ANH:
Leading Doctor rebuts Professor Ernst on bird flu claims/Let Food be Thy
Medicine (TALK)
Date: 24-Feb-06
Avian
Influenza – might natural products have a role to play in a pandemic? Dr Robert Verkerk and Julia
Pendower, of the Alliance for Natural Health, review the current threat posed
by avian flu and discuss the potential of natural products to minimise and
alleviate the symptoms
http://www.i-c-m.org.uk/journal/2006/feb/a03.htm
Leading doctor
and ANH Medical Director, rebuts Professor Ernst on claims
that natural products are “worthless” for protection against bird flu
(this article
appears to have been removed)http://www.guardian.co.uk/birdflu/story/0,,1714320,00.html#article_continue
Internet
bird flu treatments 'could be dangerous'
For immediate release
24 February 2006
Leading doctor rebuts Professor Ernst on avian
influenza claims that natural products “worthless”
Dr Damien Downing,
President of the British Society for Ecological Medicine, Medical Director of
the Alliance for Natural Health, Editor of the Journal of Nutrition and
Environmental Medicine and practicing medical doctor and clinical nutritionist
said today that claims by Professor Ernst that “complementary medicine has
nothing in terms of protecting us from bird flu” were irresponsible and a
danger to public health.
Dr Downing went on
to say, “I welcomed Professor Ernst’s acknowledgement of the point made by the
Alliance for Natural Health over a month ago that genuine caution should be
exercised when using certain herbal remedies, such as Echinacea, in bird flu,
but I am amazed that Professor Ernst appears to have no knowledge of the
extensive literature on the essential nature of zinc and vitamin C, for
example, when the body is dealing with infections.”
The UK National
Diet and Nutrition Survey of 2002, showed that less than 10% of adults take in
enough zinc in their diet even by the Government’s current questionable RDA
standard, which is lagging behind the latest scientific findings on immune
system function. It is well established that zinc is essential for normal
immune functioning and that correction of zinc deficiency helps people to cope
with and recover from respiratory and other infections. This is not just
relevant to children in developing countries; studies have clearly shown this
effect on European adults of all ages.
Despite repeated
attempts to discredit it, there is also clear evidence that vitamin C is
essential for the immune system – at intake levels well above those found in
typical western diets. A systematic review of 12 studies by Hemilä
(2004), demonstrated that vitamin C supplements are capable of reducing the
risk of developing pneumonia by a staggering 80-100%. Haemorrhage is a
recognised symptom of scurvy, a disease caused by severe vitamin C
deficiency. Supplementation with vitamin C at doses higher than can be
achieved through the diet alone, will be vital in protecting against the
haemorrhage that is such an important and damaging component of human
infections by the avian flu virus.
Downing added, “Why
is Professor Ernst ignoring the extensive evidence base on the use of nutrition
to prevent and relieve viral infections? Also, when it is self-evident
that supplies of vaccines and anti-viral drugs will be too little, too late, it
is alarming that no global or national health authorities have broached the
subject of how people can support their immune system through the use of diet
and food supplements in the event of a pandemic.”
ENDS.
CONTACTS
For Dr Damien
Downing,
please contact:
Isobel Bradley,
Campaign Administrator
Tel: +44 (0)1252 371 275
Email: info@alliance-natural-health.org
Alternate
contact:
Dr Robert Verkerk,
Executive & Scientific Director
Direct tel: +44 (0)1306 646 550
Mobile/Cell: +44 (0)771 484 7225
For further
information,
including reference to peer reviewed scientific research, please contact the
Alliance For Natural Health Avian Influenza Expert Committee via tel +44
(0)1252 371 275 or email info@alliance-natural-health.org
EDITOR’S NOTES
Professor Ernst
Organisations
Research studies
___________________________________________
Date: 24-Feb-06
Please come and
visit the Alliance for Natural Health Team at Stand No 367 at
the Natural Trade Show being held at the Brighton Metropole
on 12 and 13 March 2006.
Dr Robert
Verkerk will also be giving a talk on Monday, 13 March at 13.55 to 14.40
entitled Let
Food be Thy Medicine; Using Good Science to Stay on the Right Side of
the Law. Book
here or call the Natural Products registration team on 0870
020 3464 who can book the seminar for you. A brief description of Dr Verkerk's
talk follows.
Based on media
reports and various utterings in the trade press you may have felt that the
We will have one
page Information Sheets available for you on Stand 367 on the latest
information we have relating to forthcoming legislation, and also information
on our new arm, ANH Consultancy Ltd.
Hope to see you
there.
Isobel
Bradley