| mogwaii 2006-02-28, 12:54 pm |
| Dietary supplements and bird flu - the debate
By Stephen Daniells
24/02/2006 - As the bird flu grip on Europe increases by the day,
scientists have begun to publicly debate the role of nutraceuticals as
possible preventatives in the wake of news that availability of
anti-viral drugs may be "too little, too late."
At a Science Media Centre briefing on Monday 20th February, Professor
Edzard Ernst, professor of complimentary medicine at the university of
Exeter, said that there was no scientific evidence to support the
claims from natural products available on the Internet to protect
against avian flu.
The products quoted by Professor Ernst included olive leaf extract,
garlic, oregano oil, colloidal silver, aloe vera, Echinacea, and green
tea.
"Nothing works," Professor Ernst is quoted as saying in the
Guardian newspaper (February 21st). "Nothing that is within the
umbrella of complementary medicine is of demonstrable effectiveness.
Journalists ought to be very cautious when they hear this or that plant
kills something in a petri dish.
You'd be hard pushed to find a plant that doesn't have antiviral or
antibacterial effects," said Ernst.
This view was claimed to be "irresponsible and a danger to public
health," by Dr. Damien Downing, president of the British Society for
Ecological Medicine, and medical director of the Alliance for Natural
Health, an international campaign organisation dedicated to protecting
and promoting natural healthcare worldwide.
"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," said Downing.
Downing says that a significant body of research backs the evidence
that both zinc and vitamin C are essential for the immune system, but
warned that less than ten per cent of adults in the UK have sufficient
levels of zinc in their diet.
"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," added Downing.
However, Dr. Ron Cutler from the School of Biosciences at the
University of East London said that any supplement that boosted the
body's immune system was bad news in relation to avian flu.
The H5N1 virus is said to stimulate the immune system, fill the lungs
with blood and causes death.
The two main antiviral drugs targeted at bird flu, Tamiflu and Relenza,
are said to have a window of operation of between six and 48 hours from
the appearance of symptoms in humans.
The British government announced today a =A333m pound contract to two
pharmaceutical companies to produce 3.5bn doses of vaccine, and agreed
a "sleeping contract" for a further 120m doses of the vaccine.
http://www.nutraingredients.com/new...u-vitamin-c-zi=
nc
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