Eczema and Allergy Problem (The Itch)

Information

The eczema and allergy problem (E&A P) is a complex disorder afflicting many. The E&A P encompasses disorders such as eczema (the itch), asthma, hay fever, urticaria (an itchy weal or welt, locally [ Western Cape ] termed "bommels"), hyperactivity and related syndromes, as well as many other diseases which may arise after the suppression of eczema. There is no shortage of ideas or philosophies regarding the E&A P, whether originating from modern medicine (MM), society in general, as well as our parents, family and friends.

Most patients consult MM practitioners first, as it has been afforded the "official medical" status, not only in South Africa , but in many countries around the world. MM is the product of European society and social strife (Engel) since ± 1500 AD. MM is based on reductionism. Reductionism is one manner of studying objects or man by dividing those objects into its smaller and smaller components. This manner of studying is the prime reason why we find a doctor for every bit and piece of man; there is a doctor for, e.g., your eye, your nose, your heart, etc. Unfortunately, man as a complete undivided unit is not studied and the unified man is lost in the process. Reductionism therefore allows the MM doctor to treat the skin of the patient without much concern for the patient as a totality, and more importantly, the doctor is not that concerned with what happens to the patient after the treatment, provided that the treatment would not result in the outright death of the patient. Therefore, if a patient develops asthma after the doctor treated the itchy skin, the doctor may immediately institute treatment for the asthma, commenting to patients that asthma is associated with eczema, or the doctor would refer the patient to, e.g., a specialist.

The greatest test and proof of a concern for the patient as a totality, would be the concern shown by the MM doctor for the consequences/results after treating the itchy skin; the doctor must carefully observe what happens to the individual patient after the itch has disappeared. Unfortunately, as can be read later in this document, MM doctors often reject the real-life results related to them by patients; they reject those results as not being "scientific", even when patients swear under oath concerning their experiences. Sad indeed is the fact that doctors reject that his/her treatment is responsible for making patients sick. Do they reject such information purely due to the fear of being brought before court due to making patients sick or is it purely because of a exalted believe that their medical science is flawless?

I shall now continue this discussion of the E&A P problem by requesting the patient/reader to consider the following remarks very carefully:

To understand the homoeopathic point of view of the E&A P problem in comparison to that of MM, I request every patient to study this document very carefully! Experience has taught me that most patients unfortunately scan this document superficially, without attempting to comprehend a great deal! That has always been disappointing, saddening and frustrating.

As a result of the above superficial scanning of this document, we do not start our consultation on a positive note. This document is meant to prevent me from using very precious time during which I have to explain the contents of this document to the patients/parents, while we could have used that valuable but wasted time, to discuss via photographs, many examples of patients whom I have treated in the past. This document is meant to save precious time at my rooms.

This document is furthermore meant to impress on patients that the treatment of the E&A P is very complex and demands a great deal of time and energy from all of us. Again, experience has taught me, that working parents, in particular, unfortunately underestimate the commitment required, which so often has lead to failure and disappointment.

Many obstacles to the successful treatment of the E&A P problem exist. For example, finding the correct treatment for a patient at a particular moment in time, is comparable to finding the correct pin code to, for instance, your cell phone. If we fail to find the pin code, the cell phone would not be very useful. Therefore, likewise, our treatment would also be useless if we fail to find the correct treatment code.

Unfortunately, eczema patients are often faced with people interfering with their condition. Many family members, as well as strangers, interfere with an E&A patient. Often well-intentioned, but unwanted and unsolicited advice is provided, which frustrates patients and/or parents endlessly. I have unfortunately no advice on this matter.

However, is the E&A P only a skin problem which takes place without the involvement of the rest of the patient? Have you ever been visited by a skin? Have you ever been visited by a human heart? On the contrary, you have been visited many a time by a unique human being with his/her heart beating inside and his/her skin firmly in place on the outside!

