Thomas J. Moore
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 The top 50 are the most popular drugs, the fruits of the most advanced medical scientists, and, compared to herbal remedies, thoroughly tested. Then why do they remain so dangerous? Why hasn't a free market, billions of dollars, and a flourishing science produced drugs without these troubling risks? Why can't we have drugs that meet the basic human dream of something we can take freely without worrying about it? It turns out that the problems of prescription drugs are embedded in the very nature of how we think about and invent new medicines. |
| Three years later, they recur, and this time he checks into a Mexican clinic that prescribes an herbal tonic but allows many more foods—except pork, tomatoes, and vinegar. Again he recovers.9
In 1952, four-year-old Ann O'Neil of Baltimore lay dying of leukemia. She had received the last rites. Her aunt had already made a yellow burial gown. Her parents took her to the cemetery, while still alive, and laid her on the grave of Mother Elizabeth Seton, founder of the Catholic order of the Sisters of
Charity. As the rain fell, O'Neil was surrounded by praying nuns. |
Robert Hass, M.S.
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 Please don't get the idea that you can live off the fat of the land like the Masai just by washing down a 16-ounce filet mignon with a cup of herbal soup. It's not that simple. There are other factors involved. The Masai lead a radically different lifestyle than most Americans. They get much more exercise, often walking 25 miles a day as they tend their herds. The meat they eat has a healthier fat profile than American beef. And they eat far less sugar and trans fatty acids (TFA)—cholesterol-raising fats found in margarines, processed foods, and fast-food french fries—than we do. |
Thomas J. Moore
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| Some people believe that doctors should have very wide latitude in prescribing drugs—everything from herbal remedies to experimental gene therapy. On the other hand, others might suggest doctors should work in a tightly monitored, disciplined system as do airline pilots, whose every cockpit comment and control change is recorded in case of an accident. The following evidence shows that whatever your view, much more study is needed about how to help doctors do a better job selecting and prescribing drugs. |
William Duffy
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 In the summer of 1973, I walked through a primeval forest in a remote area of southwestern France with a natural herbal healer and watched him perpetuate what his ancestors had done without interruption for more than four hundred years. It was like going back on the time track all the way. This remote forest resembles our images of the Garden of Eden. We walked gingerly, taking care not to trample or disturb the sacred order of the universe underfoot. He knelt to taste the early morning dew. |
| The doctor had to repair, as had his father and grandfather before him, to the lowly and disreputable herbal healer, the sorcerer, whose ancestor might have been burned as a wizard.
A modern psychiatrist, Dr. Thomas S. Szasz, has scathingly summarized the price of hypocrisy in The Manufacture of Madness:
. . . The modern physician, and especially the psychiatrist, systematically repudiates his real medieval ancestor, the lowly and disreputable sorcerer and witch. |
| In the remote corner of Gascony where I visited herbal healer Maurice Messegu6, the Inquisition had passed them by. However, the disasters of World War II—the fall of France, the Nazi occupation—had finally reached the village. The young apprentice healer left his village and journeyed to the outside world. When the son repeated elsewhere the simple natural cures that his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather had accomplished every day, they were taken either as miracles or as quackery, according to which modern superstition viewed them. |
| The trials were spectacular advertisements for herbal medicine. The orthodox diseasestablishment in France made Maurice Mess6gue famous. Judge after judge duly found him guilty, sentenced him to a fine of one or two francs, then sought his professional services for the ailing wife or mistress waiting in the chambers. Eventually, the healer wrote three books—all bestsellers in Europe— about his adventures and his natural cures. In each he repeats the simple prescription learned from his forefathers: Whole natural food, naturally grown. |
| If you sought out a sorceress complaining of an upset stomach, she would question you on what you'd been eating, give you sound advice and perhaps a herbal infusion to settle your stomach. If you went to a natural healer complaining of melancholy, migraine, or madness, he would also know it must have been something you ate. Sugar, perhaps. So you were given stern advice and perhaps a potion or an infusion to settle your brain.
Suddenly, those days were gone. Natural healing had become witchcraft. |
Lesley Tierra
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 I then gave her warm herbs to build and heat up her body along with more energetically balanced herbal antibiotics and anti-inflammatories. In time, not only did her bladder infections clear up, but the repetitive recurrences stopped.
Not applying herbs energetically to an illness tike this is often the reason that herbs seemingly "don't work." Yet, the herbs are not impotent or useless. Improper application gives poor results.
The energy of an illness arises out of the individual qualities and traits of the person. |
American Medical Publishing
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| This study demonstrates how dangerous that interaction can be and how important it is for patients to keep their physician and pharmacist informed about any use of herbal products."
