Godshaer.co.uk :: malariashield

malaria shield herbal tonic

malariashield tonic

Natural Herbal Remedy

These herbs may be made into a tonic mixture according to your specific needs if required
following an e-consultation with Herbal Practitioner Alan Hopking

HERBS FOR MALARIA

The herb commonly used in treatment of malaria and as prophylaxis in China is Artemisia annua - Sweet wormwood, annual wormwood - the Chinese name is qing hao. It seems to be effective against both chloroquine sensitive and resistant strains of Plasmodium falciparum. There is currently a great deal of research on the "active constituent" artemisinin - to derive a new class of antimalarials.

SWEET WORMWORD: This herb has outperformed certain anti-malaria drugs and is now used by the aid agencies. It is strongly anti-microbial and anti-yeast and can be used as an effective part of an anti-candida diet. Also certain cancer treatments cause excesses of yeasts to form (for example, in Leukaemia treatment) threatening the patient’s health further. Excess yeasts are even felt by some cancer experts to be one of the causes of cancer. However, in recent research Wormwood has been shown to have direct anti-cancer properties.

I would suggest trying to ensure you don't get bitten - especially since malaria is not the only disease carried by mosquitoes.
B-complex and garlic appear quite good at discouraging mossies, as do citrus scents - citronella, lemon, etc essential oils. Wearing long sleeves and trousers in the evenings, which is when mosquitoes are most active and sleeping under a mosquito net.

"I have used Artemisia annua myself regularly over the last ten years of travelling in some malaria areas. I have not caught malaria, but this doesn't prove anything, it may just be luck. I arrived in Delhi a few years ago full of malaria prophylaxis only to find myself in the middle of an outbreak of Dengue fever!"

Malaria areas and seasons. The malaria in Africa and now moving in to the Golden Triangle (Burma, Laos and Northern Thailand) is much more virulent than strains you may come across in other areas.

Avoid being bitten. There are a number of products on the market, apart from a naturopathic approach. Remember female mosquitos are DESPERATE for a feed. Try everything and anything to prevent the bites. The best ones contain DEET - this is a strong insect repellent which works. Some may not like it because it is a nasty chemical, but in perspective malaria is a killer, so risk versus benefit comes in here. Mosquito coils - again not nice, but very effective.

I never dissuade them from taking conventional malaria prophylaxis.
I have had quite a few requests for herbal anti-malarials as a back-up to prescription drugs.
A neem oil spray made and sold by a pharmacist in my area has been recommended to me by fellow practitioners who have used it for foreign travels and say it keeps the mosquitoes at bay. It is non-sticky and odourless. Azadirachta indica is an insect-repellent and anti-malarial, and for travellers to the East should be available locally.

Following recent info about efficacy of Achillea as mosquito repellant I sent a patient who has recently gone to Mexico & S. America for a year off with a trial spray of:
100ml Achillea mill. tcr
40ml Eucalyptus smithii ol
60ml Aloe vera 1:1
25gtt Rose Geranium E.O.

Malaria Falls to Herbal Remedy. New Scientist. p4. July 13th, 1996.
Orjih, A. U. Haemolysis of Plasmodium falciparum trophozoite-infected erythrocytes after artemisinin exposure. Br. J. Haematol. 92, 324-328. (1996).
Klayman, D. L. Qinghaosu (artemisinin): An antimalarial drug from China. Science 228, 1049-55 (1985).

Other herbs to be added according to the patient's need. Contact by email to get your specific herbal medicine.

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Our herbal tonic medicines are carefully prepared on a personal and individual basis for your healing by medical herbalist Alan Hopking MA MNIMH MRCHM FINEH. Only whole herbs are used in our herbal medicines. Nothing else is added. If you have symptoms which you consider might be helped with herbal medicine please contact herbal practitioner Alan Hopking for a friendly confidential professional consultation. Telphone using our freephone 0500 90 96 97.
Once you have received your herbal prescription you can contact Alan Hopking at any time for more free advice (preferably by email). When you have completed your bottle of herbal medicine and if you want a repeat prescription you are requested to phone or email so that your progress can be assessed and adjustments made if necessary so that there is no break in your treatment. To order or re-order, click here.

