New Study Shows Pharmacological Foundation of Chinese Herbal Medicines

As documented in Wild Health, a book suggested to me by Todd Hargraves, a frequent commenter on this blog, not only humans, but many other species have used herbal medicine for literally millions of years. I call herbal medicine Paleolithic or primal because it originated long before even the advent of agriculture, let alone the emergence of modern allopathic medicine.

Anyway, researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston have found that ancient Chinese herbal formulas used primarily for cardiovascular indications including heart disease may produce large amounts of artery-widening nitric oxide.

Science Daily reported on this study:

"The results from this study reveal that ancient Chinese herbal formulas 'have profound nitric oxide bioactivity primarily through the enhancement of nitric oxide in the inner walls of blood vessels, but also through their ability to convert nitrite and nitrate into nitric oxide,' said Nathan S. Bryan, Ph.D., the study's senior author and an IMM assistant professor."

Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) used primarily for cardiovascular indications commonly contain three to 25 herbs, administered as tablets, elixirs, soups and teas. In this study, the researchers tested DanShen (salvia root), GuaLou (trichosanthis fruit) and other herbs purchased at a Houston store to determine their ability to produce nitric oxide.

They also tested the capacity of the store-bought TCMs to widen blood vessels in an animal model. They found that each of the TCMs tested relaxed vessels to various degrees.

Allopathic medical practitioners commonly assert that herbal medicine "doesn't work" or suggest it is mere "folklore." Worse, they often assert that modern pharmaceuticals are "safer" than "untested" herbs. Packaged with this comes the belief that our ancestors were stupid for believing that plants provided medicines.

Allopathic physicians learned these beliefs in medical schools funded by the pharmaceutical industry. Since herbs are non-patentable competitors for patented drugs produced by the pharmaceutical industry, the industry has done everything possible to prevent, suppress, and eliminate the practice of herbal medicine in the U.S., and internationally, including telling lies about herbs and getting licensing laws passed that effectively outlawed the practice of herbal medicine.

For example, consider how the FDA demonized Ephedra. Ephedra is an excellent bronchodilator that Chinese physicians traditionally used to treat asthma. The FDA removed Ephedra from the market after collecting 100 cases where people had died while voluntarily using it. All Ephedra-related deaths in America occurred among people using the herb improperly, without the guidance of a trained herbalist, and for purposes not endorsed by traditional OM herbalists (energy-enhancement, weight loss). Moreover, in none of the cases did the evidence clearly show that the Ephedra caused the deaths.

Aside from this being another sure-to-fail attempt at prohibition, comparatively, aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have much worse safety records than Ephedra. According to James Fries, M.D., of the Stanford University School of Medicine, about 76,000 Americans are hospitalized and 7,600 die each year from gastrointestinal bleeding caused by aspirin and other NSAIDs. Yet these remain on the market, approved by the FDA.

Moreover, the FDA still allows OTC sales of psuedoephedrine, the patented copy of the natural compound. I wonder who this benefits.....

Shows how you can always count on the wisdom and benevolence of the government. I believe that if we did not have the government (FDA, state medical licensing boards, FCC, etc.) protecting NSAIDs from competitive market forces by suppressing natural alternatives (FCC suppresses information about alternatives), we would have far fewer deaths from NSAIDs because people would naturally seek the safer alternatives.

And since herbal medicines are not protected by profit-generating patents (another way the government increases costs of drugs, etc.), and anyone can grow herbs, the cost of medical care would go down.

But then the Statist economists would start complaining about deflation, since you know that it would kill our economy if the cost of living declined, resulting in a decline of the GDP. Or so they believe.

Anyway, as this study of TCMs shows, the continuing denigration of our ancestors and diatribe against Paleolithic medicine that forms part of conventional "wisdom" does not stand up to critical analysis.