Herbal Medicine Flashcards
Why are supplements advertised as they are?
avoids safety and effectiveness testing required by FDA
What’s the issue with nutritional supplements?
A lot less testing, may not have the benefits alluded to, may worsen certain medical conditions or interact with medications
What is alternative medicine?
treatments not generally recognized by medical community as standard
What is herbal medicine?
plant/plant extracts
What was DSHEA (1994)?
amendment to establish standards for dietary supplements…but FDA can’t apply drug efficacy and safety to supplements :(
What did the Dietary Supplement & Non-Prescription Drug Consumer Protection Act of 2006 do?
Forced to report adverse events to FDA
What’s the issue with the supplement industry?
misidentification, lack of purity, variations in potency/purification, not enough resources to oversee
What is echinacea proposed to be used for?
decrease duration and intensity of cold symptoms
up to 300mg 3x daily
What has been found with echinacea in pharmacological studies?
virucidal/bacteriacidal against influenza, herpes, strep pyogens, h. influenzae, in vitro may inactivate avian flu & swine viruses
What are the effects of echinacea?
unpleasant taste and GI effects, maybe dizziness or headaches. Some have high alcohol content.
Avoid in immunocompromised and pregnant patients
What does evidence state regarding echinacea?
Cochrane – small risk reduction of 10-20%
Lancet – decreased risk of developing symptoms by 58% and duration by 1.25 days
so… just like tamiflu but “natural”
What is garlic’s proposed use?
cholesterol and hypertension ( A LOT is needed, 600-900 mg daily)
What is the pharmacology of garlic?
inhibit HMG-CoA reductase (stopping cholesterol production), potential antiplatelet effects uping nitric oxide synthesis
What are some effects of garlic use?
nausea, hypotension, breath and body odor
caution with anticoagulants or antiplatelet drug use as could potent the effect (just no)
What is the evidence behind garlic?
significant reduction in total cholesterol, but no impact on LDL/HDL…
cochrane - significant reduction in SBP/DBP, but without the LDL/HDL change, not really relevant
What is the proposed use for ginkgo?
intermittent claudication, cerebral insufficiency, dementia (120mg to 240mg daily)
What is the pharmacology of ginkgo?
ups blood flow, lowers blood viscosity, ups vasodilation!!
CNS: ups muscarinic receptors, downs B-adrenoreceptors, ups serum levels of acetylcholine and norepinephrine
What are some effects of ginkgo use?
GI, anxiety, insomnia, possible antiplatelet action (if on anticoagulant, probably not)
may be epileptogenic so avoid in persons with Hx of seizures
What is the evidence behind ginkgo?
Nonsignificant, no benefit, unlikely to be clinically relevant
What is ginseng’s proposed usage?
improvement of serum glucose and mental performance (200 to 400 mg daily)
What is the pharmacology behind ginseng?
modulation of immune function (activated B, T NK cells, macrophages), CNS effects include increased Ach, 5-HT, NE, DA
What are some effects of ginseng?
estrogenic effects including mastalgia and vaginal bleeding, insomnia, nervousness, HYPERTENSION –> no in patients with anticoagulants, antihypertensives, hypoglycemics, or psychiatric
What is the evidence behind ginseng?
yet to see more information, not a lot, a few studies say significant decreases in blood glucose?
What is the proposed usage of milk thistle and the basic chemistry?
For hepatic injury and antidote to Amanita mushroom poisoning.
contains flavonolignans
What do the pharmacological tests of milk thistle show?
acts as an antioxidant
What are some side effects of milk thistle?
loose stools, no significant toxicity, no reports of drug interactions
What is the evidence behind milk thistle?
No significant reduction, failed to show anything, no effect