Another issue with Chinese Meds...

[Dr.Rob]

so I just got notice from a Canadian Medical Advisory Board...

Health Canada Warns Consumers That The Unauthorized Natural Health
Product Kwan Loong Medicated Oil May Cause Adverse Health Effects
- Consumer Information

Health Canada is advising consumers not to use the unauthorized
product, Kwan Loong Medicated Oil, as it contains chloroform.
Sale of chloroform for human use is prohibited under the Food and
Drug Regulations.

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ahc-asc/media/advisories-avis/_2008/index-eng.php

In a week I see maybe 10 to 15 Chinese Meds and the same amount of Auyervedic being recalled or moved to prohibited lists cause of counterfit or toxic chemicals. Its often contaminated because of the soil the crops are grown on aswell. They use fields that won't yield food cause they have been ruined by over use or spraying. Then plant the herbs to soak the toxicans up. In Canada we use carrots..I think??. And in the US I believe its peanuts that are used to restore Cotton fields???? A rant doesn't change anything.

Well that explains why it worked so well...the smell knocked them out...Hey Meeks...you can sniff that for pain.

In Canada people that are registered for natural products (ie Naturopaths) can only perscribe drugs that come from ISO reg. companies or their Liability Ins won't protect them.

Pretty sad the the cures are often the ones that kill you.

[Peacedog]

xxxxxxxxxxx

[Doc Stier]

This is just another example of ignorant government regulation, IMO. I have used Kwan Loong Medicated Oil as directed on the labeling for many years time with good benefits. It works quite well for its intended use. Since it is not to be taken internally, but is only to be applied topically to the skin surface, I don't see why there should be much concern, provided that it is kept out of the reach of small children like all medicines.



I have never experienced a single negative effect from its use, nor have any of my patients, to the best of my knowledge.

There was one dumb-ass patient years ago, however, who drank some of it for reasons known only to him, who reported that it tasted terrible, but aside from that there has never been a problem with this product.

Doc

[zenshiite]

I've used Kwon Loong quite successfully for knee aches and bruising and such.

[Dale Dugas]

You can get decent products from Mayway as well as Kamwo. They test their herbs and make sure they are safe to sell.

Patent medicines are dicey when you want to go for the cheapest source out there. That usually means they could be chock full of rather nasty things.

Make sure to see if the manufacturer is using GMP standards or not.

Lots of counterfeits out there.

Doc,

Great post. Agree with you wholeheartedly but also you have to be careful of people who dose herbs with chemicals and heavy metals even if unknown.

[Michael]

This is just another example of ignorant government regulation, IMO. I have used Kwan Loong Medicated Oil as directed on the labeling for many years time with good benefits. It works quite well for its intended use. Since it is not to be taken internally, but is only to be applied topically to the skin surface, I don't see why there should be much concern, provided that it is kept out of the reach of small children like all medicines.



I have never experienced a single negative effect from its use, nor have any of my patients, to the best of my knowledge.

There was one dumb-ass patient years ago, however, who drank some of it for reasons known only to him, who reported that it tasted terrible, but aside from that there has never been a problem with this product.

Doc

LOL! Sounds like you need to upgrade your screening process to remove certain patients...or maybe charge them higher rates.

[Royal Dragon]

What about buying dried herbs, and making it yourself? At least then, you know what you pout into the formula.

[ashe]

Pretty soon you won't have access to anything that wasn't produced by a big corporation.

My wife has made a little money from home by making fitted cloth diapers, which are very popular due to there quality.

In February, new regulations go into effect that will put her and many other entrepreneurs out of business due to bogus requirements that every single batch of product be submitted for testing.

There's a good deal of opacity going on, so it's hard to tell exctly what the testing fee will be, but at the minimum it looks like it will be $100 and may be as much as $4000!

Even at $100, my wife does very small volume, often making custom orders of only one or two diapers at a time, that testing fee will double or triple the cost of the average order as well as dramitcally increase the delivery time, which all together will likely kill her and many others small business efforts.

All hail the WTO!

[DeusTrismegistus]

Ever see those animes with the megacorp/govt who rules the nation or world. Yea, I can see that happening eventually.

The FDA bans the sale or distribution of anything that claims to cure prevent or treat any disease that has not been approved by the FDA. They actually tried to regulate the sale of vitamins and minerals because of that but people got all crazy on them. You know oranges have vitamin c which cures scurvy so oranges are a drug. So yea doesn't surprise me at all that the powers that be are making chinese medicine and ayurvedic medicine illegal since it is growing in popularity. Its that same way they are trying to keep organics from getting popular.

[ashe]

Pretty soon you'll need to be an MD to buy things like turmeric.

If you haven't been to med school you won't be able to make curry.

[Darth Rock&Roll]

I am on board with the regulation of holistic drugs and non-mainstream medical practice.

The real problem is not with bonafide tcm docs, it is with the charlatans who do dangerous things out of ego.
If laws are the way to restrict them from practice, then so be it. I think that is reasonable and I also think folding it into teh existing medical schools is welcome as well.

I don't put much stock in the idea we'll have a hard time getting spices because the various medical associations have standards around who can and who cannot practice medicine. I am thankful that they set these standards and force accountability onto all their practitioners.

Do no harm is not an oath that dabblers take.

