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| A plant used in a homeopathic tincture - Rhus toxicodendron |
Scientific Evidence for Homeopathy
The first controlled trial testing the homeopathic treatment of patients with fibromyalgia was an impressive and sophisticated double-blind "crossover" trial that was published in the prestigious British Medical Journal (Fisher et al, 1989).
A crossover trial is a sophisticated method to test the efficacy of a treatment because each patient's results with the "real treatment" are compared with that same patient's results with a placebo.
While most double-blind studies compare one group of people who receive the "real treatment" with another (hopefully similar) group of people who receive a placebo, crossover trials compare the results of each person and his/her response to real treatment with his/her response to placebo.
The researchers found that there was a substantially significant degree of improvement in the reduction of tender points and improved pain and sleep when the subjects were taking the homeopathic medicine, as compared to when these same subjects were taking a placebo.
Read Dana Ullman's full article in the Huffington post.
A study done into fibro and homeopathy.
If you are interested in alternative therapies for Fibromyalgia please see my post on all the natural treatments I have tried.
whoah this weblog is grеat i love reading yοur articles. Keep up the good work! You knoω, lots οf people are looking round fоr this infοrmation, you can help them greatly
ReplyDeleteYes I agree, many people are looking for fibro info - especially about alternative treatments cause drugs just don't work for many people
Deletethanks PayDay and Joan, glad I could help. I hope you keep reading as I have many other posts on natural treatments for Fibromyalgia on this blog.
DeleteNever know homeopath could help fibro pain: thx so
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome Takip. Hope you are having a good week.
DeleteWow! Thanks so much for sharing! I've always been skeptical of homeopathy, until reading this. I try to use alternative/complementary health care as much as possible, but I"m also wary of dogmatic natural-is-always-better approaches ("all medicines are toxic, evil concoctions"). I always love finding out about scientific evidence for alternative health approaches, because it seems like the best balance between both worlds.
ReplyDeleteEvidenced based research is what I try to focus on. Every BODY is different though. Only you can get to know what works for your body. I studied herbalism when I was in my 20's and thought it was fantastic but now I am allergic to most herbs as they are high in Salicylates and that's my new intolerance (a bad joke really)! Salicylates are chemicals found in plants and are a major ingredient in aspirin and other pain-relieving medications. They're also naturally in many fruits and vegetables, as well as in many common health and beauty products.
DeleteDid not know this,so would like to say you are doing a helpful job for all of those with fibro
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Wayne. that's my modus operandi - help others learn.
DeleteMy spouse and I absolutely love your blog and find nearly all of your post's to be just what I'm looking for.
ReplyDeletecan you offer guest writers to write content in your case?
I wouldn't mind writing a post or elaborating on many of the subjects you write about pain management and fibro. Again, awesome weblog.
D, Hi, glad you and your wife like the blog. You should leave your contact details so that we can talk. Or you can message me on facebook https://www.facebook.com/FibroFiles/
DeleteYou are terrific. I have actually been so exasperated.
ReplyDeleteThank you, thank you, thank you.
Hi Patty, glad that this helped you. x
DeleteSorry Lee but I'm not convinced when it comes to homeopathy and personally think it is potentially dangerous. I should also point out I am not a fan of the traditional meds for fibro either so it's not as though I am biased towards them. I think it's ridiculous how ineffective studies have shown them to be. I just would not feel comfortable putting a substance into my unhealthy body that is known to cause harm (ie induce symptoms) in a healthy person. If someone wants to go ahead then fair enough but it's not something I would toy around with. Anyway, although they are saying the science shows significant statistical results it's not convincing me its a better or particularly effective option. Half of people saw a 25% improvement with homeopathy but 15% saw improvement with the placebo in the 2004 study. So you have a 50-50 chance of a 25% improvement... But you also have a 50-50 chance of a 15% improvement if you do nothing. Same with the most recent study. They are showing a very small improvement. In all honesty, I would rather explore (as I am doing) alternative/complementary treatments that are proven not to cause harm.
ReplyDeleteHi Donna, it's great to hear from you and get your perspective on homeopathy. I guess I am easier to convince than you! I'm not trying to convince anyone, actually, just reporting on a study that was done.
DeleteTo tell the truth though I do use homeopathy. I think I am influenced by the fact that Queen Elizabeth uses it and has all her life. So probably I use my emotions rather than science to decide about things. I also saw great benefits with homeopathy with my children when they were little. i am just so against medications that I try most things to reduce my symptoms. It's so interesting to see your perspective though so thank you for sharing it here.