Natural Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Safer, or Better

And “natural” medicines, contrary to what numerous may perhaps believe, are not with out facet effects. Some can even have critical security considerations.

For case in point, kava, a plant native to the islands of the South Pacific, and frequently applied as a nutritional complement for anxiety, may perhaps be affiliated with intense liver problems. Ephedra, an evergreen shrub-like plant native to central Asia and Mongolia that has been applied for centuries for colds, fever, and other disorders, is affiliated with coronary heart troubles and threat of loss of life. In 2004, the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration banned the sale of nutritional health supplements made up of ephedrine alkaloids for security factors.

Some individuals also imagine that “natural” goods are harmless mainly because they imagine these medicines are free of charge of substances.

For numerous, the term “chemical” has come to indicate poisonous or synthetic, some thing to be avoided. But every little thing is built of chemicals—the apple on your kitchen countertop, the ceramic mug in your cupboard, and even the air that you breathe. In reality, you are built up of substances, much too.