Publikationsdatenbank

Use of homeopathic preparations in experimental studies with healthy plants (2009)

Art

Zeitschriftenartikel / wissenschaftlicher Beitrag

Autoren

Majewsky, Vera

Arlt, Sebastian

Shah, Devika

Scherr, Claudia

Jäger, Tim

Betti, Lucietta

Trebbi, Grazia

Bonamin, Leoni

Klocke, Peter

Baumgartner, Stephan

Quelle

Homeopathy : the journal of the Faculty of Homeopathy

Bandzählung: 98

Heftzählung: 4

Seiten: 228 – 243

ISSN: 1475-4916

Sprache

Englisch

Verweise

DOI: 10.1016/j.homp.2009.09.012

Pubmed: 19945677

Kontakt

Tierklinik für Fortpflanzung

Königsweg 65
Haus 27
14163 Berlin
+49 30 838 62618
fortpflanzungsklinik@vetmed.fu-berlin.de

Abstract / Zusammenfassung

The last comprehensive review of experimental research on effects of homeopathic treatments on plants was published in 1984, and lacked formal predefined criteria to assess study quality. Since then several new studies with more advanced methods have been published.

To compile a review of the literature on basic research in homeopathy with healthy plants with particular reference to studies investigating specific effects of homeopathic remedies.

The literature search included English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese and Spanish publications from 1920 to April 2009, using predefined selection criteria. We included experiments with healthy whole plants, seeds, plant parts and cells. The outcomes had to be measured by established procedures and statistically evaluated. We developed a Manuscript Information Score (MIS) and included only publications which provided enough information for proper interpretation (MIS>or=5). A formalised Study Methods Evaluation Procedure (SMEP) was used to evaluate these studies, and the subgroup of studies with adequate controls to identify specific effects.

A total of 86 studies in 79 publications was identified, 43 studies included statistics, 29 had MIS>or=5, and 15 studies investigated the specificity of homeopathic preparations. Specific effects of decimal, centesimal and fifty millesimal potencies were found including dilution levels far beyond the Avogadro number. In consecutive series of potencies only some of the tested potencies showed effects. There were many individual studies with diverse methods and very few reproduction trials.

Healthy plant models seem an useful approach to investigate basic research questions about the specificity of homeopathic preparations. More investigations with more advanced methods are recommended, especially in the sectors of potentisation techniques, effective potency levels and conditions for reproducibility. Systematic negative control experiments should become a routine procedure to control the stability of the experimental systems.