another angle on AA

[Guest guest]

I want to add some additional information to the discussion of AA toxicity.

According to an article by SD available from http://www.ITMonline.org called

the Stephania controversy, AA may turn out not to be the culprit

at all. According to SD, while AA has known nephro- toxicity, the amount

of AA ingested by the subjects in the Belgian weight-loss clinic was many,

many times lower than the dosage that had demonstrated toxicity in laboratory

experiments. In addition, the patients who went on to develop kidney failure

in Belgium all ingested their Chinese herbs during a particular interval

of time. Those who started the regimen before a particular date or after

a particular date during an 18 month interval appear not to have been affected.

When one considers the dosage issue and the time interval issue regarding

the Belgian weight-loss clinic, another possible theory arises.

Since this whole controversy seems to hinge on the issue of herb distribution,

it might be worth considering that there is another aspect of herb distribution

that has perhaps gone awry. When herbs are stored improperly, they're highly

subject to growth of potentially toxic molds. Since some common molds which

grow on food products are some of the most potent toxins known to science,

perhaps we should investigate this as a potential source of the nephrotoxicity

and see if there can be any demonstration of contamination of these products

in the various places worldwide where the incidents have occurred. This

type of mold contamination could actually occur at the source and thus

be distributed to many points worldwide without detection. For an analogy,

consider peanuts. Under normal growing conditions, peanuts are highly susceptible

to a type of mold that is one of the most potent carcinogens ever discovered.

Any thoughts on this?