[MPWG] Reply to Rob Wolkow MD

Wolkow, Robert Robert.Wolkow at pfizer.com
Thu Jan 29 14:53:20 CST 2004


Cecelia,

Thanks for your thoughts. I really don't disagree with anything you say. I
have been merely trying to point out that not all herbs work for all the
claims that are made on their behalf and that ideally, there should be ways
and means to test the safety and efficacy of herbal remedies other than just
"they have been used for centuries"----so has alcohol and tobacco. Further,
when salutory claims are made without substantiation people are encouraged
to exploit these natural resources possibly to the detriment of both the
plants survival in the wild and their own well being if there is really a
greater risk than benefit.

Rob

-----Original Message-----
From: cecelia dalzin [mailto:cecelia at friend.ly.net]
Sent: Thursday, January 29, 2004 3:17 PM
To: PCA's Medicinal Plant Working Group List
Subject: Re: [MPWG] Reply to Rob Wolkow MD 


I have to say Mr. Hughes that I agree completely with your letter to Dr.
Wolkow and had saved his letter to respond to myself but you said it very
well. I am not a doctor and am merely a recipient of traditional medicinal
practices and know first hand to the benefits they hold. I do however
understand the concern of Dr. Walkow for guarantees. But guarantees for
medicines of both the isolated pharmaceutical variety and also the herbal
medicines of the whole plant with all its constituents are hard to give, and
herein lies the the fact that we also must bring our whole selves to our
healing process physical mental and emotional....

The whole plant gives us more than the standardized pharmaceutical because
it all works together in synergy. Also points to how only treating the
symptoms as general medicine does will always come up lacking the ability to
truly heal an individual. Really we have come a long way with both
approaches. We have learned alot and we need both. We need the hard
scientific allopathic and we need the wholistic. These are truly
complementary. I know that at this time in our history we are just begining
to recognize and accept the values offered by herbal medicine tho as you say
many have found great use from it for centuries. And that until only a few
generations ago this was our only source of medicinals and of course let us
remember that most pharmaceuticals start as the plants so there seems no
reason to remind us to respect our already proven knowledge of the benefits
of herbal medicines. These types of disagreements will eventually lead us to
sound levels of confidence and eventually we will reap the benefits of both
approaches together in our society. This may not happen very soon but it
will happen eventually. In the mean time it is most important to keep herbal
medicines available to the public as they have always been. That I would say
is my own personal concern that during these years of debates that the herbs
will be restricted and that would surely be a step backwards that would not
be in our best interest.

The way liability issues have driven our medical system this resticting
availability of herbs would only be because of that. If people take
responsibility for themselves and their own healing and use this school of
thought more and more we will have less fear on the part of doctors to
suggest patients try a natural remedy. it is up to the patient to learn how
to take responsibility for their health and the more our mindset is deveoped
in this way the healthier we will be and the stronger we will be.

I have been using and studying herbs and their benefits for almost 30 years.
The more doctors study and allow this information to be a part of their
analysis the more they will come to trust them as well. But at this time we
are dealing with the first generation of doctors to be asked by their
mainstream patients "what about herbs". When I first started to see
advertisements on tv for herbs I knew we had entered a new phase in medicine
in our country. It  will take a while to 'catch on' and many changes in the
medical community will be hard to evolve as it will be a different way of
thinking for doctors to put healing in the hands of the patient and to find
himself/herself as only part of that process. Again I say because of the
liability issues this will take some time and probably generations to
evolve. But thru the work of many people like yourself sharing your
knowledge I believe that change is inevitable. I am a positive thinker.
 

Cecelia Dalzin 

> From: Ivor Hughes <Herbworks1 at xtra.co.nz>
> Reply-To: PCA's Medicinal Plant Working Group List
> <MPWG at lists.plantconservation.org>
> Date: Fri, 30 Jan 2004 04:43:00 +1300
> To: MPWG at lists.plantconservation.org
> Subject: [MPWG] Reply to Rob Wolkow MD
> 
> I really must point out to Dr Wolkow that herbal medicine  is backed by
> many  recorded centuries ... Empiric knowledge in this respect is
> superior to scientific knowledge. If only for the reason that the usage
> has survived the march of the generations ... that which is of no use is
> abandoned. We do not need scientists to tell people something that every
> mother used to know.
> 
> If we wish to talk of quackery and guessing games and outright fraud
> then  we only have to point to the spurious clinical trials and the
> horrendous proven death toll from orthodoxy. Millions of deaths on an
> annual basis. Not one of the synthetics is safe.  The proof of that may
> be found in any dispensatory or extra pharmacopoeia.
> 
> Couple that with the diagnostic record of most of the major teaching
> hospitals and you will see that it is no better than tossing a coin
> ..... the rate is 49% correct on autopsy (Shudder)
> 
> We are currently facing a total ecological disaster (Climate change)
> this disaster has been achieved in less than 300 years and it has been
> led by science.  What is happening on a global scale is reflected in our
> specie ....  As Winston Churchill said " You can fool some of the people
> some of the time, but one cannot fool all the people, all of the time "
> That is why in developed nations informed people spend more on
> traditional medicine than they do on the dangerous scientific synthetics.
> 
> Come and sit with me on a daily basis Dr Wolkow  .... I will show you a
> stream of people who have been through the orthodox medicine mill .....
> until they are finally abandoned  (keep taking the pills) and sentenced
> to a rapidly declining health and often a painful death, if orthodox
> procedures are followed .....
> 
> Ivor Hughes
> www.herbdatanz.com
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> _______________________________________________
> MPWG mailing list
> MPWG at lists.plantconservation.org
>
http://lists.plantconservation.org/mailman/listinfo/mpwg_lists.plantconserva
ti
> on.org
> 
> Disclaimer       
> Any advice given on this list regarding diagnosis or treatments etc.
reflects
> ONLY the opinion of the individual who posts the message. The information
> contained in posts is not intended nor implied to be a substitute for
> professional medical advice relative to your specific medical condition or
> question. All medical and other healthcare information that is discussed
on
> this list should be carefully reviewed by the individual reader and their
> qualified healthcare professional. Posts do not reflect any official
opinions
> or positions of the Plant Conservation Alliance.




_______________________________________________
MPWG mailing list
MPWG at lists.plantconservation.org
http://lists.plantconservation.org/mailman/listinfo/mpwg_lists.plantconserva
tion.org

Disclaimer                                                                
Any advice given on this list regarding diagnosis or treatments etc.
reflects ONLY the opinion of the individual who posts the message. The
information contained in posts is not intended nor implied to be a
substitute for professional medical advice relative to your specific medical
condition or question. All medical and other healthcare information that is
discussed on this list should be carefully reviewed by the individual reader
and their qualified healthcare professional. Posts do not reflect any
official opinions or positions of the Plant Conservation Alliance.





More information about the MPWG mailing list