Homeopathic proving
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A homeopathic proving is the method by which the profile of a homeopathic remedy is determined. They are carried out in a number of ways depending on the type of homeopath carrying out the trial. This can involve anything from following Samuel Hahnemann’s strict protocol to a person taking the remedy and meditating on the effects. When provings have been carried out using double-blind protocols to eliminate the possibility of self-deception or bias, as has been done with belladonna, arnica, Pulsatilla and mercury, no differences were discernable in the symptoms of the subjects taking the remedy and those taking a placebo.
A fairly standard method of homeopathic proving involves about 20 volunteers taking the remedy for approximately 6 weeks. During this time each prover keeps a proving diary recording all mental, physical and emotional symptoms that are experienced during the proving. At the end of the proving period the master prover will extract a remedy picture from the diaries. In order to give a full remedy picture it is normal for the provers to take the remedy at a range of potencies.
A more recent development involves having some of the participants in a trial take a placebo. The symptoms recorded by these provers are compared to the symptoms recorded by the other provers in order to aid the process of deciding which symptoms are caused by the remedy. It should be noted that since the master prover is not "blinded" this is not what medical researchers would consider a controlled trial.