Gout, snake charmers, steroids, and crooks
In my experience, 90% of all homeopathic/ herbal medicine is crap.If all this stuff is so good for you, why does everybody who worksat health food stores look like they are dying of AIDS? I had an ex-girlfriend who was an herbalist guru, as well as my sister-in-law.Both had literally DOZENS of so-called cures for gout, which costbetween $20 and $40 a bottle, that supposedly take about 8 weeks ofuse to “work”. Bullshit. None of them work, and there is nosubstantiated evidence to prove otherwise- not only that, but thereis no information available on the long term effects of taking thisstuff. Why would a rational person turn down a single course oftreatment with steroids (with proven benefits AND risks), then leapheadlong into cramming their bodies full of UNPROVEN herbaltreatments at the recommendation of a pale hair farmer in a hempshirt who earns $5 an hour stocking shelves at “Whole Foods”????
The herbal/ homeopathic community directly accuses the medicalcommunity of deliberately endangering our health for the sake ofmonetary gain. The herbalists appear to have the “agenda” if youask me. When you tell them an herb made you sick, they tell youlies like “You’ll get sicker before you get better because it’s yourbody ridding itself of toxins”. I guess if you happen to DIE fromthe herbs, it’s your own fault for being so toxic to begin with.Lies lies lies lies lies.
Steroid treatments DO have their associated risks, but for manyindividuals (like myself) the adverse side effects seldommaterialise. I have had three different steroid treatments for nmygout over the years- Medrol, Decadron, and Prednisone. All threecompletely knocked out the inflammation within three days (and yes,the reduction of the inflammation IS a “masking” effect to a degree,but when I am in the throes of a severe gout flare-up I really don’tcare, I just want the pain gone).
If you do not effectively treat your gout, it WILL cripple andeventually kill you (directly or indirectly). Once you get gout, itonly gets worse if you do not treat it. This is proven.
So the current teatments are a little risky, but they do work.Colchicine knocks my gout right out, which is good so I can get tothe bathroom to deal with its side effects (anyone who hasexperience with the stuff knows what I mean). Allopurinol works,albeit a bit tricky to get started on sometimes. NSAIDS andsteroids do treat the inflammation and pain effectively, though younaturally do not want to take them all the time.
Sorry if this rant was a bit dogmatic, but I have wasted alot oftime and many on herbal/ homeopathic crap. I use this metaphor asan example: All you have to do is get bit by ONE poisonous snake tomake you want to avoid ALL snakes. As far as I am concerned, snakeoil vendors are all venomous. Go for what really works.
Sabina Shamel on May 1st, 2007
Impressive tirade and pretty correct. I doubt if any of thehomeopathetic remedies are actually intrinsically damaging because tobe legal they can be no more than food suppliments and therefore arerelatively harmless. They don’t do any good but they won’t hurt you.That is, if you consider not treating your real problem as nothurting you.
There is however a very real and important danger however with thehomeopethetic remedies which is that the quality control that themakers exercises is, well, you said it, likely to be put together bythat same guy who sold it to you. To meke matters worse, with aboutas much care and caution as he exerrcised the last time he washed,which certainly was not today or yesterday, or try last week.
Steroid treatment for gout does work. It works very well and for mecompletely within 24 hours, but you have to be very careful aboutthinking that because your joint does not hurt anymore that you aretherefore free to walk, jump or run on that joint. It is not true andyou can still damage yourself. Your pain is being masked and, assuch, you need to still be very careful with yourself when on steroidtreatment.
I still say, put yourself on 50 mg of allopurinol a day and watch itcarefully.Even 50 mg a day, over a long period of time, might tilt the uratebalance in your favor.
Jonas Laramore on May 1st, 2007
careful now…people get labeled quite easily around here…hehehe
Everyone one makes thier own decisions. Like you I been down that roadand have tried a bunch of “herbal” solutions, not as many as some butenough for me. Anyway, I am for once in my life grateful that I fallinto the “normal” category of people that don’t suffer adversereactions to the conventional allopurinol and colchicinetreatments(okay, does any NOT get the STS on this stuff?).
