Homeopathy Could Soon Be Blacklisted On The NHS

Homeopathy could be put on a blacklist of treatments which GPs are banned from prescribing, according to the BBC.

The NHS currently spends around £4 million per year on the treatments - which are controversial, as many scientists say the pills simply don’t work.

Homeopathy is based on the idea that ‘like cures like’, so patients are treated with extremely small amounts of substances such as pollen.

But critics say that there is little proof the treatments are effective - and that the pills are so diluted that users are basically consuming sugar (used to bulk the pills) and little else.

A consultation is reportedly scheduled for 2016, after the Good Thinking Society put pressure on the NHS to debate the issue, according to the BBC.

The NHS says that homeopathic practitioners believe that the treatments can help with many conditions - but its own advice is clear about the scientific basis for such treatments.

The NHS says, ‘There is no good quality evidence that homeopathy is an effective treatment for these or any other health conditions.

‘Some practitioners also claim that homeopathy can prevent malaria or other diseases. There is no evidence to support this and no scientifically plausible way that homeopathy can prevent diseases.