Allopathy

The word “allopathy” has been referred to as conventional medicine. It is the use of nonhomeopathic remedies for diseases.

Allopathy or allopathic medicine, as the American Heritage Medical Dictionary defines it, is “a method of treating disease with remedies that produce effects antagonistic to those caused by the disease itself.” It is a term invented by homeopath Samuel Hahnemann. An example of an allopathic therapy would be “using a laxative to relieve constipation.”

During Samuel Hahnemann’s time, he claimed he saw a system of medicine that when put to use fights diseases by using remedies whose effect differ from those produced by that disease. He attached both “allos” (opposite) and “pathos” (suffering) to denote the terrible medical practices during his time, which include, among other things, vomiting, purging, bleeding, as well the use of highly intoxicating drugs. If the body is presenting a headache, the allopathic solution is to cause a deadening of pain. The pain is one effect, the deadening is a different, basically opposite effect. Thus whatever caused the headache is not addressed, but rather there is created some other effect that makes the first effect ineffective. This is “allo-pathy.” “Allo” is “opposite” and “pathy” is the “disease.” Thus, allopathy has been defined clearly as that which treats a disease with something opposite to the disease. That is allopathy in a nutshell.

But regular physicians refused to use the term and referred to “allopath” as a false nickname. They find it inconsistent with its root words “allos” and “pathos.” Although many modern therapies can be construed to conform to an allopathic rationale, standard medicine has never paid allegiance to an allopathic principle. The word “allopath” was considered highly derisive by regular medicine. But it is no more offensive than the use of the word “quack” in 1978 to describe a competitor.

But contrary to old beliefs, allopathy developed further in the West. Allopathy is now known as the Modern System of Medicine. It is a system which treats a disease with drugs having opposite effects to existing symptoms. They claimed that discovery and development in allopathy is due to extensive research. Each new remedy has aided to lessen pain and suffering.

In this regard, allopathy is sometimes called the Western approach and known to the west as conventional medicine. Allopathy focuses more on treating the symptoms of diseases primarily through prescription drugs. Allopathy or Modern System of Medicine or conventional medicine is practiced by physicians who graduate from medical school and write “MD” after their names.

Submitted on January 16, 2014