This book traces the genesis, principles and practice of homeopathy, and discusses the reasons for its enduring popularity. Two hundred years ago, medicine had little to offer except blood letting and the administration of violent purgatives - practices which shortened the course of illness by hastening the death of the patient. Largely in reaction to what he correctly saw as the brutality and ineffectiveness of the medicine of his day, the eighteenth century German physician Samuel Hahnemann developed a system of therapeutics that he termed homeopathy. Ironically, while modern medicine has changed beyond recognition, homeopathy, with its roots in alchemy and metaphysics, continues to be practiced precisely as it was in Hahnemann's day. Readers of this book will enjoy the story of homeopathy and its almost magical attraction, whilst learning much from the authors' rational and scientific discussion of the biological, chemical and psychological questions that this treatment raises.
"It properly defines homeopathy (and notes how widely its definition can be stretched), narrates the story of its eccentric but brilliant founder Christian Hahnemann, runs through the scientific arguments for and against Hahnemann's ideas and, as if that is not enough, it provides a comprehensive lexicon which will become the classic first-choice reference on the subject." (Nick Ross, healthwatch.uk.org, Issue 104, February, 2017)
"For doctors, scientists, educated laymen, and for anyone seeking a more complete story, Ernst's book is unbeatable. It should be the last word on homeopathy." (Harriet Hall, Science-Based Medicine, sciencebasedmedicine.org, November, 2016)
"For doctors, scientists, educated laymen, and for anyone seeking a more complete story, Ernst's book is unbeatable. It should be the last word on homeopathy." (Harriet Hall, Science-Based Medicine, sciencebasedmedicine.org, November, 2016)