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News items on 'Complementary Therapies'
Just how safe are herbal medicines?
(Telegraph 30/10/2009)
While many of us believe that "herbal" is synonymous with "safe" herbal remedies can in fact be deadly says Tammy Cohen. "Research we conducted last year found a significant proportion of people believed 'herbal' means 'benign'," says Richard Woodfield, Head of Herbal Policy at the Medicines and Health care products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). "That means people are more liable to self-medicate, and to neglect to inform their doctors, even though there's a risk that the herbal remedy will react with any prescription drugs. They're also more vulnerable to fraudulent, even criminal operators who put products out which are heavily adulterated with dangerous pharmaceuticals."
Tiny Scots isle opens as world yoga centre
(The Scotsman 28/09/2009)
HUNDREDS of people journeyed to Little Cumbrae a tiny, uninhabited island on Scotland's west coast yesterday to celebrate its blessing as a yoga colony. Yesterday, it welcomed its first guests, including yoga guru Swami Ramdev Ji, who has an estimated 80 million followers worldwide for his brand of yoga known as Patanjali Yog. The controversial teacher has claimed he can cure cancer and that homosexuals are "sick people", and was the star of the "open day" on the island.
Faith healing 'can hinder a patient's progress'
(BBC 11/09/2009)
A belief in faith healing could jeopardise recover from illness, according to a new study by a University of Ulster researcher. Dr Tony Cassidy said he believes that some people who put their trust in faith healing may be less likely to adhere to medical advice. He will be presenting his research at a British Psychological Society conference in Birmingham. The Coleraine-based academic's research team questioned 766 people on their belief in and intention to use faith healing.
Complimentary therapies snubbed
(BBC 27/04/2009)
Use of complementary therapies is "surprisingly" low among British cancer patients, a study suggests. A survey of 200 patients in London found only one in five used alternative medicine and most of those did not think it would cure them. Similar studies from the US had shown use was as high as 80%, the researchers at Hammersmith Hospital said. The study also found patients have a high level of faith in their doctors and their treatment [this is a very small study].
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(BBC 20/04/2009)
Police are warning about a scam involving bogus spiritual healers who are conning thousands of pounds out of vulnerable people. Posing as holy men, they prey on Britain's religious Asian community and those facing hardship or health trouble, and falsely promise to solve their problems in return for large sums of money. It's an industry which is condemned by mainstream religions, including Islam, but is thriving nonetheless.
Ancient Egyptians used wine as medicine
(Telegraph 13/04/2009)
The ancient Egyptians are famous for their medical knowledge and used large numbers of organic products to treat disease and ill-health. Scientists used sensitive biomolecular techniques to analyse residues inside two wine jars from early and late in ancient Egyptian history. A jar dating back to 3,150BC from the tomb of one of the first pharaohs of Egypt, Scorpion I, was found to have been steeped with herbs. They included balm, coriander, mint and sage, as well as pine tree resin.
Alternative option
(BBC 08/04/2009)
Combining complementary and orthodox medicine into what is called integrated health is a controversial idea - criticised recently in the Scrubbing Up health column by Professor Edzard Ernst. In this week's column, Dr Michael Dixon, medical director of the Prince's Foundation for Integrated Health, says patients should be able to choose what works for them.
'Smokescreen'
(BBC 25/03/2009)
Mixing conventional and complementary medicine is a fashionable concept, backed by the Prince of Wales. But in this week's Scrubbing Up health column Professor Edzard Ernst, who analyses the effectiveness of complementary therapies, warns "integrated medicine" can be a "shabby smokescreen" for unproven treatments.
Prince Charles' Duchy Originals ordered to remove 'misleading' herbal remedy claims
(Telegraph 20/03/2009)
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has upheld a complaint over the online advertising of two remedies, Duchy Herbals Echina-Relief Tincture and Duchy Herbals Hyperi-Lift Tincture, which are sold for £10 for 50ml in selected Boots and Waitrose stores. Although the MHRA has given the company a license to sell the remedies it does not allow them to make any claims about their effects, merely to stress their "traditional use".
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