Herbal Medicine

Managing Pain without Narcotics

2009-01-23T10:17:00.001-08:00

Pain is not a disease. It is a sensation, and as such, it is a part of everyone's life. Like other sensations, such as the color green or the taste of sweetness, it is something most of us encounter in one form or another, every day of our lives. It is how the body lets us know that something is damaging or overstimulating, and as such it plays an important role in protecting the body.

Pain can become problematic when it is resulting from damage that cannot be readily repaired, such as a major or degenerative injury, AND the level of pain is enough that it interferes with the quality of life. In such cases, it is appropriate to take steps to manage the pain. In our culture, this often means the use of narcotics. There are many many different narcotic prescription pain medicines out there, and many narcotic herbs as well (such as opium resin and coca leaf). But there are well-known problems associated with this class of substances.

For a great many people, it is possible to manage pain effectively without the use of narcotics. Ideally, this can be accomplished through treating whatever is causing the pain. When that is not possible (or while that is going on) it is good to ease the pain. Moxabustion, Cupping and Gua Sha (which have their own entries on this blog) are some of the methods that I use for managing pain in a clinical setting.

Another very interesting and very safe herb for pain is Cayenne (Capsicum annuum). It works by using up or depleting the neurotransmitter (called substance P) that the body uses to relay the pain message through the nervous system. The result is an increased threshold of pain-- meaning that it takes more to make you hurt-- without any sedation. Cayenne is usually very well-tolerated (even more so by people who are used to pain), its one drawback being that, spicy as it is, it can irritate the parts of the body that it comes into contact with.

Ginger is another herb that works well for certain types of pain. it is especially good for what is sometimes described as "cold" pain: pain that is an aching rather than a burning sensation, and which is generally made worse by cold weather. This includes most joint pain. Ginger is antiinflammatory, and increases the circulation.

White willow bark, wintergreen leaves, birch bark, violets, and meadowsweet are all herbs that contain salicylates. These are chemicals that are structurally similar to aspirin (but with fewer side effects, in most cases), and which can be helpful for a variety of types and degrees of pain in the body. They are not quite as safe as ginger and cayenne (which are almost impossible to do any serious harm with) but they are, statistically, much safer than over-the-counter pain relievers like aspirin, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen.

Another herb which I find to be very helpful in my practice is Usnea oil extract. Usnea is a lichen, a mossy looking thing that grows on and hangs from the bark and branches of trees. I learned about this traditional medicine while traveling in the Arctic many years ago; since that time it has been studied in a laboratory setting in Iceland. As a pain reliever, it is often amazingly effective, working for tooth pain and other deep-tissue pain in a very quick and surprisingly uncomlicated manner. It doesn't cause and drowsiness or altered state of consciousness. It appears to be completely non-addictive. It just makes pain stop. Although it doesn't always work (what does?), it tends to work very quickly. For oral pain its effect is almost instant, and for pain elsewehere in the body it is as fast-acting as anything that needs to get digested first.

These are just a few of the herbs and techniques that I find useful in my practice for managing pain. All in all, there are scores of different things that can be done to manage pain without the use of narcotics, and anyone interested in pursuing such a course of action is encouraged to contact me.

hocus-pocus diagnosis

2009-01-19T13:00:00.000-08:00

Clinical assessment vs. hocus-pocus diagnosis
Clinical assessment is the practice of figuring out what is wrong with a patient. In my practice, this involves asking a lot of questions, and trying to figure out from the answers what structures and functions in the body are not working as they should. Usually, people have a pretty good idea of what is going on in their body. My job, in that case, is to try to identify a pattern that can be recognized, and make a conclusion about what can be done.

Besides interviewing someone, there is the process of visually observing or palpating some part of the body to find some sign or symptom of what is going on. I have a few tools, such as a UV lamp and a microscope, that I can use to get more information if what I'm seeing with an unaided eye is not enough.

All of this is time-consuming and complicated. It requires knowing what to look for, and what patterns of symptoms go with which particular dysfunction. It requires knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and pathology, in addition to knowing what to do about a problem once it is identified. This is the hardest part of being a clinician, I think. If it were possible to avoid this step, being a healer would be as simple as memorizing the properties of a few medicinal plants.

This is why so many insincere people who put themselves forward as healers-- charlatans, if you will-- come equipped with a one-size-fits-all diagnostic technique. There are many such techniques out there, but they all have a few things in common. First, they take very little effort to learn. There may be a few rules that need to be memorized, but no real thought has to go into the process. Secondly, they are not very time consuming. Thirdly, the same technique works for an amazing variety of different conditions. These techniques allow people without skill or discipline to pretend to be healers. Unfortunately, they are not effective, except to fatten the purse of the practitioner. They form the body of practices that I like to call hocus-pocus-diagnosis.

First and foremost among these techniques is something called "muscle testing" or "applied kinesiology". It consists of having the patient hold a medicine in one hand (or think about a procedure, or ask a question) while holding the other hand out straight. The charlatan then presses down on the arm that is being held out straight. If the arm remains straight, this is taken as a "yes" answer; if it bends, this is taken as a "no". There is, as far as I can tell, no reason in the world why this would work (except perhaps as a gauge of how the person being questioned feels about the question). But even if there were, this would be so subject to bias and tampering that it would still be completely unreliable. I have a hard time understanding how a grown adult can stake their health and well-being on something like this, but many do.

A second technique is iridology. This involves looking at the iris of the eye. Different lines and spots in different parts of the iris are assumed to correlate to weaknesses in different organs or tissues of the body. At first, this may even sound plausibe; after all, there are things that can happen in the body that will affect the appearance of the eyes. However, the idea that each area of the iris is uniquely and specifically linked to a different organ or tissue elsewhere in the body, is a little too convenient. It would be nice if iridology were real, because it is non-invasive and easy to perform. And yet, in clinical trials, "iridologists" have consistently been unable to tell the difference between the irises of people with chronic organ failure, and those of healthy people. The sad truth is that most of the color variations in the iris are no more significant than freckles on the nose, and iridology is just a system that one person dreamed up and others imitated.

