Homeopathy: Medicine for the Mathematically Challenged
Because homeopathic treatments are sold along side aspirin and Tylenol at the druggist, people assume these “remedies” are tested and effective. A simple look at the mathematics of homeopathy should do a lot to set one straight.
In his recent article, Homeopathy by the (mind-boggling) numbers (Times Online), Matt Parker does a great job breaking down the astronomical numbers involved in processing homeopathic treatments.
The arnica is diluted so much that there is only one molecule of it per 7 million billion billion billion billion pills.
It’s hard to comprehend numbers that large. If you were to buy that many pills from Boots, it would cost more than the gross domestic product of the UK. It’s more than the gross domestic product of the entire world. Since the dawn of civilisation. If every human being since the beginning of time had saved every last penny, denarius and sea-shell, we would still have not saved-up enough to purchase a single arnica molecule from Boots.
That Mitchell and Webb Look: Homeopathic A & E
I chose to use homeopathy instead of western anti-depressants when I saw that the same percentage of people who took the placebo anti-depressants had good results as those who took the actual drug. So I took something that must just be straight up placebo- homeopathy. And it worked! No surprise there. Who cares whats in it. It doesnt hurt, has no side effects, and works. What more do you need? So much of medicine is self delusion any way.
The real danger occurs when someone chooses to use homeopathic remedies instead of proven cures. In the case of cancer, for instance, the homeopathic cure can be a death sentence.