:: ::

A January 15, 2007 CBS television news report left the impression that herbs are ineffective, unsafe and even dangerous. The report was really a promotional piece for a book by author Dan Hurley titled - Natural Causes: Death, Lies and Politics in America’s Vitamin and Herbal Supplement Industry.

He made this dogmatic statement on the CBS report - “There’s no good evidence these products are safe and effective and there’s plenty of evidence that many of these products are unsafe, ineffective or both,” says science and medical writer Dan Hurley.”

What does the Real Scientific Medical Literature say about Herbs?

This book and news report is sham science at its best. The bias against safe and effective therapies with herbs and nutrition does a disservice to people who are ill, and in need of safe, effective, non-toxic treatments.

So - “award-winning journalist specializing in health and medical writing” (who has written for the New York Times), - Mr. Hurley, let’s look at a few of the most studied herbs. Let’s see if you really researched the facts or if your dogmatic statements and scare mongering about the effectiveness and safety of herbal therapies are true. Your credibility and integrity is on the line.

St. John’s Wort

Gee I guess you missed the ‘gold standard’ for clinical trials- The Cochrane Collaboration and their Cochrane Review for St. John’s Wort (hypericum). You would have found this comment in 2005 on a review of 37 studies that met their high standards. “Trials comparing hypericum extracts and standard antidepressants were statistically homogeneous.” In other words this herb was equivalent to pharmaceuticals in effectiveness.

Hmm maybe this is the reason this herb has 80% market share; I mean 80% of the prescriptions in Germany for depression. We can’t have that happen here, Big Pharma would be upset.

Gingko Biloba

The European Journal of Neurology in September 2006 reported in a randomized placebo-controlled double-blind study that Ginkgo was as effective as the drug donepezil in Alzheimers. In fact the herb Ginkgo biloba is sold and regulated as a drug in Germany.

Galantamine

A 653 patient study in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) in December of 2000, reported that galantamine slowed the decline in both cognition and functional ability in mild to moderate Alzheimer’s patients.

‘Just The Facts Man’

Interestingly, if herbs are as ineffective as critics say then why has this herb Galantamine been granted FDA approval for sale as a prescription drug under the brand name Razadyne (formerly Reminyl). Don’t you find it ironic that galantamine is recognized as a drug but is still available without a prescription? Naturally, pun intended.

This powerful propaganda war against herbs by ‘Big Pharma’, their media allies like CBS and authors like Hurley creates cynicism in the public. As Hurley noted in polls that - “found that only 9 percent of consumers believe that drug makers are basically honest.” This was due to the 1990’s reports on the FDA’s cozy relationship with these companies.

A more balanced book to read would be - The Whole Story: Alternative Medicine On Trial? by Toby Murcott .

Comments from reviews of Murcott’s book - “This book should be prescribed for bigots on both sides…” –Guardian (Thursday Science Supplement)

“Murcott reveals how much of what we take as scientific fact is imbued with subjectivity, bias, misinterpretation or simply asking the wrong questions.”–The Lancet (Medical Journal)

I just touched on a few of ‘the facts’ of herbal scientific studies and their effectiveness that destroy the “bigot” Hurley’s credibility. These studies show the ‘Big Lie’ of this book that the TV report foisted on an unsuspecting public that is bombarded on a regular basis with like propaganda.

In a future post I’ll ‘Show You The Science’ on the safety of so-called dangerous herbs and discuss the over-the-top feature of the fake patient on the CBS telecast and in Hurley’s book.

————————————————————————-
Dennis Cutforth is a researcher and writer with over 35 years experience in health-care sales, marketing and research in pharmaceuticals and natural health. Dennis will cut through all the propaganda and give you the real facts about what really works to make you healthier and happier. Visit his website at Get A Better Life Today.

————————————————————————-