A newer and more recently popular technique, is the "scanning machine". These have different names and come from different sources. Some of them cost upwards of $10,000 for the practitioner to buy (suggesting that the people who buy them probably do believe they work). The idea is that you hook the machine up to the patient (or sometimes put a sample of blood, hair, or whatever on or into the machine) and it gives a readout telling everything that is wrong with the person, be it their heart, brain, intestines, or the presence of some rare tropical parasite. Some of these miraculous devices go a step further, and actually treat the maladies that they discover. A few even claim the ability to treat patients who are not physically present.

Now, I can believe that fairy folks live in old oaks, or that there's gold at the end of the rainbow. But some things are just beyond believing. If such a machine really existed-- even one that only did the diagnostic part-- and it only cost $10,000 or even $100,000, every hospital and large clinic would have one. The inventor would win every nobel prize in existence, and many of the world's ills would be at an end. But alas, there is no such thing. I have personally seen patients who were "diagnosed" by these machines to have african parasites, HIV, and a host of other ailments that they did not turn out to possess. One of them was once taken apart by a computer scientist from microsoft, who loked at tis source code and found that all it did was generate random results.

These are just a sample of the hocus-pocus diagnostic techniques that can be found around town. Some of the people using them may really believe they work. Others are just wanting a quick and easy way to charge people for something, to capitalize on fear and suffering.

For my part, I don't do "diagnosis". This word means "certain knowledge" in Greek, and I don't think there's any such thing when it comes to healthcare. I believe in assessment based on real information, and keeping an open mind to the fact that things can change, or new information can come forward.

Cleansing and detoxifying

2009-01-02T13:38:00.000-08:00

The processes of internal cleansing or detoxification, helping the organs to remove toxic substances or stagnation from the system, is a part of almost all traditional medical systems, and is an important part of natural healing.

Every living cell in the body (with perhaps a few exceptions) has the means of ridding itself of substances that it doesn't need. These may be substances that are produced as part of the functioning of the cell-- like carbon dioxide-- or they may be foreign substances that are acquired from the environment or from microorganisms. Either way, these toxins can be stored in tissue, or they can be transported through the blood and lymph system. They can then be filtered from the blood and expelled from the system by one of the major organs of elimination, such as the lymph system ,kidneys, liver, and bowels. The lungs and skin are also organs of elimination, and the stomach can be under some circumstances..

Problems arise when too much toxic stuff builds up in the body at once. This can happen suddenly, like when your spouse poisons your coffee, or when someone overdoses on drugs; or it can happen gradually, from a long period of bad diet and not enough exercise. Exercise is very important to the cleansing processes, because it increases the rate of exhalation (clearing toxins like carbon dioxide from the blood), moves the blood and lymph, and helps facilitate the movement of the bowels. It also raises the body temperature and induces sweating, another cleansing process. Additionally, it oxygenates the blood and raises its pH (alkalinity), both of which help to prevent the production of toxins inside the cells.

Many, many disorders-- including heart disease, arthritis, indigestion, diabetes, parkinson's disease, some cancers, allergies and chemical sensitivities-- are or can be caused by toxins and the body's inability to get rid of them.

Many more conditions-- including mental illnesses, parkinson's disease, autism, and perhaps even the ageing process-- may be caused in part by the accumulation of toxins in the body.

Besides breathing and exercising, which should be a part of any attempt to purify and cleanse the body, there are some things that can be done to help the process along.

One thing is to improve circulation and the flow of fluids in the body. Hot, spicy herbs are useful for this, such as cinnamon and ginger. These help to open up blood vessels and get everything moving in the system.

The second step is to stimulate the kidneys. This requires plenty of fluids (as does the entire process; 1 gallon a day is not too much), and can include the use of sour-tasting substances such as lemon juice or cranberry. This will help to get minerals out of the system that are there in excess, and also help in the removal of some toxic substances. In more extreme cases, when a very strong, acrid herbal is used, or when the cleanse is going to continue for a long time, I like to include
marsh mallow or hibiscus, which are soothing to the kidneys.

The third step is to stimulate the liver and spleen. Liver-stimulating herbs are often bitter, like gentian or astragalus. Spleen-stimulating herbs do not have any particular taste associated with them. Sarsaparilla is the one I use most often in my practice. Melon, as food, is also useful in a mild sort of way. Both of these will continue the stimulation of the kidneys as well.

The final step is to cleanse the bowels. This process will have already bgun by stimulating the liver and spleen, and usually little more is needed to keep it going than a diet with lots of fiber, and of course plenty of fluids. Aloe juice (not gel or distilled aloe water) can be helpful in this step as well. In some individuals it might be helpful for a day or two to use herbs that actually stimulate the bowels directly, such as (in increasing order of potency) licorice, senna or cascara sagrada fluidextract.

A relatively gentle cleanse of this sort is safe for a healthy adult. Someone on medication or with existing health conditions would probably do well to seek professional supervision to make sure that any cleanse they were doing fit their needs and would not cause them unforeseen complications.

For the vast majority of people, doing a cleanse of the body following this general outline, once in a while-- say for one week every six months or a year-- is useful for improving and maintaining good health.

Natural health for the circulatory system

2009-01-02T13:37:00.001-08:00

Natural health for the circulatory system

The circulatory system--by which i mean the veins, arteries, and the little tiny things that connect them-- is one of the most complex and vital systems in the body. It contains tens of thousands of miles of tiny passageways, leading the nourishing and sustaining blood to every part of the body. The pulse which flows through it is synonymous with life itself.

A weak or irregularly functioning circulatory system can cause all sorts of problems. Too little circulation can result coldness or numbness of the extremities, and difficulty or inability to heal injuries. Too much pressure in the circulatory system-- such as during a migraine or in a case of high blood pressure-- can cause all sorts of pain and suffering, and is very common. Weak or inelastic blood vessels can result in everything from bruises to strokes and aneurisms.

Probably the most important thing for good circulation, is maintaining an adequate level of hydration. Water not only provides the fluid volume for the circulatory system, it also helps to regulate the levels of electrolytes (such as sodium and potassium) and cleanse waste products from the system. An adequate supply of protein, and mineral rich vegetables is also a requirement for prolonged circulatory health.

