The War Between Allopathy and Traditional / Plant-Based Medicine. Who’s the winner?
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You might be noticing recently more and more shelves are filled with natural medicines and herbal remedies. Even the big-box retailers are making space for these herbal remedies alongside synthetic medicines. When the first time I saw turmeric powder in pills, I was really surprised. I’m very well aware of the uses of turmeric as medicine but never thought of buying turmeric and other medicinal herbs like fenugreek, elderberry, ginger powder in pills. But this recent sudden spike clearly shows that many people have started considering natural medicines as one of the possible options to cure diseases. As a gardener, I feel hopeful that maybe because of this rising interest, the plants that once received glory as medicinal plants will not be wiped out completely from the earth so soon. More and more people will grow these plants. But why not just consume them fresh.
Allopathy medicines, on the other hand, have several side effects but at the same time, they are potent, well-researched, and rigorously tested. So we know in advance what to expect from them and be better prepared for the possible side effects. Plants contain chemicals that are called phytochemicals. Unlike synthetic medicines, the chemicals in plants are a mixture of several beneficial and anti-nutritional factors. Depending on the growing climate, local soil composition, plant variety, the time when the plant is grown in a year, fertilizers used, harvest time, post-harvest processing, and many other environmental factors like pollution, diseases, etc; the concentration of these phytochemicals in that mixture keeps changing. It is never stable like it is in allopathy medicines. Allopathy medicines are prepared from chemicals prepared in laboratories in a controlled environment. It is impossible to get the exact same concentration of medicine even from the two adjacent plants. Because just like humans, each plant is different. Isn’t it?
And I think this is the main reason why natural medicines do not receive the same reputation as allopathy medicines. If we want to use something as a medicine, then every dose of it should be able to produce the exact same effect every single time. Then only it can be trustworthy. And you can imagine how cumbersome it must be to adjust the dosage derived from natural medicine. Therefore, I believe much more research needs to be done to make sure that plant-based medicines are safe and useful for humans or the pharmaceutical companies will have to grow the plants in laboratories.
As the current pandemic situation is getting out of control in many countries, I notice that every few weeks a new herb or remedy is becoming viral. A couple of months back a remedy called “Camphor Potli” became famous to increase the oxygen level. Coincidentally, just a few weeks earlier, I had made a video on camphor plants and during my research, I couldn’t find any research on camphor increasing oxygen level. But when other essential things like vaccines, medicines are unavailable people are becoming desperate and trying such unproven medicines. It is actually very dangerous. For example, camphor has several side effects and can become quickly toxic, especially synthetic ones. I find it very difficult to believe that there are that many camphor trees available to cut down to make natural camphor. The older the camphor tree, the more potent the camphor is. Let’s take one more example. Lychees, the delicious summer fruits, look so harmless but consuming unripe lychees on an empty stomach can cause hypoglycemia, especially in small children, and was linked to a mystery disease like encephalitis. So, believe it or not, even natural medicines can have side effects and toxicity. It is understandable. If a medicine natural or not has effects then it is bound to have side effects too. Isn’t it?
When we look for proof, most research papers give references to ancient literature. It is amazing how the ancient researcher studied different plants and found their possible medicinal values. But when I look for the current research on medicinal plants, I see that the research is very limited. It is hard to find proper studies. If I find some studies they are mainly animal studies. If the ancient researchers could study the plants thousand of years back, why can’t we do it today? Now that we have advanced technology, knowledge sharing, and skills, we can use their pioneer work to do more in-depth research and enjoy the best of both worlds. Looking at the interest that people are showing in natural medicines, I feel hopeful for the future. But for now, let’s get introduced to these unexplored plants and use them in our daily diet, safely, to improve our general health rather than popping them as pills and gulping them as syrups.
