What Is Homeopathy?

Homeopathy is a natural approach to medicine that works without contraindications (interference with other medications you may be taking) or side effects to stimulate the body's curative responses so the body heals itself.

Here's a little more detail:

Your body has the ability to heal itself. When you are ill, your body produces symptoms, which is how we know that the body has recognized that something is wrong and is actively working to heal itself. This "natural regulator" is your body's auto-regulatory mechanism and it works to keep your body in balance - or in a state of homeostasis.

Here's an example of how this works. Think of your "natural regulator" as your internal temperature gauge. If you go outside and it is very hot, your body will recognize it is too hot and begin to perspire. Your homeostatic mechanism is producing a symptom - perspiration - in an effort to cool down the body. If you go outside and it is very cold, the symptom is shivering. Your homeostatic mechanism is trying to warm the body up by shivering to produce heat.

Think about the last time you were shivering. You could not control it, and you did not stop until you were warm. It is the same way with homeopathic medicines. If you are ill and your body is showing symptoms, the symptoms will not disappear until the source of the symptoms has disappeared.

Homeopathic medicines stimulate your body's homeostatic mechanism so your body heals itself by dealing with the sources of your symptoms.

Homeopathy is different from conventional medicine because conventional medicine simply defines health as the lack of symptoms (if you dry up a runny nose, is your cold gone and are you healthy?). Homeopathy defines health as the lack of disease (if you get rid of the source of the runny nose in the process of dealing with the source, the runny nose will disappear on its own.)
 

How do you take Hyland's Homeopathic medicines?

Homeopathic medicines should be placed under the tongue of adults and children or in the cheek of an infant where they will dissolve. It is preferable that there be nothing in the mouth to eat or drink 15 minutes before or after taking homeopathic medicines.

Here's a little more detail:

Look under your tongue. It is an environment full of capillaries (blood vessels) surrounded by very soft tissue. If you want something to be absorbed directly into the human body, what better place to do it than somewhere that is rich in blood vessels that carry blood throughout your system rapidly!

Homeopathic products are very clean-meaning they have no binders, fillers or coatings. The soft molded lactose tablets are made to dissolve almost instantly when placed in the mouth. Because the remedies dissolve in the mouth, they are absorbed by the mucous membranes in the mouth and carried directly into your system. For this reason, the remedies work faster than conventional medicines because conventional medicines are usually coated and don't get absorbed into the system until the coating is dissolved by the stomach acid, and that generally takes about twenty minutes.

Homeopathic medicated pellets take longer to dissolve, but they don't taste bad so it is worth the wait. Dilutions are liquid and should be dropped directly under the tongue.

Because the remedies are very clean and fragile, avoid handling them. It is preferable to drop the tablets or pellets into the cap of the bottle, and pour them from the cap into your mouth. If more than four pour into the cap, take four-don't put the pills back into the bottle.

You cannot overdose on homeopathic medicines. If you take fifteen tablets or five tablets (or 100 tablets for that matter) AT ONE TIME it is one dose. You will stimulate your curative response one time. So, it is not a tragedy if more than six tablets fall into the cap, just take them rather than risk putting a contaminated pill back into the bottle to contaminate the others in the bottle.

Finally, some homeopathic medicines may be antidoted by things like mint, caffeine or other remedies. In order to help prevent antidotes, take your remedies one at a time, with a "clean mouth".  It is best not to eat or drink 15 minutes before or after taking the remedies.

Is Homeopathy Regulated?

Yes! Homeopathic Medicines are fully regulated as drugs by the FDA. All homeopathic medicines are "governed" by the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States.

Here's a little more detail:

Homeopathic medicines are regulated as drugs by inclusion in the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. All homeopathic medicines are required to have NDC (National Drug Codes) listed on the front panel of the label and box and identify that the products are registered with the federal government. Homeopathic medicines, like all drugs in the United States, are also regulated as prescription and non-prescription. If a remedy is regulated as a prescription item, it is necessary to have a written prescription from a physician to obtain the remedy.

Drugs in the United States are made according to either the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP) or the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia of the United States (HPUS). These Pharmacopoeias are like cookbooks that contain the procedures for manufacturing drugs in the United States- either prescription or non-prescription. You can find most common drugs in the USP and every homeopathic medicine from Arnica to Zincum in the HPUS.

Because homeopathic medicines are regulated as drugs, in order to prescribe or dispense homeopathic medicines, you must have a license to prescribe medicine. If somebody makes an individual decision to use a homeopathic over-the-counter drug for an acute illness, that is their decision. It is illegal to tell somebody which remedy to take unless you have a license to prescribe. It is not illegal, however, to guide people towards books and informational materials that will help them determine which remedy may best match their symptom picture.
 

Are these herbal products?

