Homeopathy |
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| Homeopathy was first proposed by Samuel Hahnemann in 1796. A form of alternative medicine, homeopathy is structured upon the principal that an individual can be cured of an ailment by the substances which cause a symptom in a healthy individual. Through a process call serial dilution, homeopathic therapists create special remedies for their sufferers. |
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| Homeopathy is built on the philosophy that diseases and illnesses are disturbances in an individual's "life force" and that these disturbances manifest as specific symptoms. This philosophy goes on to believe that an individual's life force then has the ability to react and adapt to these symptoms. |
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| Homeopathic Remedies, or substances prepared with the intent to treat a homeopathy patient, are strictly organized and structured. These remedies are prepared through vigorous preparation, changing forms several times during the course of their creation. Homeopathy uses elements from animals, plants, minerals, and synthetics in its remedies. Modern homeopaths even consider intangible elements in their remedies, such as electromagnetic energies, sunlight, and x-rays. |
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| These remedies are prepared through a rigorous process known as potentiation or dynamisation. A substance is diluted with alcohol or distilled water. This is then followed by a vigorous shaking or ten hard strikes against an elastic body, a process known as succession. Initially Hahnemann advocated the use of substances which would produce symptoms similar to those being exhibited by the patient. Since heavy doses often times created toxic reactions, Hahnemann began using diluted preparations instead. The process of succession was used by Hahnemann to activate vital energies within the compound he was creating. |
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| Early homeopaths did much to establish modern scientific principal. Early homeopaths like Hahnemann helped to establish the process of scientific trial in the medical world. Homeopathy also furthered the medical procedure of dilution, which is still used in nearly all medications where only a portion of a pill's content is an active medical compound. |
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