The Everything Guide to Herbal Remedies (14 page)
Read The Everything Guide to Herbal Remedies Online
Authors: Martha Schindler Connors
Chronic Diseases and Conditions
Herbs have been used for centuries to treat all kinds of chronic disorders, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and cancer. And while conventional medicine has arguably made enormous strides against many chronic diseases, herbal medicine remains a valuable tool in both the prevention and treatment of many of these conditions.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chronic diseases are the biggest causes of death and disability in this country. They account for 1.7 million deaths every year (that’s 70 percent of all deaths) and cause major disabilities and lifestyle limitations for another 25 million Americans (almost 10 percent of the population).
High-fat, calorie-dense foods and a sedentary existence are known causes of chronic disease. And as people in the developing world increasingly adopt this lifestyle, their rates of chronic disease are exploding. According to the World Health Organization, chronic disease, which now contributes to about 60 percent of deaths worldwide, will be responsible for nearly 75 percent by 2020.
Generally speaking, chronic diseases aren’t preventable by any vaccine, nor can they be cured by medicines. They also don’t just go away on their own. Most can be traced to either a genetic predisposition or a set of lifestyle factors—including the way you eat, exercise, and entertain yourself over the course of your life.
We know that many diseases and conditions, including heart disease, diabetes, obesity, cancer, alcoholism, and asthma, can run in families. Having a family member—especially a close relative—with a certain disease means you might have a higher chance of developing it than someone with no family history. But it doesn’t mean that you’ll definitely be affected. Genetics are only one part of the picture.
The biggest factor in most cases of chronic disease is health behavior: using (or avoiding) tobacco and alcohol, for example, or making healthy (or unhealthy) menu choices. Numerous studies have shown a clear connection between diet and chronic disease: Simply put, people who eat a plant-based diet, with more whole grains and lean protein and less red meat and processed foods, have less cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.
Chronic diseases are often associated with misguided processes within the body—normal and necessary operations that have gone awry and are creating complications that can set the stage for illness. And many herbs possess the exact constituents that are missing in someone with these problems.
A common denominator in many chronic diseases is
inflammation,
which is the body’s natural reaction to an injury or invading pathogen and is a key component of the healing process. But prolonged or chronic inflammation leads to a cycle of destruction and healing that seems to perpetuate the development of disease by interfering with immune function.
For example, people with ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory condition of the colon, are at a greater-than-average risk for colon cancer. And having a chronic inflammatory lung condition like asthma seems to increase your risk of lung cancer, even if you’re not a smoker. Many herbs are natural anti-inflammatories, meaning they can help reduce the type of ongoing inflammation that’s been associated with so many chronic diseases.
When it comes to chronic disease, small changes bring big results. For example, people who moderately reduced their blood pressure saw a 21 percent reduction in heart disease, a 37 percent drop in stroke, and a 13 percent reduction in overall mortality. Lowering your cholesterol by 10 percent can decrease your risk of heart disease by almost 30 percent.
Many chronic diseases are also associated with
oxidation,
which is a chemical reaction that occurs naturally throughout your body and in the outside world (it’s what turns metal rusty and a slice of apple brown). Through oxidation, an oxidizing agent removes electrons from another substance; this reaction can produce molecules called
free radicals,
which can damage cells. In a healthy body, free radicals are kept in check by molecules called
antioxidants.
If there aren’t enough antioxidants around, the cells can sustain oxidative damage, also known as oxidative stress, which is known to play a role in many chronic diseases.
Many herbs are powerful antioxidants, meaning they can blunt the damaging and disease-producing effects of free radicals within the body. For example, research has shown that people who consume lots of antioxidant-rich plants have lower rates of cancer and heart disease.
Cardiovascular disease, or CVD, is an umbrella term that includes disorders of the heart and/or arteries, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, angina (chest pain), myocardial infarction (heart attack), and heart failure.
The biggest risk factors for CVD are hypertension (high blood pressure), obesity, hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol and triglycerides), diabetes, cigarette smoking, and physical inactivity.
Having elevated levels of certain lipids in your blood can spell disaster for your heart. The lipids that most concern doctors are cholesterol and triglycerides.