No, these are not herbs, which use a larger quantity of plant material per dose. Homeopathic medicines use a minute dose of plant or mineral substance to address symptoms. Unlike herbal supplements which are regulated as foods, the FDA accepts homeopathic products as drugs. As drugs, homeopathic products must be manufactured in compliance with the FDA finished pharmaceutical Good Manuacturing Practices (GMPs) regulations for cleanliness, quality and testing.   All Hyland's manufacturing facilities are inspected by the FDA.

I am lactose intolerant.  Can I take these products?

People who are lactose intolerant have not yet developed the enzymes to digest lactose. Our products contain about 64 milligrams of lactose (the sugar from cow's milk-no protein is used) per tablet. While everyone is different, most lactose intolerant individuals would need to ingest 5000 mg of lactose before they experience symptoms of intolerance. With this large margin of safety, there is rarely a problem with our products when being used as directed on the label. If your physician has determined that you are specifically "Allergic to Lactose", you should avoid our tablets. If you are very concerned, seek the advice of a licensed health care professional before using this product.

My child just ate an entire bottle of tablets, what do I do?

Do not panic. Homeopathic medicines are very safe, non-toxic, and have a very large margin of safety. It is unlikely your child could overdose on any homeopathic medicine. You can call our 24 hour emergency number at 800/624-9659 (after business hours, it is a recording - just follow the directions), and a pharmacist or registered nurse will return your call promptly. Our products are also listed with Regional Poison Control Centers. Most are well informed on the margin of safety of homeopathic medicines if you have one to call in your area.

Which Remedy Should I Take?

Every remedy is different. Each remedy has a certain "symptom picture" associated with it. The correct remedy to take is the one which has a symptom picture that most closely matches the symptoms you are exhibiting.

Here's a little more detail:

Homeopathic medicines work on each level of the body: physical, mental and emotional. Many times, the mental or emotional symptoms may guide you to the right remedy. Other times, what makes you feel better or worse may guide you to the right remedy. The right remedy is sometimes easy to find, and at other times the symptom picture is less pronounced.

Many homeopathic remedies listed in the Materia Medica have gone through a process called a "proving." Proving are controlled experiments in which healthy people are given the remedy that is being tested (like Arnica Montana) in large quantities sequentially over a period of time and the symptoms that the body creates are recorded. For example, when healthy people were given Belladonna sequentially over a period of time, the following symptom picture was exhibited in the people:

 

High Fever
 

Right Sided Pain
 

Throbbing Pain
 

Irritable
 

Sensitive to External Noise, Light
 

Thirsty for Small Sips of Cold Water

This symptom picture looks like that of a teething baby, somebody with a migraine or somebody with an earache, but just because a baby is teething doesn't mean Belladonna is the right remedy. The symptom picture of the teething baby must closely match that of the symptoms that are listed in the Materia Medica.  After reading about the remedies, make a determination as to which remedy is the most appropriate for your symptoms.

The best way to determine which single remedy to take is to list the symptoms you are exhibiting, look up those symptoms in the Repertory, and read the remedy symptom listing in the Materia Medica.  After reading about the remedies, make a determination as to which remedy is the most appropriate for your symptoms.

What are the different dosage forms?

There are many different dosage forms: soft tablet triturates, compressed tablets, medicated pellets, dilutions and topicals (ointments, oils and sprays).

Homeopathic Potencies

The amount of original substance in the Homeopathic medicine is reduced by serial dilution with succussion Vigorous shaking or grinding. this reduction can take place either in the Decimal "X" or "Centestimal "C" attenuation scales. The letter "X" from the Roman numeral for ten follows a 1:10 dilution between sucussion. the letter "C" from the Roman numeral one hundred follows a 1:100 dilution between succussion. A simple way to understand is to visualize a zero in the bottom half (denominator) of the frraction fro every number preceding the "x", thus, a 10X potency would have 10 zeros in the denominator - 1/10,000,000,000. With "C" add two zeros to the denominator each number increases. as 2C means 1/100,00 in dilution.

Here's a little more detail:

Homeopathic medicines work when taken orally (by mouth) or when used topically (on the skin). There are different forms of oral and topical preparations.

 

Soft Tablet Triturates are soft molded tablets. They dissolve almost instantly when you put them in your mouth because they contain only the active ingredients in a base of lactose with a small amount of acacia gum to hold them together. An example of soft tablet triturates is Hyland's Teething Tablets.

 

Compressed Tablets are hard tablets that do not dissolve instantly when put on your tongue. These are often meant to be swallowed with water because they take too long to dissolve under the tongue. An example of a compressed tablet is Hyland's Calms Forté™.

 

Medicated Pellets are round pills containing 80% sucrose (sugar) and 20% lactose (milk sugar) pills that have been medicated with a dilution. The dilution is sprayed on the pellets three times to insure saturation of the pellets. Most "high potencies" are available in pellet or dilution form. AmberVials™ contain medicated pellets.

