The first principle of homeopathy is The Law of Similars or Similia Similibus Curentur – translated from Latin as ‘Like cures Like’ – and is homeopathy’s most fundamental and guiding principle. It states that: “Any substance capable of causing disease, is also capable of curing it.” In other words, and according to homeopathy, a substance capable of producing symptoms in a healthy person can treat similar symptoms occurring as an expression of disease if given in a specially prepared, highly-diluted form.

Homeopathy is founded upon this definite law, with the name homeopathy being derived from the Greek words; homeo meaning ‘similar’ and pathos meaning ‘suffering’.  Homeopathy can therefore be defined as a therapeutic method of symptom-similarity.

By using remedies that mimic symptoms, homeopathy aims to stimulate the body’s natural defences. This can be likened to the action of immunisations, where a weaker strain of an antigen is given to trigger the body’s immune system to produce anti-bodies.

An example of ‘like cures like’ would be: a homeopathic dose of Allium cepa (made from onions) could help someone with a cold or hayfever symptoms, who has watering, itchy or irritated eyes, and a streaming nose – exactly the symptoms we experience when we chop an onion.

Another example is: drinking coffee may cause nervousness, tremors, palpitations, and insomnia. These same symptoms, which may be brought upon by stress or by some other means, can be alleviated by taking the homeopathic remedy Coffea made from coffee.

Conventional medicine, on the other hand, predominantly uses the law of opposites to treat disease, and it does this by using medicinal agents that have an opposite action and rather than working with the body, it works against it in an opposing or anti-action to treat symptoms e.g. ANTI-biotics, ANTI- depressants, ANTI-histamine or ANTI-viral/fungal etc.

Homeopathy regards the body’s symptoms as not merely signs of illness, but an expression of its efforts to restore health. By using remedies that mimic the symptoms, homeopathy aims to stimulate the body’s self-healing mechanisms and assist the body in resolving the underlying cause of disease.

The second principle of homeopathy is Individualised Treatment. With regards to homeopathy, individualised treatment means treating the person and not just the disease.

Homeopathy does not use a one-cure-for-all methodology. It is a holistic therapy that treats everyone on an individual basis. For example, two different people with the same cold or flu virus may come for homeopathic treatment, but they may receive different homeopathic remedies. This is because their symptoms may be different due of their unique constitution, temperament and lifestyle which determine the stressors affecting them and their susceptibility to disease. This is why patients with the same or similar diseases may receive different homeopathic remedies, despite the viral or bacterial agent being the same. Homeopathic remedies are always prescribed based on the patient’s individual and specific set of symptoms.

The task of the homeopath is to match the patient’s symptoms to the correct homeopathic remedy. The homeopath will not prescribe medicines based on a clinical diagnosis alone, but on all the symptoms the patient is experiencing – particularly those symptoms that are highly individual and characteristic to the patient.

The third principle of homeopathy is that of the Minimum Dose. This principle asserts that the smaller the dose of a medicine given, the greater its effectiveness.  Following this principle, only enough homeopathic medicine is given to initiate a healing response within the body.  Once this healing response is triggered, it continues – driven by the body’s innate ability to maintain health and restore balance.

Essentially, this principle recognises the need to safely activate your body’s ability to respond to disease, and yet not overwhelm it. The use of the minimum dose has the advantage of not producing gross and unwanted side effects that are often seen with conventional medicine. Using smaller doses also minimises the risk of aggravating symptoms, and is better suited for sensitive patients.

Potentisation

This concept of the minimum dose led to the discovery of the process of potentisation, which is the process by which homeopathic remedies are made. Potency in homeopathy indicates how much a substance has been diluted during the preparation of a remedy. This process increases the healing properties of the remedy, while reducing the concentration of the physical substance. It is believed that the more a substance is diluted, the more potent the remedy becomes with greater potential for treating more severe or deeper-rooted conditions.

Choosing the correct potency is vital in homeopathy. A potency is selected according to the patient’s overall health and vital functioning, and the chronicity of their condition. Lower potencies might be used for acute conditions and less severe symptoms, while higher potencies are typically reserved for chronic or deeper-systemic issues.

With the correct application of these principles, homeopathic remedies carry no risk of side effects, toxic reactions, or allergies, and they are non-addictive.