There are various natural remedies that are nourishing and tonifying to the circulatory tissues in the body. The one (actually two) that i use most often in my practice, is a combination of the extracts of nettle (Urtica dioeca) leaf and Mallow (althea officinalis) root. Nettle helps to give strength to the blood vessels, and mallow helps to provide elasticity. This is a nutritive treatment that takes a long time to work in some cases, but can be extremely healing to an aging or damaged circulatory system.

in cases of collapsed blood vessels, such as varicose veins, herbal remedies such as black walnut extarct or oak bark extract can be helpful internally, and horse chestnut can be helpful externally.

Inflammation in the circulatory system is not uncommon, and can be helped with the same sorts of antiinflamatories (such as ginger or curcuma) that work elsewhere in the body.

In some cases, such as in people who have elevated blood pressure, the circulatory system can be aided by other organs and systems in the body, such as the kidneys.

Because of the nutritive and strengthening effects that natural remedies can have, they can be very good for the circulatory system. Circulatory issues are much easier to prevent than they are to treat once they have taken hold, so it's important to care for the circulatory system while it is healthy, in order to enjoy a long and healthy life.

Moxabustion

2008-12-26T13:17:00.000-08:00

Moxabustion is the burning of moxa (an herb also known as mugwort or artemisia vulgaris) for therapeutic purposes.

The oldest and most basic type of moxabustion is burning the mugwort over injury sites, to relieve pain and speed the process of healing. When I do moxa treatments, I use a stick of compressed moxa, holding it near (but not on) the skin, so that the skin is stimulated by it but not burned.

This works partly because of the heat that is produced, partly because of the substances that are released as the plant burns, and partly because the process causes the body to produce substances that let the system known that a given area needs healing. This method of healing goes back to a very early date in human history, and is common to the greeks and romans, the Chineses, and the Native american tribes of N. america. It has been rigorously scientifically studied in the last five decades, and has been shown to be quite effective. In my own practice, I have seen cases in which torn cartilage repaired itself, and bones healed much faster than could normally be expected (or healed after many years of staying broken in a couple instances) with the help of moxa.

In addition to being used for injuries, traditional Chinese medicine (and some other systems of traditional medicine) has developed a system of points and "meridians" on the surface of the body for acting on any organ in the body, with the use of moxa. These are similar to (in most cases, identical to) the points used for acupuncture. In china, there are moxa practitioners who use this form of treatment for just about everything. In my own practice, I have found it to be especially useful for endocrine and metabolic conditions, those involving digestion and the hormones. Sometimes it also works well for insomnia.

I first encountered moxabustion while studying traditional medicine in central asia. A few years later, I was talking to an elder of the Blackfeet nation, in western Montana. He described to me the exact same process I had seen used in western China for treating an injury with moxa. When I asked him about other uses, he gave an example its use in promoting fertility in a woman-- using the same points that would have been used by the asian practitioners. So either the process has been developed independently in two places, a world away from each other; or it was developed before the two groups of people went their separate ways, many thousands of years ago, and passed down through time relatively unchanged. Either way, it's a good sign that this form of therapy has been extremely valuable to the people who have benefitted from it.

Cupping

2008-12-26T13:16:00.001-08:00

Cupping is a treatment, like moxabustion, that has existed all over the world for a long time. In essence, it consists of applying suction to the surface of the body, using a cup. The Original type of cupping involves heating up the air inside a cup made of some rigid material (mine are glass, but I've also seen them made of pottery or horn) and applying this to the skin. As the air inside cools down, it draws up the skin into the cup. If enough suction is generated, this will draw blood out of the circulatory system and into the skin, leaving a scarlet suction mark (sometimes called a "hickey" from the Irish gaelic phrase "Marc na hIocai" or mark of the physician). Hippocrates was familiar with cupping, as was the Persian writer Avicenna. Traditional Chinese Medicine makes extensive use of cupping, and in western europe it has been used at least since the times of the ancient druids. So it's fairly well tested at this point.

The uses of cupping are numerous. Many of them are for acute conditions-- fevers, poisoning, difficulty breathing, and so forth. Cupping can also be used to produce differences in someone's constitution, and has been traditionally used for a number of what we would now call psychiatric complaints.

The most dramatic use to which I have personally seen cupping put, was in resuscitating someone who had collapsed and apparently expired from alcohol poisoning. He was a construction worker in Alma Ata, Kazakhstan, and had been on a drinking binge for a couple weeks. He collapsed, and a bystander (after taking his pulse and not finding it) attempted to perform soviet-style CPR on him, which did not work. His girlfriend, a member of the domestic staff of the building, applied cups to his back, and said some prayers in kazakh. He started breathing again, and opened his eyes about half an hour later.

I've never had the opportunity to use cups in this type of scenario myself (and it's probably not what I would try), but I do have a lot of respect for it as a form of treatment, when properly applied. Mostly, I use it to help people manage severe flare-ups in certain types of inflammatory conditions like crohn's disease or rheumatoid arthritis (its effects often being more long lasting and complete than just taking antiinflamatory substances). I've also used it to break fevers and clear the airways, mostly after other treatments (that don't leave a mark) have been tried and found wanting.

Authors differ on exactly why cupping works the way it does. Some have said that it reduces excess blood, energy, or heat from the body. Others have said that it draws out evil spirits (djinn) or poisons from the body (and special cupping kits for snake bite are still popularly sold). For all I know it may do any or all of those things, but I believe that it also causes some change in the chemistry of the body, resulting in an increased production of adrenaline, cortisones (which are natural antiinflammatories) and strengthening of the factors in the blood which prevent bleeding. Those three things will have some impact on almost any condition short of (and apparently sometimes including) death. Cupping on specific parts of the body can also have an effect on specific organs, which gives it many more uses.

Gua Sha

2008-12-26T13:15:00.000-08:00

Monday, May 19, 2008

Gua sha

Gua sha is the chinese name for a treatment otherwise known as dermabrasion, scraping, or strigilation. Gua Sha is the name it's most commonly called by in the complemetary medicine sphere these days, so it's what I'll call it for this blog. What it consists of is scraping the skin with some sort of instrument, for the purpose of increasing circulation and nerve sensitivity in the area. Where moxa is heating, and cupping removes heat, gua sha is neutral.

