Topic: The Scientific Validation of The Effectiveness of Traditional Medicines
Greatcod
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Their is increasing scientific validation of traditional medicines. China, India and Pakistan, among others, have done serious scientific study of their traditional medicines, and have integrated them into their national healthcare systems. Western countries have also studied the medicines, mostly hoping to isolate and patent their essesntial ingrediants. I put Andrographis into Google Scholar, and there is a ton of information there. Most impressive was the fact that Andro was widely used in the 1919 Flu Epidemic in India, and was credited with stopping it. It was not stopped in the West. Very serious busines, it was the flu that killed millions. It appears that it is used in respirtory infections primarily, and is credited with cutting two days off the lenght of a cold. I found no mention of Andro as being efective against bacterial infections, though. It may be there, I didn't search extensively. It seems to me that the alternative folks might search out the scientific information that backs their claims, and present it on this forum.
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Greatcod
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This is a review article published in 2003. Sorry to be so nerdy.
Herbal medicines for treatment of bacterial infections: a review of controlled clinical trials Karen W. Martin* and Edzard Ernst Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter and Plymouth, 25 Victoria Park Road, Exeter EX2 4NT, UK
Objectives: Many hundreds of plant extracts have been tested for in vitro antibacterial activity. This review is a critical evaluation of controlled clinical trials of herbal medicines with antibacterial activity.
Methods: Four electronic databases were searched for controlled clinical trials of antibacterial herbal medicines. Data were extracted and validated in a standardized fashion, according to predefined criteria, by two independent reviewers.
Results: Seven clinical trials met our inclusion criteria. Four of these studies were randomized. Three trials of garlic and cinnamon treatments for Helicobacter pylori infections reported no significant effect. Bacterial infections of skin were treated in four trials. Positive results were reported for an ointment containing tea leaf extract in impetigo contagiosa infections. Two trials of tea tree oil preparations used for acne and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and one trial of Ocimum gratissimum oil for acne, reported results equivalent to conventional treatments.
Conclusions: Few controlled clinical trials have been published and most are methodologically weak. The clinical efficacy of none of the herbal medicines has so far been demonstrated beyond doubt. This area seems to merit further study through rigorous clinical trials.
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Cass A
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I had a Hungarian accupuncturist and chinese medicine herbal doctor who went to China for an internship.
There, they use Western diagnostic methods and then traditional Chinese herbs and other traditional remedies, according to her.
From her experience, these worked very well for many things.
For myself, I would prefer herbals for prevention, like during the cold and flu season, and for long-term situations.
Acute fix-up Western style, however.
Love,
Cass A
Posts: 1245 | From Thousand Oaks, CA | Registered: Feb 2007
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Greatcod
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Looks as if the traditional medicines are effective in many cases. Against Lyme, Idunno.
: J Med Assoc Thai. 1990 Jun;73(6):299-304. Links Undetectable anti-bacterial activity of Andrographis paniculata (Burma) wall. ex ness.Leelarasamee A, Trakulsomboon S, Sittisomwong N. Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok.
Andrographis paniculata (Burma) Wall. ex Ness (AP) is a herbal medicine and has been used for therapy of upper respiratory tract infection (URI) as well as acute diarrhea with reported efficacy of 75-100 per cent. To investigate whether anti-bacterial activity was responsible for the reported therapeutic success of AP, we carried out a number of studies. The first study was a direct assay of anti-bacterial activity of AP suspended in water. The tested pathogens included Salmonella, Shigella, E.coli, gr. A Streptococci and S.aureus. Anti-bacterial activity was not demonstrable even in a solution containing 25,000 mg per litre of crude powder. The second was designed to detect serum bactericidal activity after oral intake of stem and leaves of AP. Ten healthy volunteers were enrolled in the study. They received a single oral dose of AP (1, 2, 3 and 6 g) in a randomized, cross-over manner. The washout period was one week. Blood samples were taken at 0, 1, 2, 4, 8 and 24 hours after ingestion. Serum bactericidal activity was assayed by agar diffusion technique using Bacillus spores and five strains of each pathogen (Shigella, Salmonella typhi, S.aureus and gr. A Streptococci) incubated for 24 hours. Again serum bactericidal activity was not detected in any of the sera tested. In a third study, ninety-six rats were daily fed with high doses of AP ranging 0.12-24 g per kg body wt. for six months before sacrifice. Antibacterial activity was still undetectable when lung parenchyma and liver tissue was placed on culture media containing bacteria tested. In conclusion, anti-bacterial activity of AP is undetectable in our study
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Greatcod
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Actually, this is dumb fun. Looks like Cat's Claw has varying levels of effectiveness on bacteria. I use it, and my gills have never been in better health.
