The law of Similars: individualization principle

This natural law, dimly perceived by Hippocrates only, has been described for the first time by Hahnemann, who deduced it experimentally by observation, and confirmed it by clinical experience at the patient’s bedside. Therefore, and years before the famous physiologist Claude Bernard, Hahnemann has also been the first in medical history to base medicine on experimentation (even if most classical books shamefully neglect such an information) and no more on vague hypothesis or woolly theories, very popular in his century.

This law can be formulated as follows: any substance can affect a healthy and sensitive subject. This affection is defined by a set of symptoms. This substance will thus be able to cure a patient presenting with the same symptoms.

This major law still isn’t very well known today: aspirin poisoning induces fever and intense joint pain, cortisone induces eczema, etc.

The principles discovered by Hahnemann are universal principles, which govern the prescription of all active substances in the organism, may they be raw or dynamised, or of vegetal, mineral, animal or synthetic origins. The active substance will disturb the functioning of the organism and the patient will be cured if and only if the artificial disease induced by the drug is similar to the patient’s natural disease. The degree of similarity between the drug and the natural disease is the only factor that allows to expect recovery (it is what we call homeopathicity).

The methods used by a homeopath physician are quite similar to those used by a mushroom picker: make sure to know the maximum species as well as their characteristics by heart. On first view, a mushroom can look like another mushroom you are used to see, but its gills, the colour of the spores, or a different taste or odour may indicate that it is not the same species. In order to treat by similars, the physician must study thoroughly the artificial tables created by drugs (there are approximately a thousand common tables) but also analyse in detail the patient’s symptoms, it is what we call individualization.

This reality is diametrically opposed to the way classical medicine treats its patients. It persists in ignoring the fact that all ill patients are dissimilar and cannot become sick in the same way, or benefit from the same treatment. The concept of “personalised medicine” has only been mentioned recently by big pharmaceutical industries looking for new sources of income. Genetic mapping is then supposed to predict a patient’s intolerance to such or such drug, and thus facilitate the choice between classical treatments and predict their tolerance. According to the homeopath, used to work with his intellect and sense of observation only, this big and expensive enterprise is doomed to failure.