Health News
Experts differ on effectiveness of herbal rpmpHipc
As the popularity of herbs
grows, debate among
medical professionals
ensues about their efficacy
By Sarah Skidmore
Oregon Daily Emerald
Herbs can make you more
alert, help you sleep and even
help alleviate depression, herbal
proponents contend. However,
new research shows that herbs
can also cause digestive prob
lems, contribute to hypertension
and in some cases do absolutely
nothing.
The popularity of herbal reme
dies is increasing in the United
States. According to the Ameri
can Medical Association, more
than one-third of Americans use
herbs for health purposes and
spend more than $3.5 billion an
nually on them.
However, medical information
and research about the efficacy
and safety of herbs are only re
cently coming to light. While
some herbs are meeting their
claims, others are being proven
unsafe and/or ineffective.
The medical field has shown
mixed reactions toward the in
creasing popularity of this field
of alternative medicine.
"I think in many ways the pop
ularity is positive,” said Dr.
William Disher of the University
Student Health Center. “Many of
these are preventative, natural
and readily available.”
Some critics within the med
ical field include Dr. George
Lundberg, editor of the Journal of
the American Medical Associa
tion. He made the following
statement in the Nov. 11 editori
al in the journal:
“There is no alternative medi
cine. There is only scientifically
proven, evidence-based medi
cine supported by solid data or
unproven medicine, for which
scientific evidence is lacking.”
Other critics of herbs are con
cerned about possible drug in
teractions, side effects and lack
of regulations on herb produc
tions.
“People might take things
they think might help them but
they won’t or might even hurt
them,” said Katharine Skola,
University student and peer
health educator.
Lundberg said in his editorial,
“Until solid evidence is available
that demonstrates the safety, effi
cacy, and effectiveness of specif
ic alternative medicine interven
tions, uncritical acceptance of
untested and unproven alterna
tive medicine therapies must
stop.”
Some medical professionals
disagree.
“I do not think that the best ev
idence is always the result of
rigid scientific study,” Disher
said. “Some of these herbs are ef
fective as the result of 5,000 years
of experience.”
Students such as Teren Rob
bins, a junior political science
major, agree. He began using
herbal remedies, particularly
teas, in college. He said he has
noticed a quicker recovery time
For more infonnation
■ The National Institute for Health
—Office of Alternative Medicine
Clearinghouse: 1'888-644-6226
■ American Medical Association:
www.ama-assn.org
■ “The German Commission E.
Monographs”—a text of research
done by the German Government on
herbal medicine, recently translated
to English for the first time
than he experienced before he
used the herbs.
Part of the controversy is be
cause herbs, although they are
frequently referred to as alterna
tive medicine, are not legally
considered drugs.
Therefore, they are not regulat
ed by the FDA. Proponents, such
as herbalist Cherie Capps, direc
tor of the Center for Herbal Stud
ies in Oregon, maintain that
herbs meet a special need of pa
tients.
“It fills the gap that there isn’t
an alternative for," she said. “In a
lot of cases herbs can build up
the body and prevent illness and
if the body is sick, it can buildup
the body and help the body re
pair.”
Despite the controversy, the
popularity of herbs as medicinal
treatments has skyrocketed.
A study of trends in alternative
medicine by the American Med
ical Association listed herbal
medicine as one of the fastest
growing forms of alternative
medicine.
To increase patient safety,
both proponents and critics
agree that if a person chooses to
use herbs, letting a primary
physician know about any herbs
being used, taking appropriate
doses and using caution are cru
cial.
“My approach to herbs is that
they are drugs and should be
treated as such,” Capps said.
At the University level, many
students are now asking for in
formation about herbal options,
Disher said.
He estimated that the most
commonly used herbs were echi
nacea, St. John’s wort, valerian,
ginseng and ginkgo biloba. Of
these herbs, only ginseng and va
lerian were included in the
FDA’s list of 250 herbs that are
"generally recognized as safe.”
• Echinacea is commonly
used for the prevention and
treatment of colds and for the
healing of wounds. This is the
most popular herb in the United
States and grosses more than
$300 million in sales annually,
according to the Archive of Fam
ily Medicine, a publication of
the AMA. Two forms of echi
nacea, E. angustifolia and E. pur
purea were proven no more ef
fective than a placebo in the
AMA’s study. Additionally, use
of echinacea beyond the dura
tion of eight weeks could cause
hepatoxicity.
• St. John’s wort is an herb
native to the Northwest that is
commonly used as a treatment
for mild depression. In some
documented cases, people have
become intensely sensitive to
sunlight as a result of excessive
amounts of St. John’s wort. As
an anti-depressant, it has
proven effective in most clinical
trials.
• Valerian is a root that is fre
quently used as a sleep aid. Trial
runs have shown that it is an ef
fective tool to create an im
proved quality of sleep. Howev
er, there has been a small
percentage of reported cases of
persons suffering from restless
ness and palpitations from the
herb.
• Ginseng is touted as an en
ergy booster and performance
enhancer by many herb compa
ny producers. It is one of the
more expensive herbs and is
used by at least six million
Americans, according to the
AMA. Because of the wide
spread claims made about gin
seng, the results are jumbled.
However, the AMA did an
analysis of 54 available ginseng
products, and 85 percent were
determined as “worthless” and
contained no ginseng.
• Ginkgo biloba, the last of the
popular herbs, is used to in
crease memory and increase
blood circulation and oxygena
tion. In a yearlong study, this
herb was found to stabilize and
improve the cognitive and social
functioning of patients with de
mentia. In another trial, healthy
geriatric patients showed better
cognitive function after using
ginkgo.
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