Homeopathy...
Law of Similars:
Homeopathy, from Greek homeo (meaning similar) and pathos (meaning suffering) is a system of medicine based on treating like with like.
The theory that like can be treated with like can be traced back as far as Hypocrites (468 -377 BC), but it wasn't until the work of Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843) that the theory developed into a usable practice.
Hahneman's provings consisted in giving doses of various substances to both himself and his healthy volunteers, and noting the effects in detail. For safety reasons, the substances taken were very dilute, and it is here that Hahnemann chanced upon one of the more puzzling aspects of Homeopathy. The more dilute a homeopathic medicine is, the more effective it is in treating illness. Homeopathic remedies are kind of like today's vaccinations in that they boost the body's immune system to fight a specific invader.
Homeopathy can not prevent you from getting the flu, however, homeopathy can be very effective in boosting your immune system to fight off the flu if you are exposed and for decreasing the length and severity of the symptoms of the flu, if you get the flu. Like fever, cough, muscle aches.
A common cold, for example, is one virus which produces a myriad of effects, subtly different in different people. Different people with a cold caused by the same virus may exhibit different symptoms. It is for this reason that each case should be assessed by close and careful analysis of all the relevant symptoms and possible causes. Homeopathy addresses both.
