herbal medicine

8 Stories

Chimps' Chewing of Medicinal Plants Is No Fluke
Chimpanzee, Heal Thyself
NEW STUDY
Jun 21, 2024 8:38 AM CDT

Chimpanzee, Heal Thyself

Researchers describe evidence of self-medication in Uganda

(Newser) - Sick or wounded chimpanzees can't go to the doctor, per se, but they can and apparently do serve as their own. In a new study, researchers describe the medicinal properties of various plants eaten by poorly chimps in the wild, "providing some of the strongest evidence yet that...

Herbal Tea Habit Suspected in Young Man's Psychosis

The 25-year-old drank a lot of tea with St. John's wort

(Newser) - Doctors in Italy suspect that a man's herbal tea habit may have played a role in his psychosis. Specifically, the 25-year-old had been drinking four cups a day of tea made with St. John's wort, the doctors report in the Journal of Medical Case Reports . His friends brought...

Herbal Supplements: Actually Rice, Weeds
 Herbal Supplements: 
 Actually Rice, Weeds 
in case you missed it
Nov 9, 2013 6:59 AM CST

Herbal Supplements: Actually Rice, Weeds

DNA tests reveal dilution, substitution

(Newser) - Tests to determine what's really in popular herbal supplements found a key ingredient is often missing: herbs. Researchers conducted DNA tests on 44 bottles of the remedies sold by 12 companies and found that around a third contained no trace at all of the healing herb they were supposed...

Study: Most Herbal Supplements Contaminated

Crackdown unlikely to make it into food safety bill

(Newser) - Herbal supplements are often contaminated with pesticides and heavy metals, and sellers are prone to making illegal claims about their health benefits, a congressional study has found. Almost all 40 dietary supplements tested had trace amounts of contaminants like lead and mercury, and 16 of the samples contained pesticide residues...

Illegal Workers Must Rely on Healers, Home Remedies

Farm workers without health care shun doctors, hospitals

(Newser) - Faced with high medical costs and fearing deportation, many illegal immigrants avoid doctors and instead seek their cures among traditional healers, the New York Times reports. With an estimated two-thirds of illegal immigrants uninsured, visits to a doctor are often reserved for emergencies. Instead, the immigrants—most of whom toil...

Cold 'Remedy' Firm Settles Suit for $23M

Airborne ends class action with promise of consumer refunds

(Newser) - Herbal supplement company Airborne will pay $23.3 million to settle a class-action suit alleging false advertising but won't say it did anything wrong, CNNMoney reports. At issue was the company's claim its pills could cure colds. Airborne denies “any wrongdoing or illegal conduct,” but it will give...

Top 10 Aphrodisiacs—for Real?
Top 10 Aphrodisiacs—for Real?
Jan 19, 2008 8:20 AM CST

Top 10 Aphrodisiacs—for Real?

Respect works better than Spanish Fly and African tree bark, LiveScience reports

(Newser) - Most aphrodisiacs are pure bunk, but it's fun to read about tonics that have beguiled lovers for centuries—and look at a few that may actually work. LiveScience lists its top 10:
  1. Respect. Dr. Ruth talks about the feeling that sparks all meaningful relationships, and makes for good sex too.
...

Herbal Remedies Won't Compete at Beijing Games

Officials stress that athletes taking traditional medicines aren't doping

(Newser) - Chinese herbal medicines bear no resemblance to banned substances, say Beijing Olympics officials, but just in case, athletes won’t use them. "We know there is no relationship with doping and Chinese traditional medicine,” says one doctor, but because the remedies have not been used in previous Games,...

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