Jemma Walton Spoke to one of the three homeopaths currently working in Peterborough to find out.

TO some people it's snake oil, while to others – like Prince Charles – it is a natural, effective way of treating illness. But what is homeopathy?

Homeopathy is one of those things, like acupuncture and reiki, that lurks in the pages of women's magazines. We have all heard of it, but we're not really sure what it is or whether it could do anything for us.

For the past few months I have been suffering from outbreaks of an itchy rash on my arms and legs that will come and go without warning. Doctors have said it was an allergy – to what, they weren't sure. And so it has just been a case of waiting and seeing what triggers the rash, if anything. Great.

The antihistamine Piriton gets rid of the rash, but it makes me sleepy, which isn't ideal as dozing is banned in the ET office, officially at least.

And so when I heard about Barbara Reid offering homeopathy from Broadway Chiropractic Clinic, I made an appointment to see her to find out more about homeowatsit – and whether she could stop the itchiness.

Barbara has previously worked as a lecturer in housing at London South Bank University, where she was interested in the link between quality of life and housing.

But she became even more fascinated by quality of life when a homeopath helped her to get rid of the migraines and period pains she had suffered with for years.

She said: "Having been plagued with blinding headaches since my teenage years, and working through every painkiller on the market, which I wasn't happy about, I'm pleased to say that I very rarely have one now, and the best thing is that I never have to take any painkillers at all."

Barbara trained at the London School of Classical Homeopathy, is a member of the Society of Homeopaths, and has been seeing clients from her home in Newborough. From this month she will be offering consultations at Broadway Chiropractic Clinic.

Before I let her take a look at my lumps and bumps I asked her a few questions, like what is homeopathy? How does it work?

She said: "Back in 1796, a German doctor called Samuel Hahnemann discovered a different way of curing the sick that he called homeopathy. Homeopathy is a complete system of medicine which can help people with all kinds of illnesses, from depression to arthritis, migraine to ulcers, it is safe and natural, and suitable for people of all ages."

Apparently, homeopathy works according to something called the "Law of Similars", which states broadly that a substance that can make someone sick, can also heal.

For example, we all know that problem of stinging and runny eyes that you can get when cutting onions. A homeopath though can use the homeopathic remedy prepared from onions, Allium Cepa, to treat a patient whose hay fever symptoms include stinging and runny eyes, and their symptoms will be relieved.

Similarly, we know that a couple of strong cups of real coffee can keep you wide awake at night. But Barbara said that a homeopath may prescribe the remedy made from coffee, Coffea, to help patients who have problems with insomnia.