Cannabis and its derivatives: review of medical use
Lawrence Leung
J Am Board Fam Med
2011 Jul-Aug;24(4):452-62 PubMed PMID: 21737770Cannabis sativa (Source: Wikimedia Commons user Arne Hückelheim)
In this review, Dr. Leung (Queen’s University, Ontario) updates “current knowledge and evidence of using cannabis and its derivatives with a view to the sociolegal context and perspectives for future research.”
The review covers the evidence on physical and psychiatric effects of marijuana, its analgesic potential, and the challenges medical marijuana presents to the family practitioner.
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
A review of antimalarial plants used in traditional medicine in communities in Portuguese-speaking countries: Brazil, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe and Angola
Jefferson Rocha de A Silva; Aline de S Ramos; Marta Machado; Dominique F de Moura; Zoraima Neto; Marilene M Canto-Cavalheiro; Paula Figueiredo; Virgilio E do Rosário; Ana Claudia F Amaral; Dinora Lopes
Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz
2011 Aug;106 Suppl 1:142-58 PubMed PMID: 21881769Chromolaena odorata (Source: Wikimedia Commons user Ashasathees)
Researchers from the Universidade Federal do Amazonas (Brazil), Farmanguinhos (Brazil), Universidade Nova de Lisboa (Portugal) and Instituto Oswaldo Cruz-Fiocruz (Brazil) compiled an extensive catalog of phytochemical studies of medicinal plants used to treat malaria in traditional medicine from the Comunidade dos Países de Língua Portuguesa: Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and São Tomé and Príncipe.
Their analysis indicates that seven families (Apocynaceae, Asteraceae, Cucurbitaceae, Fabaceae, Meliaceae, Myristicaceae and Pi-peraceae) have species commonly used in these countries to treat malaria. “The Euphorbiaceae, Rubiaceae and Solanaceae families are represented by botanical species used primarily within African countries. Further, there are reports of other families of plants restricted to some countries: Angola (Annonaceae and Cochlospermaceae), Guinea-Bissau (Combretaceae and Hypencaceae) and Brazil have the most references to species belonging to the seven botanical families.”
A detailed table lists the studied species, tested parts and scientific data from vitro and in vivo research.
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Researchers from the Universidad de Cartagena undertook a three-year study of ethnopharmacology and folk-medicine use among the population of the department of Bolívar on the Atlantic Coast of Colombia.
Based on interviews with more than a thousand participants, the authors identified 39 plant species used in traditional medicine for a variety of diseases, including Crescentia cujete L. (flu), Eucalyptus globulus Labill. (flu and cough), Euphorbia tithymaloides L. (inflammation), Gliricidia_sepium_(Jacq.) Kunth (pruritic ailments), Heliotropium indicum L. (intestinal parasites), Malachra alceifolia Jacq. (inflammation), Matricaria chamomilla L. (colic) Mentha sativa L. (nervousness), Momordica charantia L. (intestinal parasites), Origanum vulgare L. (earache), Plantago major L. (inflammation) and Terminalia catappa L. (inflammation).
From the Background:
“Colombia accounts for approximately 10% of the world’s biodiversity and is home to about 50,000 species of plants, of which only 119 are included in the Colombian Vademecum of Medicinal Plants. The diverse topography of the Colombian territory and the country’s wide range of climates have favored the formation of varied habitats. Despite the country’s natural richness, the status of scientific knowledge on Colombian flora is still incipient in many aspects.”
Tables index the medicinal plants by name and illnesses treated.
While shedding light on the importance of medicinal plants in Bolívar, the study also helps set the stage for new research efforts for drugs based on local uses of medicinal plants.
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Plant use in Odo-Bulu and Demaro, Bale region, Ethiopia
Rainer W Bussmann, Paul Swartzinsky, Aserat Worede & Paul Evangelista
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed
2011 Sep 24;7:28 PubMed Central: PMC3196683Map of Ethiopia highlighting the Oromia Region (Source: Wikimedia Commons User:Golbez)
The authors documented 46 species used for human medicine and 13 species used for veterinary purposes. The medicinal plants served to treat stomach problems and diarrhea, for wound treatment, as toothbrushsticks, as anthelmintics, for skin infections and to treat sore muscles.
