to be met in order for something to be scientific. Now homoeopathic medicine and the studies that have been conducted, certainly meet these criteria. So on this basis it is wrong to assume that there are no scientific validity showing the efficacy of homoeopathy.

Anyway, hopefully I have got you thinking and I know there is a lot more to be said about this. But let me reiterate one very important point – well a question really! If something cannot be substantiated scientifically (and homoeopathic medicine can be) does that mean we should not use that knowledge when treating illness and maintaining optimal health? Love to hear what you think!

Andrew