Antimicrobial activity of Uncaria tomentosa against oral human pathogens Renzo Alberto Ccahuana-VasquezI; Silvana Sol�o Ferreira dos SantosII; Cristiane Yumi Koga-ItoIII; Antonio Olavo Cardoso JorgeII
IGraduate Student, Department of Physiology Sciences, School of Dentistry of Piracicaba, State University of Campinas IIPhDs, Department of Microbiology, University of Taubat� IIIPhD, Department of Bioscience and Oral Diagnosis, School of Dentistry of S�o Jos� dos Campos, S�o Paulo State University
ABSTRACT
Uncaria tomentosa is considered a medicinal plant used over centuries by the peruvian population as an alternative treatment for several diseases. Many microorganisms usually inhabit the human oral cavity and under certain conditions can become etiologic agents of diseases. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of different concentrations of Uncaria tomentosa on different strains of microorganisms isolated from the human oral cavity. Micropulverized Uncaria tomentosa was tested in vitro to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) on selected microbial strains. The tested strains were oral clinical isolates of Streptococcus mutans, Staphylococcus spp., Candida albicans, Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The tested concentrations of Uncaria tomentosa ranged from 0.25-5% in M�eller-Hinton agar. Three percent Uncaria tomentosa inhibited 8% of Enterobacteriaceae isolates, 52% of S. mutans and 96% of Staphylococcus spp. The tested concentrations did not present inhibitory effect on P. aeruginosa and C. albicans. It could be concluded that micropulverized Uncaria tomentosa presented antimicrobial activity on Enterobacteriaceae, S. mutans and Staphylococcus spp. isolates
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There is an in vivo study of andrographis isolates showing anti-malarial properties, which might have relevance for cyst form and babesia. Just one study, but still pretty intriguing to this nerd
Anti-malarial activity of some xanthones isolated from the roots of Andrographis paniculata.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2004 Dec;95(2-3):247-51.
Dua VK et al. Malaria Research Centre, Sector III, BHEL, Hardwar 249 403, India. [email protected]
Four xanthones were isolated from the roots of Andrographis paniculata using a combination of column and thin-layer chromatographic methods. They were characterized as (i) 1,8-di-hydroxy-3,7-dimethoxy-xanthone, (ii) 4,8-dihydroxy-2,7-dimethoxy-xanthone, (iii) 1,2-dihydroxy-6,8-dimethoxy-xanthone and (iv) 3,7,8-trimethoxy-1-hydroxy xanthone by IR, MS and NMR spectroscopic methods.
In vitro study revealed that compound 1,2-dihydroxy-6,8-dimethoxy-xanthone possessed substantial anti-plasmodial activity against Plasmodium falciparum with its IC(50) value of 4 microg ml(-1). Xanthones bearing hydroxyl group at 2 position demonstrated most potent activity while xanthones with hydroxyl group at 1,4 or 8 position possessed very low activity.
In vivo anti-malarial sensitivity test of this compound on Swiss Albino mice with Plasmodium berghei infection using Peters' 4-day test gave substantial reduction (62%) in parasitaemia after treating the mice with 30 mg kg(-1) dose. In vitro cytotoxicity against mammalian cells revealed that 1,2-dihydroxy-6,8-dimethoxy-xanthone is non-cytotoxic with its IC(50) > 32 microg ml(-1).
