WOODSFIELD - Homeopath David Board is not a doctor and does not pretend to be one.
And he acknowledges that anything - including the elements of several natural remedies - can be dangerous when mixed, used incorrectly or taken in excess.
Still, Board believes natural methods can help people heal and recover from many conditions. And he is confident that homeopathy can work in conjunction with modern medicine. In fact, he said the remedies he offers his clients are geared toward restoring the body's natural ability to heal itself.
Board, a resident of Woodsfield and a British native, has studied at three schools of homeopathy and said he holds a certificate from the School of Homeopathy in Devon, England. According to the school, established in 1981, homeopathy is a system of natural health care with roots that stretch back two centuries.
"Unlike the medicine of that time - which is almost unrecognizable today - homeopathy hasn't changed - hardly at all," Board said. "It's based on a different set of rules. A homeopath is not a doctor. I'm closer to a cleric or a priest than to a doctor.
"A doctor deals with the material side of life," he continued. "I deal much more with the non-material side of life. I'm not talking about religion, but about non-material influences."
Homeopathy's founder, German doctor Samuel Hahnemann, derived the name from Greek words meaning "like cures like." This principle is viewed in a couple of ways by the School of Homeopathy - that the body can heal itself, and that minute doses of certain elements or herbs can cure conditions with symptoms similar to those that a larger dose of the remedy might produce.
Board said his remedies are diluted to the point that they are completely harmless, and because such small amounts of substances are used, they are "almost free." He determines ingredients based on "signs and symptoms that are well known to indicate certain materials," such as sulfur or an herb.
"A small amount can treat a huge number of people," Board said, speculating that may be one reason such natural remedies are not popular with the medical and pharmaceutical establishments. "There are no fortunes to be made. A drug company won't make a huge fortune by producing a homeopathic remedy."
The idea is to initiate body's own healing process with just enough of a remedy to act as a catalyst to restore the body's ability to deal with undesirable bacteria or a chronic condition such as anorexia, psoriasis, fibromialgia or even cancer.
"I'm not talking about triage I'm talking about the body being invaded by an alien or malevolent influence that isn't taken care of by the natural ability to heal itself," he said.
Board's work with cancer patients aims to support the body so it can work to overcome the disease with the help of other cancer treatments.
"I would not want to take on a cancer case unless they were already working with a qualified oncologist," he said.
Board noted it might seem the minute doses used in homeopathic remedies would act only as a placebo, but he said such remedies have been used successfully on horses, dogs, cats and rabbits that "have no idea they are being treated."
And while he recognizes that popular vitamins and supplements sold over the counter may be contaminated and frequently misused, Board said he trusts his West Virginia-based homeopathic supplier.
"I acknowledge that anything in this world, particularly herbs, can be very potent and, if used inappropriately, can be dangerous. People have irrational reactions; we call them allergies. But that is not a reason not to have them available," he said. "People can become addicted to supplements. It's not the way the body was supposed to function."
Board said he has and would recommend that certain clients see a physician for treatment. Usually, however, they come to Board after they have "exhausted the therapies of a medical doctor anyway."
"All my consultations start with, 'You understand, I'm not a doctor?'"
Board said he is a beneficiary of the power of homeopathy himself.
"I was cured of arthritis in three days," Board said of an experience he had at age 23.
In addition to his faith in natural healing, Board believes the entire health care system in the United States needs to be overhauled.
"First, it is vital that there is an alternative to the status quo in health ," he said, pointing out that reports state U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., currently is hospitalized due to a staph infection contracted within a modern hospital. "There are interests in the health care business in this country that would like to corner the market when it comes to the money that is made from people getting sick and so called health care. The very idea of a person's health being a business is a bad one to me.
"But if you believe in God, then you know that free health care is a deal that the creator made with us before we were born," he continued. "We should all be self-healing machines. It is the post-modern, industrial society that we live in that causes us to stop or degrade the self-healing ability. That is why, in all fairness, this post-modern industrial society should be footing the cost of repairing that self-healing machine."
Board leads regular meetings of a Homeopathy Study Group the third Tuesday of each month. The June session is set for 6:30 p.m. June 16 at the Marshall Couny Chamber of Commerce office, 609 Jefferson Ave., Mounds-ville. Call Sharon Welsch at 304-845-1443 to pre-register or visit dnboard.googlepages.com/.