The Myth of the Benign Nature of Herbal Remedies
We have beliefs but other people have superstitions. Furthermore, there seems to be a law of the conservation of superstition: if it does not attach to one thing, it will attach to another. Man does not live by rationality alone.
One superstition among their middle-class, educated, and worried-well patients that most irritates doctors is that “natural” preparations, particularly herbal ones, are necessarily benign. People persist in believing this despite the fact that men (and women) have been poisoning one anther to death with herbal extracts since the dawn of recorded history, and most gardens have enough poisonous plants in them to decimate a countryside. No; if you did a word-association test with “herbal remedy,” the chances are that words such as “gentle,” “healing,” “safe,” and “non-toxic” would emerge.
A recent paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences links the exceptionally high rate of upper urinary tract cancer in Taiwan with the widespread use there of Aristolochia plants in herbal remedies. Such plants contain a carcinogen, aristolochic acid, that affects the urinary tract particularly.
The observation is not new, but the investigators, both Chinese and American, found cytogenetic evidence of a causative relationship between Aristolochia remedies and carcinogenesis in 151 patients suffering from upper urinary tract cancer.
It was already known that there was an epidemiological relationship between such cancers and the consumption of herbal remedies containing aristolochic acid: the greater the quantity consumed, the greater the chance of developing cancer. And in large parts of the Balkans the high rate of such cancers has been attributable to the consumption of bread prepared from flour contaminated with seeds of Aristolochia. Moreover, in Belgium, there was a brief epidemic of renal failure caused by dieting women who took Chinese herbal medicines containing Aristolochia.
The acid in the remedy binds to the DNA in the cells of the kidney cortex, eventually causing carcinogenic mutations. The evidence of a causative relationship between Aristolochia and cancer of the upper urinary tract is therefore now very strong.
Of course, as with any side effect, one must not only consider its severity but its frequency. Something that happens once in a million cases is of very different significance from something that happens once in a hundred. Even the most familiar and supposedly innocuous drug can sometimes have catastrophic effects. The question is not so much whether or not a drug causes a particular side effect, but whether the risk is worth taking. And this is not a simple calculation, because it depends in part on the severity of what is being treated, whether alternatives exist, etc.; and often there can be no definitive answer. Decisions should be made in the light of information but cannot be made by consideration of information alone.
In Taiwan, the herbal remedy is used for hepatitis, urinary tract infection, rhinitis, dysmenorrhoea, and eczema. Alternatives are available, though in some cases they may not be entirely satisfactory, and the effectiveness of the remedy is not in any case proved. It is very unlikely, however, that it does any possible good done that makes it worth risking the potential harm.
However, I do not expect superstitious belief in the essential benignity of herbal remedies to die in the near future as a result of the paper in the Proceedings. I remember a patient who, hearing foxglove was good for the failing heart, made herself a nice cup of foxglove tea from the foxgloves in her garden. She suffered quite severe poisoning; unhappily, she did not realize that, where medicine is concerned, there could be too much of a good thing, though this has been known for hundreds of years.
Of course, if “medical science” hadn’t spent the last few decades sucking up to the political zeitgeist, they might not share the common disdain resulting from political failure.
The problem, as I see it, is that medical science generally and doctors specifically have long claimed omniscience wrt the functioning of the human body when the reality is that they mostly grope along and stumble onto what works. Western medicine is statistically better than traditional medicines, especially when treating injuries and acute problems, not so much with treating chronic conditions, even though it has made plenty of errors over the years.
Iatrogenic factors kill many orders of magnitude more people every year than herbal therapy, including approx 100,000 a people in the US a year from mis prescribed pharmaceuticals.
This article is no nore than a useful warning against taking a notoriously harmful herbal. Aristolochia sp. are much more suitable for macrophotography than for the home remedy cupboard. This does not discount in any way, the fact that herbals, when used appropriately, are beneficial and effective, and, above all, mostly free if you collect from Nature or/and grow your own. My family has used a dozen of such plants for many generations, and we never had a case of poisoning that could have been attributed to that. Sage and Poley are the drugs of choice for gastroenteritis, Chamomile is a pretty good general-purpose anti-inflammatory, Linden, Mullein and Passiflora will help you sleep without making you retarded or hung-over, Savory and the Lavanders will kill skin infections-causing MRSA dead, Catmint and dark chocolate will ward off depression, Hyssop and Rubus bramble shoots will clear your throat, and so on. None of the above are really toxic or mutagenic. Just don’t overdose on Sage, since it is narcotic and antisudorific at large doses, and this could spell trouble.
Exactly correct. The title of the article strongly implies a blanket condemnation of most (if not all) herbal remedies.
Instead, the author (who I usually enjoy) points out the negative aspects of ONE herbal remedy.
Shouldn’t this article be renamed “The Myth of the Benign Nature of the Taiwan Herbal Remedy called Aristolochia plants”. That would certainly be more accurate.
I expect more from the PJM brand.