Usuallly, oil of some sort is applied to the area to be treated. This will generally be some sort of medicated liniment, infused with medicinal herbs, that will work on the problem that needs to be addressed. Then the area is rubbed back and forth with the gua sha implement. This can be almost anything that is smooth, rigid, and will scrape the skin without cutting it. Special gua sha implements are sometimes made of metal or horn. Old coins are traditionally used in folk medicine as gua sha implements, but circulated coins would be too dirty by modern standards. I use a jade spoon, which is also traditional.

After a few minutes of being rubbed this way, an area will turn a bright red color. There should not be any sort of bruise like there is with cupping, and the procedure should be just about painless.

This treatment is useful when someone has a part of their body that they can't feel very well, such as numb hands or feet. It can also be useful in cases of chronic pain, by "distracting" the nervous system from the area that is truly painful, and making it feel the gua sha instead. This is especially useful in back or joint pain, Chronic muscle pain (such as the sort associated with fibromyalgia), and nerve pain (like the kind people get after they've had shingles).

Inflammation

2008-03-11T16:03:00.000-07:00

Inflammation is, by its nature, a protective response. Some insult or injury will occur, ranging from infection to blunt injury to just plain overuse of a body part, and the body will respond with a group of physical and chemical changes that are designed to isolate the damaged body part and the infecting agent, if there is one. Although the causes are many, inflammation has some common characteristics-- namely pain, swelling, heat, redness, and loss of function of the part in question. One or all of these signs can indicate inflammation.

Although inflammation normally serves a protective response, it can get out of control and become damaging. Extreme pain can detract from quality of life, and loss of function of a body part can be either inconvenient or deadly, depending on whether we're talking about the little finger or a vital organ. In some cases, such as allergies and autoimmune disorders, the inflammatory response is basically a mistake, a case of the immune system attacking when it has no real need to. C-reactive protein, which is used as a measure of the body's history of inflammation, is a better predictor of heart attacks than cholesterol. So clearly, there are times when it's important to control inflammation. Tragically, antiinflammatory drugs, both prescription and over the counter, kill people. Drug industry estimates put the death toll for these drugs in the hundreds of thousands over the past decade. And when you think about it, running a serious risk of death for the chance at reducing inflammation isn't such a good deal.

Fortunately, there are literally thousands of natural substances that help to reduce, prevent, or relieve inflammation. Many of them are in the foods that a healthy person eats every day. Others are readily available as medicine when the need arises.

Healthy foods, especially fruits and vegetables, contain a arange of substances called Antioxidants. These are substances which prevent the oxidation of healthy cells and molecules-- oxidation being the process which turns shiny metal into rust, yellows the papaer of an old book, and plays a major role in the inflammatory and aging processes. Vitamin C is a mild antioxidant. So is the citric acid which makes lemons sour. Carotenoids-- the orange color in carrots and squash and sweet potatoes-- is a pretty strong antioxidant. Proanthocyanidins-- The purple or red color in grape juice, red wine, blueberries, blackberries, and cranberries-- is a very powerful antioxidant. There are many others, occuring in an array of colors and a variety of whole foods. The best way to get antioxidants is not to spend a fortune on some concentrated antioxidant pill or the latest exotic high-antioxidant fruit juice. The best way to get the antiinflammatory effects of these substances is the way people have been doing it for uncounted centuries-- by eating decent food.

Antioxidants are mild substances that can help to prevent inflammation or relieve a mild, self-limiting case of inflammation (in other words, one that probably would have gone away anyway). In the case of sever or persistent infalmmation, it's good to have something a little bit stronger.

Turmeric is a good example. I use it frequently in my practice. So do lots of other herbalists. In fact, it's one of the most well-known therapeutic substances in the world. It has no appreciable levels of toxicity in any dosage, and it works as well as or better than prescription antinflammatories in clinical trials.

Ginger, a not-too-distant relative of turmeric, has similar uses, and is similarly safe and effective. Ginger has long been famous for its ability to relieve pain and swelling in joints. Joint inflammation is especially tricky, because the parts of an inflamed joint don't fit together the way they should. this means every time the joint is moved, they will do damage to one another, damage which often does not heal. Ginger contains substances that help to reduce this swelling, bringing the parts of the joint back to their correct size and preventing further damage while reducing pain and restoring range of movement. One of the first people to write about this property of ginger was Hakim Ali Ibn Sina, or Avicenna, of Persia-- about a thousand years ago. He figured the ginger had its power over joints because the ginger itself was jointed in appearance. Scientists now give some other reason for why it works. Either way, no one's dispting the fact that it does work.

Willow is another potent antiinflammatory herb. It contains substances very similar to aspirin (in fact, vinegar extract of willow bark contains about 5% aspirin), but it also contains lots of other substances, some of which can help to cancel out the side effects of aspirin such as uset stomach. Small children and people who are allergic to aspirin probably still shouldn't take willow, however. For the rest of us, it can be very useful for inflammation, and can be used in combination with ginger or turmeric if necessary, since it works differently in the body. A number of other herbs, such as meadowsweet, wintergreen, birch, and violets, contain the same main active substances, but with a variety of different substances playing supporting roles.

Frankincense is yet another sort of antiinflamatory. Most people are familliar with frankincense, at least in name, from the story of the Magi. In those days, frankincense cost five times its weight in gold (about $100-$500 a dose in today's money). The people who had it were able to charge that much for it, because it worked that well. These days it's not very expensive ($0.40-$2.00 a dose from my clinic), but it still works just as well.

For anyone who is experiencing an inflammatory condition like arthritis or allergies, dealing with everyday inflammation, or just trying to prevent unnecessary wear on the body, safe and reliable help is certainly out there. The herbs listed in this article are just a handful of the antiinflammatory herbs that can be found all over the world. It's a good idea to work with a professional (like me) to try and identify what is causing your inflammation, and which of the many different antiinflammatory herbs might be best suited for your body and your state of health. It's also a good idea to take something consistently to make sure it's getting a chance to work (some inflammation, such as joint and connective tissue inflammation, can subside very gradually and effects might not be immediately noticeable). It's also important to eat a good diet, and be mindful of any activities or actions that might make inflammation worse.

Inflammation, in all its various forms, contributes to most illnesses and can greatly impair quality of life. Fortunately, with the right strategy and treatment, it's possible to control inflammation and regain or maintan good health.

