Seemingly innocent herbal
remedies, that don't require a doctor's prescription, allow the general public the
ability to purchase treatments across the counter with no professional medical advice.
Many herbal therapies, openly on sale to everyone, misleadingly have additional
ingredients and may surprisingly cause some serious side effects. Just because
it says "herbal" doesn't mean it is completely natural, safe and
harmless.
Where do our
present day medications originate from? Plants have been the basis of medical
treatments for thousands of years through human history, many of which are
still used today. From the beginning of mankind, people have relied on plants
for food. Through trial and error discoveries were made; some plants were found
to be good to eat, others poisonous, and there were those discovered for their
qualities in producing bodily changes such as increased bowel movement, pain
relief, hallucinations and healing. Observation and information was passed
orally from generation to generation, each generation adding and refining
medicinal knowledge. Every culture in the world has in this manner developed a
body of herbal knowledge as part of its tradition.
Modern medicine,
is based on scientific gathering of
evidence, and many compounds are plant derived upon the basis of
evidence-tested pharmaceutical drugs. It therefore stands to reason, why people
are often drawn to herbal remedies, believing they present no danger, as they
are simply from plants.
If you are taking
any additional herbal medicines or are thinking about it, I urge you to be well
informed about the particular remedy in question and discuss with your doctor
the ramifications if any that may arise. This is especially important if you're
taking Parkinson's medications, as so many holistic medicines are not compatible
and can throw your entire system out of whack.
One such medicine
that is not legal in many countries is medical cannabis. Although there has
been widespread proof that it can help relieve some symptoms of chronic patients, this "plant" also can
present serious detrimental effects. My article this week for
The Huffington Post is about the issue of medical cannabis.
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