article_snippet: Homeopathic medicines are 'no more effective than placebo' in treating health problems, new research has concluded.
article_snippet: A report from Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council  assesses the evidence effectiveness of homeopathy for treating health conditions from a total of 225 existing studies, dating back to 1997.
article_snippet: The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council only used studies which were deemed controlled trials - and therefore included a comparison group who were not given homeopathic treatment.
article_snippet: The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council found there is no conclusive evidence that homeopathy is more effective than placebos in treating patients and easing patients symptoms.
article_snippet: The Australian National Health and Medical Research Council's chief executive, professor Warwick Anderson, said: 'The review shows that there is no good quality evidence to support the claim that homeopathy works better than a placebo. '
article_snippet: There were signs it was more effective than placebos for ADHD, bruising, HIV, chronic fatigue, ulcers and depression.
article_snippet: For a treatment to be considered effective, the council's Homeopathy Working Committee advised the council's Homeopathy Working Committee must result in health improvements that cannot be explained by the placebo effect, and health improvements that cannot be explained by the placebo effect must be meaningful for a person's overall health.
article_snippet: There must also be evidence that the health improvements in people taking the treatment are unlikely to be due to chance and the result must be seen consistently in several studies, the council's report said.
article_snippet: Professor Anderson concluded: 'From this review, the main recommendation for Australians is that Australians should not rely on homeopathy as a substitute for proven, effective treatments. '
article_snippet: This statement was the result of a rigorous examination of the evidence and used internationally accepted methods for assessing the quality and reliability of evidence for determining whether or not a therapy is effective for treating health conditions.'
article_snippet: the council assessed the effectiveness of homeopathic medicines based on three criteria.
article_snippet: the council found there is no conclusive evidence that homeopathy is more effective than placebos in treating patients and easing patients symptoms.
article_snippet: In addition, experts considered an independent evaluation of information provided by homeopathy interest groups and the public.
article_snippet: And finally, the council took into consideration clinical practice guidelines and government reports on homeopathy, published in countries across the world.
article_snippet: Cristal Sumner, chief executive of The British Homeopathic Association said the council report 'seriously misrepresents the nature of the clinical research evidence in homeopathy'. '
article_snippet: The NHMRC's conclusion fails to caution that the review admitted that "the evidence base for the majority of clinical conditions was considered of insufficient size to enable clear conclusions on the efficacy of homeopathy to be drawn",' Cristal Sumner, chief executive of The British Homeopathic Association said. '
article_snippet: Moreover, the review's focus on medical conditions fails to recognise that homeopathy is based on individualised treatment, not on a named medical condition. '
article_snippet: A recent meta-analysis published by The British Homeopathic Association has provided independently verified evidence that individually prescribed homeopathic medicines may have clinical effects that are greater than those of placebos. '
article_snippet: The NHMRC's statement also fails to note that The NHMRC review commended further quality research in homeopathy.'