Research Suggests Herbal Supplement May Shield Liver From Damage
December 2, 2009 by Personal Liberty News Desk
Certain drugs, even if they are sold over-the-counter, may cause liver damage and lead to organ transplantation, but a new study suggests a common Eastern medicine may help patients avoid that outcome.
Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine found that a molecule called S-methylmethionine (SMM), which is sold as an herbal medicine known as Vitamin U for treatment of the digestive system, can be converted into glutathione which deactivates harmful byproducts of acetaminophen and protects liver from damage.
The compound can be found in abundance in many plants, including cabbage and wheat.
"By administering SMM, which is found in every flowering plant and vegetable, we were able to prevent a lot of the drug’s toxic effect," says Dr. Gary Peltz, professor of anesthesiology at SUSM.
He added that acetaminophen overdose is a significant public health problem, especially for parents who often do not realize that it is present in a wide variety of pediatric medicines. Some studies have found severe damage can occur at even two to three times the recommended dose.
The study was published earlier this month in the online version of Genome Research.
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People often take pain killers for inflammation. I do myself at times but I prefer to use Tart Cherry Extract. It costs more than acetaminophen but that alone never worked for me. Only a combination of aspirin, caffeine and acetaminophen works on the rare occasions when I take it. Sometimes I can get by with taking six capsules or Tart Cherry Extract which being natural I much prefer to do. Of course Congress has passed laws that make it illegal for cherry growers to tell you this so you have to do your own due diligence and read up on such things. Generally there is a natural product that can do what prescribed medicines will do which is why the drug companies are trying to get the UN to make it a law that all vitamins must be prescription. They tried this in Canada last year and failed. My wife has recently tried the herb Hawthorne along with a $50 breathing exercise DVD and so far the results are as good as the prescription medicine she has been taking for years. My advice would be to be careful but learn all you can about natural and holistic medicine because when Congress finally destroys the value of the dollar in a few years medicine as we know it will be a thing of the past for a number of years. Maybe you can write them and tell them to stop their insane spending as it is going to cause catastrophic inflation in the not-to-distant future. God help us all when prices triple as a result.
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