From the Introduction:
“Plants have been an integral part of life in many indigenous communities, and Africa is no exception. Apart from providing building materials, fodder, weapons and other commodities, plants are especially important as traditional medicines. Many tribes and cultures in Africa have an elaborated plant knowledge-base. Most of this knowledge is still entirely transferred orally within the family unit or community. Western influences have, however, led to an accelerating decline of
this tradition. For example, Western style healthcare supplied by some governments has been expanded in the last decades, but it is still often not readily available and many regions remain completely underserved. Subsequently, most rural communities still use herbal remedies as readily and cheaply available alternatives. This knowledge is however, rapidly dwindling due to desired changes towards a more Western lifestyle, and the influence of modern tourism and other agents of globalization.”
The authors interviewed 12 respondents (all male, as “access to female informants was not possible”). A comprehensive table lists all plants encountered in the region, including uses and other notes.
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Ethnobotany of the Monpa ethnic group at Arunachal Pradesh, India
Nima D Namsa, Manabendra Mandal, Sumpam Tangjang & Subhash C Manda
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed
2011 Oct 14;7:31 PubMed Central: PMC3206407Arunachal Pradesh, India (Source: CC-by-sa PlaneMad/Wikimedia)
Researchers from Tezpur University, Indian Institute of Science, Mahatma Gandhi University and Jadavpur University conducted field research with members of the indigenous Kalaktang Monpa community to document “the uses of plants in traditional herbal medicine for human and veterinary ailments, and those used for dietary supplements, religious purpose, local beverage, and plants used to poison fish and wild animals.”
The first author, Nima D Namsa, grew up and belonged to the Monpa community and knows the language and some of the traditional plants used by the local people.
The team documented 50 plants species used for treating human and veterinary ailments, and highlighted several of these species, including the following:
“Gymnocladus assamicus is a critically rare and endangered species used as disinfectant for cleaning wounds and parasites like leeches and lice on livestocks…. Some of the edible plants recorded in this study were known for their treatment against high blood pressure ([Clerodendrum] colebrookianum), diabetes mellitus (Momordica charantia), and intestinal parasitic worms like round and tape worms (Lindera neesiana, Solanum etiopicum, and Solanum indicum)…. Three plant species (Derris scandens, Aesculus assamica, and Polygonum hydropiper) were frequently used to poison fish during the month of June-July every year and the underground tuber of [Aconitum ferox] is widely used in arrow poisoning to kill ferocious animals like bear, wild pigs, gaur and deer. The most frequently cited plant species; Buddleja asiatica and Hedyotis scandens were used as common growth supplements during the preparation of fermentation starter cultures.”
Tables detail the ethnobotanical uses of the plants documented in the study area, and compare indigenous plant use with pharmacological properties of reported medicinal plants.
From the conclusion:
“There was no written document of traditional healing knowledge and transmission to the future generation take place only through oral communication. The immediate and serious threat to the local medical practice in the study area seems to have come from the increasing influence of modernization, deforestation due to anthropogenic activities and migration of the younger generations to urban areas leaving a gap in the cultural beliefs and practices of indigenous society. However, there was a potential threat to the medicinal flora of the area as a result of the increasing trend of shifting cultivation (annual clearing of forest) and cultural changes signaling the need for serious efforts to create public awareness so that the appropriate measures are taken to conserve the suitable environments required to protect the medicinal plants in the natural ecosystems. More detailed ethnopharmacological investigations need to be conducted in this area particularly in regard to conservation strategies and sustainable use of medicinal plants.”
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
“Over 143 million children under the age of five in developing countries were undernourished in 2006. Food insecurity, lack of access to health care (including international food aid), and social, cultural, and economic class, all play a major role in explaining the prevalence of under-nutrition. The regions most burdened by undernutrition, (in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean) all share the ability to grow and utilize an edible plant, Moringa oleifera, commonly referred to as “The Miracle Tree”. For hundreds of years, traditional healers have prescribed different parts of M. oleifera for treatment of skin diseases, respiratory illnesses, ear and dental infections, hypertension, diabetes, cancer treatment, water purification, and have promoted its use as a nutrient dense food source. The leaves of M. oleifera have been reported to be a valuable source of both macro- and micronutrients and is now found growing within tropical and subtropical regions worldwide, congruent with the geographies where its nutritional benefits are most needed.”
