Why do we need to promote homeopathy?

We have a great need to promote homeopathy in Australia because in the current climate, misinformation about homeopathy in the mainstream media is rife, so there is a need for clear communication that homeopathy works, it is used by millions of people, it is not placebo and it is generally a very safe medicine.

In Australia, we have around 7% of the population using homeopathy and a percentage of the population who have never heard of homeopathy. This is despite the fact that it has been practiced throughout Australia since the 1840s.

What is homeopathy?

The best definition of Homeopathy is simply that it is a form of holistic medicine. Holistic meaning treating the whole person, taking into account how they feel in themselves as well as their physical complaint. As a medicine homeopathy has been used for over 200 years to treat both acute and chronic conditions. Around the world, homeopathy is growing in popularity, different estimates say between 300-500 million patients worldwide use it:

• Homeopathy is used by 6 million people in the UK
• 100 million people in the European Union use Homeopathy
• 100 million people in India depend solely on homeopathy for their medical care

We need more research

It is clear that Homeopathy is well used worldwide, and this use has been carefully documented for 200 years. This documentation is one form of research. However, the use of other forms of research in homeopathy is a relatively new field. Around the world there is an ever increasing amount of modern research methods being employed. In Australia, we have the capacity to undertake observational studies  to answer questions about the clinical use of homeopathy.  This research can help parents in their decision making about healthcare options. While this research is important we also see the great value in the promotion of homeopathy.

Why do we need the Aurum Project?

Homeopathy is a complex topic to research.

The complexities are not insurmountable and are worthwhile overcoming. Especially since it does seem that homeopathy may help provide answers to the antibiotic crisis problem and it generally seems to be a cost effective answer to increasing health care costs. Despite all the potential, there is no government funding for homeopathy research in Australia.

This frustration was the driving force behind the birth of the Aurum Project (AP) in 2005, but it would be sad to say it was born from such a negative position. The AP was driven by a love of homeopathy, a joy in seeing it help so many children, and an urge to collect data of its effectiveness. One goal of the AP is to share the knowledge of this easy-to-use medicine. With an increasing number of parents asking for help to reduce the use of antibiotics and keep their kids happy and healthy, sharing this knowledge becomes more imperative every day.

An update on the Mission Statement of the Aurum Project

The mission of the Aurum Project has always been to advance the understanding and practice of homeopathy in Australia, with an aim to promote research into homeopathy.

Our vision is provide contemporary evidence to promote the use of homeopathic treatment in Australia so that parents may confidently consider homeopathy as one of their healthcare options.

What Aurum Project research is being undertaken in 2016?

• weekly data collection  on the topic of glue ear and recurring ear infections in children. Donations are always welcome to help with this task
• applying for a grant to help finish this data collection and continue to the next phase of analysing the data
• eczema survey preliminary discussion about the design of the survey
• literature review is underway on the topic of 'Is Homeopathy a viable alternative to antibiotics in Australia'
• educational article is being completed about 'How to run a melting pot?'  for the journal Similia
• editing the second part of a booklet called Ten steps To Get Off The Antibiotic Treadmill
• summarising of articles published in 2015 about the mechanism of action of homeopathy eg: 'Update on preliminary elements of a theory of ultra high dilutions' are being turned into plain English for Australian publication

How can you help the Aurum Project?

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