Effects Placebo - Homeopathy

Linde, K. et al.. Are the clinical effects of homeopathy placebo effects A meta-analysis of placebo-controlled trials. Lancet, 350, 834,1997. 

In 1995, Prescrire International, a French journal that evaluates pharmaceutical products, published a review that concluded "As homeopathic treatments are generally used in conditions with variable outcome or showing spontaneous recovery (hence their placebo responsiveness), these treatments are widely considered to have an effect in some patients. However, despite the large number of comparative trials carried out to date there is no evidence that homeopathy is any more effective fhan placebo therapy given in identical conditions." ... 

Other reviewers, while asserting that the clinical effects reported in 89 randomized, controlled trials were greater than expected from placebo, acknowledged that homeopathy has not been proven effective for any single, clinical condition. But even if resulfs could be consistently produced, most of the study of a single remedy for a single disease could prove is that the remedy is effective against that disease. It would not validate homeopathy s basic theories or prove that homeopathic treatment is useful for other diseases. 

Homeopathy is one of the most debated medical methods. Proponents claim that it is effective and—unlike conventional medical methods—has no side effects. Skeptics say that homeopathy is nothing but a placebo, as the substances used in... 

If you ve ever wondered why ice melts under a skate or why meat is red or where the colours of flowers come from, you will wonder no more. No longer will you be at the mercy of advertisers who make questionable claims about noni juice, glucosamine, bottled water, aromatherapy and homeopathy. Confusion about the placebo effect, brown versus white sugar, blood doping, DDT, dioxins and the ozone layer will be seen to evaporate with the infusion of sound science. You will even discover why you don t need hot water to make a hard-boiled egg and why drags and grapefruit juice do not mix. 

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