Herb enthusiasts often do not stick to indications

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Herb enthusiasts often do not stick to indications

Mayo Clinic Proceedings, May 2007

Mon May 28, 1:09 PM ET

 

 

 

Roughly half of adults who use herbal supplements do not use them in

accordance with " evidence-based " indications, U.S. researchers

report.

 

The findings, which appear in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings for May,

stem from more than 30,000 adults who were surveyed regarding their

use of herbs.

 

The six herbs studied and their evidence-based indications were:

echinacea for upper respiratory tract infection, garlic for high

cholesterol, ginseng for mental performance/diabetes, St. John's

wort for depression, soy for high cholesterol/hot flashes, and kava-

kava for anxiety.

 

Overall, 55 percent of subjects used herbs for their appropriate

evidence-based indications, results showed. However, for most of the

herbs, evidence-based usage rates hovered around 32 percent.

 

The exceptions were ginseng, with an evidence-based usage rate of

just 3.8 percent, and echinacea, by far the most popular herb, with

a rate of 68 percent.

 

Women were more likely than men to use herbs according to their

evidence-based indication, as were college-educated individuals.

Conversely, people younger than age 60 and black persons were more

apt to herbs for things outside their evidence-based indications.

 

In a written statement, study chief Dr. Aditya Bardia, from the Mayo

Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, urges doctors, pharmacists, and

other health professionals to " proactively educate consumers and

advocate for public health policies that would disseminate evidence-

based information regarding the appropriate use of herbs. "

 

" Further research is needed to confirm the study findings and

evaluate mechanisms that enhance evidence-based use of herbal

supplements, " the authors conclude.

 

SOURCE: Mayo Clinic Proceedings, May 2007