Dear Glampyre

Dear Glampyre,

I tried to post on your blog but realized that you are having some issues with that. Unfortunately, I don't have your email, so I'm hoping somehow this letter reaches you through cyberspace.

I'm glad that you are finding relief with the acupunture and herbs. As an MD, cancer researcher, and surgeon-in-training, I will have to say that allopathic medicine has neglected other methods of healing such as these, disservicing many patients in the process. However, please be careful! Many people feel that herbals or "natural" therapies are completely safe, that there are no side effects or consequences for over-using. That is not the case. Herbs have a lot of different chemicals and compounds in them, many of w hich we haven't documented or characterized, and you CAN overdose or have "drug" interactions. For example, you can acutally KILL (yourself or others) with the spice nutmeg in large quantities. First, though, you have hallucinations and psychosis, then you die. It's fairly well-documented in the scientific literature.

So, carry on, but do be conscious that "natural" does not equal "foolproof" (not that I am implying you are a fool....you get the drift, yes?). Read up, consult with pharmacists or other equally trained individuals, use prudence.

Yours,
Jaws

P.S. I highly recommend a book called "The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods" by Michael Murray, ND. It goes through things by food groups and has a section on spices and herbs. It has some neat features, such as history and old wives' tales for various foods, plus a bonafide safety section for each food. Cheers!