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Buy a Hermes scarf — might be
better than some alternative medicines
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Virtually
every pharmacy and grocery store now routinely
stocks a wide array of vitamin and mineral supplements, and often
also has shelves full of botanicals. Botanicals are the most
recognizable and widely used complementary and alternative
medicine (CAM) treatment, according to Professor Maida Taylor,
associate clinical professor in the department of reproductive
science, obstetrics, and gynecology at the University of
California San Francisco.
Professor Taylor was a speaker at a recent conference of
Women's Health Australia. She said large "organic"
supermarkets devote metres of shelf space to "natural"
products like hair restoratives and homeopathic medicines.
"While the term herbal defines medicines made from the
herbaceous portions of plants, namely the leaves and stems,
botanical denotes foods and supplements made from any plant part
- leaves, stems, seeds, fruits, flowers, and roots," she
said.
She said different plants are used for different therapeutic
purposes, and different parts of the same plant may be used for
different complaints.
"Plants are said to provide a number of actions that might
be of importance to the reproductive systems including
estrogenic, progestational, androgenic, and anti-estrogenic
activity.
"However care is needed in assessing the evidence for their
efficacy."
There is a problem with determining the efficacy of menopause
symptom treatment in that there is a very high rate of placebo
effect.
"If my patients come in and say they have taken something
which I know doesn't work, I tell them that if they want to
be extravagant they should buy a Hermes scarf".
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"You'll get a lot more enjoyment out of it and everyone
will know where you spent your money."
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