I basically do everything that would damn me to eternal hell if goutwere a religion. I do want to say that I’m very sympathetic for peoplewho can’t take allopurinol and I’m waiting with much anticipation forsome alternative drugs…who knows…some day soon I may have a badreaction to allopurinol. I want to make sure I have a paddle for mytrip up Shiite creek.
Malia Berthelette on May 1st, 2007
You are welcome to your opinion certainly, but I have to say I think you areat the very far end of the spectrum. I am very skeptical of many of thealternative medicine practitioners out there today, but am not willing to goso far as to call them all quacks or snake oil vendors.
One practice that has more credibility than other alternative practices inmy mind is herbal medicine. Many of the well accepted medicinal ingredientsof today and yesterday, have come directly from herbal remedies. Includedin this list are aspirin, colchicine, ephedrine, morphine . . . and hundredsmore. This doesn’t imply anything about any particular herbal remedy.
So great . . . perhaps there are good herbal medicines. How does thisaffect the typical gout sufferer? Not in any substantial way, I’m afraid.Gout has been a well known disease for many centuries. If there were anherbal treatment for it that was efficacious 100% of the time, wouldn’t itbe likely to be well known? After all, this is often a disease of peoplethat are fairly well off - people who have lots of money to spend onmedicines.
In the end, I have to agree with you that the herbal remedies for gout arenot particularly credible. However, a homeopath is probably just as, ormore likely, to suggest simple life changes (more water, less weight, etc.)as potential treatments for gout. Would either of them suggest thesechanges are the cure for gout? I doubt it. But should either of them becalled snake oil vendors for something like this simple advice? No.
We should give medical professionals the credit they deserve, but only ifthey deserve it. Homeopaths do not deserve to be painted as “pale hairfarmers in hemp shirts.” There are many who have MDs and subsequentspecializations in homeopathic treatments. On the other hand, why not makesure that the homeopath you see actually has credentials, just like youshould do with you medical doctor?
Terrance Molock on May 2nd, 2007
I don’t think ALL homeopath,naturopath,alternative medicalpractioners are bad..NOR are ALL their products..
HOWEVER..in ALMOST all of the above that I have come across..readabout/talked to..researched..they use the word “CURE”..and they useit BLATANTLLY!..AND in reference to gout.
NOWHERE! in ANY medical literature..ANY/ANYWHERE is theword “cure” even mentioned..OTHER than the fact that there is NO curefor gout.
I find it GLARING! to say the VERY least..that what does in effectwork..allopurinol.IS/HAS never,EVER been mentioned as a cure.ALL theproponents of allopurinol offer it up as “helps”..NOT cures.
I personally have been cut short/interrupted..sometimesRUDELY..when I have used the word “cure” in discussions withexperts.PERSONALLY I feel that allopurinol is so close to a cure thatit may as well be called one.YES I have locked horns with experts andsaid tell me this statement is NOT TRUE! “Patient x has a gout attack(s)..they take allopurinol..and have NO more problems for the rest oftheir life..are they NOT cured?”..They ALWAYS say..NO they are notcured..becaause they have to continue the treatment.Oh bigdeal..lawyeresque semantics.
If allopurinol..knowing IT’S track record for pretty much fixinggout(in 40 years) can get this rough a ride..THEN knowing snake oilsand their ABYSMAL track record(for 2,500 years)
Surely in all fairness snake oils and it’s proponents should HAVEto say..that there is “ALMOST NO CHANCE that this stuff willwork..but try it anyway.
Even on a level playing field..C’MON..we have something that works(allopurinol) and something that DOESN’T(snake oil).What works CANNOTbe called a “cure”..and VEHEMENTLLY!! especially by THOSE thatadvocate it..the medical community of ALL people.And we have whatDOESN’T work..and THEY get to use and advocate..and advertise..andCLAIM(without proof) and SPOUT OFF that theirs is a “CURE”..
Myself AND others HAVE indeed taken “cures”..did they work?OFCOURSE NOT!..Then we took what was NOT a cure..did it work?..OFCOURSE!