PMID: 15507344
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Truthfinder
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Way to go Greadcod and ldfighter....
Hey, Cave, if in-depth "scientific" studies were done on all the alternative treatments out there, nobody could afford to buy or use them.
Unless there is independent funding, all that research gets passed on to the consumer.
Of course, besides proving 'efficacy', much additional research is needed with drugs since pharmaceutical companies are constantly enganged in a balancing act of keeping the doses low enough so the toxicity of the drug doesn't kill (or damage) you before it helps you.
Even with all that terrific ongoing research, drugs still kill (or damage) a lot of people every single day, and we accept that as 'normal'. (!?!?)
Fortunately, that is not the case with most traditional medicines and treatments.
I have personally seen and experienced a few amazing 'cures' with Traditional Chinese Medicine, for instance. Seeing is believing.
Tracy
-------------------- Tracy .... Prayers for the Lyme Community - every day at 6 p.m. Pacific Time and 9 p.m. Eastern Time � just take a few moments to say a prayer wherever you are�. Posts: 2966 | From Colorado | Registered: Dec 2005
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Greatcod
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Sounds like Andro may work against Babesia. Anyway, here's another one. What India and China have done with their Traditionals seems quite rational. Neither embrace nor discard, but study.
Immunomodulatory and Antimicrobial Effects of Some Traditional Chinese Medicinal Herbs: A Review Authors: Tan B.K.H.1; Vanitha J.1
Source: Current Medicinal Chemistry, Volume 11, Number 11, June 2004, pp. 1423-1430(8)
Abstract:
The current practice of ingesting phytochemicals to support the immune system or to fight infections is based on centuries-old tradition. We review reports on seven Chinese herbs, (Aloe vera Mill. (Aloaceae), Angelica species (Umbelliferae), Astragalus membranaceus Bunge. (Leguminosae), Ganoderma lucidum (Fr.) Karst. (Ganodermataceae), Panax ginseng C.A Mey. (Araliaceae), Scutellaria species (Lamiaceae) and Zingiber officinale Rosc. (Zingiberaceae) with emphasis to their immunomodulatory and antimicrobial activities. While some of these herbaceous plants have a direct inhibitory effect on microbial organisms, we observe that each plant has at least one compound that selectively modulates cells of the immune system. The successful derivation of pure bioactive compounds from Ganoderma lucidum, ginseng and Zingiber officinale supports the traditional practice of using these plants to stimulate the immune system. As many modern drugs are often patterned after phytochemicals, studying the influence of each compound on immune cells as well as microbes can provide useful insights to the development of potentially useful new pharmacological agents.
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Marnie
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 773
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Over and over and over...
If you go back...I've done this, so many times, so many places.
Here's ONE example:
A quantal perceptive model of brain function has been postulated by several groups.
Reiki-like healing practices in seizure disorder
(Note...seizure can happen in lyme, not often, but they CAN and HAVE.)
ILAE classification - II E - generalized seizures - tonic clonic, involving transfer of life force or low level of electromagnetic force -EMF- from the healer to the recipient patient, may act via quantal perceptive mechanisms.
Increased synthesis of an endogenous membrane Na+-K+ ATPase inhibitor digoxin and a related tyrosine / tryptophan transport defect has been demonstrated in refractory seizure disorder ILAE classification - II E - generalized seizures - tonic clonic.
Reiki-like healing practices in refractory epilepsy results in a reduction in seizure frequency. Reiki-like healing practices produce membrane stabilization and stimulation of membrane Na+-K+ ATPase activity by quantal perception of low levels of EMF.
***The consequent intracellular hypermagnesemia inhibits HMG CoA reductase activity and digoxin synthesis resulting in the alteration of the neutral amino acid transport (tryptophan / tyrosine) defect. ***
A hypothalamic digoxin-mediated quantal perception model of brain function is proposed. The phenomena of biological transmutation and consequent hypermagnesemia occurring in the resultant neuronal quantal state is also discussed.
