Patent Herbs vs. Custom Made Formulas

[Guest guest]

In relation to the online or retail store selling herbs topic.

 

Shouldn't there be a difference with patent herbs and custom made

formulas?

I think that patent herbs should be OTC and custom made formulas

should be by prescription.

We were trained as Chinese herbalists to create herbal formulas for

our patients but many of us (myself included) choose not to custom

make formulas and give them a patent.

That is fine to do but it is similar to a doctor, trained in giving

prescription drugs, but decides to give OTC drugs instead for their

headache, constipation etc.

Both can be effective, but sometimes the patient will do much better

with the prescription drug, or with the custom made herbal formula.

 

As others said, patent herbs can be as dangerous as the person who

drank too much water and died, or as overdosing on long dan. But are

they more potentially dangerous than the over the counter drugs?

Probably not. I had teaches who took patent herbs for themselves and

consumed the entire bottle of herbs in 1 day to TRY and get an effect

from it. So there are stories on both sides.

 

Like doctors who give out drugs (OTC or Prescription), I think that

patent herbs should be OTC and custom made formulas should be by

prescription.

 

It is our choice how we want to run our practice. Are doctors upset

that people can buy OTC drugs without going through them? Maybe. But

we should not be greedy and controlling like some of them and we

should establish a difference between OTC patent herbs and custom made

formulas like Western medicine does with their drugs. I think that

would be good for our practice and good for public awareness on

Chinese herbal medicine by giving them an option to choose aspirin or

Head-Q by Health Concerns for their headache in the aisle of the store.

 

I like the point that someone made that we can use this to our

advantage. By utilizing how we were trained, we custom make formulas

and that will ensure the patient comes back to us to get more of it.

 

Elie

[Guest guest]

This is an interesting idea.

For instance, Mayway does not allow non-licensed practitioners, including

students of TCM, to order custom prescriptions from their custom herbal

pharmacy.

 

OTC formulas have been around for over a thousand years,

but some formulas should be restricted to the public...

What do you think about fu zi, chuan wu, wu tuo in the hands of someone who

has no idea how to use it?

Idealistic personal liberties aside,

it is indeed unethical to allow people to hurt themselves, due to ignorance.

That's not good medicine.

In China, overdosing on fu zi is the #1 reason that people come into ER, if

it is herbal mis-use. (John Chen pharmacology interaction lecture),

so definitely, we should stop this from ever happening in the States.

All it takes is one lay person getting a heart-attack and then aconite will

most likely be banned for everyone at the expense of people who really need

it,

just like the aristolocholic acid issue in Europe.

 

Otherwise, like Attilio wrote, I think most herbs should be classified as

safe food and dietary products, as they are right now and some to be

restricted from anyone off the street to harm themselves.

What we really need is more education from all sides about what is safe for

public consumption and what should be prescribed only by licensed

physicians.

I think that is fair and ethical.

 

Isn't the new AAOM talking about this? Wasn't there an Herbal Safety

Council formed at the last meeting. Does anyone know anything about this?

k.

 

On 3/7/07, TCMdirectory.com <pokerboy729 wrote:

>

> In relation to the online or retail store selling herbs topic.

>

> Shouldn't there be a difference with patent herbs and custom made

> formulas?

> I think that patent herbs should be OTC and custom made formulas

> should be by prescription.

> We were trained as Chinese herbalists to create herbal formulas for

> our patients but many of us (myself included) choose not to custom

> make formulas and give them a patent.

> That is fine to do but it is similar to a doctor, trained in giving

> prescription drugs, but decides to give OTC drugs instead for their

> headache, constipation etc.

> Both can be effective, but sometimes the patient will do much better

> with the prescription drug, or with the custom made herbal formula.

>

> As others said, patent herbs can be as dangerous as the person who

> drank too much water and died, or as overdosing on long dan. But are

> they more potentially dangerous than the over the counter drugs?

> Probably not. I had teaches who took patent herbs for themselves and

> consumed the entire bottle of herbs in 1 day to TRY and get an effect

> from it. So there are stories on both sides.

>

> Like doctors who give out drugs (OTC or Prescription), I think that

> patent herbs should be OTC and custom made formulas should be by

> prescription.

>

> It is our choice how we want to run our practice. Are doctors upset

> that people can buy OTC drugs without going through them? Maybe. But

> we should not be greedy and controlling like some of them and we

> should establish a difference between OTC patent herbs and custom made

> formulas like Western medicine does with their drugs. I think that

> would be good for our practice and good for public awareness on

> Chinese herbal medicine by giving them an option to choose aspirin or

> Head-Q by Health Concerns for their headache in the aisle of the store.

>

> I like the point that someone made that we can use this to our

> advantage. By utilizing how we were trained, we custom make formulas

> and that will ensure the patient comes back to us to get more of it.

>

> Elie

>

>

>

 

 

 

--

'Freedom from the desire for an answer is essential to the understanding of

a problem.'

 

Jiddu Krishnamurti