Archive for 'Herbals' Category
Nerdy Day Trips
Hugely impressed by Ben Goldacre’s Nerdy Day Trips site. This summer I visited Alnwick Castle, where Harry Potter learnt to fly his broomstick, and The Poison Garden in the nearby gardens were well worth a visit. Here’s the nerdy link.
Claims about Kava’s safety are less than re-assuring
Sarris, J., Kavanagh, D., Byrne, G., Bone, K., Adams, J., & Deed, G. (2009). The Kava Anxiety Depression Spectrum Study (KADSS): a randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial using an aqueous extract of Piper methysticum Psychopharmacology DOI: 10.1007/s00213-009-1549-9 The Pharmaceutical Journal recently reported on a study, published online in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, with the headline Banned [...]
Gillian McKeith in trouble with regulators
Some time ago, Gillian McKeith’s dodgy herbal products were covered on this blog. Due to MHRA action, these products will no longer be available: Dr Gillian McKeith’s organisation has had to detox its own products after MHRA officers discovered it was advertising and selling goods without legal authorisation whilst making medicinal claims about their efficacy. [...]
Black Cohosh Liver problems
Rare, yet serious, liver problems have been associated with Black Cohosh: Professor Kent Wood, MHRA chief executive, said: “In the light of this advice, the MHRA is working with the herbal sector to ensure that labels of black cohosh products carry updated safety warnings. “The labels will point out the possible symptoms so that appropriate [...]
African Herbals
The West Midlands Centre for Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting point towards potentially serious consequences of taking African herbal preparations.
Herbal slimming treatments
The MHRA have warned of the risks of some traditional chinese medicine (TCM) Herbal Slimming supplements, which are potentially dangerous and illegal. [PDF] This warning follows the discovery of a number of dangerous TCM weight loss remedies on the UK and international markets, including one thought responsible for a UK case of irreversible liver failure [...]
Nazi health fanatics
I’ve had to do a great deal of reading about herbs and other complementary therapies in the past few weeks. What I don’t know about the evidence base for homeopathy, isn’t worth knowing. In fact, what I do know about the evidence-base for homeopathy isn’t worth knowing either! In Germany complementary therapies have always been [...]
Scary St John’s Wort
Here is a variety of St John’s Wort I was previously unaware of. Do you think it will help with depression?
Tea-tree oils
Tea-tree oil comes under scrutiny. Tea-tree oil, one of the most popular natural medicines sold in Britain, has been branded unsafe by an influential panel of scientists. The group, which rules on the safety of consumer products for the European Commission, warned undiluted tea-tree oil could be unsafe to sell to the public. It claimed [...]