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Originally Posted by robot_parade
In your mother's case, it sounds like she had a very severe reaction - but it was a *known* side effect. Because the drug had been tested, her doctor could explain what was going on.
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Actually, her doctor had no idea what was going on. She went to several specialists, including a seizure clinic at a major research hospital, in order to figure out what was causing this problem. She was diagnosed with epilepsy in her temporal lobe and put on seizure medication, but it did not clear up the problem. Finally, my father made the connection while watching a Lipitor commercial.
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Now. Medicine in general, and especially the drug industry, is in really, really terrible shape right now. For lots of reasons, and in lots of ways, things are in truly miserable shape. We could go on for hours about the hows and whys. However. Even with all it's flaws, science-based medicine is the *only* way to go. Everything else is just witch-doctoring under a fancier name.
But if you do the research, the scientific consensus is that homeopathy does not work. Period. It has never been conclusively shown to be more effective than a placebo. It is almost certainly 'safe' in that it will produce zero side-effects - *because* it has no effect at all! Now, someone taking a placebo/homeopathic pill for a common cold isn't any worse off than someone who follows conventional medicine, because a common cold is (almost always) going to go away on it's own. Conventional medicine can't cure it. However, if you're taking homeopathic treatments for something more serious, you put yourself in jeopardy.
"There cannot be two kinds of medicine---conventional and alternative. There is only medicine that has been adequately tested and medicine that has not, medicine that works and medicine that may or may not work... If it is found to be reasonably safe and effective, it will be accepted."
(I'm not sure where exactly this is from, but it sums up my point nicely)
-RN
But has it been scientifically tested? All the anecdotes in the world won't convince me. Proper testing will. I could come up with all sorts of hypothetical explanations as to why it seems to work for you and your friends. But my main point is - if it's tested, and found safe and effective, then great. If not...why use it?
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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/en..._uids=17318618
As for the homeopathy/herbal thing--a lot of homeopathic remedies are herbal remedies. Some are mineral-based. I'm not saying I use homeopathic remedies to treat bodily humors or some such ridiculous notion (which would be true homeopathy), rather I am using homeopathic medicines that are largely herbal and typically have been empirically shown to have some kind of benefit, such as the arnica gel.
There are plenty of quacky ideas out there on the homeopathic side of things, including the entire basis of homeopathy--treating bodily humors. However, the remedies themselves should not be dismissed out of hand simply for being homeopathic; rather, they should be taken on a case-by-case basis by the user. Because of the power of the placebo effect, the consumer should have the right to decide what works for them when it comes to homeopathy.
I should note that most of the homeopathic remedies I buy are produced by Boiron USA and Nelsons. Both companies have excellent safety records in regards to their product. So even if they are just sugar pills--they are safe. They are not fly-by-night herbal diet supplement manufacturers. Nelsons has been around since 1860, and Boiron has been around since 1932.