A Brief Explanation of Homeopathy
The use of homeopathy started about 200 years ago with a discovery by a German doctor, Samuel Hahnemann. Wondering why quinine was useful in treating malaria, he took the medicine himself and found that, given to a healthy person, it temporarily produced the same symptoms found in malaria, but in a milder form. When given to a malaria patient, however, it was curative.
Homeopathy means literally to “treat with a similar disease”. Its central principle, “like cures like”, contrasts with other medical approaches. The term allopathy means to ”treat with other than the disease” and is used to denote the standard medical approach of Western medicine today, which attempts to counteract or suppress symptoms. For example, a patient with diarrhea may be given a drug that suppresses or slows intestinal motility.
To better understand why homeopathy works, it helps to consider two aspects of a disease. First, there is the immediate cause, such as bacteria, a virus, toxin, or internal immunological activity. Second, there is the patient’s response – his/her reaction and defenses, such as fever, inflammation, and discharge. These are the body’s attempts to eliminate pathogens and toxins and to heal the tissue.
While homeopathic doctors do not ignore immediate causes, such as infection, their primary focus is on the patient’s attempts to respond and heal. Their aim is to strengthen the patient’s defenses and shift the balance in favor of recovery.
Dr. Hahnemann found that specific natural substances, or medicines, could be used to stimulate healing by applying the principle “like cures like” in very specific ways. He would give his patients a substance that would gently nudge their system in the direction of the “disease”, reproducing the same (or nearly the same) syndrome or whole set of particular symptoms in a mild form. He found this to be a very effective way to stimulate their natural defenses. It is as if the patient’s defenses cannot distinguish between the natural disease and the milder disease. Thus homeopaths fine-tune the body’s system with natural homeopathic medicines to enhance the patient’s own attempts to overcome the disease.
In this manner, homeopathy employs hundreds of natural substances that have all been thoroughly studied as to their unique effects on the body, mind, and emotions. Some of these medicines are made from herbs and plants, such as windflower and golden seal; others are made from minerals such as silica and calcium carbonate. Homeopathic pharmacists carefully prepare these substances in a time-tested manner that enhances their effectiveness while minimizing potential harm. They carefully dilute them to eliminate toxic effects, at the same time shaking them or grinding them in a way that energizes their helpful effect. This use of a dilute similar substance is somewhat similar to the use of vaccines or the method of allergy desensitization.
In summary, homeopathy stimulates the healing process by temporarily establishing an artificial disturbance of health with a homeopathic medicine. This disturbance, when similar to the disturbance caused by the natural disease, encourages the body to work harder to get well. The healing changes that follow are the result of this stimulation.
While simple in theory, this process requires skill and experience, particularly in chronic and serious diseases. The homeopathic doctor carefully evaluates the changes that occur after each homeopathic medicine is given. In this way, the patient can be guided to recovery of their health over the weeks or months necessary for the body to repel the disease and regrow damaged or unhealthy tissues; the body is brought back into balance.
Homeopathic medicines are easy to administer, in the form of liquid drops or tiny pellets that are placed on the gums to quickly dissolve. In most situations, only one dose is needed every few weeks or months, since it is long-acting and “time- released”, in a sense. It is an extremely effective way to treat illnesses in all species of animals, not just humans.
(Dr. Holonko is a graduate of the Pitcairn Institute of Veterinary Homeopathy (PIVH) where she completed basic and advanced coursework in veterinary homeopathy. She currently lectures at PIVH and mentors veterinarians who are recent graduates of the course.)
The use of homeopathy started about 200 years ago with a discovery by a German doctor, Samuel Hahnemann. Wondering why quinine was useful in treating malaria, he took the medicine himself and found that, given to a healthy person, it temporarily produced the same symptoms found in malaria, but in a milder form. When given to a malaria patient, however, it was curative.
Homeopathy means literally to “treat with a similar disease”. Its central principle, “like cures like”, contrasts with other medical approaches. The term allopathy means to ”treat with other than the disease” and is used to denote the standard medical approach of Western medicine today, which attempts to counteract or suppress symptoms. For example, a patient with diarrhea may be given a drug that suppresses or slows intestinal motility.
To better understand why homeopathy works, it helps to consider two aspects of a disease. First, there is the immediate cause, such as bacteria, a virus, toxin, or internal immunological activity. Second, there is the patient’s response – his/her reaction and defenses, such as fever, inflammation, and discharge. These are the body’s attempts to eliminate pathogens and toxins and to heal the tissue.
While homeopathic doctors do not ignore immediate causes, such as infection, their primary focus is on the patient’s attempts to respond and heal. Their aim is to strengthen the patient’s defenses and shift the balance in favor of recovery.
Dr. Hahnemann found that specific natural substances, or medicines, could be used to stimulate healing by applying the principle “like cures like” in very specific ways. He would give his patients a substance that would gently nudge their system in the direction of the “disease”, reproducing the same (or nearly the same) syndrome or whole set of particular symptoms in a mild form. He found this to be a very effective way to stimulate their natural defenses. It is as if the patient’s defenses cannot distinguish between the natural disease and the milder disease. Thus homeopaths fine-tune the body’s system with natural homeopathic medicines to enhance the patient’s own attempts to overcome the disease.
In this manner, homeopathy employs hundreds of natural substances that have all been thoroughly studied as to their unique effects on the body, mind, and emotions. Some of these medicines are made from herbs and plants, such as windflower and golden seal; others are made from minerals such as silica and calcium carbonate. Homeopathic pharmacists carefully prepare these substances in a time-tested manner that enhances their effectiveness while minimizing potential harm. They carefully dilute them to eliminate toxic effects, at the same time shaking them or grinding them in a way that energizes their helpful effect. This use of a dilute similar substance is somewhat similar to the use of vaccines or the method of allergy desensitization.
In summary, homeopathy stimulates the healing process by temporarily establishing an artificial disturbance of health with a homeopathic medicine. This disturbance, when similar to the disturbance caused by the natural disease, encourages the body to work harder to get well. The healing changes that follow are the result of this stimulation.
While simple in theory, this process requires skill and experience, particularly in chronic and serious diseases. The homeopathic doctor carefully evaluates the changes that occur after each homeopathic medicine is given. In this way, the patient can be guided to recovery of their health over the weeks or months necessary for the body to repel the disease and regrow damaged or unhealthy tissues; the body is brought back into balance.
Homeopathic medicines are easy to administer, in the form of liquid drops or tiny pellets that are placed on the gums to quickly dissolve. In most situations, only one dose is needed every few weeks or months, since it is long-acting and “time- released”, in a sense. It is an extremely effective way to treat illnesses in all species of animals, not just humans.
(Dr. Holonko is a graduate of the Pitcairn Institute of Veterinary Homeopathy (PIVH) where she completed basic and advanced coursework in veterinary homeopathy. She currently lectures at PIVH and mentors veterinarians who are recent graduates of the course.)