How to cite this article:Kumar RA, Kurup PA. Changes in the isoprenoid pathway with transcendental meditation and Reiki healing practices in seizure disorder . Neurol India 2003;51:211-214
If you don't know the importance of HMG CoA reductase -inhibiting it-, well...
Mg INHIBITS HMG CoA reductase as well as glucagon which IS up because gluconeogenesis is kicking in to supply an ongoing glucose delivery as well as amino acids to Bb and to the cells.
And this...
J Psychosom Res. 2005 Apr ;58:383-7
The effects of repeated thermal therapy for two patients with chronic fatigue syndrome.
OBJECTIVE: This paper describes the successful treatment of two patients with chronic fatigue syndrome -CFS- using repeated thermal therapy.
METHODS: Two patients with CFS underwent treatment with prednisolone -PSL-, with no satisfactory effect. They were subjected to thermal therapy
that consisted of a far-infrared ray dry sauna at 60 degrees C and postsauna warming.
The therapy was performed once a day, for a total of 35 sessions. After discharge, these subjects continued the therapy once or twice a week on an outpatient basis for 1 year.
RESULTS: Symptoms such as fatigue, pain, sleep disturbance, and low-grade fever were dramatically improved after 15 to 25 sessions of thermal therapy. Although PSL administration was discontinued, the subjects showed no relapse or exacerbation of symptoms during the first year after discharge.
The patients became socially rehabilitated 6 months after discharge. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that repeated thermal therapy might be a promising method for the treatment of CFS.
Circ J. 2004 Dec ;68:1146-51
Effects of repeated sauna treatment on ventricular arrhythmias in patients with chronic heart failure.
BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to determine whether repeated 60 degrees C sauna treatment improves cardiac arrhythmias in chronic heart failure -CHF- patients, because ventricular arrhythmias are an important therapeutic target in CHF.
METHODS AND RESULTS: Thirty patients (59+/-3 years) with New York Heart Association functional class II or III CHF and at least 200 premature ventricular contractions -PVCs-/24 h assessed by 24-h Holter recordings were studied.
They were randomized into sauna-treated or non-treated groups. The sauna-treated group underwent a 2-week program of
a daily 60 degrees C far infrared-ray dry sauna for 15 min,
followed by 30 min bed rest with blankets, for 5 days per week. Patients in the non-treated group had bed rest in a temperature-controlled room -24 degrees C - for 45 min.
The total numbers of PVCs/24 h in the sauna-treated group decreased compared with the non-treated group. Heart rate variability increased and plasma brain natriuretic peptide concentrations decreased in the sauna-treated group compared with the non-treated group.
CONCLUSION: Repeated sauna treatment improves ventricular arrhythmias in patients with CHF. Experimental Biology and Medicine 228:1245-1249 - 2003
And this...
Music and dopamine
Music improves dopaminergic neurotransmission: demonstration based on the effect of music on blood pressure regulation.
Sutoo D, Akiyama K.
Institute of Medical Science, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan.
The mechanism by which music modifies brain function is not clear. Clinical findings indicate that music reduces blood pressure in various patients.
We investigated the effect of music on blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats -SHR.
Previous studies indicated that calcium increases brain dopamine -DA- synthesis through a calmodulin -CaM-dependent system. Increased DA levels reduce blood pressure in SHR.
In this study, we examined the effects of music on this pathway.
Systolic blood pressure in SHR was reduced by exposure to Mozart's music and the effect vanished when this pathway was inhibited.
Exposure to music also significantly increased serum calcium levels and neostriatal DA levels.
These results suggest that music leads to increased calcium/CaM-dependent DA synthesis in the brain, thus causing a reduction in blood pressure. Music might regulate and/or affect various brain functions through dopaminergic neurotransmission, and might therefore be effective for rectification of symptoms in various diseases that involve DA dysfunction.
PMID: 15246862
I have almost 3000 MS word files to pull from...
Keep an open mind...very!
P.S. I had to edit out a lot of parenthesis because sometimes this website gets funny about them even IF they are NOT in the weblink addys.
[ 23. May 2007, 07:12 PM: Message edited by: Marnie ]
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