I did a google search and it’s suppose to resemble a uterus. Hmm, so “the doctrine of signatures held that “birthwort” or Dutchman’s pipes was useful in childbirth”..I think it looks more like a snake with it’s mouth open. it actually says (aristolochia serpentaria)! However, I’d rather take my chances..maybe or at least more than I would with what those mad pharmaceutical companies like to crank out of their labs..
most people do not need this crap.. your body does just fine or finer without all that stuff.. very few people need “extra” anything..call me crazy and I have been, but i will always refuse to put any type of chemical in my system.. example: chemical sweeteners.. give me sugar sugar.. anything called lite.. that means it has chemicals and it’s less fattening but it tastes like crap.. lite beer.. puheffinglease.. margarine fake butter.. noooooooo never.. butter is better than chemicals.. diet soda.. another puheffinglease.. you get the idea.. everything within moderation and stay away from CHEMICALS that make you think you’re going to lose weight.. oh you will lose weight after dying from cancer.. oh, and talking about salt.. salt won’t hurt you if you have no underlying health problems.. it won’t make you sick…dumb and dumber in this world.. pass the salt, sugar and butter please.. i prefer to go naturally without help from artificial anything.. thank you very much..
OMG! Chemicals!!!
DIHYGROGEN MONOXIDE!!!!!!
God preserve us from ignorami who go off on beef-witted “chemicals” hysterics. My good man, FOOD is made from chemicals. Air is made of chemicals. Sugar, butter, and you are all composed of chemicals. Any foodstuff, supplement, or medication not concocted by the Wee Folk is made of chemicals. Chemicals = matter.
Right.
There’s no difference between milk and acetone.
There both made of chemicals, afterall.
That is not what Le Cracquere said, and you know it. With just a little bit of understanding of chemistry, you would know that what he/she said is absolutely correct.
“That is not what Le Cracquere said, and you know it. With just a little bit of understanding of chemistry, you would know that what he/she said is absolutely correct.”
Nor is what hogtrashhd said. And you know it butthole.
It’s interesting that you mention acetone because it’s a naturally occurring organic compound that is in your body RIGHT NOW! Really all this stuff is basic high school chemistry.
Ignorami?
So you don’t put H2O in your body? Or just oxygen?
Or do you only use things found in nature, like mercury, radon, uranium and plants like nightshade.
Wow, you must be a liberal. Water not natural… RONTFLMAO… .
Let me walk you through it. … Here take my hand, in N…A..T..U…R..E..
Am I going too fast? That be “Nature”
Opps prob’ly lost you on that… My bad.
Short be said, I eat from nature where I can, Du-Pont … well there are those who love their manmade chemicals. I s’poese they will be seeking the Doc(author of this piece)
I work in alternative medicine. Naturally occurring sugars are ok, but refined sugars/carbs are really terrible. I think this goes to your larger point about over-processing, but I did want to say that we have not evolved to process sugar in the amounts we consume, so use sparingly.
Natural is always better………………… Really???
Syphilis is natural.
Death is natural.
People self-diagnose and self-medicate with borrowed, black market or stolen prescription drugs all the time, often detrimentally. Is this an indictment of the drug? No.
Then this. This article is An admission in the breach that herbals are powerful. Would it not be rational to presume a priori getting oneself educated that herbal chemical power is both medicinal and poisonous, depending upon every factor that weighs on pharma; dose, formula, method of concoction, applicability? Surely.
One example. Colgate/Palmolive used blood root, http://www.billcasselman.com/canadian_garden_words/nine_bloodroot.htm, sanguinaria canadasis in mouthwash and toothpaste until a few years back. I used to shop for it. It cures some gum diseases if used in very minute amounts. Its fatal in larger doses.
OTOH, corporations ran wild with St. John’s Wort a few years ago, making wild, unsubstantiated curative claims in a quest for profit. Herbalist know the herbs uses and were dismayed at the irresponsible miscategorizing of it.
Learn about herbs. Even the bible says they were put here for our medicine.
Most common garden plants were used sometime, somewhere for medicinal purposes. Some were far more effective than others. Many can be lethally dangerous if used improperly. The Latin name for Foxglove says it all-Digitalis purpurea. Another in a large family of heart care herbs, Monkshood,(Aconitum) is also used to poison arrows in some cultures. An herbal remedy that is safe to use topically such as Comfrey(Symphytum officinale) may be unsafe used internally. Then there is the very long list of common medicinal herbs that are nor recommended for use by pregnant women. Factor in that potency varies by growing conditions, time of year, care taken in the harvesting, how the remedy is prepared, etc. etc. and herbal medicine is definitely not an area for amateur practitioners.
So grow some Catnip(Nepeta cataria) or Chamomile (Matricaria recutita) to harvest for a calming tea. Or use the Chamomile flower as as hair rinse but he aware that even this most common of herbs does cause an allergic reaction in some people.
I have had three friends die under the care of ‘natural’ medicine practitioners. Not only is the word ‘natural’ meaningless, but their claims were preposterous. One friend died while given ‘natural’ herbal remedies. And you know what? When she got worse the ‘natural’ healers blamed her for not getting better.
