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In the late 1920's, a conventionally-trained German physician, Hans-Heinrich Reckeweg, M.D. (1905-1985), began researching and experimenting with homeopathic remedies. He was initially drawn to homeopathy while in medical school when a homeopath cured his father of a serious kidney disease. He completed his medical degree, then went to Berlin to study with masters of homeopathy. Once he began treating patients with homeopathic remedies, Dr. Reckeweg noticed how quickly the patients required another remedy. This concerned him since he was closely following the guidelines of well-experienced homeopaths. In his practice he observed that many human diseases seemed to be caused by exposure to toxins, both of external and internal nature. He termed this principle "Homotoxicology"; in other words, the study of toxins to humans. The presence of such toxins was undeniable in view of the increasingly polluted environment and widespread damaging lifestyle choices.
Dr. Reckeweg expanded Homotoxicology into a medical theory with many innovative aspects. He elaborated a six-phase table of Homotoxicology, by which physicians can trace a patient's medical history and locate the present medical complaint. He described 'vicariation' of illnesses (i.e., improvement and deterioration) and codified a Great Defense System of Five Parts. His treatise on Homotoxicology was published in 1955.
Dr. Reckeweg obtained better results with combinations of homeopathic remedies than with single remedies and took to developing formulas for his own patients. Consequently other medical colleagues began requesting his combination formulas. The number of requests escalated so rapidly that in 1936, Dr. Reckeweg founded a company to produce his medicines. He called the company Heel (an acronym of four Latin words: herba est. ex luce or 'Plants come from light') Between 1936 and 1979, he developed over one thousand homeopathic combinations and Heel grew to become the world's leading producer and marketer of homeopathic combination products, with product distribution throughout the world.
In 1979, with the goal of introducing his combination formulas to the U.S., Dr. Reckeweg relocated to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Soon after his arrival he began formulating homeopathic combination medicines and created a new company, Biological Homeopathic Industries (BHI), to produce and market his products. BHI entered the U.S. market with a line of some 50 newly combined homeopathic preparations, homeopathic publications produced by S.O.H.N.A. Publishing Company, seminars for physicians, and sales representatives.
Upon the death of Dr. Reckeweg in 1985, BHI's name was changed to Heel. Today Heel is the exclusive manufacturer and distributor of Heel products to health care practitioners throughout the U.S. Heel also manufactures and markets its BHI product line to health food retailers as well as health care practitioners in the U.S., and exports to many foreign markets as well as offers contract manufacturing to domestic companies.
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