Homeopathy "could be blacklisted"

 
Related

Rescued bear, lion and tiger "brothers" refuse to be separated after 15 years together

Puyol Mos
774 points

Human Trials For A Vaccine That Destroys Cancerous Tumors Just Began

Puyol Mos
620 points



Most recent

Operaciones inteligentes con flotas conectadas en el transporte de cadena de frío

Tecnologia
22 points

3 tendencias de pagos que impulsan el éxito en el eCommerce

Tecnologia
28 points

Estos son los riesgos a los que se enfrentan los hogares inteligentes

Ciberseguridad
10 points

Marca mexicana Electrolit, ¿debe o no debe tener rotulado nutricional y frontal de advertencia?

Prensa
64 points

¿Cuándo empezamos a vivir? (Yo mismo)

El diario de Enrique
14 points

Homenaje a la mujer: Vívolo Café celebra un año de pasión por el café con entrada libre

Comunicaciones
12 points

El mundo desarrolla tecnologías de detección y neutralización

Tecnologia
8 points

Miguel Sabido recibre premio de la Agrupación de Periodistas Teatrales.

Benjamin Bernal
12 points

La fuerza martirizante de un objeto que no es uno cualquiera

El diario de Enrique
14 points

Estudio de Ipsos: el populismo en 2024 sacudirá el escenario político mundial

Prensa
8 points
SHARE
TWEET
The controversial practice is based on the principle that "like cures like", but critics say patients are being given useless sugar pills.

Homeopathy "could be blacklisted"

The Faculty of Homeopathy said patients supported the therapy.

A consultation is expected to take place in 2016.
The total NHS bill for homeopathy, including homeopathic hospitals and GP prescriptions, is thought to be about £4m.

Homeopathy is based on the concept that diluting a version of a substance that causes illness has healing properties.

So pollen or grass could be used to create a homeopathic hay-fever remedy.
One part of the substance is mixed with 99 parts of water or alcohol, and this is repeated six times in a "6c" formulation or 30 times in a "30c" formulation.

The end result is combined with a lactose (sugar) tablet.
Homeopaths say the more diluted it is, the greater the effect. Critics say patients are getting nothing but sugar.


Common homeopathic treatments are for asthma, ear infections, hay-fever, depression, stress, anxiety, allergy and arthritis.

But the NHS itself says: "There is no good-quality evidence that homeopathy is effective as a treatment for any health condition."

What do you think about homeopathic treatments? Join our Facebook Q&A on Friday 13th November from 3pm, on the BBC News Facebook page, with the BBC website's health editor, James Gallagher.

The Good Thinking Society has been campaigning for homeopathy to be added to the NHS blacklist - known formally as Schedule 1 - of drugs that cannot be prescribed by GPs.

Drugs can be blacklisted if there are cheaper alternatives or if the medicine is not effective.
After the Good Thinking Society threatened to take their case to the courts, Department of Health legal advisers replied in emails that ministers had "decided to conduct a consultation".
Officials have now confirmed this will take place in 2016.

Debate
Simon Singh, the founder of the Good Thinking Society, said: "Given the finite resources of the NHS, any spending on homeopathy is utterly unjustifiable.
"The money spent on these disproven remedies can be far better spent on treatments that offer real benefits to patients."
But Dr Helen Beaumont, a GP and the president of the Faculty of Homeopathy, said other drugs such as SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) for depression would be a better target for saving money, as homeopathic pills had a "profound effect" on patients.

She told the BBC News website: "Patient choice is important; homeopathy works, it's widely used by doctors in Europe, and patients who are treated by homeopathy are really convinced of its benefits, as am I."

The result of the consultation would affect GP prescribing, but not homeopathic hospitals which account for the bulk of the NHS money spent on homeopathy.
Estimates suggest GP prescriptions account for about £110,000 per year.

And any decision would not affect people buying the treatments over the counter or privately.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt was criticised for supporting a parliamentary motion on homeopathy, but in an interview last year argued "when resources are tight we have to follow the evidence".

Minister for Life Sciences, George Freeman, told the BBC: "With rising health demands, we have a duty to make sure we spend NHS funds on the most effective treatments.

"We are currently considering whether or not homeopathic products should continue to be available through NHS prescriptions.
"We expect to consult on proposals in due course."

Fuente: www.bbc.com
SHARE
TWEET
To comment you must log in with your account or sign up!
Featured content