The conception of a baby

No one disputes the fact that babies do not choose their parents! A baby is the product of two parents and families, inheriting from both, the good, the bad and the ugly! A baby receives free of charge the ability to develop many of the diseases present in both families. Disease tendencies are passed from the grandparents to the parents and ultimately to the newly conceived child. Disease tendencies enter the conceived baby via the sperm and ovum, which combine to form one single fertilised cell. This single fertilised cell, from which all cells of the body develop, is therefore sick. This single cell divides into many new cells; therefore all the disease tendencies which were present in that single fertilised cell are now passed to the other cells being formed! It therefore means that every cell and organ of the body of the new baby is sick.

As is often the case, eczema appears spontaneously on the skin of the baby after birth. This happens uninvited and unsolicited.

Why eczema? Does it represent wisdom or madness?

Is eczema a manifestation of wisdom or madness of our body? In order to understand this dilemma I must discuss some of the basic facts about the healing abilities of our body. The following three examples aim to make sense of this apparent madness by considering our healing abilities.

Firstly: what heals a broken bone or a surgical wound? Do doctors heal the bone or the surgical wound? Do sutures heal a surgical wound? Never! Our own body heals our broken bones and wounds etc. Doctors may splint the limb or perhaps operate on the bone, provide pain relief and are finally forced to wait for 6 weeks to see if the body healed itself. In essence our body is the prime cause of healing. The healing ability of our body allows a broken bone to heal without any pain or swelling to remain behind.

Secondly: what happens if our body cannot heal itself? A simple example: a patient suffers from migraines ever since a serious head injury. The fact that that patient suffers from migraines since the head injury, means that the patient's body has not been able to cure the bad effects of the head injury. Compare this with the healing of a broken bone as discussed above, especially when no pain or swelling remains behind. The migraine therefore represents the language of suffering, and the inability of the body to heal itself.

Thirdly: how do we comprehend a baby suffering from the E&A P? Such a baby represents a much more complex problem compared with a broken bone or head injury. Such a baby’s body has to deal and cope with many inherited disease tendencies. These disease tendencies may result very soon after birth in real diseases! A baby may then start suffering from asthma or bronchitis, hay fever, recurring diarrhoea or restlessness, for example. Some older children may later develop diabetes or cancer. In the light of the previous discussion, can our body’s own healing abilities cure these tendencies which become realities in the baby after birth? Unfortunately, no! I mention later in this article the fact that allergic premature and especially weak babies develop asthma without developing eczema first. What these examples show is the fact that the baby's own healing potential is not equipped to cure complex inherited disease tendencies, when for instance our body’s own healing abilities cannot, for instance, cure the bad effects of a head injury! What happens then under such circumstances?

The formation of eczema?

Careful observations by many doctors over the past ± 400 years have revealed that the only option for our intelligent body is to induce the formation of eczema! Our body forces an aspect of the diseases from the vital internal organs onto the skin! Eczema represents therefore the external manifestation of the inherited internal diseases. Put in a different way, eczema in essence represents only the tip of the iceberg and not the whole iceberg or the whole disease.

The presence of eczema on the skin merely calms the internal diseases, without curing them! This process is comparable to a sleep mode of the internal diseases, similar to a computer, which goes into sleep mode when not in use. Touch the mouse and the computer comes back to life! With the eczema on the skin, the patient’s, e.g., asthma, tends to be so much better, a fact confirmed by many carefully observing parents. Treating the eczema by applying creams, which equals handling the computer mouse, arouses the internal diseases and the patient starts suffering from asthma once again or from some other internal disease! Therefore, as confirmed by doctors over the past ± 400 years, treating eczema (for that matter any spontaneously developing skin disorder) with suppressive creams makes a person sick.

What are the results of conventional dermatological treatment?

I have experienced a hierarchy of increasingly severe diseases, which follows the treatment of eczema with creams. The following represents that hierarchy:

1. First, a disturbance of the brain sets in, causing night restlessness and poor sleep. Soon hyperactivity or the A.D.D. Ritalin problem raises its head. Later in life, we term the mind disorder as “Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll”. Consider therefore the social consequences of merely treating the skin!

2. The nose is next, manifesting itself as for instance the perpetual dirty noses of such children, or they may suffer from hay fever and possibly later sinusitis with or without sinus migraines.

3. The lungs are next, manifesting as asthma, whooping cough or bronchitis e.g.

4. The next serious consequence that the other internal organs are affected, manifesting as diabetes, arthritis, kidney diseases, endometriosis, fibroids, heart diseases, and even as cancer.

