Homeopathy ‘not a cure’ for dengue

[webfact]

Homeopathy ‘not a cure’ for dengue

By The Nation

 

A Thai health officer sprays chemicals to kill mosquitoes at a residence inside a military camp in Bangkok, Thailand, 17 June 2019. // EPA-EFE PHOTO

 

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE DEPARTMENT BACKS DOWN ON CLAIM AMID CRITICISM

 

THE DEPARTMENT of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine has backtracked from its claim that its homeopathic formula is highly effective for dengue-fever protection. 

 

“It’s just a supplementary measure that needs further research,” Dr Sun-pong Ritthiruksa said yesterday in his capacity as the chair of the department’s centre for herbal medicine, Thai traditional medicine, folk medicine and alternative medicine. 

 

He spoke up after several prominent figures, including Chulalongkorn University’s lecturer Jessada Denduangboripant, raised questions about the claim. 

 

Sunpong himself said last Friday that a homeopathic formula made from eupatorium perfoliatum 200C had been proved effective in preventing dengue fever. His agency is now handing out it for free. 

 

“It’s 89.9 per cent effective,” Sunpong said last Friday, just a day ahead of Asean Dengue Day, as he cited findings from a journal. 

 

Jessada then quickly argued that homeopathy was pseudoscience, something that the Public Health Ministry should not promote. 

 

“The promotion can be dangerous,” he warned. 

 

Dengue fever has hit more than 28,000 people in Thailand so far this year – up by 1.7 times from the same period a year earlier. Of them, 43 died. 

 

Sunpong said he sought to support the use of homeopathy as a supplementary measure for protection against dengue fever. 

 

He reiterated that to prevent dengue-fever infections, people still needed to focus on measures such as changing the water in flower vases weekly, keeping their home tidy, eliminating mosquito-breeding grounds and covering water containers. 

 

Mosquitoes are the main carriers of dengue fever. 

 

“I am worried that people may misunderstand what I said earlier,” Sunpong said. 

 

He then clarified that eupatorium perfoliatum 200C was not for treating dengue fever. 

 

“If patients develop symptoms that can be associated with dengue fever, [they should] go see a doctor to get treatment based on modern medicine,” he said. 

 

Jessada said he had looked into several studies previously associated with the department and saw multiple flaws.

 

According to him, the efficacy rate cited for vaccines against dengue fever is not as high as the rate found by the department’s research, hinting at the possibility that the cited efficacy rate for eupatorium perfoliatum 200C might have been exaggerated.

 

Jessada explained that while eupatorium perfoliatum could reduce fever and boost the immune system, there was no clear proof that it could treat or prevent dengue fever. 

 

According to the Disease Control Department, the main factors associated with fatal cases of dengue fever are living in communities hosting a large number of mosquito larvae, buying medicine for self-treatment, delays in seeking treatments from doctors, and having underlying illnesses such as obesity, diabetes and asthma. 

 

Statistics compiled by the Disease Control Department show the number of dengue-fever patients this year is far higher than the number five years ago.

 

As of June 11 this year, dengue fever hit 28,785 people in Thailand. During the same period in 2014, the number stood at 10,670. The figures from the same period from 2015 to 2018 were at 24,248, 19,029, 13,961m and 17,302 respectively.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30371263

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-06-18

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[RichardColeman]

10 minutes ago, webfact said:

THE DEPARTMENT of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine has backtracked from its claim that its homeopathic formula is highly effective for dengue-fever protection. 

 

But have approved a new anti-Dengue Amulet that can be yours for the small sum of 50,000 baht plus postage

[Tayaout]

I use a radioactive plastic card for that. Might die of cancer but need to weight risk rewards... 

[dinsdale]

Not a cure for anything. Just a giant rip off.

