The post this week follows on from the comments made by the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee in which it said that the NHS should stop funding homeopathy.

In a move widely criticised by manufacturers and supporters of homeopathy, the committee said that the practice only worked because of the placebo effect, it amounted basically to sugar pills and was not enough to justify the estimated £4m that is spent on homeopathy by the NHS each year.

The committee also said that the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency should not allow labels on homeopathic medicines to carry medical claims. The committee is backed in this war of words by the British Medical Association which has also expressed concern about the funding going into homeopathy and has called for an official review into its effectiveness.

Supporters of homeopathy are passionate in their beliefs so it will be interesting to see how the debate proceeds. Will there be greater analysis into the benefits or otherwise of homeopathy. We are likely to see impassioned arguments on both sides. It will be fascinating to see this develop over the coming days and weeks.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8524926.stm