Adverse interactions also have been reported between St John's wort and cyclosporine, a drug used to reduce the risk of organ transplant rejection. Potentially dangerous changes in drug effects can occur when medications such as cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), digoxin (Lanoxin, Lanoxicaps) and warfarin (Coumadin) are taken with St. John's Wort extracts.
So, as you can clearly see, St. |
Lesley Tierra
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| Applying both may be done in a single herbal formula.
False heat and false cold conditions definitely come into play here, too. If someone has cold symptoms, for example, it may be due to an excess of coldness or a deficiency of heat. Or if someone has heat symptoms, it may be due to an excess of heat or a deficiency of coldness. To see which it is, refer back to the chart under the section on the energy of disease which differentiates the true from the false heat and cold signs.
Damp/Dry Quality of Illness
Another quality of illness has to do with the moisture of the body. |
Marion Nestle
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 Their names alone—Blood Builders, Brute
Strength, CholesAid, Estra-Prime, herbal Laxative, Joint Fuel, Liver Support, Neuro-Mind, Osteo-Cal, Prosta-Care, RxMemory, Sound Asleep, Stress Formula—imply function. The label of a product that we picked at random from the "immune support" shelf stated that it contained black elderberry extract, echinacea, zinc, propolis, and vitamin C. |
Ruth Winter
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 Consumers should be aware that just because a product is labeled 'natural' or from an herbal source it is not guaranteed to be safe," said Dr. Michael Friedman, deputy commissioner of the FDA. "The effects of ephedrine alkaloids are potentially powerful ones. We urge people to talk to their doctors before using dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids, and to always use them with caution."
Because ephedrine alkaloids are heart and nervous system stimulants, certain individuals including those with hypertension, heart conditions, and neurologic disorders, should avoid their use. |
| Used in astringents in herbal cosmetics.
OAKMOSS, ABSOLUTE • Any one of several lichens, Evernia spp., that grow on oak trees and yield a resin for use as a fixative (see) in perfumery. Stable green liquid with a long-lasting characteristic odor. Soluble in alcohol. Used in fruit, honey, and spice flavorings for beverages, ice cream, ices, candy, baked goods, gelatin desserts, condiments, and soups. A common allergen in aftershave lotions. OAK WHITE, CHIPS EXTRACT • See Oak Bark Extract. OAK WOOD, ENGLISH • Quercus robur. Used as a coloring in alcoholic beverages only. |
| According to old herbal recipes, it prevents baldness when the hair is washed regularly with it. Used medicinally as an astringent, tonic, and stimulant. May cause a sensitivity to sunlight and artificial light, in which the skin breaks out and swells.
YEAST • A fungi that is a dietary source of folic acid. It produces enzymes that will convert sugar to alcohol and carbon dioxide. It is used in enriched farina, enriched cornmeal and corn grits, and in bakery products. It is employed as a flavoring agent and flavor enhancer. |
| It is taken in an herbal tea as a daily tonic. North American Indians used ginseng as a love potion. It has been found to normalize high or low blood sugar. It produces a resin, a sugar starch, glue, and volatile oil. Ginseng is used as a flavoring additive in the United States and has a sweetish, licoricelike taste and is widely used in Asian medicines as an aromatic bitter. No known toxicity.
GLUCAMINE • An organic compound that is prepared from glucose (see). GLUCITOL • Sorbitol. Sorbol. |
| Calamus root is an ancient Indian and Chinese herbal medicine used to treat stomach acid, irregular heart rhythm, low blood pressure, coughs, and lack of mental focus. Native Americans would chew the root to enable them to run long distances with increased stamina. Externally, it was used to induce a state of tranquility. Banned as a food additive by the FDA.
CALCIUM ACETATE • Brown Acetate of Lime. A white amorphous powder that has been used medicinally as a source of calcium. |
Barrie R Cassileth, Ph.D.
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 According to the World Health Organization (WHO), about 80 percent of people today must rely on traditional healing methods including herbal remedies, for care of illness.
Some proponents of medicinal herbs believe that a major benefit of natural herbs over manufactured pharmaceuticals is the collection of ingredients contained in medicinal herbs. Problems caused by one ingredient, they say, can be counterbalanced or neutralized by another.
This is correct in some cases but incorrect or unknown in others. |
| As the demand for ginseng and other Chinese herbs has soared, the Chinese government recently issued curbs on the production of traditional herbal medicines, citing the ready availability of adulterated, fake, and illegal remedies. The Chinese Ministry of Health indicated that adulterated medicines, available without a doctor's prescription, are causing disabilities and deaths. China plans to close all substandard factories and markets, as well as those trading in medicines banned by the state. |
| Many enjoy the idea that their herbal teas or meditation practices were in use thousands of years ago.
