From: dac@sci.ccny.cuny.edu (David A Cooke)
Subject: Re: homeopaty... NBC's dateline
Organization: City College of New York - Science Computing Facility
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 00:41:08 GMT

In article <1992Dec10.172102.6968@donner.SanDiego.NCR.COM> kraus@cheers.SanDiego.NCR.COM (Dave Kraus) writes:
>In article <1992Dec8.200023.28457@walter.bellcore.com> kenl@origami.cc.bellcore.com (Ken Lehner) writes:
>
>>Lessee, someone has a headache.  Being hit over the head with a large rock
>>produces similar, if not the same, symptoms.  So, I crush the rock, and
>>pound on it until there isn't even any dust left.  I then take "that" and
>>drop it on the sufferer's head, thereby curing the headache.
>
>It seems to me that the use of vaccines is very similar. You inject an
>irritant similar to what you are vaccinating against. The body builds
>up antibodies to that irritant, which allows it to fight off the
>disease being protected against. The difference being that vaccines
>are taken before the fact.
>
>Is it possible that homeopathic remedies cause the body to react to protect
>itself against the remedy, and in doing so actually attack the problem
>being remedied? Sounds plausible to me. I'm not saying I'm totally sold
>on the idea. I'm just saying I'm willing to give it a try.
>

	Not very.  For one thing, the immune system generally recognizes
protein, not inorganic substances, so that would throw any of the inorganic
homeopathic remedies (e.g lead) out the window.  No matter how many 
homeopathic potions of say, arsenic, you take, it will not remedy arsenic
poisoning.  As for some of the other, organic, remedies, the concentrations
used in homeopathic remedies would be far below that required to elicit
an immune response.  I'm also not aware that homeopathic potions are
injected.  A drunk potion would be highly unlikely to reach the immune
system, any more than a drunk vaccine would.  You would also probably need
to include adjuvant in the potion for it work in the manner you propose,
which I am not aware is a normal ingredient in homeopathic remedies.
Assuming of course, that you can dispense with all of the other problems
I already brought up.
	A much better way to settle the issue would be to perform controlled
double-blind studies according to accepted scientific criteria.  If you
don't see any average difference outcome between patients given a
homeopathic potion and those given plain water and told it's a homeopathic
potion, you can fairly safely write off homeopathic cures to placebo effects
or chance.
	I've never seen such a study, though I'm sure they must have been
done.  I mean, this week's issue of JAMA has a study on the efficacy of
coffee enemas (none over placebo controls), so someone has to have tackled
this one!

		-David Cooke


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>Dave.Kraus@SanDiego.NCR.COM                       |
>(619) 485-2504                                    |
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-- 
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David A. Cooke |First-Year Medical Student| (1) dac@sci.ccny.cuny.edu 
               |  University of Michigan  | (2) David.A.Cooke@um.cc.umich.edu
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