I spoke last week of the patient’s experience of different health modalities being undermined as they are not scientifically proven. Scientific proof is seen as the only method that is valid to prove the effectiveness of therapy. Furthermore, randomised control trials, or RCTs are considered the gold standard in scientific medical research. An RCT measures the effectiveness of a treatment by assigning patients, randomly, to one of two (or more) arms in the trial. One arm gets the medicine, or treatment, being tested and the other gets a placebo. The groups are then followed up to see if the treatment, or drug, being tested is effective. The outcomes for each arm in the trial are assessed statistically to reduce bias. If the drug being tested is proven to be statistically significant for the treatment group, then it is seen as being a valid therapeutic intervention. This drug will then undergo further RCTs and will finally be accepted into the pharmaceutical repertoire.
I consider the randomised control trial to be very effective for drugs, but I fail to see how it can be used, in its present form, for therapies as complex as herbal medicine. It is very easy to test aspirin in an RCT as it contains one constituent, acetylsalicylic acid, and is manufactured by chemical synthesis from salicylic acid. Turning to nature, we find that the bark of the willow and poplar trees contain salicin which, when taken orally, is converted into salicylic acid by the process of digestion. However, if you take salix alba for inflammation, you will also get the other constituents present in the bark which includes polyphenols, tannins, and flavonoids. So, straightaway it is like comparing apples and oranges, with the herb starting the journey at a disadvantage.
There is another factor about herbs that need to be explored. I call this the ‘terroir’ of a herb. I have borrowed this term from the wine industry as it is vital to the development of wine. A small vineyard may have a top-notch wine due to a combination of aspects, soil, grape, and husbandry. The same holds true for a herb, or any vegetable or fruit. The reason we say a person has green fingers is because they consistently produce superb produce from their gardens. Likewise with herbs. The person who knows when, where, and what parts of a herb to pick, is more likely to pick and process a herb that will have more vitality and therapeutic potential, and this can never be measured. It is for this reason that it behooves each of us if at all possible, to grow some basic herbs in our gardens. Marigold comes to mind as it can be made into an effective cream for inflamed and irritated skin. If growing any kind of herb is out of the question, then it is important to seek out really good manufacturers of herbal products. Read the labels and if there are too many words you don’t understand, leave them on the shelf. Read the ‘about us’ section on a company’s website, to establish its environmental and sustainable credentials. It is your health, and your body needs the most wholesome product available.
Read about the insider outsider mentality in Holistic and Herbal Medicine.
