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Dr. Mercola
February 09 2008
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Medicinal Plants Face Extinction

rainforest, plants, medicinalOver 400 medicinal plants are at risk of extinction, according to Botanic Gardens Conservation International, largely because of over-collection and deforestation.

Since over 50 percent of prescription drugs are derived from chemicals identified in plants, researchers are concerned that potential cures could become “extinct before they are ever found.”

Among the plants most at risk are:
  • Yew tree: The bark is used to create paclitaxel, a widely used cancer drug (it takes six trees to create a single dose).
  • Hoodia: Large quantities have been harvested from drug companies looking to create an appetite suppressant/weight loss drug.
  • Magnolia: Magnolia may help fight cancer, dementia and heart disease, but over half the world’s species are threatened.
  • Autumn crocus: A natural treatment for gout and a potential treatment for leukemia, autumn crocus is at risk from over-harvesting.
Although many of the active ingredients from these at-risk plants are now created in a lab, billions of people in the developing world, who still use plant-based medicine as their primary form of health care, will be harshly impacted by their loss.

Dr. Mercola Dr. Mercola's Comments:
Nature is certainly full of powerful, potential solutions to most of your health problems. However, once these natural plants are synthesized in a laboratory and highly processed away from their associated accessory factors, they often lack many of their beneficial properties.

It is frequently incorrect to believe that we are smarter than nature and can properly isolate the “active” compound -- and assume it is equivalent to whole, unprocessed and fresh raw material.

It is especially sad that the few remaining tribal communities in the world, who still rely on truly natural plants as medicinal remedies, may have their supplies wiped out because of drug-companies’ greed.

Of course, when anything -- plant, animal, insect or otherwise -- becomes extinct, it will have far-reaching ramifications on the entire ecosystem, in ways that we probably cannot even imagine at this point.

It’s important to remember, though, that while herbs can often be helpful, and typically are not harmful (especially compared to prescription drugs), they are still frequently only addressing your health challenges on a superficial level -- and it is uncommon for them to effectively treat the cause of your health challenge.

What you really want to do is focus on finding the foundational cause of your health challenge, and address them at the causal level.

Some of the Best Medicinal Plants are Your Food!

While I am the first one to marvel at the amazing healing properties of plants found in the earth’s rainforests, deserts, and oceans, it’s not always necessary to seek out an exotic plant or herb to cure what ails you.

In fact, some of the best “cures” around are actually right in the food you eat!

You will get the most benefits not from seeking out the latest “miracle food,” but rather by sampling a variety of healthy, fresh and WHOLE foods that your body was designed to eat.

I highly recommend that you find out your nutritional type, as this allows you to pinpoint the foods that your individual biochemistry requires. In fact, this program has been one of the most profoundly effective tools I have ever encountered to help you accurately establish the optimal foods you need to improve, and sustain, your health.

By planning your meals to consist of these foods, you will be getting regular doses of vitamins, minerals, micronutrients, phytochemicals, antioxidants and more, and these things will nurture and support your body.

Medicinal plants certainly do have their place in certain circumstances (provided they are in their natural form), and I believe efforts should be taken to preserve all of them before it’s too late -- but it is still the food you eat everyday that can actively shape your health, for better or for worse.
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Community Comments ( 57 )
 		Comment on this Article
  
  
Christopher Gussa "The Herb Doc"
 [ Joined on 11/06 ] [ Posted on January 23, 2008 ]
36 Points        
   
 
Apprentice User

Sniff, sniff, What’s that? Do I smell a smokescreen?? As a clinical Herbalist and Traditional Chinese Practitioner for over 20 years with over 6,000 medicinal herbs at my finger tips and always stocking at least 500 deferent herbs in house I can tell you that The ones mentioned in this article are insignificant nothings. Further the Pharma system needs only one one source of animal, vegetable and mineral to pool all there synthetic poison garbage from and that is PATROLUM ! Bite me BBC !

