Posted by raisinb on September 22, 2008, at 10:59:38
In reply to Re: Sam-e Ad Combination For Incomplete Responders, posted by desolationrower on September 22, 2008, at 10:02:57
Not necessarily. But there's too much of the assumption that if one goes "natural," things will be fine and dandy. Not true. Some herbs can cause liver damage; many are dangerous for pregnant women. St. John's Wort can contribute to seratonin syndrome, since it's an MAOI (rare, of course, but does happen). Sam-E can cause mania.
Not to go off on a tangent or anything, but I also think the often-used distinction between "natural" remedies and "pharmaceuticals" isn't justifiable. *All* chemical compounds come from the earth (originally at least). All have effects on your body which may or may not be beneficial. Herbs sold OTC can be full of fillers, colorings, and other processed material, just like any drug. And they're not necessarily less powerful, in some cases.
Sorry, one of my pet peeves is people who go around saying "no drugs for me, I'm going *natural*" when they know little about side effects, etc.
This is obviously different from a well-informed person who weighs his/her options and decides that the herbal or OTC remedy for his/her condition is probably safer or better than the one proffered by the pdoc.
poster:raisinb
thread:852512
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20080915/msgs/853395.html