[geoffbezoz]

3 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

 

But have approved a new anti-Dengue Amulet that can be yours for the small sum of 50,000 baht plus postage

Might be sold out soon due to centuries of demand

 

https://faculty.georgetown.edu/jod/apuleius/renberg/MEDICALAMULETS.HTML   ????????????

[Emdog]

Homeopathic "medicines" don't cure anything. If "alternative medicines" work they become "regular medicine"

[Kasane]

One can try this alternate medicine to alter one's life completely.

[Pedrogaz]

There is no cure for dengue.What you get is supportive care while your immune system fights the infection. Homopathy is as good as anything else ie neutral. 

[CGW]

2 hours ago, Emdog said:

Homeopathic "medicines" don't cure anything. If "alternative medicines" work they become "regular medicine"

Only when there is money to be made! - otherwise they are ignored and the Big Pharma marketing machine labels them as useless or dangerous!

[londonthai]

they have missed juice from leaves of fruit bearing papaya. To be taken up to 15ml 3x daily. Because very bitter mix with water, sugar or honey

http://www.bmj.com/content/351/bmj.h4661/rr-4

 

this remedy is known only in some places in thailand, but wildly used on neighbouring countries and africa

[Myran]

There's a Thai department claiming that homeopathy actually works in any way, shape or form? Wow, I'm at a loss for words. People who believe in homeopathy are right up there with anti-vaxxers.

[CGW]

9 minutes ago, Myran said:

There's a Thai department claiming that homeopathy actually works in any way, shape or form? Wow, I'm at a loss for words. People who believe in homeopathy are right up there with anti-vaxxers.

Quite right! to believe that mother nature has the ability and resources to heal is a ridiculous assumption & off course sticking as many obnoxious chemicals in our bodies as possible can only increase our health - & the wealth of Big Pharma ???? 

Edited June 18, 2019 by CGW

[justin case]

3 hours ago, Emdog said:

Homeopathic "medicines" don't cure anything. If "alternative medicines" work they become "regular medicine"

if something works in nature, big pharma takes a look, changes one molecule and increase the price between 100 and 10.000 times... for their patented molecule

 

they really tried recently to patent CURCUMIN but India objected as it is only used for the last 5000 years...

[faraday]

 Effects of Homeopathic Eupatorium perfoliatum 200C for Prevention of Dengue Feverat Community Hospital and District Health Promotion Hospital : Retrospective Cohort Study

 

https://www.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/muhed/article/view/187937

Edited June 18, 2019 by faraday

[CGW]

1 minute ago, faraday said:

https://www.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/muhed/article/view/187937

One would expect that if people read articles like this with an open mind that there are many alternatives to paying for drugs to the usual culprits, but then the vast BF marketing machine kicks in, pay off a few "scientists" threaten to withdraw advertising from newspapers................ and the sheeple shall believe ???? 

[Myran]

15 minutes ago, CGW said:

Quite right! to believe that mother nature has the ability and resources to heal is a ridiculous assumption & off course sticking as many obnoxious chemicals in our bodies as possible can only increase our health - & the wealth of Big Pharma ???? 

Oh, look we found one in the wild ????

 

And of course you start out by putting words in my mouth. I've never claimed that there aren't natural cures, so please don't pull this insanely dishonest and downright ridiculous move. What makes homeopathy laughable isn't that it's supposedly natural, it's the fantasy that diluting something makes it stronger, which of course has no connection to reality. Homeopathic "medicines" are water – that's it, just water. And while water is good for you, it doesn't cure diseases.

 

But do continue to rant about how people who believe scientific consensus are "sheeple" compared to the ones who choose to believe the one or two laughable reports who support whatever pseudo-scientific nonsense it's hip to believe in this week.

[jsmythbkk]

Read up on '' Avagadro's limit '' to check the efficacy of Homeopathy. James Randi does a brilliant take off of homeopathy on you tube.

 

[overherebc]

8 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

 

But have approved a new anti-Dengue Amulet that can be yours for the small sum of 50,000 baht plus postage

????

