Embracing Alternative Care:
Top hospitals put unorthodox therapies into practice
At one extreme are found techniques such as yoga and massage, acknowledged by the most hard-line skeptics to have some benefit, if only to lower stress and anxiety. At the other are therapies that even many who applaud CAM's newfound academic popularity call “woo-woo medicine” because of the sheer implausibility of their rationale. Homeopathy, which involves remedies often lacking a single molecule of active substance, is the poster child; some would add energy therapies such as healing touch. The broad middle takes in acupuncture, herbal medicine, and other CAM approaches that seem to benefit some people with certain conditions.
Response to US News & World Report
I am always disappointed to find yet another article trying to discredit homeopathy by calling it ‘absurd’, ‘woo woo’ or the ‘placebo effect’. (re: Embracing Alternative Care, by Avery Comaro, 1/9/08). Science just doesn’t know what to do with it so instead of really investigating, they try to ‘demonize’ it : sad but true.
Since discovering homeopathy in the early 90’s, I have successfully combated depression (original reason for trying), coughs, flu, bladder infection, teeth extractions, food poisoning, broken bones (twice), menopause, arthritic pains and divorce, as well as two trips to India without any taking any overpriced, costly, often toxic and often addictive drugs. I haven’t needed as much as an aspirin in my medicine chest in over 15 years. With today’s broken medical healthcare system (including the pharmaceutical and health insurance industries), I would challenge the current scientific skepticism. Just because science hasn’t discovered the ‘how’ - YET, doesn’t mean it doesn’t work. (In fact, I believe there are current studies showing the plausibility of homeopathy that are not yet released).
To heal our collapsing health system, not to mention patients, you would think that serious consideration be given to any and all therapies (albeit alternative ones and yes, homeopathy that has been around for well over 100 years) that seem to offer possibilities of better health, especially considering the lower cost and healthier alternatives they offer. Solutions can be found when different disciplines work together instead of trying to ‘voodo-ize’ the other. Or is the threat to the costly pharmaceutical companies and business of health just too much?
Instead of calling homeopathy ‘woo woo’, I would call it ‘WOW!’
Kate Soudant
What is the problem with Placebo Medicine? by Melissa Burch
- If you want to make your views heard, please email a letter to the editor:
- Letters To The Editor
U.S. News & World Report
1050 Thomas Jefferson St., NW
Washington, DC 20007-3837
Fax 202-955-2685
Email: letters@usnews.com
202-955-2397 - Alternative Medicine is a Hot Topic Today
NBC Today Show may do a show on acupuncture on Wednesday, January 23, 2008.
Please send comments and ideas regarding Homeopathy to:
Noah Oppenheim, Senior Editor, NBC Today Show.
FAX: 212-664-4426
Phone: 212-664-4249, 212-664-4444
email: today@nbc.com
