Herbal remedies - useful or quackery?

People often forget that quite a few of todays pharmaceuticals have their origins in naturally occurring chemicals. Aspirin and quinine are the most obvious ones, but Digoxin, Pilocarpine, Physostigmine and numerous anticancer agents have their origins in the plant kingdom (I'm sure there are dozens, but I last studied pharmacognosy 15 years ago).

G&T swears by tea tree oil as an antiseptic and I have used chamomile tea many times as a stress releiver / mild sedative.

I think the answer is to use whatever works for you, while maintaining a dialogue with your GP, if only for monitoring of your condition / blood pressure. Anyone who is looking to minimise reliance on antidepressants is doing right in my book.

Still wouldn't touch Chinese medicine with a barge pole. I like my mercury as nature intended - sealed inside a thermometer.

As P&aP says, herbal remedies can and do work. Nature makes lots of compounds that have an affect on the body so if you bottle that, it will do stuff.

It always used to make me laugh that my granny's distrust of conventional medicine meant she wouldn't take aspirin but she was happy to take willow bark extract ?

The thing to remember is that precisely because they can work, you shouldn't take them lightly. Natural does not automatically equal safe and it certainly doesn't mean it won't interact with other drugs (St John's Wort stops the pill from working, for example).

But if you exercise some sensible caution then there's a lot to be said for it.

WP&P said.

UCL hospital has a herbal medicine department, it's not quackery, there are some incredibly potent herbal medicines. But because it's potent doesn't necessarily make it safe - I'd be aware that there could be side affects and that there could be interactions with any conventional medicines you're taking too.

Wah! Snap!

In the past I have made my own painkillers - specifically for period pain and also made a cream for my eczema - both carefully researched and ok'd with my GP and both with excellent results.

Unfortunately as I'm currently breastfeeding I have eschewed herbal remedies - that there is very little testing on teh safety during pregnany and breastfeeding for more conventional - and less successful - remedies

My only experience with herbal remedies are the one's to help you sleep. 'Natrasleep' 'Kalms sleep' etc etc, and yes, they do and have worked for me very successfully.

Katchoo - i posted a few weeks ago about suffering from stress/anxiety and you put up your own experiences and suggested the lemonbalm/skullcap to me. i went to Neals Yard and had a look at the remedies there and after talking to one of the staff, i bought a "relax" rollerball thing for my pulse points. i find it really works - i don't know if it's a placebo effect, or just because i like the smell or because the oils/herbs actually work, but when i use it i do find that i sort of settle down and although i'm not completely over it, i am feeling much more in control.

i did see my doctor as well - he actually said that he'd prefer i tried exercise (am running, which helps also) and possibly relaxation techniques as the first port of call rather than embarking on medication or any "talking remedies" although he was happy to explore that route in the future if i need it. i found him was pretty supportive about trying the herbal remedies first which suits me, and i was glad that he didn't give me a script for any drugs as the first option becuase i really don't think i need them and it seemed clear to me that he didn't think i did either. and i know that i can go back to him if needs be.

i have used arnica cream for bruises and i do think it works. and i've tried agnus castus to regulate my cycles as well and found it works, although after a few months.

so yes, so far i've found they work for me so far.

Interesting replies so far, thanks. I am really interested to see that it is a serious science, as often in the popular media you see herbal medicine refereed to in 'hippy dippy' terms. Certainly my GP has been very vocally opposed to it (yes I have switched GPs now).

The chap at Neal's Yard seemed quite thorough. He checked what, if any, prescribed medicines I am taking before giving me anything, and he has advised me to not mix the lemonbalm/skullcap with the sage mixture and only take the sage in the morning and the lemonbalm at night, rather than the 3 times daily I would normally take it. I suppose that's fairly responsible.

As an interesting aside, scientists have been taking an increasing interest in herbal medicines over the last 20 years. At the last count, over 300 were under investigation as potential new drug therapies. Most recently, an extract of green tea has been licenced as a treatment to prevent the spread of warts, while plant antimicrobials may offer us the best chance of producing a new generation of antibiotics to combat MRSA.

There are further studies focussing on anti-inflammatory and antimalarial therapies, as well as treatments using cannabis extracts for MS.

Be careful though. Pharmacognosy / Ethnobotany are "serious science", while at the other end of the spectrum are things like homeopathy (and IMHO most Chinese medicine).

Herbalism and Neal's yard fall somewhere inbetween.

While there are undoubtedly many benefits to using natural preparations, their side-effects, interactions and even mechanism of action are poorly understood, and the industry istelf is not always thoroughly regulated.

There was an article on BBC yesterday about daffodil extract and Alzheimer's treatment.

When I visited the rainforest in Kenya, we did a walking tour and the tour guide pointed out lots of plants that were used to treat measles and other diseases. Apparently there's been quite a bit of Western work there, but whether it's with the Kenyan specialists or exploiting the Kenyans, I wouldn't like to guess.

Hi Teenybash. I remember your post. I'm really glad you've found something that works for you and that your GP is being so supportive. That's brilliant news. I've looked at those rollerball things and I wondered if they worked, because I was thinking of buying one for next time I fly, as a bit of a 'second line of defence' if I get panicky in the air. Great to know it does actually work.

Hecate - that's really interesting. I have noticed that all the herbal products I've bought state in big letters not to use during pregnancy. Will you go back to them afterwards?

Babygreenuk - I tried natrasleep once, but it made me feel very sick. I've used Kalms and they're okay, but not really strong enough for me.

Agreed. The thought of a chinese herbalist doesn't do it for me, although I have heard anecdotal evidence of it working for people. I think I'll stick with Neal's Yard TBH ?

My mother (an ex-pharmacologist) had a lovely row discussion with a lady in Holland & Barrat who was trying to get her to sign a petition against regulating herbal remedies (this was a few years ago). the poor H&B women was seriously out of her depth when confront with my mother, who quite sensibly pointed out that if the herbal stuff has any pharmacological effect then it needs to be understood and regulated, and if it doesn't have any pharmacological effect then (aside from the placebo effect) there isn't a lot of point to it.

It was quite lovely to watch.

Maybe a silly question, but is there a recognised body for herbalists etc? My daughter has awful eczema and we bought some cream with hawthorne etc in at a craft fair and it's done wonders, but our dermatologist nearly had a blue fit when we told him. We had a lecture on how it was probably made in someones shed etc.. I just wondered if alternative medicines were put any sort of safety testing etc,?

Well, there is the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council, although sign-up is voluntary.

This has been a hot topic in the news, as last year's Telegraph article shows https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2130511/Herbalists-to-face-strict-regulations.html

Personally, I wouldn't buy anything from a craft fair. With conditions like eczema you have to be very careful about what you apply. Unless the product is sterile (or at least very clean) you run serious risks of introducing infection to the broken skin.

Testing (in the pharmaceutical sense of the word) is almost unheard of, relying mostly on products that have a long history of traditional use and are thus considered relatively harmless. But, as Hazel may have mentioned once (or twice) "natural" most definitely doesn't mean the same thing as "safe".

I think it'll be great when herbal remedies are more thoroughly tested. I've just stocked up my herb bed, mainly for cooking but there are a couple of things I may use for other things. I also love tea tree as an antiseptic and always put lavender on burns I do on myself when using the oven and that works wonders.

? P&P, we bought after a friend had recommended it, it was only after my lecture did I think about sterlisation etc.