Herbal Medicines and Prescription Drugs

Oliver lived the simple uncomplicated life of a house-wife tillshe reached the age of 45. Two weeks after her 45th birthday,she started experiencing slight pain in her left shoulder. Shehad long suffered from heartburn since childhood as she had beena plump child and she constantly over-ate. She disliked doctorsand had never actually stayed in hospital as a patient, exceptwhen she was pregnant and in labour. Two weeks later, she suffered severe pain on her left side andcould barely dial the number of the family doctor. He had knownher, all her life and was appalled that she had not consultedhim on experiencing pain. An electrocardiogram (ECG) showed amild heart attack. A quick Blood Pressure reading showed anabnormally high BP of 180/100. The real problem was revealedonly when she stepped on the weighing machine. Her weight was anuncomfortable 110 kg for a 5 feet 4 inch frame. She had a hugeobesity problem. For all her dislike of doctors and hospitals, she wasimmediately admitted and spent a week in hospital. She was puton cardiac drugs and underwent a few diagnostic tests. As sherecovered, she insisted on a quick discharge at the earliest.The day finally came, but so also did the hospital dietician,who told Mrs Olive that she was grossly overweight. And therewas an urgent need for weight loss.As a first line treatment for obesity she was given strict dietplans. These would ensure adequate nutrition. She had neverdieted in her life and simply could not cope. 2 months down theline, she actually put on 2 kg. There was an increasing dangerto her health and life. She had to go for weight loss drugtherapy. Here she was given two options - Herbal Weight LossTreatment like Herbalife or Diet Pills like Phentermine DietPills or Adipex Diet Pills or Didrex Diet Pills. She had todecide between going in for herbal treatment or prescriptiondrugs. Diet Pills are essentially diet drugs. These pills are regulatedby the Food and Drug Administration agency (FDA), their sideeffects are monitored and they may be advertised and prescribedfor weight loss under certain condition and in certain dosages.The dangers of prescription diet pills are consistent with othersimilar drugs. Accidental overdose is a common problem whentaking these diet pills. This is because many diet pills containsimilar ingredients to non-prescription medications like nasaldecongestants.Various Diet Pill reviews have documented their side-effects.Diet pill side effects of drugs that operate on the brain toreduce appetite include raised blood pressure, chest pain,fever, hair loss, depression, impotence, heart damage, to name afew.Do Diet Pills(like Phentermine,adipex) really work? When used under medical supervision inconjunction with a proper diet and exercise program, diet pillscan be effective - at least in the short term. That said, thebody adjusts remarkably quickly too many diet pills, so thebenefits may quickly wear off. If diet pills are not used inconjunction with a proper weight loss program incorporatingproper diet and exercise, they are not likely to be effective.Indeed some pills may even disrupt our body causing weight gain.Herbal weight loss treatment is on the other hand considered tohave lesser side-effects, but is associated with an increasedrisk of certain Gastrointestinal Cancers. However, Mrs Olive finally decide to go in first for herbaltreatment. She is not alone. Increasingly a large number ofpeople are shifting to herbal treatment not only for obesity butalso for other major diseases like jaundice, arthritis anddiabetes.In the West, ancient treatments using herbs are gradually beingrevived, but in India or China herbal treatment has always beena way of life. The Indian System of Medicine - Ayurveda - isbased on herbs and certain inorganic metals like gold, silver,etc called bhasmas. In China, traditional healing focuses on thepower of herbs, animal products and others to give the healingbalance of ying and yang. However herbal treatment takes time and may not always beeffective. There is no clear cut scientific basis for manypreparations and very often they have been dismissed as supremeexamples of Quackery. Very often these preparations containdangerous levels of heavy metals like lead, cadmium, etc an havein banned in countries like Canada and Singapore. There is a need for objective, double blind, randomized,clinical trials to establish a clear-cut medical basis forusage. Very often these preparations contain more than 10different herbs. There is also a need for studies to check howthese herbs interact with each other and documentaton of theirtherapeutic effects and their side-effects..Prescription drugs on the hand have strong scientific basis.There is at least one good double blind randomized clinicaltrial in human in the indication or disease to be treated beforethe drug can even apply for final approval. Here the therapyinvolves a single drug that has been documented in all aspectsfor it's therapeutic effect, side-effects, drug-druginteractions and this has been studied for 5 to 10 years beforethe drug can be promoted commercially. There is also information on how the drug travels through thebody and into what components it breaks down into. What moretreatment schedules are well-defined with a clear knowledge ofthe side-effects, which are plentiful. With qualified certifiedmedical practitioners and ultra modern facilities, it is notdifficult to see why prescription drugs are the most preferredform of treatment.Most people start shifting to herbal medicine only whenallopathy does not offer any benefits like in Psoriasis or ifthe side-effects become unbearable as in arthritis, whereacidity due to pain reducing drugs can be difficult to stomach,or where the duration of therapy is shorter than in allopathy,like in Jaundice. Or due to the side-effects of certain cardiacdrugs like anti-hypertensives. But herein lies the danger of embracing a therapy which we donot know everything about. In medical terms, ignorance is notbliss, it is an invitation to disaster.