Herbal medicine is a national heritage

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• Ninii, UK 11 years ago

  Until herbal medicine practitioners come out with proper good evidence in efficacy/effectiveness, with related side effects and stop their ridiculous claims, they will continue to be limited in their exposure.

  Until herbal medicine practitioners come out with proper good evidence in efficacy/effectiveness, with related side effects and stop their ridiculous claims, they will continue to be limited in their exposure.

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• Village Food 11 years ago

  Ninii, UK %90 of traditional medicines has not side affects as it is natural plant being used to prepare them and there is no chemical in them. Orthodox medicines is the one that has side effects.

  Ninii, UK %90 of traditional medicines has not side affects as it is natural plant being used to prepare them and there is no chemical in them. Orthodox medicines is the one that has side effects.

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• Tekonline.org 11 years ago

  This has been a source of great confusion: if it's natural then it must be safe. Nothing can be farther from the truth.
  
  There is a strain of cassava containing naturally-occurring cyanide. Consuming it results in 100% fat ...
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  This has been a source of great confusion: if it's natural then it must be safe. Nothing can be farther from the truth.
  
  There is a strain of cassava containing naturally-occurring cyanide. Consuming it results in 100% fatality.
  
  Certain mushrooms present similar danger.
  
  You have to understand that some plants synthesize toxic chemicals (especially alkaloids) to ward off or even kill INSECT PESTS. That is their own survival strategy. Such chemicals are not meant for humans.

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• Dr Robert Glah 11 years ago

  Most African fruits and plants have healing effect and they should be consumed daily to minimise using western medicine and this should be known to all Africans.
  
  For instance our common mango contains therapeutic elements ...
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  Most African fruits and plants have healing effect and they should be consumed daily to minimise using western medicine and this should be known to all Africans.
  
  For instance our common mango contains therapeutic elements of calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, phosphorus, protein or amino acid, vitamin B and C which gives health to the body.
  
  I will also mention coconut, berries, papaya, avocado, banana, pineapple, guava etc as fruits which can heal infirmities and people should eat a little bit daily to be healthy and increase their longevity.
  
  Is that the sort Torgbuiga Yaka IV, Registrar, Traditional Medicine Practice Council, is selling to Africans?

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• Hindu . 11 years ago

  if you're on western medication for an ailment how do you square that with infusions of traditional medicine without dire consequences?
  herbologists must collaborate with western medical practitioners for maximum safety to ...
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  if you're on western medication for an ailment how do you square that with infusions of traditional medicine without dire consequences?
  herbologists must collaborate with western medical practitioners for maximum safety to the population

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• Dr Robert Glah 11 years ago

  African Herbology must be transparent to survive.

  African Herbology must be transparent to survive.

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• Tekonline.org 11 years ago

  You wrote:
  "...For instance our common mango contains therapeutic elements of calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, phosphorus, protein or amino acid, vitamin B and C which gives health to the body..."
  
  With what where calcium, ...
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  You wrote:
  "...For instance our common mango contains therapeutic elements of calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, phosphorus, protein or amino acid, vitamin B and C which gives health to the body..."
  
  With what where calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, phosphorous, protein, amino acid, vitamins discovered in mangoes?
  
  Can our locals just take a look at a fruit and see vitamins and minerals?
  
  The same science that made these atoms and biomolecules known to mankind has also determined that WHATEVER is consumed by humans have to be processed by the liver.
  Science has determined that human diseases are COMPLEX and therapy often have to be tailored according to age, sex, pre-existing conditions AND genetics. A diabetic, for instance, can be restricted in the amount of fruit intake, because of fructose.
  
  A patient with a liver problem, as revealed by elevated liver enzymes, can only consume certain food items under supervision.
  
  Often, if a patient has just one ailment, it is much easier to manage therapy, whether by dietary means or drugs. The problem arises when an individual present more than one disorder - say, diabetes AND hypertension. Such a patient might need a strategy that promotes the release of insulin. However, such strategies (by way of molecular mechanism) often would lead to vasoconstriction and eleveated blood pressure. Therapy requires a fine balance based on hard science!
  
  Dosage is also extremely crucial. Most natural components as well as man-made agents have what is known as the "inverted U effect". That is, they work at much lower doses but have an OPPOSITE effect at higher doses.
  
  The above are just a tiny fraction of the complexities associated with therapy.
  Our "natural" practictioners have now way of seeing molecules and events inside the living cell with the naked eye. A typical instance is the fact that there is no natural way of measuring blood pressure.
  
  The problem with the Western pharmaceutical products is that they tend to be businesses driven by GREED, not that science is unreliable.
  Even then, a typical "greedy" company llike Boeing, makes planes using solid engineering principles, because tthey know too well that the billions won't pour in if the planes are conconstantly falling from the skies.
  The same philosophy is maintained by the pharmaceutical companies. They KNOW that the only way to make profit iis if the drugs are SAFE and EFFECTIVE!

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• Seriously thinking 11 years ago

  There are developed mechanisms for researching these drugs. You have to encourage and support such research.

  There are developed mechanisms for researching these drugs. You have to encourage and support such research.

