Natural Cures and the Environment

Erick Reyes-Villa

Professor Stanley

English 102

May 3, 2005

Natural Cures And The Environment

"Plants have supplied humans with cures for their ailments, from relieving headaches to treating heart disease, since the time of earliest human evolution" (Sumner 15). If natural cures are the means of relieving many diseases, why do we as Americans rely on costly medicines? Not only are Natural Cures beneficial to a persons health, but they also provide a more cost efficient and environment friendly way to fixing virtually any illness.

In curing a headache a physician might suggest a painkiller such as Aspirin. According to Dr. Judith Sumner, a professor of botany at Harvard, "Americans consume about 80 million Aspirin tablets a year, but few realize that this is a medicine originally derived from willow trees" (Sumner 133). From the tree, root infusions can be made to help minimize pain, especially pain in the head. In 1736 feverish illnesses were common in the English countryside. People began to believe the tree grew there to provide cures to all those suffering from headaches or fevers. Although the willow can be used to fix head pains, it can also be used to treat blood clots thus preventing strokes and heart attacks.

The Flu is another minor ailment that can be cured by an herbal supplement. Yarrow otherwise known Achillea millefolium was mixed with warm milk to ease the symptoms of the common cold. During World War II, pharmaceutical drugs were not distributed due to curtailment of shipments. Therefore, yarrow was distributed instead. It worked just as efficiently, if not better than the prescription drugs.

Not only is there a natural cure for colds and minor diseases, but also a breakthrough in Cancer treatment has been developed. "A top European cancer research scientist, Dr. Johanna Budwig, has discovered a totally natural formula that not only protects against the development of cancer, but people all over the world who have been diagnosed with incurable cancer and sent home to die have actually been cured" (Frederic 1). Camptothecin is an herb that fights against lung, ovarian, and breast cancers. Acids in various tree barks also serve as fighters in the fight against cancer.

Besides herbs even vegetables and fruits can help prevent cancers. Apricots and grapes produce a cyanogenic glycoside that helps aid in cancer therapy. A compound sulforaphane found in broccoli, kale and brussel sprouts, "remove carcinogenic compounds from a cell's interior, before cancerous growth can begin" (Sumner 166). Lastly, soybeans help stop the progress of cancerous tumors by taking away their blood supply.

It seems as though the environment has all the answers, why then is the general population relying on costly over the counter medications and prescription drugs? "More people get colds and flus than ever before, more people get cancer than ever before, more people have heart diseases than ever before, and more people have asthma, headaches, and back pain than ever before" (Trudeau 11). However, people are receiving more surgeries, and medical treatment than ever before, and people are getting sicker than ever before in history.

The FDA and pharmaceutical companies control the medicine approved and distributed in the United States. It is up to them whether a drug is approved or not. If the FDA isn't going to benefit from the sales of a product, they will refuse to invest in it. Medical science should be getting better, but "the percentage of Americans dying of cancer today is the same as it was in 1970 and even 1950" (Trudeau 12). Over 200 billion dollars have been spent in a desperate attempt to fight cancer, but there have been little to no improvements.

Money is the driving force in the fight against cancer and other illnesses. "There can no longer be any doubt whatsoever about the FDA's true purpose. Regardless of what the agency publicly states, when it comes time to make key decisions about the safety of U.S. consumers, the FDA will side with the drug companies every time" (Adams 1). Americans spend approximately two trillion dollars per year on medicines and healthcare. However, we have more deaths