Posts for 'General Information' Category

The traditional medicine practiced in China for millennia finally made a strong headway to the world stage after many earlier such attempts failed. A China-made pill to treat cardiovascular conditions had been tested safe and effective by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and hopefully would be marketed in the United States as early as 2013, its Tianjin-based pharmaceutical manufacturer, Tasly, said Saturday.

The drug, called Compound Danshen Dripping Pill, passed the FDA's Phase II clinical trials in July. Once Phase III is completed, Tasly can ask for the FDA approval to market the drug in the United States. Previously, the drug has been approved by drug watchdogs in Canada, Russia, South Korea, Vietnam, Singapore and some African countries.

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Sitting in her large, bright office, Dr. Heidi Robel prescribes what she believes to be the essential difference between her medical practice and others.

"Education, education, education." And she doesn't mean her own. As a licensed naturopathic physician, Robel believes a patient's care relies on what each client wants, needs and is willing to learn.

"We teach people to make educated choices about their health," she said. "We're just like other family doctors; we just have more tools in our kit to use."

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Parents were warned today not to give their children medicine using an ordinary teaspoon because of the risk of overdose. A study found that teaspoons vary from a capacity of 2.5ml to 7.3ml, meaning youngsters could be receiving an inaccurate dose.

Instead, parents should use the special spoon provided with a medicine or buy a syringe or spoon with measurements on it. They should also consult the medicine's packaging to make sure their child is given the right dose for their age.

Experts from Greece and the U.S. looked at 71 teaspoons and 49 tablespoons collected from 25 households. They said a parent using one of the biggest teaspoons would be giving their child 192 per cent more medicine than a parent using the smallest teaspoon. Some of the tablespoons were also twice the size of others.

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The potential of traditional medicines in Indonesia has not been fully exploited. According to Tepy Usia, the Inspection and Certification of Traditional Medicine, Cosmetics, and Complements Directorate chief in charge of product inspection at the Food.

And Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM), Indonesia is the second country in the world with the most biological diversity after Brazil. Indonesia has over 30.000 species of plants that can be processed to become traditional medicines or other health products. “However, only around 10.000 plants are being processed,” he said at a media workshop in Jakarta, yesterday.

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Mr Mahama Topie, Chairman of the Won Waana Traditional Healers Association in the Upper West Region, has advised herbalists to recognise the lead role orthodox medicine plays in the health delivery system. He also asked the herbalists not to become the first point of call for patients.

Mr Topie who gave the advice in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Wa at the weekend said herbal medicine should be the last resort for patients. "We should only go on with our therapy when patients have sought clinical treatment and failed to recover," he stressed.

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The Medicines Control Council has confirmed that the controversial traditional supplement Bhejane, taken by Aids patients in the belief that it will boost their immune system, is not registered.The Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) on Wednesday issued a call for Business Report to print a correction of a June 21 article which stated that Bhejane was registered.

The article said Business Report had visited the premises of Zebulon Gwala, the manufacturer, and seen an MCC registration certificate with a registration number that confirmed the product was registered in the complementary medicines division effective in March this year.

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The Scientist that absolutely proves that Homeopathy has an absolutely proven mechanism of action will be a candidate for the Nobel Prize in Medicine.

According to alternative complementary medicine statistics This is a field of medicine that is currently in its 207th year of clinical implementation with unquestionable proven success but its scientific mechanism is still the subject of fierce debate in the Ivory towers of academia.

The field of complex Homeopathy developed by Dr Hans Heinrich Reckeweg MD is only in its 68th year with likewise unquestionable clinical marvels of help to ailing patients but it too eludes acceptance at the AMA level even though some marvelous breakthroughs have developed in just the last several years that May be the answers we have long been awaiting.  What observations capture our attention and how can we explain them? Can we view it as a holistic approach in medicine?

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A product called Magic Power Coffee, marketed for sexual enhancement, contains an ingredient that could lower blood pressure and should be avoided, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Samples purchased and analyzed by the FDA found the product contains hydroxythiohomosildenafil, a chemical similar to the active ingredient in Pfizer's blockbuster erectile dysfunction drug Viagra.

Like Viagra, Magic Power Coffee can interact with other drugs and cause dangerously low blood pressure. That can cause the brain to be deprived of an adequate blood supply. "Because the product is an instant coffee labelled as an 'all natural dietary supplement,' consumers may assume it is harmless and poses no health risk," said Deborah Autor, the director of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, Office of Compliance.

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SagaMedica’s online store has launched “SagaVita”, a herbal cold remedy made from Icelandic angelica herb; the same plant Vikings used in herbal medicine a thousand years ago. There are absolutely, and without a doubt, no accounts of Leif the Lucky ever having suffered from a cold infection.

Leif, like other Vikings, was probably an avid consumer of the angelica herb. And justifiably so, it would seem, as modern research suggests antiviral angelica remedies may be used for preventing colds and other seasonal illnesses. Angelica is one of very few medicinal herbs originating from the north; it has been used by the Nordics for over a thousand years and Iceland’s first law book even mentions specific fines for angelica theft.

Angelica was well known in herbal medicine during the middle ages and Icelanders used it as currency in foreign trade. Its value lay in the fact that it was thought to be more potent as a remedy than other angelicas growing further south.

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Modern medicine has made our lives better in many ways. It has helped older adults live longer, healthier lives. But people over 65 have to be careful when taking medications, especially when they're taking many different drugs.

Because mixing certain medicines can cause problems, be sure to let your doctor know about all the prescription and over-the-counter drugs you are taking.

Keep an updated list of medicines you are taking with you at all times. To learn more about drug safety, take time to read the Seniors & Medications brochure, located to the right.