Homeopathy: Something from “Nothing”? Lynn S. Peck, DVM, M.S. Gainesville, Florida

Things You Already Know

Things You Already Know The existence of one type (of system) does not eliminate the possibility of the existence of another type (of system) Cell signalling Physico-chemical (chemical bonds) Electromagnetic (wavelength; frequency) Quantum???

Vibration/Oscillation and Cell Function “Cells and intracellular elements are capable of vibrating in a dynamic manner with complex harmonics, the frequencies of which can now be measured.” Pienta, KJ and Coffey, DS. Med Hypoth (1991) 34, 88-95 “These vibrations can be altered by growth factors and … carcinogenesis.” Vibration/oscillation required for function: O2 transport in/out of myoglobin Cell membrane phospholipids for protein folding Protein structural vibrations @ enzyme active sites Ca2+ ion oscillation at Purkinje cell membranes causes heartbeat rhythm

DNA: G-C base pairs 3.3 x 10 –12 sec A-T base pairs 2.8 x 10 –12 sec Cellular Vibration DNA: G-C base pairs 3.3 x 10 –12 sec A-T base pairs 2.8 x 10 –12 sec Strand 5 x 10 –11 sec Protein vibration 10 –12 to 1 sec Ion Flux 0.4 to 100 sec From Pienta, KJ and Coffey, DS. Med Hypoth (1991) 34, 88-95

Fourier Analysis of Motility of 2 Fibroblast Cells Pienta, KJ and Coffey, DS. Med Hypoth (1991) 34, 88-95

Cell Signalling Popp (1976) Biophoton emissions from DNA Coherent light (in phase = highly ordered) Different frequencies stimulate different cell functions and different molecules Photon emissions Humans: 10 photons/cm2/sec @ 200-800 nm Plants and simple animals: 100 photons/cm2/sec Repeating pattern cycles at 7, 14, 32, 80, 270 days

Cell Signalling Photon emissions, disease, and health Popp (1976) Biophoton emissions from DNA Photon emissions, disease, and health Cancer patients= loss of coherence, rhythms Multiple Sclerosis = too highly ordered Stress = increased biophoton emissions Health = lowest number of emissions Plant extracts change cancer cell biophoton emissions? Mistletoe

Water

Water A liquid crystal with a pliable lattice matrix Many unique properties 2 gases = liquid at normal temperatures Expands as it freezes; less dense

Water and Dilution HCl or NaOH added to highly dilute solutions* of themselves resulted in a (2 to 40 x) greater heat of dilution than when added to water alone Persisted for weeks Elia and Niccoli, 1999, Ann NY Acad Sci 879:241-248 Adding water to an aqueous solution of NaCl, DNA, cyclodextrin, or other substances caused molecules to form insoluble aggregates (“buckyballs”) 5 to 10 x larger than those in original solution Geckler and Samal, 2001 The more dilute the original solution, the larger the aggregates (laser scattering and SEM) * 10-1 – 10 –12 (1 to 12 CH)

Water: Organizational Properties Coherent domains around charged molecules. Shaking/agitation speeds up this process? Preparata G and Del Guidice E Appears to conduct and amplify a molecule’s signature frequency Benveniste, J Organizes to form pattern imprinted with wave information? Stores and carries [a] frequency so it can be read at a distance? May have role in organizing discordant energy into coherent photons

Jacque Benveniste’s Studies M.D., Allergist, Director of Research: French NIH Discoverer of Platelet Activating Factor Basophils and anti-IgE antibodies Anti-IgE inhibits basophil absorption of dye Serial dilutions of anti-IgE to 1 part in 1060, 10120 still inhibited dye absorption Replicated in 5 labs, 4 countries, 13 scientists, 4 yrs, >300 trials (Nature, 1988) Replicated by challengers in 3 of 4 labs in 4 countries Inflamm Res, 1996, Suppl 1: S33-4 “The results compel me to suspend my disbelief and to start searching for rational explanations for our findings”- M Ennis

Basophil Degranulation After Exposure to Anti-Ig E (log dilutions) Benveniste: Basophil Degranulation After Exposure to Anti-Ig E (log dilutions) Nature, 1988 333(6176) 816-8 1:10 series 1:100 series

Jacque Benveniste’s Studies “…specific information must have been transmitted during the dilution/shaking process. Water could act as a template for the molecule, for example, by an infinite hydrogen bonded network, or electric and magnetic fields…The precise nature of this phenomenon remains unexplained.”

