| By 1930, "Dr." John R. Brinkley of Arkansas, Kansas | | | | But it is important to understand what that entails.Let's |
| had transplanted over 16,000 goat testicles into men | | | | look at an example. Digoxin. This drug once was |
| who wanted to relive their youth. At $750 per | | | | commonly prescribed for heart problems. You don't |
| procedure, he became a wealthy man. Needless to | | | | see it as much any more because safer and more |
| say, we would call his practice quackery at best.The | | | | effective drugs have been found for most heart |
| thing most people don't realize is that because of | | | | conditions.Digitalis comes from the foxglove plant. |
| loopholes in the law, people can be legally duped in | | | | Foxgloves are a beautiful flower found in the Pacific |
| much the same way. You can take anything you want | | | | Northwest of the United States. My wife can |
| other than recognized poisons and illegal drugs, | | | | remember people being paid to go out and harvest |
| package it up and sell it as a food additive. The only | | | | them so that drug companies could get digoxin from |
| restriction is that you cannot make claims of any | | | | them.Digoxin is rather peculiar because there is a very |
| medical benifit on the container itself. They can make | | | | narrow range of the drug that can be safely taken. |
| as many claims as they want away from the | | | | Take too little and it does nothing. Take too much and |
| container. As long as those claims are not made on | | | | it can actually kill you.Furthermore, different plants have |
| the container itself, there is no regulation on the product | | | | different amounts of the drug. It depends on what type |
| in the United States.One poor fellow that I saw in the | | | | of soil the plant grew in. How much sun it got. Even if |
| emergency room had a terrible case of Rhus | | | | there were any insects or animals that had nibbled on |
| Dermatitis. That is the medical term for what is | | | | it. |
| commonly called poison oak or poison ivy. He had | | | | The part of the plant that you tested would also |
| started out getting a small area of rash on his arm. So, | | | | reveal that there were vastly different amounts of the |
| he went down to the local health food store and | | | | drug in the leaves as compared to the roots.A good |
| bought a poison ivy treatment.After taking the 'cure' he | | | | example of that is rhubarb. The leaves are poisonous. |
| proceeded to get profoundly worse. By the time I saw | | | | The stems are good in pies.Unfortunately, the guinea |
| him he had a rash all over his body and was | | | | pigs I had as a kid found out the hard way. But, I did |
| extremely miserable. I found the reason by carefully | | | | have a nice funeral for them.It might surprise you that |
| reading the bottle. The 'cure' was a naturopathic | | | | in a recent study, a large percentage of the herbal |
| remedy that had poison ivy in it! How ridiculous is | | | | remedies sold did not even contain the parts of the |
| that?The advertising that you see for some products | | | | plant that had been shown to be useful!My advice? |
| makes it immediately obvious that the product is | | | | First of all get yourself a good reference. There is one |
| useless. Anyone trained in anatomy and physiology | | | | book that should be in the library of everyone planning |
| would know right away that the claims were false.One | | | | to use an herbal remedy and every doctor too for |
| good example is when the claims are contradictory. | | | | that matter. That is the PDR for Herbal Medicine.This |
| Rheumatoid arthritis and allergies are good examples | | | | book lists every herbal medicine that is know to have |
| of problems caused by overactive immune systems. | | | | a real medicinal effect. It also tells you potential side |
| Yet I have seen products claim that they not only help | | | | effects, what part of the plant has the active |
| with allergies but they boost the immune system. You | | | | ingredient and what the medicinal effect it.Once you |
| can't have it both ways folks.The other thing that | | | | know what you want to use, the next step is obtaining |
| makes you go hmm... is when the advertising claims | | | | it. The best method is to grow your own so you know |
| that the product causes specific physiologic changes in | | | | exactly what you are getting. That way you can |
| the body. Then they go on and claim that the product | | | | make sure the plant is healthy and you are using the |
| does not contain a drug. But, check the definition of a | | | | part of the plant that will help you and not harm you.If |
| drug: 'A substance used in the diagnosis, treatment, or | | | | you cannot grow your own, the next best thing is to |
| prevention of a disease'. Clearly, if you are claiming | | | | do a bit of research and find a company that is known |
| that your product can be used to treat or prevent | | | | for its integrity and quality control. Then stick with |
| disease, you are talking about a drug. If you say that | | | | them.Finally, make sure your doctor knows what you |
| your substance does not contain a drug, then you can't | | | | are taking. There is some possibility that your herbal |
| say it is preventing or treating a disease. Here again, | | | | medicine may interact or interfere with any medication |
| you can't have it both ways.But, you may say, what I | | | | that you are being prescribed.With the proper |
| am taking is just plant parts. When my father was in | | | | knowledge and a good source, you should be getting |
| pharmacy school in the 1950's, virtually all drugs were | | | | some good benifit from your herbal medication. But, |
| made by collecting plants and mixing them in certain | | | | beware of the claims of those other products.Dr. Ron |
| ways to prepare drugs. Now, people do the same | | | | McCluskey is an emergency room physician with over |
| thing, but they are able to sell them as food aditives | | | | twenty years experience treating all types of medical |
| because they make no claims about their properties | | | | problems. A firm believer in natural remedies, he also |
| 'on the container'.Having said that, I have nothing | | | | hates it when people get burned by |
| against people using herbal remedies. In fact I'm all for it. | | | | rip-off artists. |