Where to Get It
There is no program of licensure for Ayurvedic practitioners in the United States. Those who practice Ayurvedic medicine may be physicians, chiropractors, nutritionists, or other healers. The best and most responsible Ayurvedic practitioners encourage clients with serious illnesses to see conventional physicians also.
? The Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico (505 291-9698), provides training in various aspects of Ayurveda.
? |
Gary Null, Ph.D.
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 JOHN'S WORT
Alcoholism
In this study, hypericum herbal infusion was used in combination with rational psychotherapy of depressive manifestations in 57 outpatients with alcoholism and concomitant diseases of digestive organs. Results found that 2 months of daily intake proved to be effective.
—A.A. Krylov & A.N. Ibatov, [The Use of an Infusion of St. John's Wort in the Combined Treatment of Alcoholics with Peptic Ulcer and Chronic Gastritis], Vrach Delo, (2-3), February-March 1993, p. 146-148. |
Marion Nestle
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| Conversion of potatoes (cheap) to potato chips (expensive) to those fried in artificial fats or coated in soybean flour or herbal supplements (even more expensive) is an example of how value is added to basic food commodities. Added value explains why the cost of the corn in Kellogg's
200 39£ 8.0C 4.00 3.50 4.00 4.00 3.50 4.00 2.501.50 3 50 2 50
Farm value Marketing bill
FIGURE 3. The distribution of the U.S. food dollar: 80% of food expenditures go to categories other than the "farm value" of the food itself. |
James F. Balch, M.D.
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 We will discuss in detail these four wonderful herbal antioxidants.
Hawthorn
Congestive Heart Failure and the Benefits of Hawthorn
I have had personal experience using hawthorn in a number of patients who suffered with cardiovascular disease, particularly congestive heart failure. In all instances, the congestive heart failure improved dramatically. One patient, a dear friend, suffered with cardiomyopathy with a functioning heart of less than 40 percent. Using a combination of hawthorn, vitamin E, and Co-Q-10, his cardiac function doubled, improving dramatically.
What is the Hawthorn Plant? |
Marion Nestle
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| A somewhat better-researched work, the Physicians' Desk Reference for herbal Medicines, explains that black elder is a folk medicine used for colds, coughs, and fevers but warns that "proof of efficacy is not available. "Jl
On balance, the ingredients in this particular immune supplement seemed unlikely to be harmful, but beyond the sources of information available in the store, there is no way to know whether the product truly contains the ingredients listed on its label, whether the ingredients are active or safe, or whether the product performs as advertised. |
| First, it expanded the legal definition of dietary supplements beyond the familiar vitamins and minerals to include the less-well-researched herbal, botanical, and diet products. Second, DSHEA specified that manufacturers did not need to demonstrate that their products were safe before selling them. Instead, Congress required the FDA to prove that products were unsafe before the agency could order them removed from the market. Furthermore, DSHEA eliminated the FDA's independent authority to take products off the market. |
| Sbalala and another linking saw palmetto (an herbal supplement) to reduced risk for benign prostate disease. It also denied a claim linking supplements of vitamins B^ and B to reduced risk of vascular disease. These denials
6 12. caught the attention of Representative Peter DeFazio (Dem-OR), who complained that the FDA "may not with impunity deny or delay fulfillment of the First Amendment obligations defined in Pearson. |
Andrew L. Stoll
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 These include the raw plant material, tea bags, and combination products containing other herbal medications along with the St. John's wort. Anyone who begins therapy with one of these less standardized preparations and does not respond will not know whether his or her depression does not respond to St. John's wort or if the preparation used was inadequate.
Standard Usage. Generally it is used as follows: as capsules of St. John's wort standardized extract, each containing 300 milligrams 0.3 percent hypericin. |
| Like other herbal treatments, St. John's wort is of little interest to mainstream pharmaceutical companies because patents are by and large unobtainable. Without the support of industry, completing these prohibitively expensive, large-scale studies is exceedingly difficult, if not impossible.
How Supplied. St. John's wort is supplied in several forms:
• Capsules. This is the most popular form of St. John's wort, because it is convenient, standardized, readily available, and familiar to Americans. The most common form of capsule uses a standardized extract of St. John's wort containing 0. |
| When depressed, these individuals may try an herbal mood-elevating substance such as St. John's wort. Extrapolating from what is known about the switch process with conventional antidepressants, approximately 20 to 50 percent of those with bipolar disorder may be at risk for manic switch when receiving St. John's wort over the long term. Self-treatment of depression. Although St. John's wort has little danger associated with its pharmacological activity, one distinct hazard is the risk of self-treatment of major depression. |
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