Jacque Benveniste’s Studies “That water transfers specific molecular signals is difficult to accept. However, this may in fact mimic the basic role of water dipoles associated with all biological molecules at a 15,000 to 1 ratio. Once coherently organized like a “laser” by interaction with molecule charges, water would transmit oscillating electromagnetic fields (or any oscillating field) which may be the driving force of molecule-to-molecule signaling.”

Jacque Benveniste’s Studies “Digital Biology” Biochemical reactions based on resonance propagation between molecules vibrating at the same frequency (< 20 Hz) creating a “cascade” of electromagnetic impulses traveling at the speed of light

Jacque Benveniste’s Studies “Digital Biology” 1991 to 2004 (digibio.com) Could record molecular activity on multimedia computer and replay it to a biological system with results similar to giving the physical substance itself: Basophil and neutrophil activation, skin testing, oxygen activity, coagulation FASEB 1995, 1996, 1999 Could send as email attachment and alter coronary blood flow in an isolated perfused guinea pig heart “Identical to effects produced on the heart by the actual substances themselves”

Coagulation Studies

Benveniste: Summary Water (not ethanol, DMSO) required for signal transmission Agitation important Heating or freezing/thawing suppressed activity Dilute solutions were ALL suppressed at 70-80 degrees C Whole molecules reacted to heat acc. to indiv. Sensitivity “…suggests a common mechanism operating at high dilution, independent of the…starting molecule.

Electromagnetic Radiation

Music

Words

Photograph

Samuel Hahnemann, Physician and Chemist Developer of Homeopathy 1755-1843

Homeopathy in Epidemics: Mortality Disease N each Conv’l HP tx Typhus 1813 Germany 180* 30 % <2 %* Cholera 1830-34 Europe ~2000 56 % 10 % Yellow Fever 1850 U.S. ~5,000 44 % 5 % Diphtheria 1879 U.S. 600/400 17 % 6 % Influenza 1918 U.S. (Ohio) 25,000 28 % 1 % From The Logic of Figures, T.L. Bradford, M.D., 1900 and other sources

Homeopathy Is… Scientific medicine A 200 year old system of medicine widely used in England, Germany, France and India today Scientific medicine 200 years’ clinical observations in humans Based on “drug trials” (provings) and clinical results Pioneered use of placebo controls (1880’s) and single blinding (1890’s) Standardized testing procedures

Widely used in England, Germany, France and India today Homeopathy Is… Widely used in England, Germany, France and India today Based on symptoms, not diagnosis Holistic: Treats physical, mental and emotional states Energy-based (Vitalistic): Vital Force: ~ Qi, Innate Intelligence

A complete, separate system of medicine: Homeopathy Is… A complete, separate system of medicine: Language Preparation of medicines Principles for prescribing Understanding of health, disease, and healing

Homeopathy Is Not… A long word for herbal, natural, alternative, complementary, or holistic medicine!

Homeopathy in the United States 1825 – 1st homeopathic physician: Gram 1835 – 1st school of HP: Allentown, PA 1844 – 1st national medical society – AIH 1846 – 1st U.S.- published veterinary HP book 1860 – Humphrey’s Manual of Veterinary Specific Homeopathy published Used by zoos, Ringling Bros, U.S. Cavalry till 1920s 1865 –Life Insurance companies in N.Y., London reduced rates to patients of HP – lower mortality 1869 – AIH admitted female physicians 1870 – Washington HP Medical Society opened membership w/o regard to race