The above hierarchy develops easier in weaker, low birth-weight babies. In such weak babies the eczema may disappear completely while the baby suffers, for example, from severe asthma. Furthermore, I may add that premature weak babies often tend not to develop any eczema, but suffer immediately after birth from breathing disorders such as bronchiolitis. These babies may later in life, if they are fortunate to survive their infancy, develop eczema. Eczema is therefore a manifestation of a relatively healthier baby, while the healthiest may continue to suffer from eczema continuously from infancy till their forties or fifties with minimal internal disorders.

If the above consequences are not reversed homoeopathically, the disease tendencies are passed to the offspring, perpetuating the vicious cycle of sick families.

Is the above a new discovery?

Not at all! Dr. Samuel Hahnemann recorded on pages 16-20 of his book titled The Chronic Diseases, published ± 1824, ± 97 examples of the diseases which arose in patients after their itchy problem was suppressed by applying lotions and/or creams of different kinds. He made use of about 97 examples from among thousands of such examples recorded by doctors who lived before his time (Hahnemann did not make use of examples from his own patient population). He described the treatment of an itchy skin as “one of the most criminal procedures the medical world can be guilty of, and yet it has hitherto been the one generally adopted, and taught from the professional chairs as the only one.” These examples can be viewed at the following website. Please note that the first example below dates from the year 1615, almost 400 years ago!

Suffocations from Asthma (i.e. dying from Asthma), Joh. Phil. Brendel, Consila. med., Frft. 1615: “The dyspnoea (shortness of breath) of a youth, 20 years, caused by the driving away of the itch was so great that he could not get any breath, and his pulse was hardly perceptible, in consequence of which he suffocated.”

Amaurosis (i.e. blindness), Northof, Diss. de scabie, Gotting., I792, P.10: “From itch expelled by external application there arose amaurosis, which passed away when the eruption re-appeared on the skin.”

Convulsions, Juncker, et al, 1754, §13, 14: “After an itch driven away by ointment there followed with a girl a most profound swoon and soon after the most terrible convulsions and death.”

The examples quoted by Hahnemann cover every system of the human being, spiritual, mental and physical. It would be worthwhile to personally read these examples; however, I made the following summary of the diseases which Hahnemann quoted:

1. Asthma.

2. Pleurisy and inflammation of the chest. Coughing up of blood. Collection of pus in the chest.

3. Pus in the intestines. Dropsy of the abdomen (i.e. fluid in the belly). Degeneration of the intestines.

4. Degeneration of the brain. Hydrocephalus.

5. Piles.

6. Cataracts.

7. Loss of vision.

8. Inflammation of the eyes.

9. Deafness.

10. Diabetes.

11. Suppression of urine.

12. Bone abnormalities.

13. Fevers, of many kinds.

14. Vertigo.

15. Epilepsy.

16. Apoplexy (i.e. strokes).

17. Paralysis.

18. Insanity.

19. Melancholy (i.e. depression).

Shockingly and regrettably, many of the patients from the above list died after the itch was suppressed. Many deaths were found in category 1, the asthma group. The majority of deaths were from category 2, while interestingly, the other patients died in category 11, kidney failure, category 13, severe fevers and associated problems, and lastly categories 15-17, epileptic seizures, strokes and paralyses.

To this day my MM colleagues vehemently deny that treating an itchy skin can cause asthma! They adhere to a belief that an association exists between asthma and eczema, however that association is rather coincidental. They defend their position claiming that their "science” disproves the fact that the suppression of eczema causes asthma, because asthma does not develop in each and every patient whose itchy problem is suppressed. Experience has taught me and my contemporary colleagues, as well as the above authors from the past 400 years, that asthma does not develop in each and every patient whose eczema is suppressed. Human suffering is extremely complex and poorly understood by our limited and straight-jacketed intellect; as such we cannot predict which patient would develop which diseases when an itchy problem is suppressed. Although not every patient whose eczema is suppressed would develop asthma, the important fact is that many patients/parents do swear that the asthma developed after the suppression of the the eczema (note too, that some patients suffer from asthma and eczema at the same time, representing merely another addition to the complexity of the E&A P). Hahnemann’s list proves that. What this list also proves is that Hahnemann was correct to term the treatment of a skin problem with creams and lotions as criminal.