Thyroid function

2008-03-11T16:02:00.001-07:00

The thyroid is a gland located below the Adam's apple, in front of and on either side of the throat. The name "thyroid" means "like a shield", but it's really shaped more like a bowtie, with a lobe on either side connected by a narrow "waist". The purpose of this gland is to produce certain substances, which act throughout the body. Two of these substances, thyroxine and triiodothyronine (or T4 and T3 for short), control the body's rate of metabolism. Another substance, called Calcitonin, causes the body to put calcium into the bones.

In a healthy person, the thyroid does its job and never gets noticed. Unfortunately, thyroid disorders seem to have become much more common in the last couple generations. Sometimes these disorders are very noticeable, and at other times they can be subtle and insidious.

There are many types of thyroid conditions, with many causes, but they can be group into two main headings-- those in which the thyroid works too much, and those in which it doesn't work enough. When the thyroid works too much, the body temperature is often elevated, and the person usually feels restless, energetic, or anxious. Sometimes the hair gets thinner, the person loses weight, and the eyes take on a characteristic "bugged out" appearance. When the thyroid is deficient in producing the metabolism-regulating substances, the body temperature goes down, and the person tends to feel lethargic and gain weight. In either case, the thyroid may or may not be swollen.

Many people who self-treat with natural remedies for a deficient thyroid attempt to do so using kelp or other iodine-rich seaweeds. Unfortunately, this almost never works satisfactorily. It used to be that people living in certain areas would occasionally get a hypothyroid condition as a result of iodine deficiency. In some places there isn't any iodine in the soil, and so none in the plants and animals that grow on it. T3 and T4 are made from iodine, so the thyroid can't make them without it. In such a case, iodine, even a single dose per year, can work wonders. But the body only needs a very tiny amount of iodine, and nearly everyone gets it these days. If iodine deficiency isn't the problem, putting iodine into the system won't usually fix it.

Instead, its important to use substances that support the structure and function of the thyroid gland, or, if the thyroid is severely damaged or has been removed/destroyed, substances that the support the other endocrine glands (which are capable of producing thyroid hormones if they have to). Some examples of substances in these categories would include myrrh, ashwagandha, and blue cohosh. It is possible, even for a person who has little or no thyroid gland left, to maintain a healthy level of thyroid function in the body. Doing so requires some degree of vigilance and self-monitoring, and probably some professional guidance as well, but it is possible.

Immune health

2008-03-11T16:01:00.000-07:00

Improving the immune system is one of the most important things a person can do for themselves. According to the conventional physicians I've worked with, it's a very common concern among people seeking conventional medical care. Unfortunately, there is a pretty limited range of what conventional medicine can do in this area. It is also, in my own experience, a common reason for people to seek out alternative medicine.

There are, I'm pleased to say, a lot of herbs that can help the immune system. But this is something that is widely misunderstood. To discuss it in more detail, it's pretty important to outline what the immune system actually is. It's not a system in the same way that the lungs and breathing passages form the respiratory system, or the heart and blood vessels form the cardiovascular system. Instead, it's a sum total of a set of functions, rather than structures, in the body, that serve a common purpose-- to protect the body from all enemies, foreign and domestic. The nuts and bolts of the immune sytem consist of the body temperature (which can rise in a fever to destroy germs), the white blood cells, and numerous chemical reactions that regulate things like mucous production and inflammation, which can serve to isolate or neutralize an invasion of germs or toxins.

Things that can activate an immune response, such as a fever or a runny nose, include bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, allergens like pollen and certain foods, cancers, and damaged tissues. In some conditions, for reasons that are hard to pin down, the immune system also attacks otherwise normal tissue.

Because the immune system consists of so many different parts and substances, herbs can act upon it in many different ways. Some herbs increase immune function by increasing the number or activity of white blood cells, which destroy pathogens. Echinacea falls into this category.

Other herbs, such as jewelweed, decrease the function of parts of the immune process, in order to prevent or decrease allergic reactions. Still other herbal substances, such as reishi and other medicinal mushrooms, help the body to mount a stronger immune response when needed, but can also mitigate an unnecessary immune response. These are called immunomodulatory herbs.

In some individuals in whom the immune system is already engaged in fighting off an illness, and therefore may be weakened, an herb like garlic or oregano can support the immune system by directly destroying the germs, and allowing the immune system to rest and recover. While garlic and oregano provide these benefits to someone coping with a bacterial illness, Usnea and lemon balm can provide similar benefits to someone with a viral illness such as HIV or hepatitis.

SO, depending on the type of condition and the person who has the condition (and any other substances they may be taking), there are a variety of ways to strengthen and support (or if necessary, tone down and pacify), the immune system using herbal medicines. All of these methods are backed by centuries of experience, and the vast majority of them have been pretty thoroughly studied in the lab and clinic as well.

sleep

2008-03-11T15:47:00.001-07:00

Sleep is one of the most basic things that the human body needs. Miss a night of sleep, and you'll probably feel bad all the next day. Miss more than that, and you can start getting all sorts of weird symptoms like tremors, hallucinations, and vertigo.

Unfortunately, sleep or lack thereof is one of the main reasons that people take drugs. There are dozens and dozens of drugs out there that promise a better, fuller night's sleep. Most of them are quite popular, and every single one of them is potentially habit forming.

In addition to this, many problems besides insomnia seem to stem from too little sleep, or sleep that is not deep enough, or otherwise disordered. For instance, extreme daytime sleepiness (sometimes known as narcolepsy) results from sleep that is not refreshing enough. This condition may sound benign enough, but it can actually be quite deadly if the person who has it drives a car (and they do). In my own experience, hyperactivity and lack of focus-- common in children and not unusual in adults-- often corrects itself when the quality of sleep is improved. even some people who have been diagnosed as having bipolar disorder get markedly better once their sleep improves.

Most of us have heard all our lives that 8 hours of sleep (in one stretch) is what we need to be healthy. Maybe and maybe not. Some recent studies have shown that it's quite normal for well-rested and healthy people to wake up some during the night (such as to go to the bathroom, change the baby, check on the livestock, or whatever), and that a tendency to do so should not be considered a sleep disorder. At the same time, sleeping eight or more hours straight is not worth much, if you wake up feeling exhausted and have to drag yourself by the hair to get through your day.