 

Dilutions are liquids, usually dispensed via dropper directly under the tongue or in a little distilled water. They consist of 20% to 80% alcohol.

 

Topicals are applied directly to the skin to stimulate healing "on the spot."

These include:
Ointments - usually in a petrolatum base.
Sprays - usually in an alcohol or glycerine base.
Oils - usually in a mineral oil base.

What is the Materia Medica?

The Materia Medica is a book that lists all of the homeopathic single remedies and their symptoms.

Here's a little more detail:

Most remedies that are commonly used are listed in the homeopathic Materia Medica. The Materia Medica lists the single remedy and the symptom picture that fits each remedy.

Because homeopathic medicines work on all systems of the body, mental, physical and emotional guiding symptoms are listed in the following order of importance:

 

Emotional

Mental

Physical
 

Each physical system is detailed from most important to least important:

 

Mind & Head

 

Each individual "part" of the body from head to toe (eyes, ears, throat, stomach, etc.)

 

Each system from inside out (respiratory, circulatory, extremities, skin)

 

Modalities (what makes it better or worse) 

These symptoms listed in the Materia Medica are called guiding systems because they guide you to the right remedy.

It is important to remember that you don't have to exhibit ALL of the symptoms for the remedy to be the correct one. The remedy that matches the majority of the symptoms is probably the one you need.

What is the Repertory?

The Repertory is a book that lists all of the symptoms for the homeopathic single remedies. It is like an index for the Materia Medica.

Here's a little more detail:

Every single remedy has a set of symptoms associated with it. Rather than read the entire Materia Medica every time you want to find a remedy, it is easier to look up the specific symptoms first. The Repertory lists the guiding symptoms and corresponding single remedies. The Repertory is like an index to the Materia Medica.

A sample listing in the Repertory is as follows:

Throat

Pain

Sore

Right: Ars., bell., calc-p., carb-ac., ham., ind., lac-c., lith., Lyc., lyss., mag-c., merc., merc-i-f., nat-p., nicc., phyt., ptel., sars., tarent., ter., xan.

The "code" to the listing of remedies is as follows: Bold = 1, Italic = 2, Normal Type = 3. When looking up symptoms, each remedy should be listed in terms of importance. Bold symptoms are stronger than italicised symptoms and italicized symptoms are stronger than normal typed symptoms. Unless you are very sure of the symptoms, stick with the strongest symptoms in bold or italics.

What is constitutional treatment?

Constitutional treatment is when one homeopathic medicine is used to treat a constellation of symptoms in one person. Generally, constitutional treatment is used in treating more chronic cases.

Here's a little more detail:

Homeopathic medicines work on every system of the body: mental, physical and emotional. Homeopathic medicines are also useful for both acute illness (those that run its course without any drug or physician's intervention) and chronic illnesses (those which must be monitored by a license practitioner).

Each homeopathic medicine has it's own symptom picture. Many times, a homeopathic remedy's symptom picture may "look like" a person. For example, the symptom picture most often associated with Nux Vomica includes conditions brought on by excess eating, drinking, smoking, hyperactivity, dyspepsia, headache over the eyes, wakes up at 3:00 a.m. and worse from stimulants.

If somebody is classified as a "type A" personality-always moving about, does everything to extreme (in work and play), has a nervous stomach, often wakes at 3:00 a.m. thinking about what didn't get accomplished that day (or what needs to be done the next day) and is always drinking a cup of coffee, that person may be classified as a "constitutional Nux Vomica."

If somebody is under the care of a homeopathic physician, they will often be treated with one remedy, their constitutional remedy.  This remedy will treat the whole person on all levels to relieve many acute symptoms.

Often people are treated with one constitutional remedy and, consequently their entire constitution changes to another remedy. This is very important to note because constitutional treatment should be supervised by a licensed practitioner.

What is the difference between acute and chronic illness?

Acute illnesses are those that will eventually resolve without any medical supervision (such as colds and teething). Chronic illnesses are more serious illnesses that require medical supervision (like Tuberculosis or Cancer).

Here's a little more detail:

An Acute illness typically will "run its course" regardless of whether or not there is drug intervention. Coughs, colds, teething, PMS, sleeplessness are all examples of such illnesses. Usually, medicines for acute illnesses are regulated as OTC (over-the-counter) drugs.

A Chronic illness is one that requires medical supervision and is often a disease that has formed over a long period of time. Examples of chronic illnesses are Cancer, AIDS, Kidney Disease and Diabetes. Usually, medicines for chronic illnesses are regulated as Prescription Only.

Homeopathy is often used for treatment of both acute and chronic illnesses. As with any disease, if a chronic illness is being treated using homeopathy, medical diagnosis and monitoring is still required.