December 14, 2004

Heavy Metals Found in Indian Herbs
TUESDAY, Dec. 14 (HealthDayNews) -- One in five herbal products tied to an ancient Indian form of alternative medicine could contain potentially toxic levels of heavy metals such as lead, mercury and arsenic, a new survey finds.

Although the health hazards posed by these products vary depending on the level of metal and the characteristics of the person taking it, they are nevertheless real, say the authors of the study, which appears in the Dec. 15 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

"Users of certain Ayurvedic medicines that are manufactured in India and Pakistan may be at risk for heavy metal toxicity," said study author Dr. Robert B. Saper, director of integrative medicine at Boston University School of Medicine. Saper did the study while at Harvard Medical School.

Ayurveda, which originated in India about 2,000 years ago, combines diet and spirit to heal disease, and includes the use of herbal remedies. About 80 percent of India's population uses Ayurvedic products, and it is becoming increasingly popular in the United States, with one analysis estimating that 750,000 adults had consulted an Ayurvedic practitioner.

Ayurvedic products are among dietary supplements that have come under recent criticism. The products are regulated under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), which many people believe to be too lax.

The impetus for the current study came from a patient at who was admitted not too long ago to a Boston hospital with intractable seizures. Tests showed his blood lead level to be 89 (the normal level for adults is less than 2). Interviews with the family revealed that the man, an Indian-born professional in his 50s, had been taking Guggulu, an Ayurvedic arthritis medicine, for the past six years. The product was then analyzed and found to have very high levels of lead, mercury and arsenic.

Saper then scoured the medical literature and found, since 1978, more than 50 published accounts of heavy metal poisoning in infants, children and adults associated with Ayurvedic medicine. The cases occurred in various countries and included the death of an infant, congenital paralysis, deafness and mental retardation.

This led Saper to conduct his own study. Along with his colleagues, he identified every store within a 20-mile radius of Boston City Hall that sold Ayurvedic herbal medicine products made in South Asia. Between April and October 2003, they visited each of these stores and purchased all that were intended for oral consumption. In all, 70 different products were purchased and then tested at the New England Environmental Protection Agency lab.

Overall, 14 of the 70 products contained lead, mercury or arsenic, or more than one. Thirteen products contained lead, six contained mercury, and six contained arsenic. "Moreover, half of the products that contained heavy metals had labels recommending their use for infants and children," Saper added.

Twenty-four of the 30 stores visited sold at least one Ayurvedic product containing a heavy metal.

It's not clear if these results can be generalized to all Ayurvedic products for sale in the United States. "It's very possibly that most of these products are from ethnic Indian grocery stores and not found in mass distribution," said Mark Blumenthal, founder and executive director of the American Botanical Council.

It's also not clear why the heavy metals have found their way into these products, although two possibilities include accidental contamination during the manufacturing process or intentional inclusion.

The authors of the study called for mandatory testing of all such products. "This study points to the need for Congress to pass regulations that make heavy metal testing mandatory for all dietary supplements, including Ayurvedic products," Saper said.

Blumenthal noted the DSHEA already has provisions for new good manufacturing practices (GMPs) for dietary supplements. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to publish the final rules soon.

"The contamination issue is a result of poor manufacturing practices, most of which can be dealt with when new FDA GMPs are finally published and enforced," Blumenthal said. "They'll take one, two or three years to go into effect, based on whether it is a small, medium or large firm."

This is also disturbing:

"Blumenthal noted the DSHEA already has provisions for new good manufacturing practices (GMPs) for dietary supplements. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to publish the final rules soon."

How will this restrict our acess to alternative options?

You know...no one field or form of medicine has all the answers..that's why it's particularly unnerving that our socoety seems to be cutting (or at least obstructing) ties to ancient medicinal practices that hold a wealth of knowledge.
That we are not funding research into thousands of years worth of herbal medicine practices, from which there must be allot we can learn.

Some of which could be very useful..I don't want my onoly choices for treatment to have to come out of a laboratory.

Look how the WHO finally came round acknowledge Artemesia? An extremely effective cure for Malaria, known for ages..
but pharmaceuticals could not make money off growing this inexpensive plant, farming it..so they pushed and succeeded in distributing anti-Malarials that caused Malaria to eveolve into more deadly drug-resistant forms.