@Ken–this is why it is essential to research the education and background of the naturopath. Legitimate practitioners go through intensive schooling in both traditional and alternative medicine. There are only a handful of schools that offer appropriate training. Sounds like your friends were seeing quacks. Of course, a licensed naturopath would never call himself a “healer.” That word is a dead giveway of quackery.
All of them are quacks. The whole field is a 100% scam not based on science in any way. You might as well go to a witch doctor.
But, but, but pharmaceuticals contain CHEMICALS!
The advantage of USP drugs is that the dosage is measured. You don’t know what’s in some “natural products.” Opium and poison Ivy are natural.
While herbs can be dangerous, having a FDA that approves dangerous drugs and devices, to be tested in their first several years in public use (with a prescription to make it look so safe and scientific) is even more of a danger. It is possible to research the effects of most herbs, but who can guess the hidden dangers of the “approved” substances.
But at least FDA is also expensive and political. . . hey, I know, let’s put FDA in charge of supplements and herbals. . . like small government McShame wants to do.
Thank you for sanity, Dr. D.
The placebo effect is very strong and very real. That makes sense given what we are learning about immunity and neurophysiology. All of our homeostatic mechanisms are tied to the central nervous system.
My problem with this article, written for a general audience, is it does not address the importance of carefully defining what is a drug, herbal remedy, food, or any other agent employed for medical benefit. Without that we have some studies demonstrating that a certain plant derivative used as a remedy has toxic side effects.
People come to the mainstream medical establishment because it has proven benefit. That is based on scientific reasoning, flexibility to new evidence, and you still have to like people bless their hearts.
I would not want to discourage people from exploring other options. I just thought blackberries were delicious. I also fully ascribe to the red wine is good for you theory.
If there were such a thing as a ‘natural’ remedy I might be inclined to try it. However nothing is ‘natural.’ Every herb, flower, seed, etc, has been changed markedly over time by cultivation. Every plant used by humanity has been genetically altered by our use of it. Just having it in the same garden with other plants, using different sorts of fertilizer etc, causes long-term changes. ‘Heirloom’ seeds are still radically different from their originals. The only difference between ‘natural’ food and ‘frankenfood’ is that the latter has been formed and tested scientifically, the former came into existence by trial and error over generations.
Since everything is labeled natural these days, there’s no avoiding it. But I have no more faith in herbs mixed by a holistic medic than by a licensed pharmacist. Caveat emptor always!
(shrug) Most modern medicines are derived from plant poisons and, as Dr’s have been known to say, “The dose is the poison.”
Natural drugs may not be safe, but at least they’re not corporate.
If you buy a bottle at a store – guess what, it’s corporate. “Natural supplements” is a profitable business.
It would help if we referred to “alternative medicine” as what it really is: an alternative *to* medicine.
Such as altering diet, exercise, and lifestyle to improve health?
I have had good luck using natural remedies (herbs and such) for a variety of problems. If used properly, they are sometimes gentler on the system than synthetic pharmaceuticals. In fact, I used a natural remedy to clear up an infection that had become immune to antibiotics. BUT–I have always taken natural remedies under the care of a licensed naturopath who knows what and how to prescribe.
I believe that if insurance companies covered “naturopathic care” (from chiropractors to accupuncturists and herbalists), there would be less of a drain on the resources of the medical establishment. In Germany, traditional doctors work together with naturopathic practitioners to great success.
It’s worth pointing out that the linkage between Aristolochia and urinary tract cancers was noticed, researched, validated, and documented by traditional medical practitioners and not herbalists or naturopaths. The real science guys do this all time. It’s part of their process. The other guys don’t.
On second thought, I’d stay away from the herbal remedies.
The word, “decimate”, means to reduce by one-tenth.
Don’t be party to one of Marx’s 10 steps to destroy a free society; the dumbing down of language.
Ignorance is no excuse.
It’s not just in Taiwan. I’ve lived in mainland China on and off for the past 4 years. Virtually everything the Chinese eat, drink, wear, do, have in their homes, etc., is believed to have some purported “health benefit”. I have a bamboo plant in my home. A Chinese colleague noticed it and approvingly told me about all the ways having it around were good for my health. I said, “Well, I just like the way it looks.” A Westerner can never fully understand the Chinese mindset. Personally I believe that traditional Chinese medicine is basically a load of unscientific, albeit mostly harmless, crap. But try telling that to a billion-plus Chinese who still religiously consume whatever revolting concoctions or do whatever peculiar things ancient “folk wisdom” tells them is somehow good for their health. Old habits die hard. In this case I doubt they ever will.
After my brother was diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphoma originating in the thyroid, and receiving chemo, I went to help him out. I remember finding about 20 bottles of various herbal remedies in his kitchen cupboard and being horrified. I begged him not to take any of that crap while he was on chemo, or at least tell his doctor about it, because of possible interactions. This article raised the possibility, in my mind, that his heavy self-herbal medicating might have had something to do with the fact he developed NHL in the first place. (Incidentally, he survived.)