Well, not these days, it's synthesised now, but it comes from tree bark originally. So does quinine, which is an anti-malarial.
Now, I personally think a lot of 'alternative' or complementary medicine is bunk, but I also know that a lot of the atcive ingredients in modern medicines were dervied from plants in the first place. It doesn't necessarily follow that eating the plant is better for you than popping the pill, but you can't really say 'herbal remedies only have a placebo effect' in that case, can you?
I know about the aspirin (from willow?) but honestly I think that MOST of the herbal remedies is bunk (I should have put "most" first time, soz). Without an active ingredient then it is effectively useless, but I have not seen any research into these remedies for any active ingredient, which is what I was asking for.
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robinbloke) wrote2007-02-07 02:39 pm
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Well, not these days, it's synthesised now, but it comes from tree bark originally. So does quinine, which is an anti-malarial.
Now, I personally think a lot of 'alternative' or complementary medicine is bunk, but I also know that a lot of the atcive ingredients in modern medicines were dervied from plants in the first place. It doesn't necessarily follow that eating the plant is better for you than popping the pill, but you can't really say 'herbal remedies only have a placebo effect' in that case, can you?
no subject