Chances are if your reading this blog your interested in natural parenting too. This can mean many things and one of those things tends to be an open mind about natural medicine and health. It also tends to come with a love of research because natural parenting doesn’t tend to be “current” parenting practice at least here in America. That means we often have set out to learn about certain things ourselves. It would help though if Doctors where on our side about this, they commonly though, just are not.
In America herbs are seen as supplements and not as medicine even though they have been used as medicine far before prescription drugs where created. The FDA (Food and Drug Administration) does not approve any supplements and bans them from being advertised as any treatment for any condition. But Why? The FDA will ONLY approve a pharmaceutical synthetic concoction that has been tested using their guidelines. Though that testing is very questionable considering how many harmful things the FDA has approved that have been shown to be very harmful. The key is this is that in America one can not patent any natural made substance. So even if one does test extensively a natural substance, the FDA will not approve it unless you make it some how man created. Then it is some how ok to be advertised as a treatment. That is my understanding anyway, please feel free to let me know if I am not understanding the situation correctly.
Doctors are advertised to all the time by pharmaceutical companies, they are taken to big meals, and sometimes on vacations by them to be given a change to share information about these drugs and get the doctor to prescribe them and make them money. Other kick backs are not unheard of either. It doesn’t take much to wonder why Doctors don’t tend to know any thing about natural, traditional, medicines. There isn’t any profit in it and it isn’t their job.
So it isn’t really a shock why midwives have told me (and others) to take Evening Primrose Oil at the end of pregnancy to help in birthing, no Doctor has ever told me to use really any herbs for anything. It is not like there is not a range of evening primrose oil products available. It is just that Doctors are not educated on them and in America there is no money to be made from researching herbs.
I got to think about this today when a friend posted about her son having a red rash on his hands for weeks now and how none of the Costly doctors she has taken him to have helped him at all. However the alternative suggestion of simply putting coconut oil on his hands has done more help than any of the doctors. While this treatment will not cure what ever is causing it, at least it helps his pain and looks to be giving the family and hopefully new Doctors time to find the cause without it getting worse as the pain was getting to be overwhelming for the child and the doctors thus far had not even addressed the pain. I am glad the child is getting some relief at least.
I sometimes forget that the American medical system isn’t the only system. In most of Europe as an example herbs can be approved for medical use and prescribed as such. They even bother to test herbs for use and don’t simply dismiss them because they are not made with chemicals by man. They require evidence of safety and efficacy and some how they think many herbs pass their standards. Why is our country so closed minded? Or is it simply a medical system based on the highest profit?
Just found your blog and enjoying delving into the archives. I find myself agreeing to so much you say, I think I am definitely more than a little crunchy! I love the research that goes along with natural parenting, it gets you even deeper into the crunch.
Thank you for this article I try to go the herbal route first for the more common ailments, then, if they don’t ease up in a couple days seek out the doctor. I find that more often than not the herbs provide relief without nasty side effects of some of the prescription drugs.