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OZ CRACKDOWN ON ALTERNATIVE MEDICINES 
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Alternative medicine crackdown
Julia Medew March 14, 2012


Homeopaths are facing a fight to defend their practice in Australia after the National Health and Medical Research Council flagged it might declare their work baseless and unethical.

A draft public statement seen by The Age concluded it was ''unethical for health practitioners to treat patients using homeopathy, for the reason that homeopathy (as a medicine or procedure) has been shown not to be efficacious''.

The confidential statement, which was not meant to be distributed, is based on a 2010 evaluation of homeopathy by the British House of Commons science and technology committee, which declared it was no more efficacious than a placebo.
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Homeopathy is based on the principles of ''like-cures-like'' and ''ultra-dilutions''. The first says substances that can cause symptoms can be used in diluted form to treat the same symptom in an illness, and the second says the more dilute a substance is, the more potent it is.

While homeopathy continues to enjoy the support of Britain's royal family and is funded through the UK's National Health Service, the House of Commons report found its principles were ''theoretically weak'' and ''scientifically implausible''.

The draft statement by Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council said that although homeopathy was not harmful in its own right, it might pose a risk to patients if safe and efficacious conventional treatments were delayed in favour of homeopathic treatments.

It said homeopathy, which uses a large range of animal, plant and mineral products, should not be confused with herbal remedies.

A council spokesman would not comment on the draft, but said it was reviewing the efficacy of complementary and alternative medicines, including homeopathy, and would release its findings in due course.

Australian Medical Association president Steve Hambleton backed the council's draft statement. He said he hoped it would force health insurers to reconsider their funding of homeopathy, as well as other ''questionable'' therapies such as iridology and reflexology.

''I think it will put them in a very difficult situation … If the NHMRC looks at the evidence and says this doesn't work, we can't support it, you'd have to ask the insurers if they will continue to fund something that a very reputable body disagrees with,'' he said.

The Australian Association of Professional Homeopaths Inc says 47 health insurers, including Medibank Private and NIB, cover homeopathic consultations and medicines.

Australian Homeopathic Association president Greg Cope said there was strong evidence to support the practice, including clinical trials that were now being submitted to the NHMRC for consideration.

He said there were about 700 registered homeopaths in Australia under a self-governed registration model, and they worked to a code of conduct. Consultations typically cost $50 to $100, with medicines usually costing a further $10.

Mr Cope said he had been lobbying Canberra to set up a formal registration scheme, similar to those for doctors and nurses. He said health insurers were wise to fund homeopathy, which was used by thousands of Australians. ''It's a very popular therapy and I imagine it would reduce their expenses because it attracts people using low-cost healthcare,'' he said.

Writing in the Journal of Law and Medicine this week, Melbourne barrister Ian Freckleton, SC, said several recent deaths involving homeopaths highlighted the dangers involved when they steered people away from conventional medicine.

Dr Freckleton cited the case of Perth woman Penelope Dingle, who died from bowel cancer in 2005 after spending about $30,000 on unsuccessful homeopathic treatments, including extracts from the venus flytrap plant.

He also cited the death in 2009 of Gloria Thomas, age nine months, after her parents favoured homeopathy over conventional medicine for severe eczema.

Dr Freckleton said although many aspects of Western medicine had not been able to stand up to full scientific analysis of their underpinnings over time, there was an ''urgent need'' for the health sector, consumer protection authorities and policymakers to protect the community from dangerous homeopathic practices.

He said homeopaths had used crushed-up pieces of the Berlin Wall to treat depression.

And in the latest edition of the journal Spectrum of Homeopathy, the authors detailed the use of wolf's milk for eczema and bulimia, cheetah's blood for multiple sclerosis and tiger's blood for depression. ''It's quite remarkable,'' he said.

jmedew@theage.com.au

http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politi ... 1uyiw.html

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Wed Mar 14, 2012 10:19 pm
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Post Re: OZ CRACKDOWN ON ALTERNATIVE MEDICINES
Governments don't crack down on rogue traders who go into little old ladies houses and plumb in a kitchen sinks all hazardously wrong and then charge an arm and a leg for it and just allow these bloody thieves to go from one house to another or changing business names so they can carry on.

But the alternative practitioner, you better watch out! It makes me so angry my degree was a load of shit - learnt nothing of any value to anyone. Alternative courses that I have taken have been more professional, in depth whilsst ingraining a deep sense of responsibility towards a client. Whilst GP's get away with pushing pharmaceuticals instead of actually treating anyone and causing much clinical iatrogenesis.

Lobelia has recently been outlawed in UK - herbalists can no longer use this - a couple of drops of this on the lips when someone is having a violent seizure will relax the muscles and stop the teeth from shattering. Is a great muscle smooth muscle relaxant. Works too well, obviously.

First we have religion to persecute witches and take away herb lore and now we have royal college of physicians.


Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:40 pm
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Lobelia is outlawed? I didn't know it had those properties.

My brother is a Podiatrist. He left his practice because he got fed up. He was very caring of his patients.

One thing he recommended for infections fungus etc, was apple cider vinegar. Soak with hot water.

My recent visit to my Chiropractor led to a very interesting conversation. We got very political. He was very honest. He spoke about friends in law enforcement and what's coming. We spoke about Ron Paul. He spoke about Medicare restrictions effecting many Doctors and how the government can declare a patient's condition may not require medical care and said Doctor will then be "audited" and required to pay back huge fines. Many of his fellow Doctors are closing their offices.

He said he is seriously considering closing his practice and regrets he may be unable to treat his patients.
BTW, he plants a veggie garden around the perimeter of his parking lot. I would HATE to see him go.

:cry:

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Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:39 pm
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I'm not too au fait with the healthcare system in the states. I can only speak of the healthcare in the UK - NHS is great in terms of A&E and providing basic healthcare but GP's in UK are awful and only want to dispense pharma products - they are under absolutely no jurisdiction really to provide a good service. You go to a private doc that costs huge amounts of cash but if you are lucky enough to have a job that provides private doc then you get the best service possible - all those fringe theories that you read of on the internet that pertain to a given condition, private docs know all about them and do not regard them as fringe.

So, I do not mean to tar all GPs with that brush and forget, as you point out, there are those docs that are prevented from providing a good service due to other restrictions such as medicare.

The most annoying thing about it all is the inertia and lack of solidarity. If we all stood shoulder to shoulder so many things could be rectified.


Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:00 am
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Agreed NG. But, things are coming to a head. Many are frustrated and angry. I've had no health insurance for a few years, can't afford it. Lucky to have a job. My chiropractor charges me a minimal amount that I pay out of pocket. Most are true Alt healers that care.

I have some friends who are well covered and some like me with no coverage. What a mess.

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Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:07 am
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Post Re: OZ CRACKDOWN ON ALTERNATIVE MEDICINES
Perhaps the US are are more likely to stand shoulder to shoulder eventually, if pushed even further. UK - no way! Grrr


Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:12 am
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Post Re: OZ CRACKDOWN ON ALTERNATIVE MEDICINES
You know, I have contact with people every day. More and more I am hearing truth, frustration.......people are not so dumb as some may think. I had a great conversation yesterday with a woman about tolerance. The older folks are very wise and not dumb at all.
They will openly speak of politics and the sad state of affairs. I love talking with them, gives me hope.

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Sun Apr 08, 2012 12:19 am
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