Homeopath

UK homeopaths have based their techniques on the work of ancient medical theories, which despite an improved understanding of the workings of the human body, knowledge about the nature of disease, in particular what caused it, remained firmly tied to the notion of a mystical force.

Homeopathy was founded way after early discoveries by perhaps the first unofficial homeopath Paracelsus which was not until the early 16th century and the work of the Swiss doctor Paracelsus (1493-1541) who discovered that the causes of disease were linked to external forces, such as contaminated food and drink. Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim changed his name to Paracelsus as a mark of respect for Celsus and also to imply that he had surpassed Celsus in his abilities. One of Paracelsus' greatest achievements as a homeopath was laying down the foundations for modern chemistry and homeopathy by concentrating on practical experimentation rather than alchemy and its quest to transform base metals into valuable ones. He believed that plants and metals contained active ingredients that could be prescribed to match an illness. This belief was based in part on the notion that the external appearance of a plant gave an indication of the ailments it would cure, a theory that became known as the Doctrine of Signatures. For example, Chelidonium majus (celandine) was used to treat the liver and gall-bladder because the yellow juice of the plant looked like bile. Paracelsus also believed that a poisonous substance that causes disease could also cure the disease, if given in very small doses, and that physicians should take into account the body's own natural ability to heal itself. Again, the "like can cure like" principle was advocated but was ignored by Paracelsus' fellow physicians. It did not gain popularity for another 300 years, when homeopathy was founded.

Hence we have the work of Dr Brian Kaplan.

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