India needs evidence-based, ethics-driven medicine

Source:The Hindu

For Prelims:  The Lancet, Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT), Nuremberg Salt Test, World Health Organization (WHO), J.M. Honigberger

For Mains: Integration of homeopathy into mainstream healthcare in India.

Highlights Of the Article:

• Integrating 'AYUSH' systems with mainstream healthcare aims for universal coverage.
• Homeopathy lacks solid evidence of effectiveness and safety.
• First well-conducted trial in 1835 questioned homeopathy's claimed effects.
• Various reviews show little clinical impact across ailments and groups.
• Unregistered trials indicate bias and doubt in evidence quality.
• WHO warns against homeopathy for serious illnesses like HIV and malaria.
• Homeopathy isn't proven to work for cancer treatment or adverse effects.
• Standards for evidence-based medicine are collaboratively established.
• Holistic claims of homeopathy don't dismiss evidence-based practices.
• Homeopathy lacks mechanisms of action evidence over a century.
• India's colonial history questions the traditional tag of homeopathy.
• Universal health care in India must be rooted in evidence and ethics.

Context:

The article discusses the integration of 'AYUSH' (Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy) systems into mainstream healthcare in India, aiming for universal health coverage and a more diverse approach to medicine. It specifically focuses on the inclusion of homeopathy within this framework

UPSC EXAM NOTES ANALYSIS:

1.Efficacy and Safety of Homeopathy

Homeopathy is a system of medicine that uses highly diluted substances to treat illness. The idea is that these substances, when diluted, can stimulate the body's own healing mechanisms.

However, there is no scientific evidence to support the efficacy of homeopathy. Multiple systematic reviews and meta-analyses have found that homeopathy lacks clinically significant effects.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has also warned against the use of homeopathy for certain conditions. For example, the WHO has said that there is "no place" for homeopathy in the treatment of HIV, tuberculosis, malaria, flu, or diarrhea in infants.

2.Standards of Evidence

The standards of evidence-based medicine are based on the idea that treatments should be evaluated using rigorous scientific methods. These methods include randomized controlled trials (RCTs), which are considered to be the gold standard for evaluating the efficacy of treatments.

Homeopathy advocates argue that the standards of evidence-based medicine are not suitable for judging the "holistic effects" of homeopathy. However, there is no scientific evidence to support this claim.

In fact, the standards of evidence-based medicine are not arbitrarily chosen. They are the result of a collaborative effort by a global community of experts. These experts have carefully considered the best ways to evaluate the efficacy and safety of treatments.

3.Conclusion

The article concludes that India's path to universal healthcare must be grounded in evidence-based and ethics-driven medicine. Homeopathy does not meet these standards and should not be integrated into mainstream healthcare.