brip blap - Latest Comments in a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

Re: a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

Steve (Brip Blap) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 10:38:15 -0000

@Andy: oh, true. I should have said "foodstuffs that are advertised as organic or natural" or something along those lines.

As far as being smarter than my post, I'm not sure anyone who blithely gulps down herbal supplements believing them to be universally safe is all that smart. But I hope I'm smarter than my post. :)

Re: a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

Andy — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 09:33:39 -0000

"One day last week I learned a valuable lesson: just because something is “natural” or “organic” does not mean it is good for you. "

You're kidding, right? Strychnine is derived from the nux tree and is as 'natural' and 'organic' as the day is long. And that's just one of hundreds of compounds that are natural/organic which are 'bad for you'. C'mon bripblap, you're smarter than your post!

Re: a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

pidgeon92 — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 22:30:50 -0000

Remember that your blood pressure will rise and fall during the day for a number of reasons. Last week I had a biopsy done, and it was fine, 120/72. The next day when I went in for the results it was 170/100 (I was very nervous, but it turned out OK). You should take it daily when you are calm, and track it.

Re: a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

Mrs. Micah — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 12:11:27 -0000

Indeed. If I was taking a much stronger antidepressant I could go into a seratonin coma with too much St. John's wort. And I'm not supposed to take wine either...

I mean it's good stuff if you don't mix it with bad stuff and if you need it. But you're right, it's definitely worth being careful.

My mom always used to point out that deadly nightshade is also natural and organic.

Re: a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

deepali — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 11:10:21 -0000

Great post. Let me add something though - the problem isn't "natural" or "organic" ingredients, the problem is drug interaction. You could have had the same problem with, for example, certain types of migraine medications. The difference though is that (hopefully) your doctor wouldn't be prescribing drugs with adverse interactions. So this, of course, highlights the reasons why we should tell our doctors about ALL the things we eat and drink.

All that being said - there actually isn't very strong evidence that St. Johns Wort has an effect on blood pressure (unless you are on MAOIs). It can however, interfere with blood pressure medication. In general, St Johns Wort doesn't differ much from placebo when taken on its own, but can result in a number of interactions with other drugs.

Re: a cautionary tale about organic and natural things

SavingDiva — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 10:21:14 -0000

Ohmygoodness! I gues this just reminds us that you should always check with your doctor before taking supplements!

BTW--Trader Joe's has a great Jasmine Green Tea that is inexpensive and delicious.