When people take herbs to improve sleep, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Not all calming herbs improve quality of sleep-- Chamomile, scullcap, and motherwort all produce a normal state of sleep. Valerian, Kava, poppy, and many other herbs will put you to sleep, but it won't really be a normal state of sleep, and you may or may not feel very rested when you wake up.

ANY sedative, natural or otherwise, can be habit-forming-- this does not necessarily mean that they create a chemical dependency, the way that some drugs can, but it does mean that you can have a hard time ceasing to use them, because you may grow accustomed to having their help. This is not necessarily a reason not to use them, but it is something to be aware of before starting out.

In addition to sedatives, it can be helpful to use herbs with a tonic effect on the nerves-- These would be herbs such as nettle and oatstraw that have a gradual strengthening and nourishing effect on the nervous system, a slow but long-term way of addressing many people's sleep issues.

Reducing or eliminating the use of stimulants (including caffeine) can be helpful

Sometimes (but not always) adjusting habits around sleep can be more helpful than trying to take substances to promote sleep.

Sometimes, sleep irregularities can arise because of transient things, such as life stresses or changes in hormones (adolesence, menopause, etc.). In such cases, the irregularities of sleep might be non-serious or self limiting, and it can be okay not to do anything about them. In the case of more serious or long-term sleep irregularities, though, it's usually helpful to take some action or to seek professional guidance.

Seasonal allergies

2008-03-11T15:45:00.000-07:00

It's a snowy day today as I write this, but march is just around the corner, and it's almost time for spring allergy season to begin.

Here, during spring, we get lots of airborne allergens. There's tree pollen, which reaches its peak while the trees are blooming, which most of them do before they get leaves. Lots of our trees here are wind-pollinated, so they don't have showy flowers to attract bees and the like-- just little ones that produce tons and tons of pollen that drifts through the air in the hopes of colliding with another flower of the same species.

Then there's pollen from flowering plants of all different kinds. Most of your spring plants are pollinated by insects, so even though they often get blamed for the allergies people have, it's frequently the fault of some other, less-conspicuous allergen.

As the rains set in, you get less airborne pollen, but the dampness and he warmth can really make the mold become prolific. Since many individuals with sensitive systems are allergic to mold as well as tree pollen, this can be a seamless transition from one type of allergy to another. For others, the onset of wet weather will either bring relief or make matters worse.

As summer comes on, grasses and wind-pollinated plants (ragweed, especially) begin to fill the air with pollen again. By the time they're done, it's fall, and the leaves become a great source for more mold spores.

Central Kentucky seems to be an especially allergenic place. I hear people say, frequently, that they never had allergies until they moved here, or that their allergies are alleviated whenever they travel. This probably has something to do with our warm but wet climate, and the fact that so many species (of plants and mold) flourish here.

Allergies happen because the body is having an immune/inflammatory response to these airborne substances. When the pollen or spores stick to the lining of the sinuses, eyes, throat, lungs, etc., they trigger the production of histamine and some other substances (leukotrienes and prostaglandins to name a few) that in turn trigger all the symptoms we associate with allergies.

Sometimes, people treat allergies by trying to eliminate a specific allergy to a specific substance, as for instance by injecting or ingesting small amounts of the substance. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't, but the biggest problem is that it can be very difficult to tell precisely what you're allergic to. Lots of environmental allergens come on at once, and so-called "allergy tests" are pretty unreliable. The approach I've had the most success with is in trying to change how the body reacts to the allergens around it, whatever they are, and giving the immune system the means and opportunity to adapt to the presence of these allergens.

In their mildest manifestations, allergy symptoms consist of irritation of the eyes and sinuses, and excess production of mucous. In their worst form, these symptoms can lead to bronchial spasms and severe respiratory problems, and the irritation can open up the way for a bacterial infection to get started, resulting in pneumonia.

For someone with mild allergies, taking a natural antihistamine like jewelweed or dyer's crotal can be effective for preventing most symptoms, and if the symptoms do present, then a decongestant antiinflammatory herb can be used-- such as ginger or mint.

Just keeping the inflammation down and allowing the body to be exposed to the allergens in the course of normal activities is sometimes enough to desensitize the immune system to the allergens. Sometimes not. In other cases, it can be helful to also use an immune-modulating herb such as astragalus or reishi. These change how the immune system works in such a way as to make allergic reactions less frequent and less severe.

In a person with more severe allergies, such as the type that leads to asthmatic type symptoms, it may be necessary to use stronger antiinflammatory herbs to prevent inflammation, and possibly a different type of decongestant that works by stimulating the kidneys and adrenal glands, such as extract of black tea, broomweed or ephedra. Such a decongestant should not be used unless symptoms are already present, as these can interfere with normal sleep cycles, especially if used continuously.

For allergic people who are very susceptible to lung infections (such as anyone with a history of repeated pneumonia, or anyone using drugs that suppress the immune system, or a very old person, or an infant), exposure to allergens should be minimized (filter your air with a hepa filter and don't go outside as much if you can help it). Thyme, taken as a tea or fluidextract, can help to prevent or aid the body in overcoming the presence of bacteria in the lungs. It's quite a strong antibacterial, and has little effect on beneficial bacteria elsewhere in the body.

Getting through allergy season can be difficult for some, but there are treatments available that can often make a big difference, not only to how strongly your symptoms show up, but to how your body responds to allergens in the future.

Calcium supplements and heart disease

2008-03-11T15:43:00.000-07:00

Previously, I blogged about bone density. In that post, I mentioned that, while some calcium supplements have shown good results with respect to bone density, there is more to bone density than taking extra calcium.

Now, a new study out in the British Journal of Medicine demonstrates that there is a link between calcium supplementation and heart problems in women. Women who took calcium supplements were about half again as likely to have heart attacks, strokes, TIA's (which are small strokes) and sudden death, as women who do not supplement with calcium.

The reason for this is probably the fact that calcium plays a major role in regulating the strength, frequency, and coordination of the heartbeat.