As for what is done with this poison, “From Plants” the Pharma-Pigs (Owners of all the FDA approved drug patents) are allowed to walk free in their vile riches and in the blood of there victims being fully aware of these statistics while we spend billions on “The war on drugs” which is nothing more than a smokescreen for the most deadly killers of all time!

 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
Russ Bianchi
 [ Joined on 09/06 ]  [ Posted on January 23, 2008]
7 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola
The war on Big Pharma is simple and low cost, stop purchasing their products.

Read Marcia Angell, MD's, 'The Truth About The Drug Companies', if you have not.

Do I get nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize now, for saving millions lives, and having not fired a shot?

;-)

Uncle Russ
Mercola
  
pnorris_203
 [ Joined on 06/06 ]  [ Posted on January 24, 2008]
8 Points        
   
Apprentice User
  Mercola
Right on, Herb Doc.....always important to have someone remind us to not buy the hype....
Mercola
  
Activity Cures Everything
 [ Joined on 06/06 ]  [ Posted on February 8, 2008]
       
   
Novice User
  Mercola

Herb Guy! Where may I go to learn more about Herbs! Thanks! Marco@activitycureseverything.com
Mercola
  
PatriSpain
 [ Joined on 07/07 ]  [ Posted on February 9, 2008]
4 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola

Herb Doc, I certainly agree about the petroleum...

But what does your mysterious BBC comment refer to?  Just curious.
Mercola
  
Barbara M
 [ Joined on 04/07 ]  [ Posted on February 9, 2008]
       
   
Novice User
  Mercola

petrol?
Mercola
  
KSVaughan2
 [ Joined on 06/06 ]  [ Posted on February 9, 2008]
7 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola

And as an herbalist who deals with Chinese, western and Ayurvedic herbs, drawing upon similar numbers of species, I would point out that German pharmaceutical companies are strip mining old growth Black cohosh for Remifen, old growth echinacea, goldenseal and ginseng.  The roots we use for herbal medicine can be 40 or more years old, so should be sustainably cultivated instead of taken from the wild.  China leads the world in species extinction, but US growers are cultivating herbs used in Chinese medicine (and they are fresher and organic.)  There are herb companies that insist on ethical harvesting and test their herbs for pollutants and heavy metals, like Herbalist & Alchemist, HerbPharm and Gaia Herbs, so use them instead of GNC or other industry giants.
Mercola
  
phil stilliard
 [ Joined on 08/07 ]  [ Posted on February 10, 2008]
4 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola

Any plant liable to extinction should cause concern - just think, that plant may never be seen again.  Did we consider what animals rely on it?  Many animals are also near the edge.
Mercola
  
kestrelcrossings
 [ Joined on 02/08 ]  [ Posted on February 10, 2008]
3 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola

I agree that those plants are nothing compared to the ones most herbalists use (I would never use any of the ones listed in this article), but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't pay attention to losing them.  Which plants that we *do* use are disappearing right beside them?  

A great resource for this type of info, as well as a great non-profit actually doing something about preserving our herbal diversity, is United Plant Savers.  You can check them out here: http://unitedplantsavers.org/  It was started by Rosemary Gladstar, and I could never say enough about it.

I second the statement regarding Herbalist & Alchemist (David Winston has just published a fantastic resource on Adaptogens, well worth the read), HerbPharm and Gaia Herbs.  The herbs at GNC aren't worth the gas it takes to go get them.
  
  
PatriSpain
 [ Joined on 07/07 ] [ Posted on February 9, 2008 ]
14 Points        
   
 
Novice User

"and it is uncommon for them to effectively treat the cause of your health challenge"

...but if the 'health challenge is overweight, then it is OK to use Dr. M's BioThin - his description of all the herbs in it is very glowing.