Homeopathy in the United States 1870 – Handbook of Therapeutics 1st ed. By Sidney “Lactated” Ringer, London “The best treatise on therapeutics we possess” 13 U.S. editions – used HP rx: Ipecac, camphor, aconite 1873 - > 1000 U.S. druggists buying HP remedies Domestic “kits” – many used by women for families and townspeople when no M.D. 1892 – 110 hospitals, 62 orphan/elderly asylums, 30 nursing homes, 16 insane asylums 1910 – 22 HP medical schools; 1 in 4-5 MDs use HP WWI – U.S. Army: 1,862 HP physicians as commissioned officers, and > 1,500 nurses in U.S. military hospitals overseas and at home

Prominent People who used HP John D. Rockefeller William Seward Pres. James Garfield Nathaniel Hawthorne Louisa May Alcott Samuel B. Morse Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Harriet Beecher Stowe

“Frozen” Jaw after trauma 1 ½ yr F Golden Retriever 3/99: Lacerated tonsil while chewing stick. Tx: Amoxi. 4/99: Fibrosis: jaw opens < 3 inches Anesthesia: jaw forced open. Prednisone (8mos) 12/99: 8 mos’ treatment: jaw opens ½ inch. No pain or swelling in or around mouth. Began homeopathic treatment. Rads normal. Blood chem. normal/WBC 17,000 (neutr)

“Frozen” Jaw after trauma Minimal response to 2 different remedies given between Dec 99 and Jan 21 ’00 (single dose) 3rd remedy (3 single doses: 2 wks, 10 wks apart) After 3 mos, back in field trials (neck retrieve) After 6 mos, whole body retrieve; Jr. hunter certificate; 1st place in conformation.

Equine Chronic Lameness Horse, 6 month chronic RF lameness, no response to abx, NSAIDs, poultices. Given 1 dose of Silicea Became extremely lame; abscess opened Splinter of painted wood from tack trunk Sound afterwards

Rejecting Puppies 7 yr female Beagle mix 3 previous litters of puppies Each litter: progressively worse mothering Allowed nursing; not aggressive Would walk away if pups crawled on her 4th litter: refused to nurse; milk started drying up. Taken to clinic (day 3-4 postpartum) Tx: Sepia 30C Within 30 minutes started licking, nursing, mothering pups. Good mother from then on.

Stillbirths in Pigs Herd Problem: 130 sows, 20% stillbirths Caulophyllum 30C PO; 2/wk for  3 wks before farrowing Herd treatment: % Stillbirths Previous 20 % 6 mos. Caulophyllum 2.6% 2 mos. untreated 14.9% 2 mos. Caulophyllum 1.9% No. of stillbirths: p=0.018 C. E. I. Day, Vet Record March 3, 1984

Rediscovery: Law of Similars Why is quinine effective against malaria? Hahnemann took Cinchona bark extract (source of quinine used for treating malaria) It produced symptoms similar to those of malaria weakness, bone pain, intermittent fever Symptoms went away when stopped administration Repeatable over many trials/many people Synthetic methloquine has similar effects (PDR)

I. Law of Similars: “Like Cures Like” A medicine which produces certain symptoms in a healthy person can cure a sick person having similar symptoms. Homeopathy: Homeo = similar; pathos = disease, suffering

Symptoms Changes from healthy state Mental/emotional states; cravings Physical functions Sensations Location Time/Season Character Cause Modality: better/worse “Strange, rare, or peculiar”

Symptoms of Disease: Animal History Intake Diarrhea: Yellow liquid at 7 am, or brown liquid stools w/ gas in pm? Thirst and appetite: Small amts frequently; or large amts infrequently? Mentals: Isolates/seeks company? Preferences: Sunny spot or near a/c vent? Warm or cold water? Modalities: What makes it better/worse?

Match patient’s symptoms with most similar remedy ? ? ?

II. Law of Provings Conventional: Test in animals and then give to sick patient HP: Only by giving a single remedy at a time to a healthy person and observing its effects (symptoms) is the action of the remedy known.