People should really get their nutrients from food, rather than pills, if at all possible. People with bone density would do well to address some of the other factors involved, instead of just cramming extra calcium into their systems. In those people for whom this type of supplementation really is necessary, appropriate steps should be taken to offset the potential damage to the heart and circulatory system, such as taking hawthorn for its genera heart-protective properties, or Dang Gui for its specific action on the processing of calcium.

Cancer

2008-03-11T15:41:00.000-07:00

Ever since ancient times, cancer has been one of the most feared types of disorders. It can go unnoticed until it's fairly advanced, and then it can be quickly devaststing. Worst of all, there isn't any treatment that consistently works to rid the body of cancer.

Unfortunately, cancer is a very poorly understood state of affairs. There are scores of different types of cancer, just like there are scores of disorders caused by bacteria. And, just like bacterial illnesses, there are immense differences between one type and the next. Some cancers spread very quickly, while others do not spread at all. Some are very rare, others very common. Although every case of cancer results from multiple causes coming together in just the wrong way, exactly what these causes are can differ from type to type and from one person to the next.

What various cancers have in common is that they consist of abnormal cells, they can divide and "spread" to other areas of the body, and their natural course is to be fatal (meaning they will kill you if you don't get rid of them, or get killed by something else first).

Interestingly, the percentage of cancer patients who seek out herbal medicine is higher than that for just about any other disease. In one big study, over 70% of cancer patients reported seeking some sort of "alternative" treatment. One reason for this is that conventional treatments (surgery, chemotherapy and radiation), are often unsatisfactory or not well tolerated. Another reason is that herbal medicine has a fairly good reputation for cancer treatment among the patient population.

Usually, when someone comes to seem me about a cancer related issue, it falls into one of two categories-- people who just found out they have cancer, and want to do everything possible to try to fix the situation; and people who have advanced cancer that has spread throughout their body, and have been given up on by their conventional healthcare providers. The first category is much easier to help, of course, but there is still quite a lot that can be done for both groups.

Some of the strategies I would use, depending on the individual patient, would include:

Alkalizing-- using diet and herbs to change the body's chemistry in such a way that it becomes less hospitable to cancer cells.

immunomodulation-- using herbs such as reishi and maitake to increase the immune system's response to the cancer

Cleansing-- using herbs such as dock, clover, phytolacca, and sarsaparilla to remove waste products from the body and help to keep the cancer from spreading. This is especially important, since cancer cells produce substances that make it easier for other cancer cells to take hold.

Cytotoxics-- these are herbs such as bloodroot, may apple, and mistletoe that actually kill cancer cells. They can make people sick too, so they should only be used with professional supervision and guidance.

antiinflammatories-- herbs that bring down swelling and inflammation.

Additionally, herbs to strengthen the systems being compromised by the cancer may be appropriate, and those to help improve diet, maintain weight, and reduce associated symptoms like pain and nausea.

MRSA

2008-03-11T15:40:00.000-07:00

There's been a lot in the news lately about MRSA, a type of staph infection that is resistant or immune to some prescription antibiotics. It's not a new disease, but there was a study that just came out lately with some statistics, showing that this disease kills significantly more people than aids.

Staph infections have been with us since the dawn of time, and have always been fairly common. Impetigo is a skin infection that is often the result of staph, and is frequently how this infection gets started. It's also a common bacteria to have as infection in a cut or other wound. Once it gets into the bloodstream, the toxins it produces can lead to symptoms ranging from fever to death.

There are basically three ways to prevent an outcome like that-- sanitation, an effective immune response, and antibacterial substances. Number one is good hygiene and sanitation. We're a lot better in this department right now than we were a hundred years ago, before we had things like running hot water and municipal sewer systems.

The second thing is an effective immune response. No matter how clean your environment is, you're going to run into staph bacteria unless you live in a sterile bubble (and maybe even then). This is usually not a problem. A few bacteria here and there are barely even a challenge to a healthy immune system. The problem arises when you either lack a strong immune system, such as in an infant, an old person, or someone who is already sick with something else; or the bacteria are introduced in such numbers or in such a way that there are too many of them to fight off (for a graphic example, contact with the skin or clothes of omeone who already has a weeping staph infection).

Antibacterial substances, be they herbs, antibiotics, or antiseptics, are really a last resort. They can't do anything until there is already a problem, already an infection for them to work against. Unfortunately, they've been relied upon far too heavily for too long.

MRSA, the antibiotic resitant staph, was first noticed in the late 1960's, almost 40 years ago. For many years, for decades even, it was an infection that was mostly present in hospitals. People would get it after surgery, or get it in a bedsore, or whatever. It existed because people took antibiotics for their staph, which killed off the weaker bacteria and let the stronger ones survive, until finally there was a new race of super-bacteria. In recent years, MRSA has started showing up in schools and in the environment in general, and no longer just in hospitals. It has also become even more powerful and more drug resistant. Unfortunately, the treatability of the illness has gotten worse over time, so that a higher percentage of people with staph infections die from them now than twenty five years ago, in spite of any advances that might have been made in medical technology.

Fortunately, MRSA does not seem to respond any differently to herbal treatment, than regular old staph did deacades or centuries or millenia ago. I've consistently seen good results with people taking antibacterial herbs, even after prescription antibiotics have failed. I think the reason for this is that a germ can develop resistance to a single chemical, like methicillin or vancomycin, much more easily than it can develop resistance to hundreds of substances at once, as it would have to do to survive in the body ofsomeone using myrrh or garlic.

For someone who is at risk of being exposed to MRSA (like anyone who works in a hospital, school, day care, or nursing home), I suggest strengthening the immune system to increase its ability to fight off such an insult. For anyone with an active case of infection, strengthening the immune system is also important, as is suppementing the immune system's function with antibacterial herbs.

Dying to Quit

2008-03-11T15:38:00.000-07:00

Last month the FDA came forward and said they had received dozens of reports of people committing suicide while they were taking the smoking-cessation medicine Chantix. They also said they had received hundreds of reports of people attempting suicide or having other suicidal behaviors. According to their statement, it appeared increasingly likely that this was a direct result of the medication. Kind of a poor trade-off, if you ask me.

Chantix is a relatively new medicine, and has already been plagued by reports of adverse effects before now. Even in the pre-marketing trials, it appeared to be somewhat dangerous; but because they knew there was such a demand for what it does, the makers (Pfizer) went ahead with marketing it.

