Many Indian Herbal Medicines Found to Contain Lead, Mercury or Arsenic

Many Indian Herbal Medicines Found to Contain Lead, Mercury or Arsenic

Approximately one in five Indian herbal medicines sold over the Internet contains dangerously high levels of arsenic, lead or mercury, according to a study conducted by researchers from Boston University and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Traditional Indian herbal medicine, known as Ayurvedic medicine, has become increasingly popular in the Western world over the last few years. Research has suggested that traditional Indian herbal techniques can be helpful in treating health problems including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.

"But the key thing is we need to separate out what's helpful and ... what needs to be looked at and perhaps set aside," lead researcher Robert Saper said. "Our first priority must be the safety of the public. Herbs and supplements with high levels of lead, mercury and arsenic should not be available for sale on the Internet or elsewhere."

Saper and colleagues conducted an Internet search for Ayurvedic medicines, and purchased a random 230 out of the 673 products that turned up. They ended up receiving 193 of these, which they analyzed for levels of toxic metals.

The researchers found that 20.7 percent of the medicines tested contained toxic metals, and every one of these contained at least one such metal in quantities higher than the maximum recommended daily intake - in some cases, up to 10,000 times higher.

One tradition within Ayurvedic medicine, known as "rasa shastra," involves mixing herbs with metals, minerals and gems. Rasa shastra medicines were more than 100 percent more likely to contain toxic metals than medicines with herbs alone, and also tended to have higher concentrations of mercury and lead. While products manufactured in the United States and India were equally likely to contain toxic metals - 21.7 percent and 19.5 percent, respectively - 95 percent of the potentially toxic products were purchased from U.S. Web sites.

Sources for this story include: news.bbc.co.uk.

Study Shows High Fat Meals Cause Memory Decline

Study Shows High Fat Meals Cause Memory Decline

Heating meals high in fat can trigger and worsen the memory decline associated with Alzheimer's disease, according to a study on diabetics conducted by researchers from the Kunin-Lunenfeld Applied Research Unit at Baycrest and published in the journal Nutrition Research.

It is well known that high-fat foods can increase concentrations of free radicals in the body. These oxidizing molecules cause cell damage and are associated with various symptoms of aging, including cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease. Because diabetics are known to be particularly susceptible to chronic oxidative stress, researchers carried out a study on 16 Type 2 diabetes patients over the age of 49.

The participants were fed three different meals, one at each of three different weekly sessions. A control meal consisted of only water, while the high-fat meal consisted of a danish with cheddar cheese, yogurt and whipped cream. The third meal contained the same food as the high-fat meal, plus a 1,000 milligram tablet of vitamin C and an 800 IU tablet of vitamin E.

Vitamin C and E are antioxidants, which remove free radicals from the body.

Starting 15 minutes after the beginning of each meal, participants were tested on their ability to remember words and other information that they had heard or read, for a total of 90 minutes. Those who had eaten the high-fat meal scored significantly worse both immediately and 90 minutes after the meal than those in the water or high-fat-plus-vitamins groups.

No memory decline was observed in the vitamin group.

"Our bottom line is that consuming unhealthy meals for those with diabetes can temporarily ... worsen already underlying memory problems," lead author Michael Herman Chui said. "We've shown that antioxidant vitamins can minimize oxidative stress from the meal and reduce those immediate memory deficits."

But the researchers emphasized that people should not rely on vitamin pills to make up for unhealthy habits.

"While our study looked at the pill form of antioxidants, we would ultimately want individuals to consume healthier foods high in antioxidants, like fruits and vegetables," researcher Carol Greenwood said.

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