To ask whether or not people here believe in homeopathy?

[DaisyLovesMetronidazole]

I don't at all.

However, I'm not out for a bunfight!

Just curious, as was surprised by the response of a certain group to this question today.

Do homeopaths sit patiently and explain that there is no evidence for their therapy, and pour over papers and leaflets explaining this? By the same token, maybe they should.
In my game, there is a particular therapy which people like to follow but there is no evidence that it is effective. It is my responsibility, and in our guidelines for practice, that I explain that there is no conclusive evidence the therapy works but then should inform and support clients of they choose to adopt that therapy.
Transparency.

What has MMR got to do with anything????

The pharmaceutical is a big business and also therefore out to make as much cash as possible too, it has to prove the treatments work though.

Hasnt the queenmum been dead for a number of years?

Oh sorry lequeen, you meant your mum didnt you lol

Onlion your post is very strange. Excuse me for ignoring it.

Jaggy -- I explained. I'm explaining my surprise at the virulence of feeling against homeopathy when there is so much worse to be angry about.

My own feeling is that it's intellectual laziness. Homeopathy is an easy target. Its benefits, while real, are difficult to quantify and explain: its mechanism is poorly understood. Its "science" is based on extraordinary claims which require a certain suspension of disbelief. It's just... easy.

If you have energy to expend on anger over a health scandal, pharmaceutical deceptiveness and damage is a lot more difficult. You are going against the herd, for a start, and you have white coat syndrome to contend with. Most of the world believes that "peer review" is on a level with "mathematical truth". Information is hard to come by. The benefits are more tangible and easy to quantify, while the costs and damage are often well hidden.

It's just like pointing and laughing at the fat kid, while butter-wouldn't-melt child manipulates with a smile.

Why is my post strange?

MMR? Well you know that it's been established that pre-roll out, the research into MMR was "inadequate".

Were you told this before you vaccinated? If so, you were the only mother probably in the whole world who wasn't deceived.

It's not bollocks at all jaggy. Absolutely not. I suggest you do a little more research outside the lab.

Holy crap you are not listening at all.

Pleasepleaseplease read Bad Science and come back.

It is an easy target because it is bullplop explained by the placebo effect and the effect of a chat/counselling. Not a poorly understood 'mechanism' FFS

I don't do research. not all scientists do. I test stuff and get actual results.

"What I don't understand is the virulence of feeling. There is so much worse going on in conventional medicine, so much more corruption, and damage. All this energy spent on homeopathy -- it really does feel like an easy target."

gooseberry Conventional medicine, but let us call it medicine, works. People can be prescribed medicines that fight infection, treat cancer and relieve pain. They don't need to 'believe' in anything or be open minded.

Homeopathy is unscientific and irrational. It's damaging to science for this woo to be given credence and it's damaging to people if they are 'conned' into thinking that homeopathy is clinically effective.

In waitrose I can buy bog standard anti-histimine to treat hay fever for a couple of quid. There is also a homeopathis preparation that costs 6 quid. So three times the cost for something that will not work.

And it will not work. It will never work, you can produce all the evidence and links from the internet that you want, but please remember that homeopathy does not, will not and can not work.

no, no it's just poorly understood...

It works by placebo, which is poorly understood.

Excuse me -- you may imagine I am not listening, but you are certainly not reading.

Or maybe the likes of us aren't clever enough to understand it.

I'd like to ask gooseberry my fave homeopathy question. If all the labels fell off a homeopaths boxes and bottles how would said homeopath distinguish between the unlabeled preparations?

"Homeopathy is an easy target. Its benefits, while real, are difficult to quantify and explain: its mechanism is poorly understood. Its "science" is based on extraordinary claims which require a certain suspension of disbelief. It's just... easy."

This is what I was replying to - the word placebo was not in there. I read very carefully I assure you.

Gooseberrybushes - There is no benefit to Homeopathy. Any benefit is Placebo. If you take the pills out of the process the results are the same.

alistron1 good question...

Don't tell me to read Bad Science. Really. It's not a bible.

please, please please read this -- it will tell you all you need to know.. you could start with the last five pages

Christ Coalition -- would you like to read anything I've written at all? Do you all love spending your time arguing with things that you've made up that other people haven't said?

Duh.

Well you know what, I've jaggy I've said about fifty million times on this thread that the only benefit is placebo, and while you've been on it too, so excuse me for assuming you could actually read.

Intellectual laziness not to believe in homeopathy? Ha ha ha. That's hilarious.

Believe in the placebo effect, yes, that's real.

Believe that water can cure your illnesses? Erm I think that has been proven not to be the case. And remember that there is a million pound prize for proving that homeopathy works (anecdotes are not evidence they are just anecdotes) so maybe you should get together with some other believers, gooseberry bushes, and design a double blinded placebo controlled trial.

The placebo effect isn't exactly poorly understood, there's quite a body of research into it afaik.

I'm not going to descend to "idiots" but there is a certain failure here to read, remember, and follow a train of thought, and thank God it's not with me.