Some people often resort to taking home herbs, either because they do not want to go to the doctor or because they prefer natural treatment away from the chemicals in medical drugs. Are all the herbs that are eaten at home healthy, beneficial or harmful?
There are many herbs that help in treating various diseases such as anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders, and some also treat hormonal disorders, but if something exceeds its limit, it turns into its opposite, so they say.
Experts warn against taking these herbs excessively or mixing them together without consulting a doctor.
Excessive consumption of herbs or mixing them together can cause significant harm to the liver or kidneys due to their interaction with some or with other drugs. Dr. Ihsan Ali at the Reception and Guidance Service Center in Beverly Hills confirms that anyone should consult a doctor first before mixing or taking home herbs, as not all of them are necessarily safe and beneficial.
In her interview with Reader's Digest, she also warned against not verifying the validity of these herbs and against taking herbal food supplements that are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, as they may have many potential risks and side effects.
Herbal medicine also becomes more harmful when herbs are mixed in a way that is not suitable for the body, because mixing herbs is not without defects and most herbal medicines are not suitable in all cases. It is necessary to know that there are some defects that must be taken into consideration before resorting to herbal medicines instead of modern medicine. There are many negative effects that can result, such as allergic reactions, rash, asthma, headache, dizziness, agitation, dry mouth, seizures, fatigue, tachycardia, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Severe side effects have also been reported. As in cases of hepatotoxicity (liver damage), herbal medicines may also reduce the effect of prescription drugs.
The most important herbs that should not be mixed together:
- Mixing echinacea with other herbs:
The echinacea herb is commonly used to treat infections of the throat and mouth, as well as to treat skin problems and acne. It also helps heal wounds, but many studies warn against using it with immunosuppressive medications, and people with asthma and diabetes should not use it, as it may cause many liver problems.
- Black cohosh
Many of us know the benefits of black cohosh, but several studies have announced that using it with aspirin, heparin, and warfarin increases the risk of bleeding, and when used with high blood pressure medications, it may have harmful effects on the heart.
- Cloves, fenugreek and cinnamon
These herbs are among the most important herbs that should not be mixed with each other because they may cause fetal poisoning in a pregnant woman.
Why should one not use herbalist mixtures:
1. Perfumers prepare their herbal mixtures in random ways that are not studied in terms of the proportions of herbs present in the mixture, due to their ignorance of the active and inactive ingredients in the herb, which makes these mixtures a danger to the consumer.
2. The term “natural herbs” that perfumers use to promote their mixtures does not mean that they are safe and do not cause health harm when used, or as they say, if they do not work, they do no harm. Many herbs may be toxic due to their chemical structure and cause side effects such as cirrhosis in the liver or Kidney failure, infertility or cancer also harm the digestive system and blood vessels.
3. The ignorance of perfumers in determining the shelf life of the mixture, which depends on many criteria such as temperature, humidity, light intensity, and the type of packaging, all of which may affect the active substances in the parts of the plant.
4. Apothecaries do not have the right to mix or blend herbs with other herbs, or with oils, honey, or other foodstuffs, and make medical claims on them. They also do not have the right to package herbs in pharmaceutical forms such as those sold in pharmacies, or prepare herbal medicines and use them to treat various diseases, due to their lack of qualifications in this regard. field and their inability to register them with the relevant regulatory authorities due to their inability to provide scientific studies and certificates proving the effectiveness and safety of their medicines or herbal recipes prepared in their stores.
5. Perfumers’ ignorance of the consumer’s health condition, such as the presence of an allergy to a certain type of herbs and the complications that may arise as a result of using these random mixtures.
6. Some herbal mixtures do not mention the necessary basic information about the composition, such as the name and percentage of the herbs included in the mixture, as they are considered unknown in content and source. Therefore, its danger lies in that it may contain substances that interact with some other medications that the patient is using at the same time, which poses a threat to his health.
7. Ensure the purity of the herb before purchasing, as some herbal shops do not care about good storage of herbs, such as keeping them in a cool, dry place, and do not take care, when offering them for sale, to put them in clean and appropriate consumer containers to protect them from dust, moisture, insects, and all kinds of pollution.
If you decide to use medicinal herbs, you should do the following:
Tell your doctor about all the herbs you use and make sure he approves it. Ask your pharmacist about the possibility of interactions between it and the medications you are using at the same time. Buy medicinal herbs only from trusted sources that have the necessary health permits to ensure quality and content. Make sure to ask how much you should use each time and how long you should continue taking it, and never exceed the prescribed dose.
References:
- https://www.moh.gov.bh/Blog/Article/Details/12
- https://tazkra.net/do-not-mix-herbs-together/
- https://www.almrsal.com/post/1200400
By Dr. Rowa Ezzat