To be driven mad by how many people are utterly convinced by homeopathy?

[Wannabuyawatch]

I am just completely baffled by how many educated, clued up people I know, including family members and many close friends, that do not question homeopathy in any way. It is complete nonsense that bases its "science" on the memory of water?? You might as well wave your magic wand and say Hocus Pocus. Of course the placebo effect can be a cure in itself but not for children?? Even my brilliant pediatrician tries to give me homeopathy (probably bc she thinks it will calm me down rather than my children!!)
There is a mum at school whose son has horrendous allergies and asthma. She has taken him off all his inhalers as she wants to "cleanse his system" and only gives him homeopathy. Arrrgh. I see the little boy in tears every day in the spring as he can´t sleep and is exhausted due to his breathing.
My MIL insisted on giving their old dog who was in agony and riddled with cancer homeopathy instead of conventional medicine and god, did it suffer, why why??
Don´t know why but it drives me mad…such an irresponsible industry that suckers vulnerable people in and leads some to give homeopathy instead of conventional meds in dangerous situations.

[GoodnessIsThatTheTime]

Taking a childs inhalers away is abusive.

[TheRealAmandaClarke]

Yanbu
You have to let it go.
Except if a child requires medical treatment and that's withheld to their detriment it's called neglect and should be reported as such.

[AtYourCervix]

I feel the same way about evolution.

[murphys]

You are entitled to your opinion but I have been giving my dog Rescue Remedy for years due to his fear of lightning and thunder. I doubt very much the placebo affect works on dogs.

I also have given it to my children recently when we lost our dog, and I am telling you that it works.

[LaurieFairyCake]

Actually the placebo effect works just as well on children and dogs

[Pobblewhohasnotoes]

I remember years ago as a junior nurse hearing a story about parents whose child had been diagnosed as diabetic, refused to give her the insulin and decided to treat it with homeopathic remedies. She died.

I'd be worried that this mum has taken away her child's inhalers. What is she thinking?

[TheRealAmandaClarke]

See?
It doesn't work. It's demonstrated not to work.
I hope someone is talking to the relevant authorities about that little boy.
And that should be you op.

[almondcake]

The parents of the asthmatic child should be reported asap. He could die.

[sparechange]

Murphys, the OP doesn't just have 'an opinion'
She has the backing of science, logic, the laws of physics and just plain common sense.

Also, you are confusing homeopathy with herbal remedies and the lovely calming properties of booze.
Rescue remedy is herbal essences mixed with alcohol. A bit like Jagermeister
Homeopathy is a bit like showing a bottle of evian a picture of someone doing yoga and expecting the water to know how to impart calm onto anyone who drinks it.

(also, administering rescue remedy to a dog or child requires a certain amount of physical contact and reassurance. Some might say that is your placebo)

[thebody]

my dd 15 has a special blanket and fairy lights in her room to help with the aftermath of a trauma. this helped her far more than counselling from a child psychologists with fancy degrees and no clue.

should I remove them as they haven't been prescribed by a learned doctor?

some is bollocks but some are not. just like conventional science/medicine.

[candycoatedwaterdrops]

I don't care if people choose to waste their money on homeopathy for them or for their, child unless in the case that you outlined above and they refuse conventional medical treatment. Please contact your local social services dept. That is very worrying.

[thebody]

to add the asthmatic lad of course needs his inhaler. what are the school doing about this if he is distressed and unable to partake in school activities?

it wouldn't be ignored at the school I work in.

[TheRealAmandaClarke]

thebody comforting attachment objects are widely recognised to be efficacious in soothing both children and adults.
This isn't about pscription. This is about a "treatment" (homeopathy) that has not just not been demonstrate to work but actively demonstrated to not work. Sorry that your daughter suffered trauma.
But.
No amount of placebo will save that boys life if he suffers a severe asthma attack. And given the time of year, with a mingling of the end of the cold season and the start of the allergy season, that is a distinct possibility.

[itsmeitscathy]

I agree it's generally a load of rubbish but what about mistletoe treatment? Are they not having good results with that for some cancers?

[meddie]

The mother needs reporting. It is extremely dangerous not to give an asthmatic their medication . It can be life threatening . Is there anyone that you can raise concerns with?