The authors review the evidence for adoption of M. oleifera as a nutritional supplement in the context of the diffusion of innovations theory, which they describe as follows:
“What started as traditional practice and knowledge is being disseminated by international aid agencies, health care workers, and the private sector, to educate people around the world as a sustainable innovation to combat under-nutrition including micronutrient deficiencies. The “Diffusion of Innovations” theory explains the recent increase in M. oleifera adoption by various international organizations and certain constituencies within undernourished populations, in the same manner as it has been so useful in explaining the adoption of many of the innovative agricultural practices in the 1940-1960s. “Diffusion is the process by which an innovation is communicated through certain channels over time among the members of a social system…it is a kind of social change” (Rogers, 1983). A sigmoidal curve … illustrates the adoption process starting with innovators (traditional healers in the case of M. oleifera), who communicate and influence early adopters, (international organizations), who then broadcast over time new information on M. oleifera adoption, in the wake of which adoption rate steadily increases. To date, over 1100 people are studying, growing, using, or implementing M. oleifera programs. According to Rogers (1983), the rate of adoption and possibilities of overadoption can be predicted using five characteristics of a new innovation. In order for M. oleifera to be adopted and for its widespread use to be promoted, evidence must be provided for the following five attributes: relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, observability, and trialability.”
Reviewing the evidence under the five attributes of the diffusion of innovations theory, the authors find support for the adoption of M. oleifera as a nutritional supplement and recommend that “rigorous trials with human volunteers be carried out rapidly, and that the results, whether positive or negative, be disseminated in peer reviewed, widely accessible journals, so that they can receive the imprimatur of the world nutritional science community.”
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Ethnobotany of religious and supernatural beliefs of the Mising tribes of Assam with special reference to the ‘Dobur Uie’
Uma Kanta Sharma & Shyamanta Pegu
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed
2011 Jun 2;7:16 PubMed Central: PMC3135499The state of Assam, India (Source: CC-by-sa PlaneMad/Wikimedia)
Researchers from Dhemaji College worked with local participants to collect ethnobotanical data on plants used for medicine by the Mising people of Assam, a richly biodiverse and ethnically diverse region of northeastern India with “a great traditional knowledge base in plant resources”, as noted by the authors:
“There is no specific work done so far on the plants used by the tribal people of Assam in different religious and cultural practices. It is in this background that the present study has been undertaken, which is aimed at the documentation of the plants related with religious and cultural practices in the Dobur Uie ritual of Mising people of Assam and their conservational practices.”
In the Dobur Uie ritual, the Mising people eat medicinal plants along with their daily meal. A number of these plants (n=30) are catalogued in the article, including vernacular names, description, parts used, religious virtue, medicinal use and local status (e.g., “available”, “rare”, “very rare”). The plants are used in the treatment of common ailments like diarrhea, dysentery, indigestion, flatulence, stomach problems and liver problems.
Deforestation and over-exploitation are serious concerns, resulting in rapid depletion of many of these plants from the forest ecosystem.
From the authors’ conclusion:
“…the reducing trend of [religious and wild vegetable] plants in the forest is now becoming a serious concern for the Mising community as their cultural identity is intertwined with these plants. Domestication of religious and wild vegetable plants is a good sign for conservation point of view. Every Mising family grows some wild vegetable plants like Gomphostemma parviflora [Gomphostemma parviflorum?], Clerodendrum colebrookianum, Ficus racemosa, Sarcochlamys pulcherrima etc. in their gardens for consumption and sale. These plants can help overcome the deficiency of nutritional constituents, especially in rural areas. It is important to promote consciousness about the food habits and accept wild food plants like the cultivated ones. Thus they become conscious about conserving their surrounding plant resources…. We suggest that the traditional knowledge of the Mising people could provide useful information in finding new drugs that contribute to human welfare. So the most urgent need is to rescue and record the traditional knowledge on plants in the form of digitized database before its extinction.”
