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THE NEW MEDICINE CABINET by IHOR MAGUN, M.D. Medicinal herbs, or as they are commonly referred to, dietary supplements, are slowly becoming a part of our "alternative armamentarium to "prevent" and "treat" a number of diseases. Many individuals are faced with serious health problems for which conventional medicinal treatments have been poor or unsuccessful. Treatment by alternative means provides many with an option that may be helpful. Some individuals view herbal medicines as a more natural way of treatment, forgoing conventional treatments entirely. Europeans have used medical herbs for decades. Currently, in Europe, it is considered completely normal to get a prescription for a medical herb after examination by a physician. If this is indeed the case, why is this type of treatment not practiced here in the U.S.? There are a number of reasons. One of the major reasons for limited use of medical herbs boils down to the fact that up till now, physicians and pharmacists have not been trained in school on prescribing and recommending different types of herbs. With the advent of the internet and accessibility to a lot of information on herbs and their medicinal benefits, this is changing. Certain universities are now introducing courses on herbs and reliable books are becoming available. One of the greatest obstacles to the use of herbs is that the quality of the product is not well established nor controlled. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will not approve any herbs despite all the experience seen in Europe. One of the other problems involving the FDA is that herbs cannot be patented, so no studies are done. The products may claim to be natural and pure, however, no specific standards have been established nor have any specific doses been recommended. In fact, some independent studies have shown that certain herbs are actually worthless and can be harmful. They should never be used during pregnancy, and doses must be appropriate -- a fact that has yet to be fully established. Some individuals self- treat and may delay getting an appropriate medical evaluation, often doing themselves more harm than good. There are also questions about drug interaction and about correct or appropriate duration of treatment. So are herbs bad and not to be used? This writer's opinion is that there is much more that we need to know before we start using herbs for certain conditions, at least here in the Untied States. There are currently recognized pharmaceutical companies which can claim a reliable product. Some products sold by European companies here and in Europe, especially Germany, do meet proper standards. One can also look for products with a National Formulaiy (NF) Seal which will help assure a proper standard. There is definitely a place for herbs in medicine, and I believe they may become as popular here as in Europe some day. In my next article, I will describe some of the most commonly taken herbs and what may be helpful for all of us. ERRATA We recently received a note from UNWLA member E. Боляник of Cleveland-Parma, Ohio requesting that we print corrections on two items which appeared in articles by Professor H. Turkewicz-Sanko in two separate issues of Our Life. In the January 199 issue, on page twenty, Ivan Mazepa was mistakenly identified as Hetman of Right Bank Ukraine rather than Left Bank. In the April 1999 issue, Babyn Yar was mistakenly "situated" in Lviv rather than Kyiv. We appreciate our reader's interest in the accuracy of the materials published in Our Life and thank her for bringing these lapses to our attention. 22 “НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ЛИПЕНЬ-СЕРПЕНЬ 1999 Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
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