There cannot be two kinds of medicine: EU scientists shred homeopathy, alt med

Enlarge / Tubes of homeopathic granules at Boiron Laboratory in Brest, France. (credit: Getty | FRED TANNEAU)

An organization representing scientific academies throughout Europe released a statement Wednesday that squarely bashed homeopathy as nonsense and warned that the "promotion and use of homeopathic products risks significant harms."

The statement by the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC)-an umbrella organization representing 29 national and international scientific academies in Europe, including the Royal Society (UK) and Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences-is intended to influence policy and regulations across the European Union. The EASAC emphasized the need to "reinforce criticisms" by scientists as the markets for homeopathy in the EU and US continue to grow.

The council did not mince words about the "alternative medicines," which rely on the erroneous ideas that 'like cures like' and that water can have memory. In its 12-page statement, the group summarized the extensive scientific work showing that homeopathy is scientifically implausible and produces nothing more than the placebo effect in patients.

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