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• Coleman 11 years ago

  What are the ingredients in the concoctions? How can one herbal concoction be a remedy for all ailments? Do they test the concoction in a laboratory? What are the side-effects? What is the failure rate? How many deaths are at ...
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  What are the ingredients in the concoctions? How can one herbal concoction be a remedy for all ailments? Do they test the concoction in a laboratory? What are the side-effects? What is the failure rate? How many deaths are attributable to herbal remedies? What is the cost? How much training do the herbal practitioners have? Are they licensed and regulated? Are their facilities regularly inspected by the Food and Drugs Board?

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• Tekonline.org 11 years ago

  The laws of nature know no national or cultural boundaries.
  
  We cannot escape scientific phenomena no matter how proud we are of our own.
  The Chinese and the Indian have learnt the hard way.
  
  What our national heritage o ...
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  The laws of nature know no national or cultural boundaries.
  
  We cannot escape scientific phenomena no matter how proud we are of our own.
  The Chinese and the Indian have learnt the hard way.
  
  What our national heritage ought to be is: providing EFFECTIVE and SAFE healthcare for all.
  
  There are just too many cases of failed livers due to herbal therapy. That is too much of a price to pay for "national heritage".

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• Buabeng On Earth 11 years ago

  Herbal medicine is indeed an alternative treatment/medication to some Ghanaians. It's all natural remedies with no or minimal side effects if used appropriately. You don't need Harvard or Oxford to prove this. However, it sho ...
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  Herbal medicine is indeed an alternative treatment/medication to some Ghanaians. It's all natural remedies with no or minimal side effects if used appropriately. You don't need Harvard or Oxford to prove this. However, it should be regulated so that those real herbalist and only those registered/regulated can practice, distribute or sell herbal medicines to the public. Some of us have benefited so much from herbal treatment and fully understand the significance of it.
  We only need good herbalist and not fake ones and most diseases/conditions can be treated with the application of one or both of herbal or 'modern' medicine.

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• Tekonline.org 11 years ago

  And it is for your own good.
  
  Anecdotal evidence is no proof. ANY item that gets into humans must be proven SAFE by a proven scientific test. Often it takes serious liver toxicology tests. In other cases, several months or ...
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  And it is for your own good.
  
  Anecdotal evidence is no proof. ANY item that gets into humans must be proven SAFE by a proven scientific test. Often it takes serious liver toxicology tests. In other cases, several months or even years of tumor tests are warranted (cancer takes a long time to develop).
  
  Certain agents take many months to show toxicity, and require painstaking scientific tests repeated several times in different laboratories around the world.

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• Kwesi 11 years ago

  Natural says nothing about the effectiveness of anything.
  
  Herbal medicine effectiveness is largely due to placebo.
  
  Besides you cannot say that because you benefitted, then it works. You can NEVER generalise anything b ...
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  Natural says nothing about the effectiveness of anything.
  
  Herbal medicine effectiveness is largely due to placebo.
  
  Besides you cannot say that because you benefitted, then it works. You can NEVER generalise anything based on 1 person. That is garbage talk. It goes against the most basic rules in science.
  
  Please open a book.
  
  PS: you try to cure HIV/AIDS/cancer/diabetes/smallpox/malaria/cholera with herbal. I gurarentee death.

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• Coleman 11 years ago

  A relative suffering from type 1 diabetes was advised to go herbal and stop taking the medication prescribed by his doctors. He suffered a diabetic coma and never recovered. He died prematurely. Buyer beware.

  A relative suffering from type 1 diabetes was advised to go herbal and stop taking the medication prescribed by his doctors. He suffered a diabetic coma and never recovered. He died prematurely. Buyer beware.

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• Alex Kojo Sammy-Paris!. 11 years ago

  Yes nd......Amen! fr Samms!..

  Yes nd......Amen! fr Samms!..

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• Kwesi 11 years ago

  Do you know what we call herbal medicine that works? Real medicine.
  
  If you have to call your product for "herbal", then it i because it has not proven effective in clinical trials, if you even had the audacity to go for th ...
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  Do you know what we call herbal medicine that works? Real medicine.
  
  If you have to call your product for "herbal", then it i because it has not proven effective in clinical trials, if you even had the audacity to go for that.
  
  Why shall we protect good for nothing "medicine"?

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• Earl Jones 11 years ago

  How can it be perceived as a national heritage when it has silently led to deaths and really has not been shown to be of any superior benefit compared with healthcare delivery at our hospitals? Herbal medicine administration ...
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  How can it be perceived as a national heritage when it has silently led to deaths and really has not been shown to be of any superior benefit compared with healthcare delivery at our hospitals? Herbal medicine administration has led to patients calling at the hospital late when they could have been saved if they reported their ailments to the doctor much sooner. Herbal medicine can be cytotoxic as dosages are usually purely regulated. Herbal medicine may interact with prescription medicine making the patient's condition worse. Herbal medicine is not safe and should be banned in Ghana unless the sellers are able to prove that they work. The only reason traditional herbalist seller herbal remedies is because of the financial rewards. They don't care about the environment and public health consequences.
  Herbal medicine is indeed a National herishame.

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