What is Homeopathy?
Homeopathy is a form of medicine used to treat both acute and chronic conditions. It is based on the principle of “like cures like”. In other words, a substance taken in small amounts will cure the same symptoms it causes if it were taken in large amounts. The Homeopathic medicines themselves all come from natural sources and are mostly taken from the plant, mineral and animal kingdoms.
Homeopathic medicine is holistic in that each person is treated as unique and their body, mind, and emotions are all considered when treating each individual. All these factors are considered when choosing which is the most appropriate medicine for each person.
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Homeopathic medicines are safe to take at all ages and rarely cause serious side effects. Babies, children, pregnant women and the elderly can all take these medicines safely.
History of Homeopathy
The principle of like curing like is not a new one and dates back to the ancient physician, Hippocrates in 460 BC, who also said that symptoms specific to an individual should be taken into account before making a diagnosis. In Homeopathy an individual’s unique symptoms are important in choosing the correct medicine.
The homeopathic principle was not to re-emerge until a German physician, Samuel Hahnemann came to devise the system of medicine which today we know as Homeopathy.
Hahnemann trained in medicine and chemistry but working in the late 18th century he was disillusioned and dissatisfied with the conventional medical practices of his day which included dangerous blood letting, purging and the use of toxic medicines such as arsenic and mercury.
By investigating the effects of various medicinal substances on himself and other healthy volunteers he discovered that an illness could be treated with a very small amount of a substance that in larger amounts could cause the symptoms of that illness.
To avoid the harmful effects of these medicines he diluted each substance to the greatest dilution which would still produce an effect. This led him to observe and describe the basic principles of Homeopathy.
