Natural Standard in The Scientist

Dr. Catherine Ulbricht, Founder and CEO of Natural Standard, authored a new blog for The Scientist.

Titled "Polypharmacy," the new blog discusses the recent expansion of the dietary supplement market and the pros and cons associated with these therapies. Dr. Ulbricht reviews the potential for both beneficial and harmful interactions with prescription medications, as well as side effects.

To read the full blog, please visit www.the-scientist.com.

Comments

[J Squared]

I have had the opportunity during my pharmacy school period to take this very informational class called Fundamentals of Aging that taught us how the elderly are prime targets for polypharmacy and therefore can experience many side effects due to drug-drug interactions and various other reasons. The professors taught us that once patients get to a certain age it is most important to give the medications that are essential for enhancing the quality of life, and not always focusing on the quantity or trying to prolong their life by piling on top drugs that will add more side effects and therefore compromise other aspects. I agree with others that Natural Standard is the best for finding out the information about alternative medicine information and interactions that will help patients reduce their unnecessary pill burden.

[nb]

I used to work at a pharmacy where the majority of the patient population was on Medicare and the average number of prescription medications was 12. Some patients had as little as 4 and some had as many as 35! It is no surprise that it was diffiult keeping track of all the prescription medications, let alone herbals and supplements. It is important for healthcare professionals to stay on top of the complete list to avoid polypharmacy and to ensure safe and effective health maintenance with medications and natural products.

[weezy]

I've started to realize how many patients take natural supplements and how many of them have the misconception that all these natural therapies are completely safe just because they have the word "natural" in them. It is important as a healthcare provider to be aware of the safety concerns associated with different therapies and how to recognize when there could be a potentially bad interaction. Natural Standard is a great resource for providers to turn to in order to become more knowledgeable about these therapies that don't come with a lot of information on the package.

[NA]

I appreciate this article because it discusses eye disorders, an important topic especially for pharmacists. The eye and common eye disorders aren’t extensively covered in the pharmacy curriculum. Pharmacists, however, see patients who often present with issues or complaints regarding their eyes. Though pharmacists cannot diagnose eye disorders, it is important that they are able to recognize them and know how to treat them appropriately. This article provides a good summary of common disorders that health professionals may encounter in their everyday practice.

[AO]

Polypharmacy is becoming more and more prevalent as the general population ages. But it's important to not exclude herbal and alternative remedies just because it "adds on" to a patient's medication load. Some patients actually prefer to use alternative therapies, and gladly would like more information about including them in their medication regimens. Natural Standard has great information on interactions, and monographs on so many products; I've found the information incredibly useful and easy to use.

[PCO]

Polypharmacy is a huge issue in the pharmacy world. When we think of polypharmacy we think of the use of multiple prescription medications. Often times we forget that a lot of patients are taking dietary supplements that may interact with their prescription medications. On top of this, patients have a conceived notion that dietary supplements are natural and natural products are not harmful. Health care practitioners, especially pharmacists should not overlook this matter. Patients need to be counseled on dietary supplements.

[WC]

It is so important for your physician or pharmacist to know every medicine you are taking. Many of these herbal supplements may not be thought about as “medicine”, especially if they aren’t in the form of capsules or tablets. It is weird to think of teas as medicine but they may contain the some substances that could interact with your medication; just something to keep in mind.

[HP]

Patients choosing to use alternative medicines in addition to their prescription medications is becoming more and more common. It's important for providers to learn what herbal and natural supplements patients are taking in order to check for interactions--a great tool on the Natural Standard website!

[EM]

A very time-sensitive topic to be discussed! Too many times when I've interviewed patients do they not include over-the-counter and alternative therapies in their medication list. Patients and providers should start to consider CAM agents as well as prescription medications when discussing whole health, especially with the increase in use of these therapies.

[DD]

Loved this article! Although drug/drug interactions are more potent and potentially life threatening, it is really important not to overlook the effects that natural products can have when combined with a potent drug designed for a specific purpose. Also, like Dr. Ulbricht said in the article, these interactions aren't always bad. In fact scientists who research the pharmacokinetic interactions between herbs/drugs may help us get one step closer to developing more effective drugs for different diseases.

[MD]

While its true that herbal medications and supplements can be very safe, its also true that they can come with adverse effects and drug interactions. Its especially great to see awareness about these potentially dangerous interactions being raised. Many consumers may be unaware that their prescribed medications could function inappropriately with the addition of a supplement or herbal medication. For example, many women taking oral contraceptives may be unaware that by taking St. John’s wort they are making their birth control pills less effective and could be at a greater risk for an unplanned pregnancy.

[DM]

This is awesome considering “polypharmacy” has become so common these days. Many people don’t consider herbs to be medicines and don’t look out for potential interactions with prescription medications that they are taking. Natural Standard has developed a very inclusive database that discusses not only the benefits of herbs, supplements and conventional therapies, but their potential adverse effects and interactions as well.

[Boston grad]

A quick Google search shows there are many websites that claim to be a resource for checking herb and supplement interactions. It’s important for the general public to know what criteria make a website more credible than others. A website should always list references, preferable from primary literature such as journal articles. If the literature is listed as “peer-reviewed”, it means that everything written has been reviewed and “checked” by multiple people (as is the case with Natural Standard’s database). Lastly, any website from a governmental agency (i.e. http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/dietary-supplements/herbal-information) is usually a credible source.

[FL RPh]

For patients who are looking to do some personal research on herbal supplements, I found that public access to some of Natural Standard’s database is available on the Dr. Oz website (www.doctoroz.com/videos/drug-interaction-checker). I do not recommend this to most patients because the interactions are categorized by drug or herbal class, which can be difficult to understand for the common person. As a healthcare professional, I find the website useful as a starting point because articles are always referenced in an easy to access link. Dr. Oz has a huge public following, and it’s great to see that his website has ‘legitimate’ reference tools available such as Natural Standard’s database. Herbal supplements are certainly becoming more popular and are often featured on his shows.

[MP_aka_DJDave]

The Natural Standard is a great resource that offers a variety of databases to help optimize patient health using up-to-date primary literature to ensure that its content remains evidence based. There is a plethora of natural products out there, and as the market for alternative medicines increases, so does the research/studies of these products. The qualified team at the Natural Standard assists in reviewing, organizing, and categorizing the influx of literature in order to provide individuals with a professional, concise, and dependable resource of natural products.

[Charles]

Natural Standard is a great place to check an herb against current medications to prevent harmful interactions. Their new Adverse Effects Checker will be even more of an asset to the medical community by allowing clinicians and individuals to may make safe treatment decisions using a catalog of reported negative reactions.

[GDC]

A patient’s total count of medications used or total drug load is something that must not be under looked. When it comes to consideration of total polypharmacy, all forms and nature of medication should be included. These include over-the counter medications, alternative medical therapies and recipes. It is always advisable to also find out if there are some elicit pharmacological agents that a patient might be taking that could interact with other forms of therapy. Too much of anything always leads to some sort of unwanted adverse effects