Remedies still studied using experimentation and observation in humans Homeopathic Provings Remedies still studied using experimentation and observation in humans Controlled experiment: “proving” Remedy or placebo to (blinded) healthy subjects All symptoms recorded Common and uncommon symptoms ID’d Compiled into Materia Medica Graded by clinical reliability

Clinical Studies of Provings 2 blinded, placebo-controlled studies involving giving a total of 3 different HP remedies to healthy people and evaluating symptoms: 1) 2004: n=21 2 rx, 1 placebo; more symptoms with remedies than placebo Forsch Komplem Klass Natur 11(5) 274-80 2) 2004: n=11 1 rx, 1 placebo; more symptoms (p<0.02) with rx than placebo Homeopathy 93(4) 179-85

Medicinal symptoms (provings) Symptoms of disease Resulting from administered medicine (remedy) Symptoms of disease What patient experiences in unhealthy state

Medicinal Symptoms or Side Effects? Conventional: Single drug can affect many organ systems Side effect Adverse reaction Main effect Secondary effect

Viagra Originally a blood pressure medication (hypertension) Marketable “side effect” now the “main effect” Vet med: treatment for pulmonary hypertension in dogs

Medicinal Symptoms or Side Effects? Ritalin® Mind: Nervousness, insomnia, drowsiness, dizziness, transient depression Head: Headache, scalp hair loss Heart: Arrhythmias, tachycardia, pulse, BP Stomach: Nausea, anorexia Skin: Rash, urticaria, exfoliative dermatitis Extremities: Joint pain Generals: Wt. loss. Worse: Afternoon and evening

Medicinal Symptoms or Side Effects? Homeopathy: Single remedy can affect many organ systems Urinary Eyes Resp. Effects or Symptoms Skin

III. Law of the Single Remedy Every medicine can create symptoms. Multiple medicines create…confusion! Classical homeopathy: one remedy at a time.

Combos: “effective” for many conditions Combination Remedies Combos: “effective” for many conditions Improvement may stall/be temporary No provings of combinations Change symptom picture?

Homeopathic Remedies

Homeopathic Remedies Included in Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938 Licensed homeopathic pharmacies Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States (HPUS) Over 2,000 remedies proven

Homeopathic Remedies Plant, animal, or mineral derived Rhus tox, Sepia, Silicea Poisons, venom, etc most powerful medicinal effects Unique method gives unique properties Tincture serial dilution/succussion spray onto milk sugar pill base

Serial dilution… “Mother tincture” 1 2 1 in 10 1 in 10 (X) (X) (C) (C) 1 in 1001000 1 in 1001000 (M) (M) 1 2 Extract in ethanol and water

Letter (Roman Numeral): X, C, M = size of dilution step Serial dilution… Letter (Roman Numeral): X, C, M = size of dilution step Number: 1, 3, 6, 10, 30, 200, etc = number of dilutions in the series Potency: 6X, 6C, 30C, 200C, 1M, etc

C = 100 1 in 100 dilution 10-2 6X #6 1 in 10 dilutions 10-6 Serial dilution… X = 10 1 in 10 dilution 10-1 C = 100 1 in 100 dilution 10-2 6X #6 1 in 10 dilutions 10-6 6C #6 1 in 100 dilutions 10-12 Penicillin: 1 in 100,000,000 BMJ 1943(ii)654 Acetylcholine: 1mg/2,000,000 L Science, 72 (1930); 526

Serial dilution… 12C #12 1 in 100 dilutions 10-24 30C #30 1 in 100 dilutions 10-60 200C #200 1 in 100 dilutions 10-400 Avogadro’s number ~ 1023 (6.0253 x 1023)

Serial dilution and Succussion 100

For each dilution step, there is a potentizing (succussion) step.* 12C #12 potentizing steps 30C #30 potentizing steps 200C #200 potentizing steps * Done by hand or by machine

NMR Studies Nux vomica 30C, 200C, 1000C (10-2000) Ethanol: 90%; 30C; 30C unagitated Differences in T1 relaxation times (p<0.001; 3 replicates) Br. HP J (2000) 89:73-77

Research in Ultra-High Potencies Dielectric index of water altered by adding NaCl 27C Gay, 1951, 1952 Caltech study (2000): H2O molecules form stable clusters; unique conformation when add any substance

