Evidence supporting claims that homeopathic remedies offer an effective alternative to the measles vaccine can be summarised in a single word: zero. There is no study by any reputable organisation to suggest that treatments which claim to offer resistance to this disease by building “natural immunity” provide any proper protection. These so-called homeoprophylaxis treatments have been condemned by mainstream doctors and even the Society of Homeopaths. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control is unequivocal: “Homeopathy has been shown to be based on implausible mechanisms . . . Vaccination is the only effective way to prevent against measles.”

Yet not only are these quack treatments being widely promoted online but some homeopaths have been privately providing information that was highly misleading. One told our