Why are there so many allergic patients today?

Professor Potter from the University of Cape Town ’s Faculty of Health Sciences wrote in 2005 that “Allergic diseases now affect between 20% and 30% of the South African population.” That would amount to about 10 million people in South Africa . Professor Potter furthermore wrote that “Allergic diseases have dramatically increased worldwide during the past 20 years. This increase has led to a prevalence in allergic symptoms in children which has increased by 200% when compared with the mid 1970s. In most developed countries 1 in 4 children are affected…”

Why did this happen? Something must have contributed to the massive increase in allergic diseases. Many possible causes are proposed by MM, however the consequences of the suppression of eczema is not part of their list. I shall put my head on the block by stating that the increase in the number of allergic patients is most likely due to the following two reasons:

When I consider what happened to many of the patients from the list in the book of Dr Hahnemann, I must come to the conclusion that some of those patients unfortunately did not survive childhood! The suppression of the itchy skin led to the death of some of them before they could have had children of their own.

The second reason would be due to the fact that we live, since the 1950s, in the era of treatments like cortisone and prednisone e.g., as well as antibiotics, which allow patients, who may develop any of the above diseases due to the suppression of their itchy skin, to survive without being truly cured of those diseases. Diseases like asthma and the other lung problems, which would have caused the death of patients in the past, are now prevented by MM treatments. It is as if a mountain has been placed on the the lung diseases which prevents those diseases from causing the death of the patient. Since the advent of prednisone and antibiotics during the 1950s, patients have therefore been able to survive till adulthood and have been able to have offspring. Allow me to make an example of a married couple, where only one has inherited the E&A P, for example, the husband. The eczema which spontaneously appeared originally in the husband when he was a child was suppressed; however he survived, for example, the subsequent asthma by means of prednisone and antibiotics. This couple conceives 3 children; each of whom inherits the disease tendencies from their father. If each of the above 3 children would have 3 children of their own, this 3^rd generation would also to a greater and lesser degree suffer from allergic diseases. It is therefore logical, that within a few generations, an exponential increase in the prevalence of these disorders takes place with the help of immunosuppressive drugs and antibiotics!

It is my humble opinion that the above reasons are a logical explanation for the 200% increase in the prevalence of allergic diseases since the 1970s.

In the light of the above discussion, patients become acutely aware of the fact that in the not too distant past, they may not have survived childhood! They have been granted an “artificial well-being” by MM treatments like prednisone, ventolin and antibiotics. The ability of MM treatments to allow these patients to survive into adulthood, does not legitimise the unacceptable and illogical nature of the suppression of their eczema in the first instance. This also does not mean that I reject the use of any of these treatments. A treatment which is capable of saving life must be considered useful, however analysing the reasons why those treatments were deemed essential for that patient brings to light that a reprehensible act was committed to that patient. That act of suppressing an itchy skin problem by MM will remain to me intellectually bankrupt and allows/ed for the massive increase of allergic persons.

I posted a detailed discussion of the E&A P on the website of the British Medical Journal (I hope to post an edited version of this article on this website in the near future). Nevertheless, I submitted that article requested by a British consultant dermatologist who wanted me to explain the homoeopathic philosophy concerning the E&A P. This consultant dermatologist was asked during 2004 by the then final year British medical student Clare Hughes, who attended my consultations in Kuils River , as part of her elective study program at Guys and Kings College Medical School , London , to act as the MM consultant to an article by Clare, comparing MM and homoeopathic concepts and treatment of eczema. I acted as the homoeopathic consultant to the article which centered on a patient of mine whose details Clare wished to publish. On reading my article forwarded via Clare, the dermatologist forthwith withdrew his support for her article.

It is with dismay and disbelief that today, almost 400 years later, the medical profession still adheres to the same dangerous ideas about the E&A P!

