W.H.O. taking on folk medicine: U.N. arm to keep track of alternative health practices

Houston Chronicle ^ | May 16, 2002 | DONALD G. McNEIL Jr

[RJCogburn]

And who would you suppose that would be?

Not the AMA, an pretty impotent organization at this point.

[blackie]

Bump !!

[Cacophonous]

bump

[sakic]

Our medical system sucks. That puts it light years ahead of any other on the planet. 99% of folk medicine is hucksterism.

[ppaul]

99% of folk medicine is hucksterism.

In other words: quackery.
You got that right.
In the State of Washington, the insurance commission makes health insurance companies cover "alternative medicine", i.e.: acupuncture, chiropractic, etc. Insurance companies pulled out of the state entirely. Now, there are only four in the entire state. No real competition and premiums have skyrocketed.

[William Terrell]

I was thinking more of the drug cartels.

[RJCogburn]

Duh....I get it! I don't disagree.

[lelio]

For example, the Chinese ma huang herb, which contains ephedrine and helps breathing problems, caused heart attacks and strokes among some Americans using it as a hunger-relieving diet aid.
Perhaps those 'some Americans' were alreay prone to getting a heart attack? Probably way overweight for a number of years, etc, and just because they kicked the bucket the government has to step in.

[A. Pole]

We must act quickly

Or the peons will get out of control!

[stanz]

If the WHO wants to monitor folk remedies, I don't see anything wrong with that.
It's the AMA in this country which oversees what we can and cannot (legally) have. I, for one, would rather use alternative products IF I THOUGHT THEY WERE SAFE. Right now, I don't use any except for echinacchea for colds and various herbal teas. But you have to look at ingredients as the article states. Some herbs are great for one remedy, but can cause problems in other areas. Also, mixing products can be deadly.

[A. Pole]

99% of folk medicine is hucksterism.

It is not! I use herbs and my relatives and most of people in Poland use them. The herbs are taught in most of the countries in medical academies. They were even taught in United States until first half of XX century.

The main "problem" is that you cannot patent the plants and charge the exorbitant price, you sheeple! Many "scientific" medicines are purified/syntetised and INFERIOR product plagiarised from folk medicine. That is why you see this strange comments in the drug description - "the exact mechanism is not known".

If the sheeple worships the big business and big government, they get what they deserve.

[redhead]

"Looks like the AMA is about to get their way: - All cures will be out-lawed! - We will be at the mercy of the AMA shammen."

Well, if the AMA was REALLY interested in CURING diseases, it might be different. But the main goal of the medical industry is profit. Of the 25,000 prescription drugs currently in use world wide, not ONE single medication actually CURES anything, and many are not only ineffective, but toxic or dangerous.

(CURING disease is not cost-effective. Curing removes potential customers, which in turn causes losses in revenue.)

[redhead]

"The group's ultimate goal is to catalog all folk remedies, making sure the plants are saved in botanical gardens and the products patented country by country. It also envisions writing common codes of ethics and training for folk healers."

Codex Alimentarius, anyone?

[A. Pole]

"The group's ultimate goal is to catalog all folk remedies, making sure [...] the products patented country by country [...]"

No comments!

[redhead]

"The main "problem" is that you cannot patent the plants and charge the exorbitant price, you sheeple! Many "scientific" medicines are purified/syntetised and INFERIOR product plagiarised from folk medicine. That is why you see this strange comments in the drug description - "the exact mechanism is not known".

If the sheeple worships the big business and big government, they get what they deserve."

You are right. The EFFECTIVE drugs are often the raw natural ones, ones which the pharmaceutical companies cannot patent to add to their obscene profits. If they cannot patent them, they do not want anybody to use them for ANYTHING. I am not sure, but I would say that the aggregate fortunes of the pharmaceutical/food industry would DWARF anything the oil cartels might rake in.

[sakic]

The big business aspect of medicine is terrible. The alternative health practices are almost entirely composed of thieves who know absolutely nothing about the medicinal worth of the garbage they're peddling.

[DeaconBenjamin]

It seems to me that A.Pole's analysis is based upon empirical evidence -- i.e., extensive experience in using such treatments. What is your opinion based upon?

[A. Pole]

The alternative health practices are almost entirely composed of thieves who know absolutely nothing about the medicinal worth of the garbage they're peddling.

Try me. List a few problems you have or someone you know and I can tell you what can be helped by which herbs.

[nopardons]

That was Methusala ( sp ? ) and the advanced ages , ascribed to some in the Bible, was an accepted ( at that time ) streching of the truth / a different way of calculating time, in Middle Eastern mythic prose. You'll find the same kind of advanced ages, of heros, in other ancient litterature / tales of that time.

[DLfromthedesert]

" 99% of folk medicine is hucksterism."

Where do you get those stats? A lot of Western medicine is hucksterism. People are prescribed TOO many medicines they DON'T NEED and a lot of them are harmful!!