Ultrahigh dilutions/ Microdoses 61X (10-61) Mercuric Chloride Solutions --Increased rate of starch hydrolysis (500 trials) Pharm. Journal, Sept 11, 1954 12X-200M (10-12- 10-40,000) Sulphur Solutions --Affected wt, dimensions, mineral content of onion plants 1400X (10-1400) NaCl in dH2O (two 6 mo. trials) -- Given daily to guinea pigs: affected appetite, wt, coat, decreased birth wts; higher death rate. J Am Inst Hom, 18(1925), 433-44; 790-792 Arndt-Schultz Law: Tiny concentrations stimulate; high concentrations kill.

The Arndt-Schultz Law

Basophil Degranulation After Exposure to Anti-Ig E (log dilutions) Benveniste: Basophil Degranulation After Exposure to Anti-Ig E (log dilutions) Nature, 1988 333(6176) 816-8 1:10 series 1:100 series

How does homeopathy work?

“I think you should be more explicit here in step 2.” Then a miracle occurs…

Hahnemann The Remedies Potentization ‘brings out the true essence of the substance, refining and amplifying its healing effects’ Hahnemann

High: 1M, 10M Young; or acute injury The Vital Force The potency (energetic strength) of a remedy is matched to the strength of patient’s vital force (vitality): Potency Patient Low: 6X-200X; 6C, 12C Old/weak Medium: 30C to 200C Moderate High: 1M, 10M Young; or acute injury

Energetic basis of life, health, disease The Vital Force Energetic basis of life, health, disease ~ Qi; Innate Intelligence Responsible for immune function, growth, maintenance, repair Disease begins on energetic level

The Vital Force Vital force produces symptoms: Indication of imbalance/disturbance/damage Physical Emotional Mental

Symptoms and the Vital Force Deeper level symptoms = deeper imbalance Indicate health (vigor) of Vital Force Indicate imbalances in Vital Force Guides to what the Vital Force needs Law of Similars

The Vital Force Energetically based remedies stimulate the Vital Force to act on energetically based disease.

The Vital Force Assess response: Patient’s symptoms change: --Improvement in overall well-being --Improvement may be rapid, gradual, or accompanied by temporary stirring up of symptoms (aggravation)

Aggravations Thompson et al, Homeopathy 2004 93(4):302-9 Audit of remedy reactions, Bristol HP Hospital (n=116 patients) --24% experienced an aggravation --27% experienced new symptoms --18% had a return of old symptoms -- appeared to have better outcome

Clinical Research Positive and negative studies Recent papers: Positive results for Fibromyalgia (n=53) Bell et al; Fibromyalgia Mild viral infections (n=485): 67.9 v 47.9% asymptomatic (Rabe et al; Int J ClinPract 2004 58(9):827-32 Septic and intubated patients in critical care 2 RCT Wien  Med Wochenschr. 2005 Nov;155(21-22):491-7. Chronic disease (n=3,981) 2 yr study(allergic rhinitis, migraine, atopic dermatitis; 8.8 yrs ave duration) Patient assessments of disease severity significantly decreased from 6.2 in adults (6.1 in children) at baseline to 2.2 (2.2 in children) after 24 months. Witt CM, Ludtke R, et al, BMC Public Health, 2005; 5: 115.

Meta-analysis: 107 controlled trials Clinical Research Meta-analysis: 107 controlled trials 81 showed positive results 22 trials with best methodology 15 had positive results 7 no positive result could be detected Kleijnen et al; BMJ, Feb 9, 1991

Summary Homeopathy is a system of medicine that uses energetically potentized medicines to stimulate a healing response by the Vital Force. The action of a medicine is known by giving it to healthy individuals and recording its effects (proving). A single remedy is matched to the patient’s symptom picture on the basis of the provings. The response is evaluated by the changes in the symptoms and the patient’s overall well-being.

“The highest ideal of cure is rapid, gentle, and permanent restoration of the health, or the removal and annihilation of the disease in its whole extent, in the shortest, most reliable, and most harmless way, using easily understood principles.” -- Samuel Hahnemann