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Respitrol - anyone tried this herbal remedy?

14 Replies

Hi there,

I'm considering trying this herbal remedy for my 7 year-old daughter and wondered if anyone has any experience of it?

Thanks

14 Replies

Hi

I have seen it advertised on the internet and it ""seems"" wonderful, too good to be true. I was thinking the same as you and was wondering if anyone on the boards can advise. Have you heard of an outlet in this country - could only find american?

Carla

A quick glance at the Respiritol website does not impress me. Apparently this ""cures"" asthma. In that case, why are there bulk purchase discounts?! If it's a cure, surely you're only going to need a certain amount.

But the most telling thing is this disclaimer, tucked away in hard-to-read pale grey print at the very bottom of the page:

""FDA Required Disclaimer: The statements and products shown on this website have not been evaluated by the US Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Those seeking treatment for a specific disease should consult a qualified physician prior to using our products if possible. This product should be taken as part of a healthy lifestyle. The individuals shown are paid models compensated with free product.""

That's what you get when you don't regulate the homeopathic rememdy industry...

That is cause it's a natural remedy, it's not regulated but you know in some cases it works better. Chemicals harm not natural stuff. But before you put your daughter on it i would prolly see a natural remedy doctor just to get the backround information.

sounds like a load if rubbish really, i'd ask a GP first. It could do more harm than good.

Chemicals harm not natural stuff""

My apologies if this sounds a little blunt, but that is a somewhat blinkered and dangerous opinion to hold.

There is a great perception amongst the general public that if something is ""natural"" then it must be good and safe. Sadly, this is not the case.

There are many medications that are used in the Western world which are derived from ""natural"" sources. For years, extract of Willow Bark was used to relieves aches and pains. Nowadays, we know this extract as Aspirin. In the wrong doses and used inappropriately, it can cause stomach ulcers, ear damage and kidney damage. We use extract of foxglove in medicine as well - otherwise known as digoxin, used to control abnormal rhythms of the heart. Again, in the wrong balance, this can cause renal damage, visual problems and even cause arrythmias.

St John's Wort, widely used as a mood enhancer, can cause liver damage and interacts in a major way with many prescription drugs.

Both medications and so-called ""natural"" remedies have the potential to heal and help with a wide variety of ailments, but they both have the capacity to cause harm as well.

Anyone considering using any form of remedies is best placed to speak with their medical practitioner before doing so.

Regards,

CathBear

And I would add that before you consider putting anyone on it (though I don't know why you would want to) you need to speak to their GP, not (just) a homeopath - as Cath has mentioned, there may be known interactions between existing medications and the proposed herbal remedy.

there are lots of problems with herbal remedies- if they really worked they would be properly regulated. Many of them have serious side effects and interact with 'proper' drugs - and some even contain drugs - the treatments given for eczema a few years ago were almost all found to contain high dose steroids.

Yeah you are prolly right, but that goes as well with the normal medications, their are some nast and intese doses out there like predristone which i disagree in the use for asthma or anything for that matter. Not only it's strong side effects but its also addictive which many times its prescribed for long term use in severe asthma. So with moderation and a good sense of using them should help alot more. I've seen and experienced myself that with many drugs it actually makes your condition worse for example i've had a dependancy on nasal congestions for sinuses well i only learned after a few years that the one i use causes a rebound effect so after a while u just keep using it cause you need to. So yes see a GP and use caution

To clarify - I believe Amanda is referring to ""prednisone"", which is the North American name for prednisolone. Knowing that many people using this board rely on this drug to survive, I have to say that I can't agree with you.

The problem with your comments, Amanda, is that everything you level at drugs such as pred can just as easily be levelled at any number of herbal remedies; the difference being that the drug industry is immensely heavily regulated.

All of the side effects that a drug may have (even if only one person has ever experienced them) have, by law, to be listed in the documentation supplied with the drug.

There are formularies (the BNF being the one used in the UK) stating which drugs are to be used for which diseases, what the procedures for determining use of the drug are, what the doses are depending on age and other such factors, what the known side effects are, and what other drugs may interact in a negative way with each other. In the UK, most drugs are only available on prescription and not sold over-the-counter, adding an extra layer of protection.

None of this applies to herbal remedies.

There is nothing to stop someone going to a store and buying a toxic quantity of herbal medications and dosing up their children with them, or taking something which dangerously reacts with something else that they are taking. There is no formal list of the possible side effects of herbal remedies. There are no formally-approved recommended doses. Sites, such as the Respitrol site, can peddle whatever they like, and say whatever they like about it, and get away with it merely by adding a disclaimer in small, hard-to-spot print at the very foot of the page.

Drugs ARE dangerous. But so are homeopathic remedies if used improperly; sweeping generalisations cannot be used here.

whether it is squeezed out of a herb or synthesised in a lab it is still a chemical. and all chemicals can have effects other than the beneficial ones sought. Personally, I'd rather go with something where the side effects are known and understood, so can be pre-empted/controlled/treated. And as one of the ""side effect"" of not being able to breath through uncontrolled asthma can be death, I'm happy to stick with the pred, which i can be sure will work.

I'm well known to be a supporter of ""alternative solutions"", but this all sounds a bit too-good-to-be-true and certainly a bit risky! As far as i'm concerned, ""herbal remedies"" are what give complementary medicine a bad name. Proceed with caution!

I remember trying some herbs from a chinese herbalist once. It worked a bit like taking a reliever, but it was expensive and made my kitchen smell. It certainly didnt cure my asthma.

People are very right to be skeptical of alternatives that promise instant cures. Like owl said a few posts down, there was a recent episode where some ""herbal"" eczema cream turned out to be chock-full of steroids.

Xephos wrote:

""As far as i'm concerned, ""herbal remedies"" are what give complementary medicine a bad name.""

Absolutely spot on.

I would like to point out that I am not anti-complementary medicine! What I *am* is anti-herbal remedy propaganda.

I agree with the point about dodgy herbal remedies, but would just like to make the distinction between them & proper herbal medicine. My mum's been seeing a herbalist (Western, not Chinese) for years & it's made a huge difference to her.

helenmiller profile image
helenmiller

I was unable to find any evidence of its effectiveness in peer-reviewed journals.

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