Sue Young Homeopathy

Homeopathy treatment for AIDS under attack in UK 17 Nov 2007, 0223 hrs IST, Kounteya Sinha, TNN

NEW DELHI: One of India’s favourite forms of treatment — the 250-year-old system of homeopathy, has once again come under attack from British doctors. The highly respected medical journal The Lancet has also slammed the growing popularity of homeopathy in India.
The fresh protests were sparked by a proposed seminar on homeopathy’s role in the treatment of HIV/AIDS which the European Society of Homeopaths is organising in UK on December 1.

Michael Baum, professor emeritus of surgery at the University College London, severely criticized the claim and said, “People say homeopathy can’t do any harm but when it is being promoted for HIV, then there is a serious problem.”

Baum and others had sent a letter last May to all primary care trusts in Britain to voice concern about homeopathy treatment through the National Health Service. In response, some trusts also stopped NHS funding to centres using homeopathy.

Baum had written, “It is an implausible treatment for which over a dozen systematic reviews have failed to produce convincing evidence of effectiveness. Several studies have shown that the clinical effects of homeopathic remedies are placebo effects.”

India, which has been using homeopathy to improve the quality of life of HIV patients, is getting ready to hit back at the report. “We are preparing a strong reply. We can’t keep impressing on people about homeopathy’s benefits.

In our studies in Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai, we have found that homeopathy greatly helps HIV patients by improving their nutrition, lowering their anxiety and improving their health.

Just because homeopathy is a cheaper alternative to several surgical procedures, surgeons and pharma companies in UK are worried it might cut into their bread and butter,” said Dr S P Singh, India’s advisor on homeopathy.

Dr N K Ganguly, DG (ICMR), also recently said a homoeopathic medicine was found to be effective against HIV/AIDS during screening at National AIDS Research Institute, Pune. “The homeopathy compound screened in vitro at NARI against HIV has been found to effectively kill the virus,” Ganguly said.

The new attack comes at a time when over 100 million Indians depend solely on this form of therapy. Even in UK, homoeopathy’s 2007 market has been estimated to be worth 38 million pounds and is expected to rise to 46 million pounds in 2012.

Union health minister A Ramadoss said, “Homeopathy has very good treatment effect for certain diseases which are not amenable to treatment by conventional medicine. It is effective, safe, affordable and simple to administer. It is also cost effective.

India has hundreds of proved studies confirming that homeopathy works.”

A recent survey in seven Indian cities revealed that 48% people believed that homeopathy was safe. In Delhi, 55% of people considered homeopathy as a preferred choice of treatment.