Many experts think that your exposure to stress—and the way you deal with it—can contribute to your susceptibility to cardiovascular disease. Stress can also exacerbate other behaviors that are associated with heart disease (for example, if you’re stressed out you might overeat or smoke more than you otherwise would).
Cholesterol is a fat-like substance that your body manufactures (but also occurs in many foods). It’s made up of chemicals called
lipoproteins,
which include high-density lipoproteins (HDL) and low-density lipoproteins (LDL). HDL is “good” because it transports cholesterol out of your system. LDL is “bad” because it deposits the cholesterol on the arterial walls. Triglycerides are a different type of fat, also found in your blood and the foods you eat.
Having hypertension increases the amount of work your heart must do, causing it to thicken and become stiff, which increases the chances of heart attack and congestive heart failure. High blood pressure also ups the risk of stroke.
Because hypertension often produces no symptoms, millions of people don’t know they have it. In the vast majority of cases, doctors can’t identify the cause (this is called
primary hypertension).
But about 5 to 10 percent of cases can be traced to an underlying condition, such as kidney disease, adrenal gland problems, or a congenital heart defect.
This type of high blood pressure, termed
secondary hypertension,
typically appears suddenly and causes bigger problems than primary hypertension. Secondary hypertension can also be caused by certain medications, including birth control pills, cold remedies, decongestants, and over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers.
Conventional medicine has an arsenal of drugs for treating and preventing CVD. Hyperlipidemia is generally treated with statin drugs, such as atorvastatin (Lipitor) and rosuvastatin (Crestor), which decrease production of cholesterol by the liver; other drugs inhibit the absorption of dietary cholesterol and include ezetimibe (Zetia). These medicines can cause abdominal, back, and joint pain, among other things.
Heart disease is treated with drugs like ARBs (angiotensin receptor blockers), ACE (angiotensin converting enzyme) inhibitors, calcium channel blockers, and beta blockers. Side effects can include cough, headaches, dizziness, fatigue, and nausea.
Many edible plants and plant oils have proven heart-protecting benefits, so many doctors advise incorporating them into your diet. For example:
| • Garlic (Allium sativum) | Eating lots of garlicky foods means less heart disease. Taking garlic powder keeps arteries flexible, helps lower blood pressure, and can prevent the damaging oxidation of cholesterol. |
| • Pomegranate (Punica granatum) | There’s good evidence that drinking pomegranate juice every day can lower your blood pressure and improve other symptoms of CVD, including atherosclerosis (thickening of the arteries). |
| • Psyllium (Plantago ovata, P. psyllium) | Adding a dose of these high-fiber seeds to your diet can significantly reduce your serum cholesterol levels. |
| • Soy (Glycine max) | People who replace other dietary protein (such as red meat) with soy can reduce their cholesterol by as much as 10 percent. |
| • Tea (Camellia sinensis) | Green tea can lower cholesterol and triglycerides, and research shows that consuming three or more cups a day significantly decreases the risk of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. |
| • Rice bran (Oryza sativa) | Full-fat rice bran and rice bran oil can significantly reduce total cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides and can increase HDL. |
Smoking cigarettes puts you at two to four times the risk of developing coronary heart disease; if you’ve already got it, you’re twice as likely to suffer from sudden cardiac death. Nearly 21 percent of the adults in the United States—or 45.3 million people—are smokers.
Other herbs are used medicinally to treat heart disease. They include:
| • Danshen (Salvia miltiorrhiza) | This annual sage plant is used in China to treat CVD. Research shows it acts as a natural ACE inhibitor and works to lower blood pressure, dilate arteries, and decrease blood clotting. |
| • Goji-berry (Lycium barbarum, L. chinense) | These bright-red berries contain a chemical called beta-sitosterol, which has been shown to stop the transport of cholesterol from your gastrointestinal tract to your bloodstream. Goji-berries are also rich in antioxidants. |
| • Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna, C. oxyacantha) | This herb is a proven heart-protector. It can increase exercise tolerance, reduce cholesterol, and relieve shortness of breath in heart patients |