I know, naughty me...just couldn't help it this morning...must be my herbal tea??   :>D

 [ Reply ]
  
  
Islander
 [ Joined on 03/07 ] [ Posted on January 22, 2008 ]
12 Points        
   
 
Moderator User
Equally disturbing is that the shamans from tribes in remote jungles or rain forests are aging, and in many cases they are dying before they can transmit their lore to a successor. The younger men who might be heir to these arts are leaving for the towns and cities, so there is no one to whom the wisdom can be passed. Ethnobotanists are racing against time and loss of culture, to bring samples back to the labs. I SO want to blame someone...but who?
 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
lively*
 [ Joined on 12/06 ]  [ Posted on January 23, 2008]
2 Points        
   
Apprentice User
  Mercola
Iskander:

Background to who's responsible: podcast #98 from the link below

http://www.podcast.net/show/89644


Who's responsible? Ultimately, it's us , waiting for somebody else to do something .


Mercola
  
Pat Ormsby
 [ Joined on 06/06 ]  [ Posted on February 9, 2008]
3 Points        
   
Savvy User
  Mercola

Islander, you might be interested in this link:  www.rainbowbody.net/Finalempire/  It provides a link to the first chapter of a book which sheds a lot of light on this subject.  After reading the book, as I see it, we are all part of an enormous Ponzi scheme (the book draws parallels with cancer), which started some 10,000 years ago when "civilization" got its start, in which, basically, the cat called "unrestrained greed" was let out of the bag.  Humans of "advanced" societies have been ruining their living environment ever since, and when one place will no longer support them, or when one form of commerce can no longer be continued, they move on and conquer some other place or find a new destructive activity.  Natives practicing sustainable lifestyles are displaced, killed or enslaved.  It is amazing this could be kept up for so long, but the whole scheme may be reaching its ultimate conclusion in our lifetimes.  There is not much any of us can do about it.  Generally speaking, you either work for it, or you are being victimized by it.  The book offers some hope by suggesting ways to return to a sustainable lifestyle when civilization can no longer support us.  Awareness may be the only hope.
Mercola
  
sarahstruth
[ Joined on 01/08 ]  [ Posted on February 9, 2008]
11 Points        
   
Novice User
  Mercola

Islander...Its Us Us Us, we are the biggest parasites on this planet, this reminds me of the film the Matrix........

As to the article, Many thanks Dr Mercola, I agree to your comments; many foods we have to hand are extremely health promoting, and it is a shame that we do not look closer to home. Instead, if we don't want the medication and the drugs, we are all urged and recommended to buy lots of very expensive supplements from exotic plants and herbs..etc etc..

all the packaging and the advice as to what we should be supplementing our body's with is in my mind begining to have the same rep' for me as the pharm-pigs--thanks Herb Doc...

We need to stick to the basics, and IF MAN MAKES IT-DON'T EAT IT..........  

big hugs Sarah.
  
  
BEaHealthy
 [ Joined on 06/06 ] [ Posted on February 9, 2008 ]
10 Points        
   
 
Novice User

I've been an avid reader,proponent and customer of Mercola for several years now.  I've often wondered why he doesn't include herbal therapies when addressing alternatives for many chronic problems.  I now have the idea that its because he knows very little about real clinical herbalism.  Let me remind the good doctor that this type of medicine was the ONLY type of medicine before the first 1/4 of the 20th century.  After that the drug companies infested the rank and file and relegated true herbal medicine to the fringes.  

I can tell you that as a professional clinical herbalist, I see mostly see people who have been through the mill of what modern medicine has become and come to me in their desperation to try something else.  Using sophisticated combinations of herbs (mostly chinese formulae), diet modifications and qigong, I have been able to attain results that not only resolve the chronic problem, but also other "stuff" that the client had become resigned to live with.

So please, Dr. Mercola, with all due respect--be carefull about being so dismissive of something of which you obviously have had little experience.  I guarantee that many of your following are themselves closet herbalists and happy to have someone like you on their side.

 [ Reply ]
Mercola
  
aemit
 [ Joined on 08/07 ]  [ Posted on February 10, 2008]
       
   
Novice User
  Mercola