Do Herbs and Natural Therapies Help or Hurt?
Many people believe that natural medicine is naturally good and often it is. But just because something is natural does not mean that it is safe. After all, tobacco is natural, and so is rattlesnake venom.Touch is natural but there is a great difference between the touch of a massage therapist and the touch of a heavyweight-boxing champ.
The most important natural medicine that we all need is natural common sense. Water, of course, is necessary for our existence, but we can drown in it as well.
So, let's look at natural remedies and treatments to see just how naturally safe or unsafe they may be when they are mixed with a dose of common sense.
Remember that a "side effect" is just an effect that we do not want, so the only way we can say that an herb or a therapy has no side effects is to say that it does not have any effects.
We need to distinguish between "alternative medicine," an alternative or replacement to mainstream medicine, and "complementary medicine," which complements (completes) mainstream medicine. Sometimes, the real danger in some natural therapies is that they may keep us from getting treatment that we need.
When I was in acupuncture school, someone asked me what I would do if someone fell and broke her arm on the sidewalk outside my office. I said that first, I would call 911, then I would give her my card, so that she might come back for the kinds of treatment that I could provide, dealing with pain and stimulating healing.
This information is for educational purposes and not as a recommendation as a cure for any disease. It is not intended as a replacement for the services of a qualified licensed health care provider who understands your needs and individual condition.
Herbs: Natural products, but are they naturally safe?
Angelica: The Not-So-Angelic Herb
Beer - yes!
Damiana
Echinacea
Elder
Iced Tea (using herbal teas/tisanes)
Lobelia
Ma Huang
Pennyroyal
Saw Palmetto
St. John's Wort
Natural Therapies: Naturally therapeutic, or not...
The most important natural medicine that we all need is natural common sense.
Comments
We all should remember to tell our doctor and pharmacist when taking even natural drugs. Very informative piece.
Great read. I guess we can't assume that all natural remedies are better than synthetic brands. I did try St. John's Wort in college when I was stressed out about exams and it gave me a weird buzzed feeling in the back of my head. It wasn't horrible, but definitely not a familiar feeling.
Good read, Michael! (^;^) I agree, but in reality it is not the medicine that heals, but the body and mind itself. Natural treatments and therapies as well as conventional Western medicine can only play a complimentary role in speeding up the body's own healing processes. While conventional treatments or natural remedies can both be deemed either therapeutic or harmful, I agree the best "natural medicine" we all possess is using good common sense. Unfortunately, the older I get, the more I realize that good common sense isn't all that common anymore.
Very good clarification on whether a medicine has effects at all.
Good information. It's wise to remember that anything you take may have side effects whether it's herbs or prescription drugs.
Great list!!!
I agree with Smorg. Not everything can be cured with natural medicines and not everything can be cured by the more conventional methods. And yes, before using natural medicine it is advisable to ask a professional first.:) Great article, thanks.:)
Sensible advices indeed. It's good to keep a level perspectives when investigating 'cures'. My mom always told me... even water can kill you if you drink too much of it too fast.
I'm a firm believer in some natural cures. (many of the patented medicine comes from home remedies.) I agree with you, not all types of medicine works for all ailments. If I have cancer, I'd rather use nutritional methods of curing it than undergo chemo. An infection however, calls for antibiotics...since I'm allergic to most, what ever the newest designer drug is. There's room for everyone and as soon as the AMA learns that, the better we all will be.
Thanks for this informative and helpful info. I really liked your metaphores at the beginning of the article. Made it interesting. Good writing!
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