Certain Chinese Herbs Can Cause Kidney Failure and Bladder Cancer

[Guest guest]

[but a surprisingly positive comment at the end]

 

http://altmedicine.about.com/b/a/257664.htm?nl=1

 

Certain Chinese Herbs Can Cause Kidney Failure and Bladder Cancer

 

According to a case report in the July 22 issue of The Lancet, Chinese

herbs containing the plant ingredient aristolochic acid are believed to

have been the cause of urinary bladder cancer and end-stage kidney

failure in a 30-year old London man.

 

The toxicity of aristolochic acid is well-known. After numerous

international reports of kidney failure, regulators in the United

States, Canada, Britain, and other countries have banned aristolochic

acid or issued strict warnings about it. Despite these efforts, it is

still readily available online. Our Kidney Diseases Guide Dr. Brian

Lipps has a helpful list of aristolochic acid-containing herbal pills

and ingredients to look out for:

http://kidneydiseases.about.com/od/kidneyfailure/a/herbfailure.htm

 

The accompanying editorial in The Lancet argues that "such cases provide

ammunition to doctors who abhor alternative or complementary medicine

while promulgating orthodox practice. But that position is not an

open-minded one". And although well-designed studies and better

monitoring of online stores are needed, the editorial went on to say

that "western medicine would do well to embrace the herbal

pharmacopoieas from countries such as China, with its long history of

herbal remedies".