Jan
22
Homoeopathy sceptics plan mass ‘overdose’
January 22, 2010 | Leave a Comment
300 people are going to take a whole bottle of homeopathic pills next week in the UK to prove that there is nothing in them except sugar. The protest is due to take place at 10.23am on Saturday 30 January. It is organized by the “10.23 Group”, who take their name from Avogadro’s constant, which they claim proves that homeopathy cannot work.
SO what is it with homeopathy, placebo effect, certainly as there is nothing in the pills. Placebo effect is very interesting, what triggers the brain to respond to belief? If someone gets relief from taking sugar pills, why knock it?
It comes down to the power of belief, positive thinking, which is getting a whole lot of knocking lately as it is sold by people like Oprah Winfrey as it is bordering on delusional. Telling people that their life will improve enormously if they believe it will has such a pseudo religious ring about it. If it does not improve, then you did not believe it hard enough.
The Mayo clinic did a series of trials on the power of prayer and came to the conclusion that it had no effect at all. I was kinda disappointed with this as I hoped that maybe we were able to affect people with concentrated thought, but then I was also disappointed to discover Santa did not live in the North Pole!
One of the things I have noticed in people that firmly believe in homeopathy is it is usually not just that they believe in the power of a pill that has nothing in it but they also believe in a whole range of dodgy ideas that not only do not stand up to scientific scrutiny but are completely open to ridicule.
Hopi ear candles come to mind, I was introduced to them by an acquaintance and took them at face value, did seriously wonder how on earth they could work and a quick question to the great god Google revealed very quickly that not only do they not work but the Hopi Indians had tried and failed to have the name removed from them as they have no tradition whatsoever of using them in their culture.
What bizarre mechanism allows otherwise sane people to believe in things that do not exist? It really makes me question everything I believe in, just in case I too am carrying some crazy faith that does not hold up to any level of scrutiny.