[venusandmars]

If you read up on the placebo effect, you will find that it also has an impact on educated, rational, clued up people. And that even when people knew they were taking a placebo, it's effects could still be measured - that's what the definition of placebo means : the measurable, observable, or felt improvement in health or behaviour that is not attributable to a medication or invasive treatment that has been administered.

It's not mind over matter, it's not positive thinking, and some researchers suggest it is at its most powerful when "The physician's belief in the treatment and the patient's faith in the physician exert a mutually reinforcing effect; the result is a powerful remedy that produces an improvement and sometimes a cure."

So even if people know and understand that the treatment is effectively water, and even if they know that there is no scientific evidence for the water retaining a 'memory', there can still be measureable, or observable or felt improvements in health or behaviour.

I am not a supporter of homeopathy, but I am completely fascinated by the way in which our brains work so that treatments known to be pharmacolocigally inert (whether it is a placebo or homeopathic treatment) can still have an impact.

[SelectAUserName]

Agree with the others, OP, this unauthorised withdrawal of prescribed medication needs to be brought to the attention of the authorities.

I do wonder how many of the "successes" of homeopathy are down to the confusion as to what homeopathy actually is. For example there is a difference between a herbal preparation of, say, arnica and a homeopathic one (not least the former has an active ingredient and may actually work) but I do believe some people think "arnica, that's homeopathic" regardless of the method of preparation.

There was a study carried out amongst cattle farmers which demonstrated that the placebo effect works in animals.

[IwinIwin]

Yanbu. Sometimes people confuse herbal remedies- which can be.medicinal- with homeopathy which isn't and is more mind over matter. Not true for your friend but I've often heard people say they are into homeopathy when talking about taking milk thistle, Echinacea and st John's wort all of which are herbal and sold as medicines.

Course it doesn't help when the hospital labelled homeopathic is actually a 'tailored medicine' hospital not one using true homeopathy. The name encompasses many things now, however wrong.

[NotDavidTennant]

IME most people don't know what homeopathy is or how it is purported to work. If thy did know, I think most would agree how ridiculous it is. But, again IME, most seem to think it's just a posh name for herbalism.

[TheRealAmandaClarke]

Placebo is effective? No denying that.
Even when you know it's a placebo. It is fascinating.
But it can't cure cancer, or stop someone bleeding to Death or prevent a respiratory arrest.
If you "read up" on homeopathy and actually understand how to interpret research you'll see that it's a load of bollocks.

[sparechange]

itsme
No one is denying that plant extracts, herbal extracts, tree extracts don't have properties that are beneficial to humans
Asperin, for example, is derived from the birch tree
BUT, homeopathy is totally different
Homeopathy is the theory that you add the tiniest, tiniest extract of something to water, dilute that water thousands of times (we are talking about 1 drop of 'active ingredient' to a swimming pool of water) and the water will 'learn' about the active ingredient.
Homeopaths can't explain why water doesn't 'learn' cholera in the same way, or 'learn' things that are added in higher doses, but somehow, this minuscule extract can then be dropped onto a sugar pill, and it has the same healing effect as actual proper medicines

By all means take Evening Primrose if it helps with your PMT, or be thankful to nature for providing us with all these amazing compounds which can help the body.

But don't tell me that some water happens to totally contradict the laws of physics if it happens to be kept in the office of someone who believes in homeopathy. And certainly don't abuse children by taking away their medication because someone is peddling this bullshit to you

[TheRealAmandaClarke]

Sorry. Don't know where that extra ? Came from.

[whois]

People who actually believe that homeopathy works better than conventional treatment, or indeed works better than the placebo effect are total idiots. Shoes a complete lack of ability to assess evidence, use reason and judgement. If anyone I knew was ditching conventional treatment in favour of homeopathy I'd think they were very foolish.

[UncleT]

Murphys those 'remedies' are nothing to do with homeopathy. They're a completely different kettle of fish. As for actual homeopathy, no - water doesn't cure people. Kidding yourself that you're having treatment when you're not might have some impact, but water is just water. Every meaningful, truly comparative study concludes that it's complete bollocks. The idiot making her child suffer with asthma by withholding appropriate medicine is guilty of abuse, no ifs or buts (assuming what you say is true). YANBU.

[almondcake]

I agree with pp. There are always lots of people on these threads who confuse herbal remedies for bruises etc with homeopathy.