Herbs Used For Millennia Validated By Modern Science
By Rob Shaw
Influenza is a serious, sometimes fatal, illness caused by a group of related viruses that circulate in the fall and winter. Influenzas A and B have created global concern for their pandemic potential, having already resulted in over 500 million deaths in previous epidemics.
Treating influenza with pharmaceutical anti-viral agents can be problematic because the viruses mutate frequently in ways that render them resistant to drugs.
Natural antivirals may be less susceptible to resistance because they combine several virus-killing agents in one product. This also gives them the potential to be effective against more than one kind of pathogen.
V871 is a product based on the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) formula called Shuang Huang Lian (SHL). The formula was originally developed in the 1960s, making it a modern combination, although the individual herbs have been used by TCM practitioners for centuries.
The strains of influenza viruses in vaccines are selected by experts according to their expectations of what will be active in a given flu season so they change from year to year. In contrast, TCM botanical treatments are not specific for particular viral strains. Instead, they improve the immune system’s response to the infection thereby lessening symptoms such as fever and coughing. They also prevent the viruses from reproducing which shortens the duration of the illness.
SHL has been extensively studied and was specifically recommended for the treatment of influenza by the Chinese Ministry of Health for the epidemic that occurred in 2009. With SHL as its foundation, V871 is expected to provide healthcare practitioners with a safe, effective and well-tolerated natural alternative to drugs for the treatment of influenza and other serious illnesses.
GEAR UP FOR COLD AND FLU ALL YEAR LONG
The incidence of respiratory tract infections, which include those caused by rhinoviruses leading to cold, flu, sinusitis, and worse is very high. It’s surprising that some physicians still prescribe antibiotics for viruses, perhaps to treat an accompanying bacterial infection, however some antibiotic drugs have no effect on viruses. As we know, over-prescribing of antibiotics has led to resistance to many of these drugs by bacteria mutating, their natural defense mechanism, rendering the drugs useless for other more serious future infections.
Because of this, natural antimicrobials that are herbal-based, such as in V871, may be the answer. Just as the same virus may affect one person more harshly than another, a single ingredient remedy may appear to be as selective, and is why the manufacturers of V871 have incorporated several anti-viral herbs or ingredients into the formulation. A multiagent formula has an added advantage as it can be used for several types of virus and precludes the need to buy several single herb products.
V871 contains the herbs Flos lonicerae, Radix scutellariae and Fructus forsythiae. This combination of ingredients is based on a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) formula called Shuang Huang Lian (SHL). Research has shown that SHL has over 100 biologically active constituents, and there is extensive documentation to support antiviral activity in each of the medicinal ingredients in the SHL formula.
COMMENTARY BY: DR. JANET MCKENZIE, BSN, MBA, ND
- “V871, as a product based on the TCM formula called Shuang Huang Lian, is expected to provide healthcare practitioners with a safe, effective and well-tolerated alternative to pharmaceutical preparations for the treatment of acute upper respiratory tract infections and their sequelae.”
- “Viruses cause serious, sometimes fatal, illnesses. Treating them with pharmaceutical anti-viral agents can be problematic due to the frequency of mutations which render the viruses insensitive to drugs. Natural anti-virals may be less susceptible to this issue because they combine several virus-killing agents in one product. Another advantage of a multi-agent formula is that it can be used against more than one type of virus.”
SAFE AND EFFECTIVE: By Dr. Janet McKenzie, BSN, MBA, ND
Influenza is a potentially fatal illness that makes its presence known annually. While flu vaccines offer some protection, they do not always prevent contracting flu.
The herbs in the Traditional Chinese Medicine formula, Shuang Huang Lian (SHL), which is the basis for V871 have been used safely and effectively for hundreds of years on an individual basis and for decades in this specific combination. Research shows the formula constitutes a well-tolerated alternative to medications for the treatment of the flu. Moreover, because these herbs have broad spectrum antiviral and antibiotic action, they could also be used to treat other common severe respiratory illnesses such as acute bronchitis and pneumonia as well a wide range of other conditions.
One thing that makes the Traditional Chinese Medicine formula in V871 attractive from a naturopathic point of view is that it has been shown to be safe and effective for the treatment of potentially life-threatening illnesses in children as young as 6 months. Children are especially vulnerable to conditions that cause fever, such as influenza, pneumococcal diseases, and viral myocarditis. Numerous studies have found that the SHL formula reduces symptoms faster than pharmaceutical preparations and helps children recover more quickly.
Additional appealing features of this Traditional Chinese Medicine formula are its cost and availability. Antiviral agents, such as Tamiflu, are very expensive and could be cost-prohibitive for families without benefit plan coverage. When epidemics occur unexpectedly, access to antiviral medications can be limited. In 2009, Canadians were blindsided when an unexpected spike in cases of flu meant Tamiflu powder stockpiles, used mostly for children, were exhausted quickly, leaving some prescriptions unfilled
Since 2009 when the FDA banned several flu and cold remedies for children due to concerns regarding toxicity, finding safe, effective alternatives has become very challenging. Because good broad spectrum products that are well-tolerated by people of all ages are hard to find, I expect this combination will become the first line treatment for many cases of flu.
