Archive | Chinese herbal medicines

Posted 10 April 2019

The editors of Scientific American have harshly criticized the World Health Organization for including in the 11th edition of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD) disorders described in ancient Chinese medicine (ICD-11).

Editors. The World Health Organization gives the nod to Traditional Chinese Medicine. Bad Idea. Scientific American. April 2019 https://www.who.int/health-topics/international-classification-of-diseases

Their key points include:

• Including traditional Chinese medicine in the ICD is an egregious lapse in evidence-based thinking and practice. Data supporting the effectiveness of most traditional remedies are scant, at best.
• In China, traditional medicines are unregulated, and they frequently make people sick rather than curing them.
• Analyses of Chinese remedies have revealed hidden ingredients including banned Western drugs, toxic chemicals, and DNA from endangered species.
• The proliferation of traditional medicines contributes to destruction of ecosystems and increases the illegal trade of wildlife.
• Until they undergo rigorous testing for

Posted 02 July 2013

Chinese herbs have been used for centuries. Although many are likely to have a true health benefit, in fact not many have been evaluated yet for safety or whether they are in fact efficacious. The paradigm of Chinese medicine is unlike Western medicine on a number of levels, including the latter having developed a surveillance system for adverse effects.

This interesting article published in The Guardian highlights a new problem – in trying to increase production of medicinal herbs, pesticides are being used which may result in the final product containing high levels of residual pesticide.