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I receive a great deal of inquiries on this topic. I view commercial herb products as drugs obtained from plants. There is a certain seduction in the notion of quick convenient self-treatment. The words "herb" and "safe" both contain four letters, but few other similarities. Natural does not imply free of harm. Ingesting a substance in the belief that it selectively corrects different conditions in different people is erroneous. It is akin to throwing salt in your stew and hoping that it only lands on the meat and avoids the carrots. It just does not work that way!
I provide you with a list of herbs that are considered to be dangerous and potentially fatal. Strangely, despite warnings, I still find these various substances available in shops, boutiques, on the Internet and in other places. I am particularly distressed when I discover a dismissive, almost clandestine, attitude toward reporting of non-prescription medicine use during coroner investigations. When seized, the prescription medicines will fit into a sandwich size bag, while the "other" often requires garbage size bags for seizure. Obtaining a history of how, when and if herbal medicines were used certainly clouds the case. I believe we require more regulation and stricter enforcement of responsibility towards unqualified individuals advocating and financially benefiting from their use.
Stay away from these:
1. Aristolochic acid. Found in some traditional "Chinese herb mixtures" used to soothe various bowel ailments. Also called snakeroot and wild ginger. It is a human carcinogen that is toxic to the kidney.
2. Chaparral (stinkweed). The active ingredient is a drug called Nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA) that is rumored to be an antioxidant capable of preventing cell damage. It has caused hepatitis and irreversible liver damage.
3. Kava. Sales are officially prohibited in Canada. It is touted as a stress reliever, but in fact stresses the liver to the point of toxicity.
4. Germander. This too has been associated with liver failure and death.
5. Ephedra (ma huang). This potent stimulant drug can send blood pressure skyrocketing causing strokes and heart attacks. It is banned, but found in many weight loss products. Nearly 15,000 adverse reports were registered before the FDA in the United States issued a ban. Unbelievably, the ban was opposed at every step, illustrating that immense profits are at stake.
6. Comfrey (blackwart, bruisewart). It contains an active chemical called allantoin that, for generations, was used externally as a paste to treat wounds and broken bones. Internal use became popular for stomach and menstrual problems. Internal use can narrow liver blood vessels causing irreversible damage.
7. Androstenedione. Touted as a performance enhancer and anti-aging substance, it is a steroid that has been associated with increased cancer risk.
What astounds me is that these substances get on the market legally without peer-reviewed human trials because the term "drug" is diluted and substituted with safe sounding names like: "natural", "food supplement", "herbal", and "healthy." The consumer then becomes the guinea pig with no one monitoring the situation. In this type of scenario, it may take thousands of adverse reactions to make an association with a non-prescription substance. The problem is compounded in time-delayed reactions. In these cases, problems may surface months or years after any memory of ingestion is long gone. In the meantime, numerous people suffer "unknown" kidney and liver failures and await transplants, while sales continue. What I sometimes find strange is how difficult it is to convince some patients to use a single well studied substance for a serious medical problem, yet discover that the very same person will regularly consume pills containing 20-40 substances sold to them by a teenage store clerk!
I urge you to read labels and to become fully aware of what substances you are placing in your body. Substances derived from herbs are an integral part of my practice. I am the son of a botanically enlightened lady and grew up in a household where every sun-exposed area nurtured a living plant, and the basement was packed full of various drying plants, hibernating roots, fresh preserves, fruits and vegetables. Minor ailments were met with a freshly prepared meal, tea or ointment. It was unimaginable to even consider anything in a pill form as a herb. I still use fresh herbs, mostly in cooking, but I will leave that discussion for another time. The Internet is currently full of misrepresentations and should be avoided as the sole source of information.
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