Archive for November, 2011

Herbal Remedies Don’t Always Work the Same For Everyone

November 26th, 2011

If you’ve ever researched around the web, or asked your friends and family, about how different herbal remedies work… or if you’ve ever tried to find out if a certain home or herbal remedy will work for a specific problem, you’ve most likely found many conflicting opinions and results. In fact, you’re almost guaranteed to find people who say something works wonderfully, and other people who say the exact same thing didn’t help them in any way.

If you think about this though, you may realize the exact same thing happens with over-the-counter medications, and even prescription drugs too. Some people will experience great results with a specific herb, medicine, or approach to any health problem. Other people unfortunately, experienced no results at all, or they have side effects that others didn’t.

Most people don’t fully realize this, but herbal remedies and alternative medicines act in similar ways to prescription drugs. Sometimes a specific herbal remedy will work wonderfully for the purpose it was used for. Other times unfortunately, it does not seem to work at all. The reasons for this are simple everybody is different. » Read more: Herbal Remedies Don’t Always Work the Same For Everyone

A Primer on Alternative Medicine

November 26th, 2011

Alternative Medicine has been gaining popularity in the west in recent years. Frustrated with ineffective therapies or medications that cause severe side effects, many people have turned to other therapies such as acupuncture, homeopathy and herbal medicine to heal whatever ails them. Still others take herbal supplements as a preventative measure to guard against high cholesterol and heart disease. While many of these therapies can be effective, some also offer false hope in curing conditions where traditional medicine is actually more effective.

Acupuncture is a centuries old Chinese therapy used to unblock the body’s energy along points called meridians. The acupuncturist uses long, thin needles, sticking them in the skin in certain areas. The theory to acupuncture is that the body contains energy which is also called chi. When the chi is unable to flow freely, pain develops. By unblocking these areas, the chi can again flow freely and the pain subsides. Studies have shown positive results when using this therapy for nausea associated with pregnancy, chemotherapy and post surgery. It is mostly used for pain. » Read more: A Primer on Alternative Medicine