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Why homeopathic medicines are 'no better than a placebo'
An Australian scientific body has released a study claiming that homeopathic medicines are as effective as placebos.
16:59 10 April 2014
An Australian scientific body has released a study which stated that there is no reliable evidence to support claims that homeopathy is effective in healing certain diseases or illnesses.
This contradicts the belief of some homeopathic figureheads that alternative therapy stimulates the body to heal itself and is based on the principle of ‘like cures like.’
Many medical doctors have welcomed the report released by Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council. They hope that the study will help them persuade patients to use orthodox medicines instead of homeopathic vaccinations which can put them at risk of getting life-threatening diseases including TB.
The report summary reads: “No good-quality, well-designed studies with enough participants for a meaningful result reported either that homeopathy caused greater health improvements than a substance with no effect on the health condition (placebo), or that homeopathy caused health improvements equal to those of another treatment.”
“It is not possible to tell whether a health treatment is effective or not simply by considering individuals’ experiences or healthcare practitioners’ beliefs.”
Professor John Dwyer, an immunologist and Emeritus Professor of Medicine at the University of New South Wales, added: “Obviously we understand the placebo effect. We know that many people have illnesses that are short lived by its very nature and their bodies will cure them, so it’s very easy for people to fall in the trap that because they did ‘A’, ‘B’ follows.”