Valérie Poinsot, CEO of Boiron, says homeopathy is just another medicine

CAROLINA MORENO CASTRO// Researchers of the ESTENAS team have attended the press conference of the Boiron Laboratories. Investigadores del equipo ESTENAS han asistido a la rueda de prensa de Los Laboratorios Boiron. Valérie Poinsot, CEO of Boiron Laboratories, before the criticism from journalists, mass media and agents of the health sector has explained in press conference, in a central hotel of Madrid, today March 9, how her pharmaceutical group has participated between 2006 and 2010 in a study on the effect of homeopathy on 8,559 patients of the French health system. A total of 825 physicians have been part of a study, in a country where 56% of the population admit to test it regularly. The final result of this analysis certified that patients who had been prescribed homeopathic medicines recovered better from their ailments and pathologies than those who did not.

Valérie Poinsot, CEO of Boiron

Poinsot, referring to homeopathy, reminds that Directive 92/73 / EEC of the European Council is the one that began to regulate a sector with almost 200 years of history. Up to 24 member countries follow the European regulations that were modified by the European Parliament in 2002, but countries such as Spain, Slovenia, Malta, Greece and Cyprus do not apply it in their health systems.

It is usually prescribed for problems of the musculoskeletal or digestive system, as well as dermatological, osteoarthritis or anxiety, in addition to stress and to serve as a relief to problems derived from oncology treatments. Poinsot admits that first-hand, as a mother of three children, one of them is allergic to certain allopathic or conventional medicines; homeopathy can be an option as in the case of pregnant women.

As head of the laboratory, she highlighted that in her group they are making great efforts in research and she reminds that to operate in the market each laboratory has to adhere to strict manufacturing, solubility and quality criteria. The group is present in 56 countries, with more than 3,500 employees spread all over the world.

The French multinational has communicated that they are in favour of the mix of homeopathic and allopathic (conventional) medicines. “We should not limit the resources patients have to achieve a healthy well-being.” That is why they remind that “in Spain there are 10,000 doctors who prescribe them and up to 15,000 pharmacists who distribute them”.

Regarding the future steps that they believe the Spanish Ministry of Health should take, they understand that it is a complex matter to regulate and they trust the good work of Spanish authorities but they remind that “more than 400,000 doctors prescribe homeopathy all over the world”. “The best interlocutors with society are the doctors who prescribe them.”