Guest guest Posted March 3, 1999 Report Share Posted March 3, 1999 In a message dated 3/3/99 5:34:16 PM !!!First Boot!!!, halwhite@... writes: << In fact--since the tryptophan scare many years ago--I'm not aware of any alternative medicine deaths; except for the odd instance where some poor fool takes mega-doses of some substance. >> Not true! There have been many many deaths from taking alternative medicine, e.g. ephedra. These sort of stories, liver failure from some herbal remedy, don't make the main headlines and the alternative/complimentary " people " sure don't advertise them either. Many of these deaths are simply " swept under the rug " and are not " advertised. " Also, many of the deaths are not directly attributed to the herbal remedy because many times, the physician/autospy is not even aware of the patient taking some of these herbal remedies. Many patients do not inform their physician of the herbs/vitamins and such that they are taking. Some of the herbal remedies can interact and cause fatal reactions when combined with prescription meds. Guess what gets blamed......the prescription medicine! Many herbal remedies can have serious side-effects but then again, trying to establish cause and effect is difficult due to the lack of proper scientific study of alternative medicines. IMHO RAINBOWPED@... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 3, 1999 Report Share Posted March 3, 1999 Hal, Thanks for your suggestion about the book. Amazon.com is my next stop! I am beginning to realize that this is a very complicated issue, and people have very strong, even emotional reactions to the whole subject. Probably our backgrounds and life experiences have lasting effects on which side of the fence we choose - in my case this contributes to the ambiguity I am experiencing. I was brought up in a very traditional family where any form of alternative medicine was and is considered quackery. My mother ended up in a psychiatric hospital, de-toxing from the drugs that the trusted family doctor had prescribed for her. That was then, this is now, and hopefully most MD's are more prudent, but I will always be wary of the consequences of ingesting anything, whether it be traditional or alternative. ne, 59, Lawrenceville, NJ ___________________________________________________________________ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com/getjuno.html or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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