[Q. How safe is Homeopathy? on Washington Homeopathic Products]そのため、米国では、普通の薬品に適用されるアルコール分の上限規制を、ホメオパシーレメディは免除されている。
A. Homeopathic medicines are potentized (manufactured) by serially diluting the original substance with alcohol and water (or lactose for tablets), and vigorously shaking (succussing) the mixture after each dilution (tablets are succussed by grinding the mixture with mortar and pestle). Because the remedy becomes highly dilute very early in the potentization process, such that a 4X is diluted 1:10,000 and a 5X is diluted 1:100,000, they are extremely safe and rarely produce side-effects or drug interactions. Homeopathic medicines act by stimulating the body’s own healing mechanisms. Because they are not acting chemically, they do not have the potential to cause any sustained damage. Therefore, homeopathic medicines are a great choice for mothers, adults, babies and animals.
ホメオパシー薬品は元の物質をアルコールと水あるいは錠剤用ラクトースによる希釈と攪拌(震盪)を繰り返すことで(錠剤はすり鉢とすりこぎで挽くことで)ポテンシャライズ(製造)される。4X (1/10000)あるいは5X(1/100000)などに、ポテンシャライズ過程の初期段階で高度に希釈されるので、非常に安全であり、副作用や薬物間の相互作用は稀である。ホメオパシー薬品は身体の自然治癒メカニズムを刺激する。これらは化学的に作用しないので、身体にダメージを与える可能性はない。したがって、ホメオパシー薬品は母親・成人・乳児・動物など誰にとっても良い選択である。
アルコールによる希釈は最近始まったことではなく、最初からある。HahnemannのOrganonにも記述がある:
Thus two drops of the fresh vegetable juice mingled with equal parts of alcohol are diluted with ninety-eight drops of alcohol and potentized by means of two succussions, whereby the first development of power is formed and this process is repeated through twenty-nine more phials, each of which is filled three-quarters full with ninety-nine drops of alcohol, and each succeeding phial is to be provided with one drop from the preceding phial (which has already been shaken twice) and is in its turn twice shaken,1 and in the same manner at last the thirtieth development of power (potentized decillionth dilution X) which is the one most generally used.おそらく、有機溶媒としてエチルアルコールを使ったのだろう。
[270 Fifth Edition on Hahnemann: Organon of Medicine]
さらに、水やアルコールに溶けないものは、ラクトース(sugar of milk)による希釈後にアルコールで希釈したようである:
In order to best obtain this development of power, a small part of the substance to be dynamized, say one grain, is triturated for three hours with three times one hundred grains sugar of milk according to the method described below 1 up to the one-millionth part in powder form. For reasons given below (b) one grain of this powder is dissolved in 500 drops of a mixture of one part of alcohol and four parts of distilled water, of which one drop is put in a vial. To this are added 100 drops of pure alcohol 2 and given one hundred strong succussions with the hand against a hard but elastic body.3 This is the medicine in the first degree of dynamization with which small sugar globules 4 may then be moistened 5 and quickly spread on blotting paper to dry and kept in a well-corked vial with the sign of (I) degree of potency. Only one 6 globule of this is taken for further dynamization, put in a second new vial (with a drop a water in order to dissolve it) and then with 100 powerful succussions.
[270 Sixth Edition on Hahnemann: Organon of Medicine]
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