Abandoned to quackery – the possible fate of herbal medicine patients

An EU Directive will soon ban herbalists and practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine from using manufactured or pre-prepared herbal medicines. Only statutorily registered professionals such as doctors will be allowed to prescribe them.

That won’t affect much of Europe where it is relatively easy to find doctors who practice herbal medicine. But that is rare in Britain. Here, herbalists and doctors have always been separate. Herbal medicine uses natural herbs either singly or in combination to treat a range of illnesses. it has no connection with homeopathy.

Now the Government is about to decide whether herbalists should be regulated in the same way as dieticians, physiotherapists and osteopaths. They are under pressure from a small but vociferous group of scientists who claim that regulation is about recognising professional status rather than protecting the public. That is absolutely wrong. If Government caves in to their demands, public health will be put at risk.

Millions of us use herbal medicine – around a quarter of the population have done so at some time in their lives and about one in twelve have consulted a herbalist.

The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health fears that many will be unwilling to give up the remedies they believe help them, and instead resort to unregulated internet retailers or bogus practitioners. There have been cases where the products they use have been found to be adulterated with unsafe, illegal pharmaceuticals – and to contain lead, mercury or arsenic.

An inquest last year heard how a 25-year old PhD student died after taking a Chinese medicine to treat a stomach upset. Although described as “herbal”, it seems it was actually a toxic pharmaceutical product manufactured from herbs. Women attending a slimming clinic in Belgium were given a medicine containing the wrong herb. More than 100 developed kidney failure and some developed cancer. In this case, it was qualified doctors who prescribed that medicine, not herbalists.

Trained, competent herbalists practise safely, not like this. But currently there is no way for the patient to establish whether a practitioner is qualified or whether the remedies used are prepared to strict quality controls.

Professor George Lewith, a doctor and medical scientist who has extensive knowledge of herbal medicine, said:

“Failing to introduce statutory regulation will amount to a Quack’s Charter. It is the incompetent and the irresponsible we need to stop. Not the well-trained, dedicated herbalists who put their patients first.

“We cannot wash our hands of responsibility for herbal medicine and the patients who use it. No-one deserves to die for no better reason than preferring herbal remedies to conventional medicine.

“Those who oppose statutory regulation should consider the needs of the public and patients first, rather than the status of medical professionals or impractical notions about so-called science.”

ENDS

Notes to editors:

1.    For media enquiries and for interviews with Professor Lewith and other experts, contact Pat Goodall, 01246 410707, 07789 871234, pat.goodall@fih.org.uk

2.    All other enquiries, please get in touch with contactus@fih.org.uk

3.    The Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health was founded by HRH The Prince of Wales in 1993. Its principal aim is to make sure that everyone can access good integrated healthcare. That means treating patients as whole human beings – paying attention to body, mind and spirit and understanding that what affects one affects all three. It may include access to proven complementary therapies, but the Foundation does not suggest that is necessarily the best course of action for all conditions and all patients. More information about the Foundation can be found at www.fih.org.uk

4.    An inquest held in March 2008 found that the death of 25 year old Ling Wang, a PhD student at Newcastle University, came about because she had taken a Chinese “herbal” remedy to treat a stomach upset and this had caused her liver and other organs to close down. It could not be established where she had obtained the medicine.

5.    The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has warned that there could be a major incident in the UK similar to that in Belgium in the mid-1990s, when more than 100 women developed kidney failure after a slimming clinic run by medically qualified doctors gave them a medicine containing the toxic herb Aristolochia. Despite a ban in many countries, including the UK, there are still problems with the accidental supply of products containing this herb.

6.    European legislation that will be implemented from April 2011 will restrict herbal medicines that can be supplied over the counter to licensed “traditional” medicines used to treat “mild and self-limiting” conditions. At the same time, it will become unlawful for anyone except statutorily regulated professionals to treat patients with any other herbal medicines, except those that a herbalist prepares personally on his/her own premises. That will lead to a massive restriction in the herbal medicines available to the public. It is this restriction that will, the Foundation fears, lead to more people obtaining herbal medicines from internet sites or practitioners who are operating illegally.

7.    Statutory regulation for herbalists has been promised by the Government since 2001. It held a public consultation in 2004 that resulted in an overwhelming response in favour. A second consultation closed last month and a final decision is imminent. With the full implementation of the EU Herbal Products Directive due April 2011, time is running out and there is a real danger that herbalists and their patients will lose many of their medicines.