Canada’s pediatricians say there is no evidence that homeopathic nosodes prevent disease and that labels must make clear they are not an alternative to vaccination.
Doctors are concerned about parents who decline to have their children receive the usual vaccinations against about 12 infectious diseases that are routinely administered across the country. They prevent diseases like mumps, measles, whooping cough, polio and several others. Some homeopaths offer nosodes instead, touting them as an alternative to vaccines.
Some parents refuse routine immunization for religious reasons or because they believe the vaccines to be harmful. An official statement from the Canadian Paediatric Society states that the scientific evidence proving that “all of the vaccines routinely administered to Canadian children are both safe and efficacious is overwhelming.”
Doctors want tougher labels
Current government regulations say that homeopathic nosodes must carry a label saying, “This product is not intended to be an alternative to vaccination.” Pediatricians would like a stronger label that would read “This product has not been proven to prevent infection. Health Canada advises that your child receive all routine vaccinations even if they take this product.”
The pediatiricans are also asking for a public education campaign to tell Canadians about the benefits of vaccination and the risks from not getting them, and to encourage more parents to have their children immunized.
Public health officer says nosodes ‘don’t work’
So far, the government has refused to take further action against nosodes. And the health minister has not responded to questions from The Globe and Mail asking why her department continues to approve nosodes for sale.
The chief public health officer in the eastern province of Nova Scotia goes even further than the Canadian Paediatric Society saying there should be a complete ban on nosodes, because “they are dangerous and they don’t work,” reports The Globe.
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