Question:
Other than it impact on people's wallets, homeopathic remedies aregenerally harmless, and may even have some phychologically positiveeffect.It's facinating to see how quickly people "react" against well knownpsychosomatic effects. Notably when you consider that for many medicalproblems, they are both more effective and less dangerous than "traditional"treatments. For instance in back pain and minor high blood pressure,psychosomatic treatments are the preferred method of treatment.

Answer: I agree with you to this point totally, except for your suggesting that Iam reacting against the value psychological therapy, which is quite effectivein many instances. My reaction, if you can term it that (I would use theterm objection), it to the misrepresentation of psychological therapy asphysical therapy, as is done in many of the alternative therapies. Thisleads to fraud, and fraud is, as most people know, rampant in the fieldof homeopathy and alternative medicine in general.

I am well aware of the healing power of the spoken work, the gentle healingtouch, and positive suggestion, just as are physicians. Still, when thesetechniques are represented as a miraculous physical treatment ratherthan what they are, the door leading to lies, dishonesty, corruption,and fraud swing wide open.

: Yet by belittling them you are reducing their effectiveness in the large.: This means that your words are, yes really, making more people worse off.: I'm sure they're very happy to have you "looking out for them".

Sorry, but I strongly disagree. What you are stating is a positionthat suggests ignorance is beneficial. I have never in my lifetimeseen ignorance beneficial to anyone! Have you?

Are you comforted by visiting practitioners of voodoo medicine havingno scientific credibility whatsoever, except for it's comfortingpsychological component. Would you advise a woman of 38 with a lumpin her breast positively diagnosed as malignant to visit a homeopathicphysician or a surgeon/chemotherapy/radiology team at a hospital recognizedfor its success rate?

Having been raised in New Jersey and educated in Philadelphia, I amwell aware of the tragic toll perpetrated in that region my alternativehealth facilities, including a well known facility in Philadelphiabeginning with the letter H and named for homeopathy's founder. The price for this charade has been to now thousands if not tensof thousands of needless, premature deaths -- of those treatedusing homeopathy and alternative therapies when they should havereceived legitimate, recognized medical services.

Frankly, I believe that the limited positive benefits that homeopathyand other alternatives to medicine provide is greatly outweighed bythe harm and needless infirmity and death that they cause. In fact,I condider that fact that U.S. Laws ever permit them to exist andbe practiced in our country to be a National disgrace!

If you would like less subtle and stronger statement of my viewpoints,I would be pleased to post it.