Herbal Supplements: How Healthy are they really?
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I was at my Massage Therapists office the other day and was involved in a conversation that asked the question: Are Herbal Supplements healthy to consume? I have pondered this question for a few days and I have come up with my personal answer.
Herbal medicine has been used for several thousand years - I think originating in China. Ancient Chinese medicine uses herbs of many kinds to treat many different ailments very successfully. However I have not heard of the continued - day to day - usage of herbs as a valid treatment for anything.
Common sense tells me (and maybe I am wrong here) that herbs are used in the short term to help the body correct a problem. Once the problem is corrected then there is no more need for the Herbal treatment.
Back to the question: Are herbal supplements healthy? I think not. Supplements that are based upon a substance that our bodies are meant to consume on a daily basis would be healthier - like fruits and vegetables. What is your opinion?
Tags: ailments, ancient chinese medicine, Fruits, fruits and vegetables, health, herbal medicine, herbal supplements, herbal treatment, herbs, massage therapists, Tomatoes, Vegetables
6 People have left comments on this post
Hi Dotty,
I see you are from our sister city across the line, as I live in Vancouver BC.
I came across your question about herbal supplements and think you are wise to ask the question. Of course things are not all created equally either. I take a food supplement made from a whole puree of the mangosteen fruit called Xango. The mangosteen fruit itself has been used for centuries by folklore medicine people in Thailand and South East Asia to heal a lot of health issues; in particular gastro-intestinal issues and skin conditions. In North America we had never seen the likes of this fruit before 2003 as it is not grown in North America. Now that we have access to it, and in a natural whole fruit formula, we can benefit from its many specific phytonutrients called xanthones, unique in this quantity (over 40) in one botanical. Pomegranates have 4 xanthones to give you a frame of reference. Even all mangosteen juices are not created equal, as was studied by Dr. Vaughn Johnson in his study in 2007 (http://cplpub.com/index.html?lang=en-us&target=d52.html).
Perhaps we don’t think of supplements on a daily basis being healthy because our society in general is so accustomed to using pharmaceuticals for all that ails us. I think our body will take what it needs anyway, if we think we are sick or healthy. However, one reason to take this supplement in particular is that it offers the best antioxidant around, which, of course, we need to boost our immune system.
Thanks for posing the question.
Janice
http://www.boostyourhealth.net
http://www.4abundantsuccess.com
Supplements designed and produced in a lab may seem similar to their natural components. The molecular bonds are different and unable to be assimilated by our bodies. This is yet another cause of toxicity.
Some really great info on this site, gotta give credit to Google for helping me stumble in . It is so great to hear about what has helped everyone, I had been a little dubious about starting in on herbal supplements to help treat a few minor conditions I have been facing (those of you familiar with Evening Primrose and St John’s wort know what I mean), but after doing some research online and learning more from friends and fellow commenters…errr bloggers??, I got a suggestion to save money if I wasn’t sure about the supplements by buying online from sites like Puritan.com. I must say trying the pills for considerably less than my local retailer charges was very encouraging and helped to sway me. My point is for those of you reading this who doubt what herbal supplements can do, DON’T and if you are still unsure after paging through this site, give it a try for less by buying online from the herbal supplement products here: http://www.puritan.com/herbal-supplements-005 or another good online site. I am not partial to Purtian, it is just they always have free shipping (great now that gas is so expensive!), or buy one get one free, buy one get two free or some other good promotion. I guess I am just of the school that one needs not pay more than necessary when trying something new!
Great to read your post and your advice to use herbal product for healthy
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Hey, they really help, Herbal supplements does not have any kind of side effects also, which may threat en the users.
Some herbal supplements do have side effects and or drug interactions. There are some that are safe and others that are not - research is necessary.