Now..they have come round to turn to Artemesia..and they find there is not enough..noone was growing it in enough mass to meed the need..

Coorperate interests are what pollutes medicine.

Good quality herbs, plants, supplements can heal a great many conditions, and can be supportive in many others.

Mo

Angie--here is the actual study, but what is really disturbing about the so called results of this study, if you read carefully and between the lines, the 'medicines' tested were exclusively manufactured in India and Pakistan.
Doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that there are no controls in either of these countries, and both are notorious for these kinds of infractions, and if you read the conclusions...in the actual words of the researchers, they are not condemning herbal medicines, carte blanche, but rather the herbals being exported from these countries. Leave it to our mindless media to distort the real import of this study and come to their own idiotic conclusions....more of the same we have grown to expect from American media.
http://apha.confex.com/apha/132am/techprogram/paper_85251.htm

3315.0: Monday, November 8, 2004 - 5:30 PM

Abstract #85251
Heavy metal content of Ayurvedic herbal medicine products
Robert B Saper, MD MPH1, Stephanos N Kales, MD, MPH2, Janet Paquin, PhD3, David M Eisenberg, MD4, Roger B Davis, ScD5, and Russell S Phillips, MD5. (1) Department of Family Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, One Boston Medical Center Place, Dowling 5 South, Boston, MA 02118, 617 414 6276, [email protected], (2) Occupational and Environmental Health Center, Cambridge Hospital, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, (3) Northeast Regional EPA Laboratory, Technology Drive, North Chelmsford, MA 01863, (4) Division for Research and Education in Complementary and Integrative Medical Therapies, Harvard Medical School, 401 Landmark Drive, Suite 22a West, Boston, MA 02215, (5) Division of General Medicine and Primary Care, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215

BACKGROUND: Case reports of individuals taking Ayurvedic herbal medicine products (HMPs) suggest that they may contain lead, mercury, and/or arsenic. We analyzed the heavy metal content of Ayurvedic HMPs manufactured in India and Pakistan, available in South Asian grocery stores in the Boston area, and intended for oral use. METHODS: We searched online yellow pages, business directories, and newspapers to identify grocery stores selling products from South Asia which were < 20 miles from Boston City Hall. We visited each store, purchased each unique Ayurvedic HMP, and recorded labeling information. We analyzed each HMP for lead, mercury, and arsenic using X-ray fluorescence. For HMPs containing heavy metals, estimated ranges of daily heavy metal intake for adults and children were calculated using manufacturer's dosage recommendations and compared to EPA, ATSDR, and/or USP allowable standards. RESULTS: Seventy HMPs from 30 stores were identified and purchased. Fourteen of the 70 (20%, 95% C.I. 11%-31%) contained measurable levels of heavy metals: lead (n=13, median concentration 40 mcg/g, range 5-37,000), mercury (n=6, median concentration 20,225 mcg/g, range 28-104,000), and/or arsenic (n=6, median concentration 430 mcg/g, range 37-8,130). If taken as recommended, each of these 14 HMPs may result in heavy metal intakes above published allowable standards. CONCLUSION: One of five Ayurvedic HMPs produced in South Asia and available in Boston Indian groceries contains potentially harmful levels of lead, mercury, and/or arsenic. Ayurvedic medicine users may be at risk for heavy metal toxicity. Stricter regulation of Ayurvedic herbal product imports is needed.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session the participant will be able to

Describe the general characteristics of Ayurvedic herbal medicine products (HMPs) produced in South Asia and available in Boston area retail stores.
Define the prevalence of Ayurvedic herbal medicine products in this sample containing lead, mercury, and arsenic.
Compare the lead, mercury, and arsenic intake which may occur if these products are taken as recommended to published allowable standards.
Keywords: Herbal Medicine, Lead

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Also, given to infants in vaccinations and MANDATORY in some states to attend public school.

Is the FDA eliminating that or alerting the public?

What about the deadly substance aspartame?

Is the FDA warning the public about that?

I think not...

I agree with Mo on this one.

Just my two cents.

I have long stopped listening to what the AMA and the ADA recommend. My ignorance and the ignorance of medical doctors and dentists that treated us cost us the life of our six week old son and years of our lives. Give me a break!