UK Government Dept - MHRA

General advice to consumers on the use of herbal remedies from the Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Agency

From the website of the Medicines Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (www.mhra.gov.uk) Department of Health, UK

• Remember that herbal remedies are medicines. As with any other medicine they are likely to have an effect on the body and should be used with care.
• Herbal remedies may sometimes interact with other medicines. This makes it particularly important to tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking a herbal remedy with other medicines such as prescribed medicines (those provided through your doctor or dentist).
• Treat with caution any suggestion that a herbal remedy is '100% safe' or is 'safe because it is natural'. Many plants, trees, fungi and algae can be poisonous to humans. It is worth remembering that many pharmaceuticals have been developed or derived from these sources because of the powerful compounds they contain. Any medicine, including herbal remedies, which have an effect on the body should be used with care.
• Treat with caution any herbalist or other person who supplies herbal remedies if they are unwilling or unable to provide written information, in English, listing the ingredients of the herbal remedy they are providing.
• If you are due to have a surgical operation you should always remember to tell your doctor about any herbal remedy that you are taking.
• Anyone who has previously experienced any liver complaint, or any other serious health complaint is advised not to take any herbal remedy without speaking to their doctor first.

PRECAUTIONS:

Pregnant/Breast-feeding mothers
Few conventional medicines have been established as safe to take during pregnancy and it is generally recognised that no medicine should be taken unless the benefit to the mother outweighs any possible risk to the foetus. This rule should also be applied to herbal medicinal products. However, herbal products are often promoted to the public as being “natural” and completely “safe” alternatives to conventional medicines. Some herbal ingredients that specifically should be avoided or used with caution during pregnancy. As with conventional medicines, no herbal products should be taken during pregnancy unless the benefit outweighs the potential risk.

Volatile Oils

Many herbs are traditionally reputed to be abortifacient and for some this reputation can be attributed to their volatile oil component.(6) A number of volatile oils are irritant to the genito-urinary tract if ingested and may induce uterine contractions. Herbs that contain irritant volatile oils include ground ivy, juniper, parsley, pennyroyal, sage, tansy and yarrow. Some of these oils contain the terpenoid constituent, thujone, which is known to be abortifacient. Pennyroyal oil also contains the hepatotoxic terpenoid constituent, pulegone. A case of liver failure in a woman who ingested pennyroyal oil as an abortifacient has been documented.

Uteroactivity

A stimulant or spasmolytic action on uterine muscle has been documented for some herbal ingredients including blue cohosh, burdock, fenugreek, golden seal, hawthorn, jamaica dogwood, motherwort, nettle, raspberry, and vervain. Herbal Teas Increased awareness of the harmful effects associated with excessive tea and coffee consumption has prompted many individuals to switch to herbal teas. Whilst some herbal teas may offer pleasant alternatives to tea and coffee, some contain pharmacologically active herbal ingredients, which may have unpredictable effects depending on the quantity of tea consumed and strength of the brew. Some herbal teas contain laxative herbal ingredients such as senna, frangula, and cascara. In general stimulant laxative preparations are not recommended during pregnancy and the use of unstandardised laxative preparations is particularly unsuitable. A case of hepatotoxicity in a newborn baby has been documented in which the mother consumed a herbal tea during pregnancy as an expectorant. Following analysis the herbal tea was reported to contain pyrrolizidine alkaloids which are known to be hepatotoxic.

Breast-feeding mothers

A drug substance taken by a breast-feeding mother presents a hazard if it is transferred to the breast milk in pharmacologically or toxicologically significant amounts. Limited information is available regarding the safety of conventional medicines taken during breast-feeding. Much less information exists for herbal ingredients, and generally the use of herbal remedies is not recommended during lactation.

Paediatric Use

Herbal remedies have traditionally been used to treat both adults and children. Herbal remedies may offer a milder alternative to some conventional medicines, although the suitability of a herbal remedy needs to be considered with respect to quality, safety and efficacy. Herbal remedies should be used with caution in children and medical advice should be sought if in doubt. Chamomile is a popular remedy used to treat teething pains in babies. However, chamomile is known to contain allergenic sesquiterpene lactones and should therefore be used with caution. The administration of herbal teas to children needs to be considered carefully and professional advice may be needed.

Perioperative use

The need for patients to discontinue herbal medicinal products prior to surgery has recently been proposed. The authors considered eight commonly used herbal medicinal products (echinacea, ephedra, garlic, ginkgo, ginseng, kava, St John’s Wort, valerian). On the evidence available they concluded that the potential existed for direct pharmacological effects, pharmacodynamic interactions and pharmacokinetic interactions. The need for physicians to have a clear understanding of the herbal medicinal products being used by patients and to take a detailed history was highlighted. The American Society of Anaesthesiologists (ASA) has advised patients to tell their doctor if they are taking herbal products before surgery and has reported that a number of anaesthesiologists have reported significant changes in heart rate or blood pressure in some patients who have been taking herbal medicinal products including St John’s Wort, ginkgo and ginseng. MCA is currently investigating a serious adverse reaction associated with the use of ginkgo prior to surgery. In this case, the patient who was undergoing hip replacement experienced uncontrolled bleeding thought to be related to the use of ginkgo.