It sometimes seems there is too great a focus on negative press and not enough focus on the good news around us. With that in mind, I thought I’d write about the good things we know about homeopathy’s use worldwide.

A Key Fact:

There are literally hundreds of thousands of physicians and over 500 million consumers using homeopathy across the globe.

Here is a brief overview of its use internationally:

North America

• The U.S.

Did you know a study recently published by Harvard researchers shows a jump in U.S. household use of homeopathy of 15% since 2007? What’s more, researchers found that among U.S. households using complementary and integrative medicine for their healthcare, most put homeopathy among the top 3 complementary and integrative strategies they use.[1]

• Canada:

For Canadians, homeopathy continues to be a popular complementary therapy that is readily available[2].

• Mexico:

In Mexico, homeopathy is currently integrated into the national healthcare system[3].

Europe:

Homeopathy has always been hugely popular in Europe. According to statistics from the World Health Organization, homeopathy is practiced and available in 40 out of 42 European nations. Here are a few of the highlights from this region:

• In France, 95% of all GPs, pediatricians and dermatologists use homeopathic remedies in their practices[4].
• The Swiss government recently convened an official government study on the effectiveness of homeopathy. They concluded that homeopathy is “effective, cost effective and safe.” The Swiss government now recognizes homeopathy as having a status equal to that of ordinary medicine[5].
• According to a 2010 article in the BMJ (British Medical Journal), an impressive 57% of people in Germany use homeopathic medicines. Germany is so supportive of homeopathy that they’ve mandated that all medical school curricula include information about natural medicines including homeopathy. Approximately 10% of all physicians in Germany specialize in homeopathy and 38% actively prescribe homeopathic remedies to their patients[6], [7], [8], [9], [10].
• The UK has long embraced homeopathic medicine and still does – with the British Royal Family as one of homeopathy’s strongest patrons[11].
• Italians also love their homeopathy. According to the most recent data, approximately 8 million Italians use homeopathy – 14% of Italian women and 10% of Italian men[12].

Asia:

The biggest story here is India. India leads in terms of number of people using homeopathy, with 100 million people depending solely on homeopathy for their medical care. There are over 200,000 registered homeopathic doctors in India currently, with approximately 12,000 more being added every year[13], [14]. Homeopathy is also growing in popularity in Pakistan, Korea, Japan and China[15].

The Middle East:

Homeopathy is quite popular in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and in Iran[16]. Israel is also seeing significant growth in the practice of homeopathy[17].

Africa:

Homeopathy is widely practiced in South Africa and Nigeria but also now available in Gambia, Kenya, Swaziland, and Tanzania[18].

Latin America:

Homeopathy is widely available throughout most of South America and the Caribbean, with Cuba, Argentina, Columbia and Brazil leading the way[19], [20].

Australia/New Zealand:

Homeopathy first came to this region in approximately 1830 and despite some recent attempts by various business interests to discourage its use, is still widely used in both countries.

Finally, according to the market research firm, Transparency Market Research[21], the overall global market for homeopathic products is expected to grow by 18.2% by 2024. That’s good news by anyone’s measure!!

[1]. Dossett, M., et. al., Homeopathy Use by US Adults: Results of a National Survey. Am J Public Health. 2016 Apr;106(4):743-5

[2] http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/...

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulation_and_prev...

[4] Piolot, M. et. al., Homeopathy in France in 2011-2012 according to reimbursements in the French national health insurance database. Fam Pract. 2015 Aug;32(4):442-8.

[5] Bornhoft, G, Wolf, U., von Ammon, et al, Effectiveness, Safety, and Cost-Effectiveness of Homeopathy in General Practice—Summarized Health Technology Assessment, Forschende Komplementarmedizin, 2006;13(suppl 2):19-29.

[6] Stange R, Amhof R, Moebus S. Complementary and alternative medicine: attitudes and patterns of use by German physicians in a national survey. J Altern Complement Med. 2008 Dec;14(10):1255-61.

[7] Munstedt K, et al. Clinical indications and perceived effectiveness of complementary and alternative medicine in departments of obstetrics in Germany: A questionnaire study. Eur J Obstet Gynecol (2009), doi:10.1016/j.ejogrb.2009.05.013

[8] Du Y, Knopf H. Paediatric homoeopathy in Germany: results of the German health interview and examination survey for children and adolescents (KiGGS). Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf. 2009 Feb 23

[9] Tuffs, Annette, Three out of Four Germans Have Used Complementary or Natural Remedies, BMJ, November 2 2002;325:990.

[10] Bussing A, Matthiessen PF, Ostermann T. Differential usage of homeopathy and acpunture in German individuals. 2009 North American Research Conference on Complementary and Integrative Medicine, May 2009, Minneapolis, MN. Published in Alternative Therapies. May/June 2009, 15,3:S141.

[11] https://www.huffingtonpost.com/dana-ullman/homeop...

[12] ANSA English Corporate Service, 7.5 Million Italians Use Homeopathic Drugs, May 20, 2004.

[13] Prasad, R. Homoeopathy booming in India. Lancet. 2007 Nov 17;370(9600):1679-80

[14]Ghosh, A., A short history of the development of homeopathy in India.Homeopathy. 2010 Apr;99(2)

[15] Elia, K. Whole Health Now

[16] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulation_and_prev...

[17] https://hpathy.com/past-present/classical-homeopa...

[18] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulation_and_prevalence_of_homeopathy#Middle_East

[19] "Legal Status of Traditional Medicine and Complementary/Alternative Medicine: A Worldwide Review" (PDF).

[20] Sólo médicos especializados podrán ejercer la homeopatía en Colombia, El Observatorio de la Universidad Colombiana,19 March 2009

[21] https://www.marketwatch.com/story/homeopathy-prod...