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Survey on medicinal plants and spices used in Beni-Sueif, Upper Egypt
Sameh F AbouZid and Abdelhalim A Mohamed
J Ethnobiol Ethnomed
2011 Jun 27;7:18 PubMed Central: PMC3141364
Researchers from Beni-Suef University interviewed local people to collect ethnobotanical data on plants and spices used for medicine by the community of Beni-Suef, a richly biodiverse area with a wide variety of plant species.
A recent study cited by the authors found that nearly a quarter of Egyptians use medicinal plants as remedies, in roughly equal numbers in urban and rural areas.
The authors identify 48 species of medicinal plants used by local people, including Hibiscus sabdariffa L. (cardiovascular); Trigonella foenum-graecum L. (immunological); Mentha piperita L. (gastrointestinal) and Pimpinella anisum L. (respiratory). A table lists all species, the plant parts used and ailments treated.
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Consumption of pomegranate decreases serum oxidative stress and reduces disease activity in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis: a pilot study
Alexandra Balbir-Gurman, Bianca Fuhrman, Yolanda Braun-Moscovici, Doron Markovits and Michael Aviram
Isr Med Assoc J 2011 Aug;13(8):474-9 PubMed: 21910371
“Pomegranate juice is rich in certain flavonoids (unique tannins such as punicalagin and several anthocyanins), which are potent antioxidants. Previous studies demonstrated that consumption of pomegranate juice reduced serum oxidative stress in healthy subjects, in patients with diabetes mellitus, and in patients with carotid artery stenosis. Consumption of pomegranate juice resulted in inhibition in the development of atherosclerotic plaques in the carotid arteries.
“In addition to pomegranate juice, which is mainly prepared from the pomegranate arils (the fleshy seed coverings), other parts of the pomegranate fruit were also found to have antioxidative and antiatherogenic capacities. Standardized extracts of pomegranate prepared from the red peel have been shown to possess antioxidative, anti-inflammatory and cardiovascular disease-preventing properties. Moreover, consumption of POMx was shown to reduce the incidence and severity of collagen-induced arthritis in a mouse model. We conducted a pilot study to investigate whether consumption of POMx would affect disease activity in RA patients, in relation to their serum oxidative status.”
The investigators used California-grown and processed Wonderful™ variety pomegranate (Punica granatum L) extract supplied by POM Wonderful (Los Angeles, CA, USA).
The results, as reported in the abstract:
“Six patients completed the study. POMx consumption significantly (P < 0.02) reduced the composite Disease Activity Index by 17%, which could be related mostly to a significant (P < 0.005) reduction in the tender joint count (by 62%). These results were associated with a significant (P < 0.02) reduction in serum oxidative status and a moderate but significant (P < 0.02) increase in serum high density lipoprotein-associated paraoxonase 1 activity. The addition of POMx to serum from RA patients reduced free radical-induced lipid peroxidation by up to 25%.”
While recommending additional studies with larger cohorts, the authors conclude that “The combination of POMx antioxidative properties with its anti-inflammatory and antiatherogenic profile makes POMx an attractive over-the-counter supplementation to treat patients with active joint inflammation. Our results suggest the possibility of therapeutic co-administration of POMx with conventional drugs for the treatment of active RA.”
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
Harnessing the placebo effect: the need for translational research
Luana Colloca and Franklin G. Miller
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci
2011 Jun 27;366(1572):1922-30 PubMed Central: PMC3130404
Researchers from the US National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine and National Institutes of Health provide guidance for research to guide clinicians in applying new knowledge about the placebo effect. Considering that “effects following the administration of a placebo can be due to the general psychosocial context around the therapy,” the authors review contemporary placebo and “nocebo” theories along with best evidence and clinician attitudes and patient behaviors toward placebos, and proposals to bridge the gap between mechanism-based research and clinical practice.
The article would have been even more useful if the authors had provided a clear definition of nocebo up front, beyond “placebo adverse effects” and “opposite expectations and outcomes [compared to placebo effect]”. The definition on Wikipedia is a marvel of internal contradiction: “In medicine, a nocebo (Latin for “I shall harm”) is a harmless substance that creates harmful effects in a patient who takes it.”
The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.