For 15 years 1 day a week I have attended what is basically aBiblical scholar group..there are those there that are into..ALL ofthe above..homeopath(ic),herbal,alternative medicine,snakeoil,diet,religion..YOU NAME it EVERY single type of these people aNDtheir prodcuts that exists has been at this group..some to promotetheir products..indeed there are still those there! I’m SURE they’dlike a plug for their product,websites..
I went down their STUPID!! roads..AND I use the word STUPID!!! foranything..ABSOLUTELY anything related to gout..
YES..I attended meetings with my size 8 1/2feet..hobbling,crippled,barely able to move..my feet SO swollen thatthe ONLY thing that I could wear on my feet were those HUGE felt pacboots with NO liners..NO WAY would a size 14 or 15 fit..OFTEN whatwould happen is that 1 foot would swell..SOOoo the shoe I wore..I’ldend up with the OTHER/WRONG boot on it..and the other foot barefot.. YES I have PLENTY of people that can verify this.I PAID MY GOUTDUES..hobbling in public like a leper..sometimes carrying aboot/shoe..the other foot barefoot.. ASK a friend if she wasn’t MORTIFIED..me..on an elevator with herin the morning..decent people off to work..me..1 footbarefoot..holding a boot..the other foot..maybe winter..wearing theWRONG other shoe/boot..
I DID!!!!!!!! this snake oil crap..and I DID go along with allthat EVIL allopurinol..BAD medicine routine..
THAT IS until I was literally CRIPPLED and in AGONY..AND left withno choice..
I think now pretty much ANYTHING other than allopurinol when itcomes to dealing with gout is under the heading..
From: The Rubayat Of Omar Kyam….”Their words are scattered..ANDall their mouths are stopped with DUST”..
AND..NO I don’t particularlly like snakes(I have a friend thatdoes)..BUT they gotta be given their due.Not many snake bites areaccidental..MOST are caused by improper handling/teasing/hostilitytoward them.Leave snakes alone..they won’t hurt you..leave snake oilalone..it WON’T help you..
Jonas Laramore on May 2nd, 2007
Well said.
Columbus Luthe on May 3rd, 2007
Oh, I agree with you 100%. Problem is, finding an herbalist who REALLY knows what they are talking about (and not just trying to add you to their customers list) is extremely hard if not almost impossible to do. By that same standard, I have been almost equally dismayed by the ignorance and incompetence of the medical community. At least a doctor has to pass an exam to legally practice, which certainly does not guarantee competence, but DOES serve as at least a primary filtering device for charlatans, so it improves the odds. I know far too many people who think they are herbal specialists becaue they read the literature from the herb company they signed on with as an independent sales rep- and these same people are chock full of advice and “remedies” for everything that ails you. If you want a good example of irresponsible herbal treatments you need look no further than the current enemy of the FDA, ephedra. And there are still many more dangerous herbs being recommended for use by people every day. Remember, arsenic is ”all natural” and produced by good old Mother Earth…  Just because a pill is green and not white does not mean it is better for you. Yes, my opinion is darkly colored by my own experiences with these types. It’s these same types who are currently advertising these new “Cortisol” weight loss drugs on TV that are “way too expensive” and “way too potent” for the “casual dieter”. Or the herbal “breakthrough” that will make your dick (or boobs) bigger. Same scams, new approaches. We all know better, but when you suffer you hope they’re telling you the truth because you want to believe them, and that’s when they stick it to you. I have modified an old saying to fit in with my gouty condition- “Limp tall and carry a big stick.”Â
Malia Berthelette on May 3rd, 2007
I don’t blame you at all, as I have experienced the same sort of quackery first hand with a couple of people, that I luckily questioned quite carefully to find out they had no training other than from the manufacturer of the stuff they were selling. It pays to be paranoid in business dealings sometimes huh?
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I was lucky enough some years ago to stumble upon a naturopath who began as a Family MD and then took another 4 years of specialization in naturopathy, from what appeared to be a reputable school. He was extraordinarily helpful in diagnosing a couple of food allergies that were indeed causing me problems that neither my GP nor I had much understandin of, and I should really go back and see him again.
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Anyway, as we’ve both learned, everyone should note any medical practitioner’s credentials and check to confirm that the bestowing institution is credible.