Update 8/4 :We try not to practice “churnalism” here, but on occasion link to other websites with little comment. Some critics object to this practice here, and find the case made by the folks at Children’s Hospital based “sketchy reasoning” and worse. We link to their call for more analysis here and welcome additional comment.This topic is wide open for debate.
For more background, see the The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine …(NCCAM) the Federal Government’s lead agency for scientific research on the diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not generally considered part of conventional medicine.
Keeley Wray, the “technology marketing specialist” at Children’s Hospital Boston asks : Where’s the business model for “naturally derived medicinals”?
If more companies found ways to commercialize natural compounds, we might see breakthrough cures for chronic diseases. The treatments would likely be safer, since they evolved along with us and work via universal, endogenous mechanisms known to promote well-being. Advances in genetics and molecular biology put us in a position to substantially confirm and supplement (pun intended) the time-tested wisdom from Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine. While many traditional plant-based medicines are considered “dirty drugs,” hitting multiple molecular targets, modern pharmaceutical science allows us to enhance potency and reduce side effects with new delivery mechanisms and combination innovations, and to personalize treatment using responsiveness biomarkers.