Homeopathic medicine is complement to western medicine, not replacement

Zenitha Varghese

Friday,  March 4, 2005

As the second most widely used medical system in the world, homeopathy offers a more natural, gentle approach to treating the whole body according to practitioner Zenitha Varghese.

“Homeopathy complements mainstream western medicine, it doesn’t replace it,” said Ms Varghese. “It is a natural type of therapy that is safe to take for everyone including children. And there are no side effects.

“It is an excellent way to treat allergies, sinus problems, depression, anxiety attacks, sleeplessness, and addictive behaviours like smoking. The quit smoking programme in particular, has had a high success rate. Patients don’t have withdrawal symptoms, and it addresses both psychological and physical craving for cigarettes.”

Homeopathy was developed in Germany and has been around for 200 years. It is based on a medical system that helps to stimulate the body to heal itself. This approach differs from conventional medicine, which emphasizes treatment of symptoms. For example: instead of drying up the runny nose with antihistamines, a homeopath uses a treatment that stimulates the body to clear up the runny nose naturally. 

In other words, homeopathy treats the problem from its roots, not just the symptoms.

Similar principles form the basis of conventional allergy treatment, where the allergic substance is given in a small dose, and in vaccines where an impotent form of the virus is given to bolster the immune system against that particular virus.

And because the medicine is natural and gentle, it is ideal for children. Homeopathy has been effective in treating children’s ailments including fever, vomiting, diarrhea, dysentery, colic, tonsillitis, bronchitis, asthma, measles, chickenpox mumps. 

Homeopathic pills do not hamper digestion, lower resistance or cause allergies and because homeopathic pills are sweet, children willingly take their medication. It also is effective in treating behavioral problems such as irritability, phobias, thumb sucking, nail biting and bed-wetting. 

Three guiding principles formulate the basis of homeopathic treatment. The first principle being, ‘like cures like.’ 

For instance, if the symptoms of a cold were similar to mercury poisoning, then mercury would be your homeopathic remedy. 

Secondly, is minimal dosage, meaning the homeopathic remedy is taken in a diluted form - normally one part of the remedy to around 1,000,000,000,000 parts of water. 

And lastly, a single remedy is given, no matter how many symptoms are experienced by the patient.

To get the best results and full benefits from homeopathy, it is important the patient should seek treatment as early in the illness as possible. Because of lack of general knowledge about homeopathy, many patients seek treatment too late. By this time the disease has advanced too far for the treatment to be effective.

Most of Ms Varghese’s patients here in the Cayman islands are Canadians and British who are familiar with the results of homeopathic treatment, but her practice is building as other people hear about the benefits of homeopathy. 

Ms Varghese is a registered homeopathic practitioner in Canada and has been practicing homeopathy in the Cayman Islands for three and a half years.

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