Author: Dr. Girish Gupta[1], Dr. A. K. Srivastava[2], Dr. Naveen Gupta[3], Dr. Gaurang Gupta[4], Mr. Sunil Mishra[5]
[1]Chief Consultant
Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research
[2]Medical Mycologist
Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research
[3]Senior Consultant, (Research & Publication)
Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research
[4]Physician (Academics)
Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research
[5]Lab. Technician
Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research
Address for correspondence:
Dr. Girish Gupta
Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research
B-1/41, Sector A, Aliganj, Near Novelty Cinema, Kapoorthala, Lucknow-226 024 (U.P.), INDIA
Phone: 0522-4004370, 2326464,
E-mail: girishguptadr@gmail.com,
Website: http://www.gcchr.com
Background
Gupta et. al. in their experimental research work entitled “Anti-candidal activity of Homoeopathic drugs: An in-vitro evaluation”proved the efficacy of homoeopathic drug Mezereum 200 which caused maximum inhibition to the growth of Candida albicans in culture plate. He published the results of this experimental study in Vol. 9, Issue 2, April-June 2015 of Indian Journal of Research in Homoeopathy (IJRH)1.
In earlier days of Homoeopathy and even today, we come across the prescription of Homoeopathic physicians having a list of food and drinks which are forbidden.It became a food for thought for Dr. Gupta and his research team. They demonstrated through in-vitro experiments conducted in the Medical Mycology lab. of Gaurang Clinic and Centre for Homoeopathic Research (GCCHR) based at Lucknow that various edible items like garlic (lehsun), onion (piyaz), cardamom (elaichi), clove (laung), caraway (jeera), ginger (adrak) etc fenugreek (methi), black pepper (kali mirch), asafoetida (heeng), red chilli (lalmirch), green chilli (harimirch), turmeric (haldi), lemon (neebu) and camphor (kapoor) do not neutralize the action of potentised homoeopathic medicines. Therefore, such dietary prohibitions imposed on patients are unscientific.
Further in this series, Dr. Gupta and his team also conducted experiment on the impact of prohibited beverages like tea, coffee and some intoxicants like tobacco and bhang.
Abstract
From the time of Dr. Hahnemann, Homoeopathic physicians have been very particular about the diet during treatment owing to general belief that the effect of remedy would be antidoted by anything which has strong odour or having medicinal properties. Even today, Homoeopathic physicians have varied opinion on these dietary restrictions. Majority of Homoeopathic physicians restrict all the articles which have strong smell or possess some medicinal property while restriction by some are limited considering the nature of disease and remedy. Another category of Homoeopathic physicians, though meagre in number, usually do not impose any dietary restrictions.
Gupta et. al. had already demonstrated through the in-vitro experiments that various commonly restricted edible items do not neutralize the action of Homoeopathic medicines and such restrictions are unscientific.
The aim of this in-vitrostudy was to provide experimental proof, to validate or dismiss the belief of contemporary homoeopathic physicians of restricting beverages like tea, coffee and some other items like tobacco and bhang.
The result of these experiments have shown that there is no effect of these restricted items on the inhibition in growth of human pathogenic fungus Candida albicans by Mezereum 200 in in-vitro condition.
This experiment is only an effort to elicit the effect of above mentioned items on the inhibition in growth of human pathogenic fungus Candida albicans by Mezereum 200 in in-vitro condition and it should not be taken that the authors by any means advocate the intake of above mentioned items.
Key words
Candida albicans, beverages, forbidden items, intoxicants, homoeopathic medicine, in-vitro inhibitory effect, biological experimental model, disc method, zone of inhibition technique.
Introduction
Dr. Hahnemann, the father of Homoeopathic science in aphorism 259 of Organon of Medicine2 said that diet of the patient must be regulated and nothing of medicinal nature should be taken while on homoeopathic treatment. He wrote “Considering the minuteness of the doses necessary and proper in homoeopathic treatment, we can easily understand that during the treatment everything must be removed from the diet and regimen, which can have any medicinal action, in order that the small dose may not be overwhelmed and extinguished or disturbed by any foreign medicinal irritant”.
In support to what he said he put forth the example of the effect of music of flute on the human heart and mind. To specify why the treating physician should remove or prohibit every such thing in the diet and regimen of the patient which can have any medicinal action. He wrote “The softest tones of a distant flute that, in the still midnight hours would inspire a tender heart with exalted feelings and dissolve it in religious ecstasy, are inaudible and powerless amid discordant cries and the noise of day.”
In aphorism 260 of Organon of Medicine2 Dr. Hahnemann further wrote about the importance of diet and regimen. He emphasized necessity of careful investigation into these obstacles to cure because diseases are usually aggravated by such noxious influences and disease causing errors which are often not noticed by the attending physician.
In the footnote to aphorism 260 of Organon of Medicine2 he wrote that in chronic diseases the attending physician must be careful in diet and hygiene as they may easily upset the patient and gives a long list of things to be avoided the main being coffee; fine Chinese and other herbal tea yet permitted many tolerable things.
Dr. Hahnemann was very strict in diet and hygiene but some of his followers wanted to outdo him in their strictness thus he wrote “some of my disciples seem to increase the difficulties of patient’s diet by forbidding the use of many more, tolerably indifferent things which is not to be commended.”
To unveil the mystery as what to eat and what to avoid, we picked the two most prohibited beverage during homoeopathic treatmenti.e. tea and coffee and two other items tobacco and bhang which are universally accepted to cause ill-effect on human health and observed the effect of these items on the action of homoeopathic medicines in in-vitroconditions in the Medical Mycology lab. of GCCHR to ascertain the efficacy of Mezereum 200 in the inhibition of growth of human pathogenic fungus Candida albicans in biological experimental model.