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Using Herbal RemediesBy James A. Duke, Ph.D.Herbs can be safer and less expensive than
conventional drugs.
 Many Americans believe we have the world's best
health-care system?that's certainly what medical doctors and government health
experts keep telling us. But did you know that a recent report in the journal of
the American Medical Association said that "adverse drug reactions are believed
to be the leading cause of death in the United States"? If this system is the best, it leaves a lot to be desired. Plenty of
people assume that the pharmaceuticals their doctors prescribe are better than
herbal medicines. I'm delighted this situation is rapidly changing.
I've been a botanist specializing in medicinal plants for most of my
30-year career and I've seen medicinal herbs successfully treat conditions
high-tech pharmaceuticals barely touched. One reason herbs aren't better known
in the United States is that the drug companies can't patent them?yet. Drug
companies make much of their money by pulling the medicinally active molecules
out of herbs, then tinkering with them until they're chemically unique. The
companies can then patent their new molecules, give them brand names and sell
them back to us for a lot more money than their original herbal sources cost.
HERBS ARE GOOD MEDICINE
Of course, drug companies always say their unique molecules are better,
stronger and safer than herbs. I'll readily agree that they are stronger. In
fact, they're often too strong and may have more side effects than their herbal
precursors.
As for pharmaceuticals being better, that's hard to say. In some studies,
herbs clearly perform better. Ginger, for example, has been shown to be superior
to the pharmaceutical dimenhydrinate (Dramamine) as a preventive
therapy
for motion sickness. In several recent studies in Europe, St. John's wort has
proven as good as synthetics for treating mild to moderate depression; saw
palmetto as good as synthetics for enlarged prostates; ginkgo biloba as good as
the first approved synthetic for Alzheimer's disease. And all have fewer side
effects and all are cheaper than the competing synthetics.
I'm not saying pharmaceuticals are bad. I am saying we need more research
comparing herbs against pharmaceutical drugs in fair, well-designed trials.
Until that happens, we simply won't know which is better. That leads me to the
conclusion that Americans are not necessarily getting the best medicine. In many
cases, herbal therapies may prove to be more economical,. more effective and
safer?all with fewer side effects?than the pharmaceuticals.
Our challenge is to transcend the assumptions made by doctors, drug
companies' promotions and the restrictive drug approval process used by the U.S.
government. Our challenge is to think green?not the monetary green
of the pharmaceutical firms but the cleansing, empowering green of chlorophyll,
which feeds, fuels, oxygenates and medicates our planet.
Economics drive the pharmaceutical companies, but what drives the green
lifestyle is ecology: the idea that we're connected to everything else on the
planet and that we thrive or fall together. PUT SAFETY FIRST
Herbal medicine is not risk-free. To benefit from using herbs, you need
to have some basic information. Then you need to have confidence in
the herbs you use and in any herbal practitioner you consult. This is no
different from conventional medicine in which you need to have confidence
in your physician and any drugs he or she prescribes.
As a rule, however, herbal medicine prescribed by knowledgeable
practitioners is safer than conventional medicine?the medicines. are more dilute
and the side effects tend to be less severe. Pharmaceuticals kill more than
100,000 Americans a year, according to JAMA. No one has shown yet that herbs
kill more than even 100 Americans a year, much less 100,000. You must exercise
caution when using any medicines, as things can go wrong, but there are
strategies you can use to protect yourself from herbal errors.
LEARN WHAT THEY ARE
While there are some 300,000 higher plant species that are all chemically
distinct, fewer than 10 percent have been carefully screened for their medicinal
and toxic constituents. A really good herbalist might know 1,000 to 2,000
species, rarely more. I wish I were sure of that many!
Experienced as well as inexperienced herbalists can make mistakes. Once,
while gathering herbs for a class in the Blue Ridge Mountains, yours truly got
all excited at the discovery of some "wild ginseng." On closer examination, I was chagrined
to discover it was Virginia creeper.
Whatever new herb, medicine or food you're taking, learn as much as you
can about what to expect from it. If anything unexpected happens, stop taking it
and check with an expert you trust.
Confirm the diagnosis. Herbal devotees sometimes get the idea they can
diagnose illness as well as come up with herbs to treat it. Some are good at
diagnosis, some are not. Diagnosis is a separate art and one I'd rather leave to
physicians. I discourage self-diagnosis.
Diagnosing illness is not easy, and sometimes even good doctors make
mistakes. But physicians' diagnostic batting averages should usually be better
than those of anyone who hasn't had medical training. Those who believe in
intuition might argue with this, suggesting that an intuitive herbalist with a
60-minute interview is better than a non-intuitive physician in a six-minute
interview. Once you're confident of a diagnosis, you can discuss with your
health practitioner how to treat the condition: drugs, herbs or some combination
of the two, plus diet, exercise and lifestyle changes. If you observe proper
diet, exercise and stress reduction measures, you are less likely to need the
herbs I favor or the physician's drugs.
Watch out for side effects. All medicines, natural or synthetic, have
side effects. It's hard to imagine an active plant chemical (phytochemical)or an
herbal mixture containing thousands of them having just one targeted chemical
reaction in our body.
Watch yourself when taking any herb, food or pharmaceutical for the first
time. If you have an unpleasant reaction, such as dizziness, nausea or headache,
cut back on your dosage or stop! Listen to your body. If things don't feel
right, don't continue.
Be alert for allergic reactions. People can be allergic to anything. Even
if you have no known allergies, you might be allergic to a new herb, food or
drug. Go slowly. Again, listen to your body. If you develop any unusual
symptoms, stop and consult an allergist or physician.
If you experience any difficulty breathing within 30 minutes or so of
trying a new herb, food or drug, call 911 immediately. You may be having an
anaphylactic reaction, the most severe form of allergic reaction, which can
prove fatal unless promptly treated.
Although anaphylactic reactions to herbs are rare, there are foods, herbs
and pharmaceuticals that can cause fatal idiosyncratic reactions. So be careful
and understand the possible risks. Beware of
interactions. Pharmaceutical medicines sometimes interact badly with each other, as
well as with herbs and foods. Too many herbal reference books neglect to mention
this. Always be particularly careful when taking more than one drug or herb, or
a combination of a drug and an herb. If you suspect a bad interaction, consult
your physician or pharmacist.
Open communication. Many people listen to both their physicians and their
herbalists and do what both advise. Usually there's no problem with this, such
as when a physician gives you sleeping pills for insomnia, for example, and an
herbalist recommends a hot bath before bed with a blend of sedative aromatherapy
oils.
But too many health practitioners, like too many pills, can be too much
of a good thing. Tell your physician and your herbalist about all the medicines
you're taking as well as any unusual foods you might be eating.
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| Created by Create Design and Implement (DCI). | ©2005 Amazom Herbal Club. All rights reserved. | |||||||
In addition to the many herbs you can buy in bulk
or standardized form, many spices double as medicine. You probably already
have some of these in your spice rack. With the exception of capsicum,
garlic, ginger and turmeric, most spices are not available in the United
States as standardized extracts. Except for garlic, most are tropical
plants that don't grow well here, so you'll probably have to buy them in
bulk or powdered form. 
Ginger. The world's best nausea preventive, ginger
also is useful in treating arthritis.