So, I am in the camp of making it hard for non accredited people from practicing medicine and I am not ashamed to admit that I don't put any stock into primitive shamanistic medical practices anymore than anyone else in the modern era.

[Bob]

I am afraid it has already started--Red Rice Yeast---Beijing duck ingredient, used in TCM:

Q Controlling Cholesterol?

Do you believe there is an advantage to using red yeast rice instead of a pharmaceutical statin drug? Are there still side effects to be concerned about?

A Answer (Published 3/16/2007)

Of all the natural supplements available to help lower cholesterol, red rice yeast extracts are by far the most effective. Red rice yeast (Monascus purpureus) has a long history of use in China as a natural food coloring and healthful ingredient. It is a source of naturally occurring statins, and because it delivers a mix of those compounds rather than a single molecule, it is much less likely to cause the side effects that sometimes occur with the pharmaceutical versions.

Dr. Weil's Vitamin Advisor for Heart Health - A healthful diet and lifestyle, along with prudent supplementation, can help prevent or lessen the risk of heart disease and related illnesses such as hypertension, high blood pressure and cholesterol. Learn more, and get your free, personalized Dr. Weil's Vitamin Advisor Recommendation today.
As you may know, in 2001 the FDA banned the sale of the most popular brand of red yeast rice extract, Cholestin, because one of its components (lovastatin) was already a patented drug when Cholestin came on the market (the product now sold as "Cholestin" in the United States does not contain any red rice yeast). You can still obtain Cholestin that contains red rice yeast extract in some European countries, and other brands of red rice yeast extract are still sold in the U.S. Because supplements are unregulated and the demand for quality ingredients is growing, some products will not actually contain any red rice yeast extract and will be ineffective. If you don't get satisfactory results, you can always switch to a better quality brand or even to a prescribed statin.

The most common side effects of prescribed statin drugs are headache, digestive upset, liver dysfunction, and muscle pain. These last two problems can be serious, but statins are well tolerated by most people, and serious side effects are rare. Red rice yeast supplements can cause the same side effects in sensitive people, but in my experience the incidence is significantly less than with the purified prescription compounds.

I recommend that anyone who takes statins or red rice yeast extract supplements for cholesterol control should also take 90 - 120 mg of coenzyme Q10 every day, since these drugs inhibit the body's natural synthesis of CoQ10, which is needed for formation of ATP, our bodies' energy currency. (That may account for the muscle pain that some people experience.)

No matter what supplement or drug you use for cholesterol control, be sure to get at least 30 minutes a day of aerobic exercise and reduce the amount of saturated fat and trans-fats in your diet. Other beneficial lifestyle changes include drinking green tea, eating one clove of garlic per day (diced or crushed in food), and consuming more soluble fiber (such as oat bran), foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids (good sources include salmon, sardines and walnuts) and plenty of leafy greens and fresh fruits.

Andrew Weil, M.D.

http://www.drweil.com/drw/u/id/QAA400165

[qiphlow]

I am on board with the regulation of holistic drugs and non-mainstream medical practice.

The real problem is not with bonafide tcm docs, it is with the charlatans who do dangerous things out of ego.
If laws are the way to restrict them from practice, then so be it. I think that is reasonable and I also think folding it into teh existing medical schools is welcome as well.

I don't put much stock in the idea we'll have a hard time getting spices because the various medical associations have standards around who can and who cannot practice medicine. I am thankful that they set these standards and force accountability onto all their practitioners.

Do no harm is not an oath that dabblers take.

So, I am in the camp of making it hard for non accredited people from practicing medicine and I am not ashamed to admit that I don't put any stock into primitive shamanistic medical practices anymore than anyone else in the modern era.

the bigger problem is that the FDA is no more interested in the safety of food or drugs than the federal government is interested in helping you with your bad mortgage.

[Darth Rock&Roll]

I am on board with the regulation of holistic drugs and non-mainstream medical practice.

The real problem is not with bonafide tcm docs, it is with the charlatans who do dangerous things out of ego.
If laws are the way to restrict them from practice, then so be it. I think that is reasonable and I also think folding it into teh existing medical schools is welcome as well.

I don't put much stock in the idea we'll have a hard time getting spices because the various medical associations have standards around who can and who cannot practice medicine. I am thankful that they set these standards and force accountability onto all their practitioners.

Do no harm is not an oath that dabblers take.

So, I am in the camp of making it hard for non accredited people from practicing medicine and I am not ashamed to admit that I don't put any stock into primitive shamanistic medical practices anymore than anyone else in the modern era.

the bigger problem is that the FDA is no more interested in the safety of food or drugs than the federal government is interested in helping you with your bad mortgage.

the FDA has done some questionable stuff, but overall, they have contributed a lot of good as well. I'd rather live and build standards than have none at all.

i mean, look at the standard of living that is afforded to countries that do institute such establishments and do write vast tracts of laws around medical standards vs those countries that don't.

where would you rather live?

[Michael]

The FDA, along with other parts of the US Govt, such as the CDC, have changed drastically in the past 20 years. After it was revealed that melamine was found in 90% of all baby food in the USA, the FDA, without any scientific study, and obviously at the behest of its corporate paymasters (this is literally how the agency works since they established private funding for safety testing), suddenly declared 1 part per million of melamine to be safe, whereas previously there was no safe level.