(Our child, healthy, was vaccinated at 10 AM in the morning, and I found him dead in his bed at 7 PM the same day. SIDS or pneumonia or FDA approved poisoning. Take your pick. Thank God, he is in heaven.)

FDA ...... EPA........and fish, flour, literally all cosmetics, all pop cans, drug medicines, all vaccines, most dental materials, air pollutants, landfills, crematory, chemical manufacturing, electromagnetic and geopathic stress, toxic building materials, carpets, paints, furniture, .....the list is endless...... all have made us and our homes increasingly subject to chronic illness ---

none of them grown in India or Pakistan.

The media, including our medical journals, have turned their back on these issues. Insomnia, Cancer, childhood developmental disorders, asthma and many other illnesses have been the consequence of our ignorance.

Be vigilant!

Take care.

I am so sorry that you lost your son!

I trust that the young mothers on this board will read of your experience and think more than TWICE about vaccinations!

I have a friend in Oregon who lost an infant son right after vaccination and know countless others who are coping with autism in their children directly related to vaccines.

Thanks for sharing this with us!

Blessings,

To everybody, I am sometimes frustrated that postings are not read and interpreted for what they say. It's hurtful to me, because I am trying to help. I am sorry if I was not clear.

I never said the FDA is good. What I said was that there has to be something better than what we have now.

I never said Ayurveda products are all dangerous and people should stay away. People repeatedly post messages on this board about the dangers of metals in our system. If we are concerned about metals, don't we want to know all the potential sources? Whether it be water, vaccinations, drugs or supplements?

People can take what they want from the article I posted. What I take from it is that, if I choose to take an Ayurveda product, I will stay away from those produced in India and Pakistan.

I am sorry if I was not clear earlier.

I am afraid that probably most Ayurveda products come from India, and you are going to be the loser with the "all or nothing" approach. Both my husband and I use some wonderful Ayurvedic products.

In fact, there is one product that probably 90% of all Lyme patients and most chronically ill patients (at our doctors) use -- that is Mucuna pruriens. I call it a nerve tonic - it just seems that most Lyme patients benefit from it. It has been used in India for thousands of years.

Another one that I know is being used often for the people whose blood pressure spikes up, because they are toxic, is the ayurvedic Carditone (at a good healthfood store) The medicine is made right here near us by a great ayurvedic practitioner - with products coming from India. I have met him and our MD collaborates with him.

When I was still sick and had this sometimes rising blood pressure that scared me to death, I would take one of these for a while and kept it under control beautifully. Once I had detoxed and cleaned out my dental infections, my blood pressure is perfectly normal without any medication.

Sorry, I truly did not mean you, Aniek. When I read things like that though, my hair seems to stand up straight in the air because I see so much of the damage that has been contributed to by the people who are supposed to protect us and whose salary we pay with our taxes.

Take care.

I certainly in no way was implying that YOU were in the wrong here. (smile)

I was addressing the topic.

If you interpreted that differently I apologize.

You stated that you were not making any judgements about the info.

I was stating my opinions about the system that allows and promotes disinformation to the detriment of those who are seeking health and recovery from an array of illnesses.

I understand how GiGi feels when she says her hair stood straight up when she read this.

Currently there is a HUGE effort by Big Pharma to ban or control our access to NATURAL products. If ANYONE claims that a natural product is used for health purposes to HEAL an illness it is being scrutinized so that Big Pharma can (through the FDA) force the product to come under FDA approval which it may NEVER get! (Some I know have been waitng for years for FDA approval on very helpful products.)

OR the product is then claimed as a MEDICAL device or supplement and the price quadruples.

In the meantime, the chemicals that are literally disabling and killing many people are unleashed on an unsuspecting public.

Ever noticed how much cheaper it is to take a pill that INSURANCE will cover than trying to purchase HEALTHY NATURAL substances???

Yeah, the poorer one is and the more assistance they get the more meds they USUALLY are given access to (Notice I say USUALLY- I know the guy on the board from Santa Cruz is battling getting Big Pharma drugs.)

Anyway, yes, your post was most interesting and just another example of the "war" on supplements in this country, Europe and Canada.

A clue-if you want to know who is behind something follow the MONEY trail.

Cancer and Heart Disease are big business in this country and currently all signs point to Lyme as being not far behind.

Best of Health,

What is OC???

Hope you feel better,