Heel (corporation)

Heel is a developer, producer and distributor of homeopathic preparations. It was founded in 1936 by Hans-Heinrich Reckeweg. Heel has offices in 40 countries worldwide including the United States where it is located in Albuquerque, NM.

History

Reckeweg was a German physician who practiced homeopathy. In 1936, Biologische Heilmittel Heel GmbH was founded in Berlin to develop and market his preparations. In 1953 Reckweg moved the company to its present location in Baden-Baden. Between the companies founding year 1936 and 1979 (when Reckeweg relocated to Albuquerque) he claims to have developed over 1,000 different homeopathic preparations. When Reckeweg relocated to Albuquerque he created Biological Homeopathic Industries (BHI) and began manufacturing combination remedies in tablet form. In 1997, the Albuquerque company was renamed Heel Inc, which now manufactures and distributes both BHI products and Heel products. Heel products are primarily marketed to practitioners, whereas BHI products are primarily marketed to consumers.

FDA violations

In 1984 BHI was labeled by the Food and Drug Administration as one of the most flagrant violators of FDA regulations in regards to marketing of homeopathic remedies. [Chastonay RJ. Request for limited inspection Re: Homeopathic Products. Memo, Oct 26, 1984] BHI was given multiple FDA citations and fines during the 1980s and early 1990s. [FDA Enforcement Report, March 25, 1992, p 6.] [Health Fraud Actions, October 1993 - September 1994. Rockville, MD: FDA, 1994, p 3.]

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