According to Shari Lieberman, Ph.D., a nutritionist and nationally
recognized women's health expert "natural, non-toxic supplements such as
vitamin E, Cimicifuga racemosa, commonly known as black cohosh, soy and
lifestyle changes (diet, exercise) yield equal results in terms of
diminishing menopausal symptoms when compared to HRT." Further, the
apparent lack of side-effects made Cimicifuga racemosa "superior to all
drugs used in the studies."
Sadly, many physicians and organizations overlook optional forms of
treatment because of their bias for elaborate and expensive scientific
proof. Meanwhile, as the above study demonstrates, so-called scientific
proof is not foolproof. Benefits or harm to real people get lost in the
data. So, before we panic about how to interpret the non-results from
the cancelled study, it helps to remember that good medicine is still as
much of an art as a science.
As always, individuals seeking answers should educate themselves about
their options, including seeking advice from their own doctor. It's also
wise to remember that people are different, and that, medically
speaking, what matters is what works for you, not what the statistics
say works for others.
Enjoy this duo's work? Why not sign-up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Michael Arnold Glueck, M.D., of Newport Beach, Calif.,
writes on medical, legal, disability and mental health reform.
Robert J. Cihak, M.D., of Kirkland, Wash., is president of
the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons. Both
JWR contributors are Harvard trained diagnostic radiologists
who write numerous commentaries and articles for
newspapers, newsletters, magazines and journals nationally
and internationally.
Comment by clicking here.
08/16/02: Cooking up defenses against germ warfare
08/02/02: Medicine, crime and canines
07/26/02: Lies, pathologic lies and the Palestinians
07/19/02: Medicare Drug Follies … as in "now you see it, now you don't"
07/12/02: Anti-Profiling: A New Medically False Belief System
07/08/02: Don't procrastinate, vaccinate!
06/28/02: The scientific advances on the safe and effective deployment of DDT are being ignored, or denied. Why?
06/21/02: Sex and the system: In seeking healthcare men are different from women
06/14/02: The FDA, drug companies and life-saving drugs: Who's the fox and who's the hen now?
06/07/02: Medical Privacy Lost: A hippo on the healthcare back!
05/24/02: To clean up America's game: A (soggy) ground rule
05/10/02: Free speech is good medicine
05/03/02: Medicine's Vietnam
04/26/02: Attack on alternative medicine could lead to alternative lawsuits
04/12/02: Insure the 'crazies'?
04/09/02: No Time for Litmus Tests: In War We Need a Surgeon General and NIH, CDC, and FDA Directors
04/02/02: The scoop on soot: A dirty rotten shame?
03/22/02: Too many beautiful minds to waste: The first annual Caduceus Movie
03/15/02: Terror and transformation: Defense essential for health & state of mind
03/08/02: Diagnosis: Delusional
03/06/02: The great matzah famine
03/01/02: Is new Hippocratic Oath hypocritical?
02/15/02: Why the recent moaning about cloning?
02/08/02: Searching for Dr. Strangelove
01/15/02: Score one for the value of human life
01/04/02: Medical-legal-financial wake-up call
12/28/01: Who's afraid of a 'dirty bomb'?
12/21/01: End of medicine?
12/14/01: More heroes: Docs deserve a little credit after 9/11
11/16/01: Do we need 'Super Smallpox Saturdays'?
11/09/01: Why the post-9-11 health care debate will never be the same
11/01/01: Common sense good for our mental health
10/26/01: Your right to medical privacy --- even in terror time
10/12/01: Failed immigration policy ultimately bad for nation's mental health: Enemy within leads to epidemic of jumpy nerves
09/28/01: Can legal leopards change their spots: A treat instead of a trick
09/21/01: Civil defense again a civic duty
08/30/01: Shut down this government CAFE
08/23/01: School Bells or Jail Cells?
08/15/01: Time to take coaches to the woodshed
08/10/01: Blood, Guts & Glory: The Stem of the Stem Cell controversy
© 2002