Globules
Globules ( pl. , Lat. For "beads"; sg. : Globulus ) or globules are in the alternative medicine pharmaceutical formulation used. They are used, for example, in homeopathic medicines , in Bach flower therapy or in Schüßler salts . Globulus refers exclusively to the spherical shape, which can consist of different carbohydrates . There is no scientific evidence that the globules are effective beyond the placebo effect.
Composition and structure
Carrier (according to HAB 2006) and thus usually the only substance in homeopathic globules is sucrose (table sugar ), but there are also flour-containing globules according to Samuel Hahnemann's recipe and made from the sugar substitute xylitol .
Globules come in different sizes, the sugar is white to yellowish in color. Hahnemann made the size of his globules dependent on the type of potentization , which is why the Homeopathic Pharmacopoeia (HAB 2006) prescribes “size 3” for the production of D and C potencies (regulation 10 HAB), which is around 110 to 130 globules per gram Sugars with a diameter of 1.8 to 2.5 mm. LM potencies are made with globules "size 1", according to regulation 17 HAB that is around 500 globules per gram of sugar with a diameter of 1.0 to 1.6 mm.
Medical effectiveness
There is no scientific evidence of effectiveness for homeopathic remedies of almost all dilution levels ( called “ potencies ” in homeopathy ). Insofar as they do not contain any active substance due to the strong dilution, they are dummy drugs that can trigger placebo effects. See also criticism of homeopathy .
Homeopathics with a lower dilution of “mother tinctures” up to “potencies” of “D4” contain active ingredients and can therefore lead to allergic reactions and symptoms of poisoning. The American Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued repeated warnings, most recently in September 2016, of so-called teething tablets and teething gels , homeopathic preparations of low dilution made from deadly nightshade ( Atropa belladonna ) that are supposed to make teething pain tolerable in young children . Since its 2010 warning, the agency has received more than 400 reports of atropine poisoning following the use of such products, including 10 deaths. Laboratory tests found belladonna concentrations in various products in the Teething Tablets that were well above the declared content. To protect consumers, the manufacturer was asked to recall the affected products. There is no evidence that the “mother tinctures”, in whatever dilution (“potentiation”), are effective in the intended sense.
In 2019, a case of chronic arsenic poisoning with D6 globules became known in Switzerland .
Trivia
Due to the presence of only a trace of the active ingredient, they are sometimes ironically referred to as “Glaubuli” to indicate that one has to believe in the effect.
literature
- Norbert Schmacke (ed.), Belief in the globules. The Promises of Homeopathy . Berlin: Suhrkamp, 2015. ISBN 9783518466391
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Edzard Ernst : The truth about homeopathy. (PDF file; 55 kB) Br J Clin Pharmacol . 2008 Feb; 65 (2): 163-4. Epub 2007 Sep 13, PMID 17875194 .
- ↑ HH Frey, W. Löscher: Textbook of pharmacology and toxicology for veterinary medicine. Enke Verlag, Stuttgart, ISBN 978-3-432-26941-2 . Chapter "Homeopathy".
- ↑ Sven Siebenand: Homeopathy: Poisoning possible. In: Pharmaceutical newspaper online. November 29, 2012.
- ↑ P. Posadzki, A. Alotaibi, E. Ernst: Adverse effects of homeopathy: a systematic review of published case reports and case series In: International Journal of Clinical Practice. Published online November 20, 2012.
- ↑ FDA warns against the use of homeopathic teething tablets and gels In: FDA News Release. September 30, 2016.
- ↑ Susan Scutti: Throw out homeopathic teething tablets with belladonna, FDA Says In: CNN. January 27, 2017.
- ↑ FDA confirms elevated levels of belladonna in certain homeopathic teething products In: FDA News Release. January 27, 2017.
- ^ A curious association of chronic homeopathic arsenic ingestion with nonspecific symptoms in a Swiss teenager