The homoeopathic treatment of the E&A P

At first consultation I assess the patient’s or the parents’ understanding of the E&A P as presented in this document. As I stated above, most parents/patients unfortunately do not study this document. That is followed by a photographic presentation of the reality of the E&A P. I present photographs of the results of previously treated patients, as well as patients currently under treatment! The presentation of the true reality of eczema via these photographs is invariably shocking to everyone. Two reasons account for this. The first is the fact that dermatological treatments suppress eczema, thereby not allowing the full presentation and reality of eczema to be witnessed, while at the same time making the patient sicker. The second reason is the fact that many patients have had a similar but milder eruption in the past, which was suppressed and to their horror, the patients have to go through the same process once again!

It would therefore not surprise anyone that we only proceed with the homoeopathic treatment once a patient or their parents fully understand the E&A P and its treatment. As mentioned above, some patients and/or parents are profoundly perplexed by their newly acquired insight, obliging me to insist that they return home to reflect carefully on whether to proceed or not with the treatment. Some of these patients or parents return, while many do not.

Do not forget that all internal diseases at first consultation, mostly as the consequence of the local treatment of the eczema, must be cured. Therefore asthma, allergies, hyperactivity, fears, anxieties, aggressive or destructive behaviour, heavy and/or painful menstruation, constipation, a leaking bladder, e.g., must be cured before the eczema will disappear completely. Decayed teeth too, interfere negatively with the treatment of the patient; decayed teeth must be treated by a dentist.

As an example, let us use again the concept of an iceberg. Consider the following:

The tip of iceberg = eczema, while

The iceberg under water = internal diseases.

Logically, the tip of the iceberg can only disappear when the iceberg as a whole has melted. Please remember that ice always floats on top of water, which means that as long as there is ice under water, a tip of ice would always remain on top of the water. When we consider the tip of the iceberg as eczema, logically the eczema would remain on the skin, in the same manner in which ice always floats on water, until the internal diseases, or the iceberg under water, has been cured completely. Therefore, a degree of itchiness would remain right to the end of the treatment, though the itchiness would decrease constantly as the internal diseases disappear. Thus, eczema can only disappear when all the internal diseases have disappeared. The primary aim of the treatment is to cure the patient of all his/her internal diseases.

Patients ask me the following without fail: “How long will it take?” My response is that it’s impossible to predict how long the treatment of a patient may take. However, experience has taught me that patients who suffer from serious internal diseases, tend to suffer temporarily during the treatment process, from a much more serious form of eczema. I can show photographically the differences in duration, severity and appearance of eczema between a relatively healthier, compared to a relatively sicker patient. Such a demonstration is always very enlightening.

Right or wrong?

Please judge for yourself whether treating one’s skin with dermatological creams and lotions is logical and correct especially in the light of the consequences of such local dermatological treatment which I discussed in this document! The dermatological treatment and its consequences must therefore be compared with the temporary flare up of eczema under homoeopathic treatment, which may appear unsightly. However, with continued homoeopathic treatment, the patient becomes free of the inherited diseases, as well as the eczema. A young patient treated in this homoeopathic manner, should not pass to his/her offspring, any of the diseases which he/she inherited in the first place.

Finally, the South African Constitution and the Patient's Rights Charter provided by the Health Professions Council of South Africa, guarantee your right to choose your and your children’s treatment, once a health care provider has discussed dispassionately and honestly what the consequences of their treatment would entail. Lastly, in this regard, no health care practitioner is allowed to force or threaten a patient in any way.

I thank you for taking time to study this document.

Dr HJD Jeggels

References:

GL Engel. The Need for a New Medical Model: A Challenge for Biomedicine. Science 196, 129 (1977)

HJD Jeggels. Conventional E&A P conceptualisation: Illogical, dangerous and unscientific. Time to say goodnight to this philosophy. http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/eletters/327/7428/1358#43914

Health Professions Council of South Africa . The National Patient's Rights Charter. https://www.hpcsa.co.za/hpcsa/UserFiles/File/Patient'sRightsCharter.pdf

PC Potter. The Investigation of the Allergic Patient: The Importance of Early Diagnosis. CME; The South African Journal of CPD, Vol. 23, No. 9, September 2005, page 444.

S Hahnemann. The Chronic Diseases, 1824. Jains Publishing, New Delhi , India . See pages 16-20. http://www.homeoint.org/books/hahchrdi/index.htm