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Home (Related) > Art, Life & Entertainment (Related) Herbs as an alternative to healing
(Health & Fitness)
Originally published July 10, 2007
ByJamie Bussey (Related) Jamie Bussey
News-Post Staff
FREDERICK -- Allergies got you down? Fighting a re-occurring cold? Suffering from chronic back pain? Everyone has an ailment, but in the last few years people are turning to more than doctors for help -- they are turning to nature and, more specifically, to herbs.
"I definitely think the trend is moving more to the natural," said Tonya Nickerson, wellness manager for The Common Market. "People are tired of not knowing what's wrong with them and they want to understand and play a more active role in their well-being."
Debbie Rippeon is a client of New Market herbalist Liz Bartlett. Rippeon discovered medicinal herbs after many failed attempts to stop her hot flashes.
"I had tried several standard types of medications in order to battle hot flashes ... and was at the end of the rope," she said.
After Bartlett gave what Rippeon said was the most thorough medical history evaluation she has ever had done, Rippeon was told to try Estrologic, an all-natural herb supplement. After four weeks of taking it, Rippeon said she was symptom-free.
"As a society we have become too dependent on that quick fix. I am not saying there isn't a place for conventional medicine in society, but it could be a good working relationship if administered correctly," Rippeon said.
Kat Smith is a patient of Ryan Diener, the co-founder of the Health Holistic Association, and she uses Chinese herbs to help with anxiety and infertility.
Smith began seeing Diener in April 2006 after hearing about him from a friend. She began receiving acupuncture and Diener recommended some Chinese herbs for hormonal balance and anxiety.
"I have been taking them for a year and I can definitely tell a difference," she said.
Prior to taking the herbs, Smith had taken prescription drugs, including Zoloft and Paxil, but said nothing worked. Now she has no more palpitations caused by anxiety and feels calmer.
"I think people are becoming more educated and learning more and ... looking more to holistic approaches," she said.
Recent studies
Herbs have been around for 3,000 to 5,000 years, according to Diener, so why the public interest now?
Western culture is based on the mind-set of a scientific approach, Diener said. That means in order for something to have credibility, there should be research and studies available to prove it, and until recently very few studies had been done on the medicinal use of herbs, according to Deiner.
In October of 1991, U.S. Congress passed legislation that provided $2 million in funding to establish an office within the National Institutes of Health "to investigate and evaluate promising unconventional medical practices," according the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) website. Seven years later, NCCAM was established and today "is dedicated to exploring complementary and alternative healing practices in the context of rigorous science."
NCCAM has conducted extensive research on the use of alternative medicine, including information on the use of specific herbs, from aloe vera to echinacea.
NCCAM is not the only research source for alternative medicine. According to Nickerson, the Herbal Gram, sponsored by the American Botanical Counsel, releases a quarterly magazine containing research on herbs. Furthermore, schools have also been set up to help others study medicinal herbs and become herbalists.
Schooling in herbs
Bartlett graduated last year from the Tai Sophia Institute for the Healing Arts, located in Laurel. The institute, founded in 1975, is a graduate program that focuses on "reuniting the science of medicine and the art of healing" by integrating Eastern tradition and Western philosophy, according to the school's website.
Bartlett now holds a master's in science herbalist from Tai Sophia and has been seeing clients for two years.
"We (herbalists) don't treat or diagnose disease. We try to support healthier living, and as a result it corrects a lot of problems," Bartlett said.
When Bartlett works with a client, she determines what herbs to give him or her on a case by case basis, based on medical history, lifestyle and genetics. Bartlett also makes sure a client takes the correct amount of herbs.
"Vitamins and herbs get a bad wrap because people are self-medicating and taking too much, which can cause high toxcity," Diener said. Therefore, it is important to not only research herbs, but also consult someone when possible, he said.
"(It's) important to know what you're talking about when you start taking these things."
Bartlett agreed, stating there is a fear of herbs among some people who are not sure what it is and how it will interact with other medications one might be taking.
But "herbs have a lot to offer people in terms of health," she said.
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