Chantix works by binding to the same receptor sites in the nervous system that nicotine binds to. Unfortunately, these receptors sites have a depressant effect on the functioning of the mind and body, and nicotine users have a lot more of them than non-users. As a result, a sudden cessation of smoking can leave people feeling extremely depressed or anxious, and Chantix appears to worsen these symptoms, to the point that people are killing themselves over it
(the usual reaction, when unmedicated, is just to start smoking again).

I've heard over and over, from people who had the background and experience to know, that smoking is a harder addiction to break than cocaine or heroin. Fortunately, Chantix is not the only substance in the world that fills and blocks the nicotinic receptors. In herbal medicine, Lobelia has been used for this purpose since long before we knew what receptors were. Rather than causing a depressed feeling, it tends to cause a sense of calm and (in a worse-case scenario) sleepiness. Calamus root also strongly binds to these sites. Niacin, found in a variety of natural substances, affects the same sites in a more subtle way.

Other herbs, such as scullcap and motherwort, can help with some of the cravings and withdrawal symptoms that come from smoking cessation. Herbs that induce sweating can help get the nicotine and related substances out of the body. Exactly which of these are used and in what manner will differ, depending on the person's constitution and habits. but all of them are blessed with a good history of safety and effectiveness.

In closing, I'd like to say that Tobacco is a sacred and powerful herb. The costs for using it lightly-- or casting it aside lightly-- can be deadly. It is a powerful drug that should be treated with great respect, or left alone. Bearing this in mind, I've helped scores of people stop smoking over the years, and although a few may have picked the habit back up later, none have resorted to suicide in an attempt to quit.

Bone Density

2008-03-11T15:34:00.000-07:00

Bone density is used as an indicator of bone strength. Theoretically, it's a measure of how much of your bone is mineral, and how much is empty space. In truth, what's actually being measured in a bone density scan is the bone's ability to transmit or reflect energy (in the form of ultrasound or radiation). But what people are trying to figure out when they check bone density, is really the strength of the bone. No one really cares how well bones absorb and reflect gamma rays, unless we can use this information to predict how likely they are to break.

Unfortunately, low bone density is very common, and always has been. Especially among post-menopausal women. Because more people live long lives, and because the "baby boom" generation are now in their 40's-60's, Low bone density is a more popular problem than ever.

When bone density is a little lower than normal, this is called osteopenia. Osteo means "bone", and penia means "shattering". If bone density is even lower, it's called osteoporosis, meaning "porous bones". These are differing degrees of the same condition, rather than two seperate conditions. In people with lowered bone density, the bones not only break more easily, but heal with more difficulty.

Most people take a rather simplistic approach to treating bone density. This approach consists of supplementation of the minerals that bones are made of, and sometimes the addition of estrogens.

Calcium is the main mineral that bones are made of. It is also quite commonly used as a supplement to maintain bone density. Unfortunately, it is not very easy for the body to digest. Calcium carbonate (the stuff chalk and limestone are made of), is the cheapest form of calcium. it's a good antacid, but WORTHLESS as a calcium substitute. By worthless, I mean that not only will a person typicall absorb no calcium from it, they will also be unable to absorb calcium from any other source while it is in their digestive system, due to its antacid properties. This applies to "coral calcium" as well as to other calcium carbonate sources.

Calcium citrate has shown some good results in a number of studies on bone density, especially when combined with magnesium citrate. EVen so, it does more to help maintain bone density than to replace it once it has been lost.

Calcium from food is really the most natural and absorbable form of calcium. Green vegetables have more calcium in them than dairy products. Soup stock made from bones also contains all the necessary nutrients needed to make bones.

Phosphorus is another significant mineral in bone, though in much smaller amounts than calcium. Most of the osteoporosis drugs on the market (such as fosamax and boniva) are actually made of phosphorous. They often work too, because they cause the body to deposit more calcium in the bones. they can be dangerous, however, and serious side effects such as pain, scarring of the stomach, and loss of ability to swallow are not uncommon.

In addition to supplementing the minerals that bones are made of, some people use estrogen to help maintain bone density. Studies show that it is modestly effective, in exchange for a heightened risk of heart attack, stroke, and certain types of cancer. Still, it might be appropriate in some individuals.

In the herbal and natural healing realm, there are many ways of addressing bone density loss or inadequacy. Weight bearing excercise is probably effective in more cases than any other intervention. Of course, eating a diet that is high in minerals is a sensible thing for just about any person to do. There are also some herbs, such as lamb's quarters, that contain extraordinary amounts of minerals. Healthy fats and oils can also help with bone density, since the liver can use them to produce vitamin D (in the presence of sunlight). Animal fats contain vitamin d naturally.

There is also an endocrine component to bone density. A hormone produced by the thyroid gland, called calcitonin, is the primary agent in the body responsible for putting the minerals into the bone, or to put it another way, for siganling the cells of the bone to collect minerals. for some reason, this component is generally neglected in the treatment of bone density. Fortunately, there are herbs out there such as withania and myrrh that can help with thyroid function, or the production of thyroid hormones in other parts of the body such as the adrenal glands. In my practice, I've seen this make some significant differences in bone strength and density.

Stress hormones, which are steroids, also adversely effect bone density. Herbs such as basil and rhodiola, which decrease the circulating quantities of these hormones, also can help to preserve and create bone strength.

When bone minerals are lost from the body, they are lost through the kidneys. For this reason, nourishing and tonifying the function of the kidneys (which are almost always deficient in people with bone density issues) can be helpful to the preservation and rehabilitation of bone strength. Working with the kidneys and digestive system to keep an alkaline pH in the body is also important, since a system that is too acidic will leech minerals from the bone.

A lichen called rock tripe is used as a specific remedy for osteoporosis and degeneration of the skeleton in many parts of the world. It contains great amounts of minerals as well as other substances that help to strengthen the bones.

While osteoporosis/osteopenia is a complicated problem with many contributing factors, strengthening the skeletal system need not be an overly complicated process. On average, The patients that I see for this indication end up taking two or three herbs, and (after the first few visits to get things on the right track) following up twice a year or so for this particular issue. But there are a lot of options and possibilities for ways to approach the situation, so it's possible to tailor the treatment to the individual patient.