[khunPer]

5 hours ago, dinsdale said:

Not a cure for anything. Just a giant rip off.

Rip off...????

9 hours ago, webfact said:

His agency is now handing out it for free.

 

[khunPer]

5 hours ago, Emdog said:

Homeopathic "medicines" don't cure anything. If "alternative medicines" work they become "regular medicine"

That's the definition used to prove that alternative medicine never works, however many working medicine is based on was once "alternative"...????

[manchega]

No homeopathy is not a cure

 

however, shrines and talisman/amulets are

 

I have amulet dengue fever protection +5 if any one is interested

 

and I have 6 pointed shrines with comedy animal figures for extra karma sutra points

 

any takers?

[Guitar God]

Homeopathy drugs work against Dengue fever, they’re just using way too much of it...

[ThaiBunny]

Homeopathy is based on the same theory as "organic" foods. Each believes without a skerrick of evidence that undetectable trace elements make a real and substantial difference. In the "organic" food craze it's chemical fertilizer

[connda]

Considering that there is no cure, and considering that Thai doctors don't do squat to alleviate the pain and symptoms (I've had it, I know), then homeopathic is as good as anything the medical community is going to offer you - which is nothing but maybe a Tylenol. 

[Chazar]

Homeothapy.......not  a  cure for anything especially stupidity.

[GroveHillWanderer]

6 hours ago, CGW said:

Quite right! to believe that mother nature has the ability and resources to heal is a ridiculous assumption & off course sticking as many obnoxious chemicals in our bodies as possible can only increase our health - & the wealth of Big Pharma ???? 

I think you're getting confused between natural (often herbal) remedies and homeopathy. I don't think any reputable doctor or scientist rules out the use of herbs or natural substances that have actual, provable beneficial effects. One of the most effective and widely used medicines in the world, aspirin, was derived originally from the willow tree.

 

Homeopathy on the other hand, claims that taking absolutely microscopic amounts of substances, diluted in water sometimes to the extent that no amount of testing can detect any trace whatsoever of the original substances used, can cure diseases. The principles of homeopathy are that the smaller the amount of the supposedly active ingredient present, the more effective it is. Heck, some alleged homeopathic remedies are produced by simply waving a tiny amount of the supposedly effective substance over the top of a container of water, without even coming into contact with it.

 

Herbal remedies and homeopathy are two completely different things.

[DrTuner]

Homeopathy = Assorted scams, of which one in a million might work on a lucky day. On par with tv shopping and other misc crap.

[CGW]

16 minutes ago, GroveHillWanderer said:

Herbal remedies and homeopathy are two completely different things.

Yes & no - they are both forms of Holistic healing, or "complementary medical therapies" as Big Pharma refers to them when they can no longer deny they are the only ones with "cures"

Have you tried it? - I haven't - but remain open minded. At one time I was closed to it & the theory is indeed a little odd, then I read about it and it was further explained to me in some detail by someone I was working with who had a wife with a very successful practice in the UK. In the right circumstances and with a good practitioner I believe it has a place, more so than treating symptoms while ignoring the cause that the $ driven modern medical industry does.

The basics of Homoeopathy is that the body can heal itself, we all know it can, though with the amount of drugs and vaccines and crap that people eat these days its obviously going to struggle, most prefer to take the "miracle" drug that cures all ????  

???? ????????

[lujanit]

Homeopathy is utter crap.  The fact that thais have a department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine that promotes this garbage says a lot about thais superstition and beliefs.  Like those radioactive healing cards which are also utter garbage.  Don't get me started on high rise condos for ghosts.  Lack of education is the real reason this garbage even exists.

[CGW]

3 minutes ago, lujanit said:

Homeopathy is utter crap.

You argue your case very well with some sound reasoning, though the 200 million people that use it may need a little more persuasion.

It is part of the national health systems in quite a few countries including Switzerland, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Pakistan, have they all been fooled?