The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

  • Recent Posts

  • Recent Comments

    Do we overhype drug-supplement interactions?

    Real and hypothetical concerns exist.

    Dr. Mark Moyad (photo), who is Director of Preventive and Alternative Medicine at the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, puts it into perspective.

    Here’s what we know.

    • Potential for adverse medication interactions
    • Where adverse potential may have been embellished
    • Potential for current or future toxicity
      • Vitamin D enjoys an impressive amount of attention and consumption.
      • It’s potential for current or future toxicity seems considerable and concerning, especially for patients seeing multiple non-communicating practitioners.

    The bottom line?

    The author concludes, “Regardless, it is important to continue to monitor dietary supplements (not just herbal products) that may have interaction and toxicity issues, and to also educate patients and clinicians on other supplements that do not have these issues despite an earlier concern and avoidance based on a minimal number of laboratory studies or case reports.”

    Here’s a summary of the risk of herbals in people with heart disease. And another broad overview of interactions.

    3/13/11 20:36 JR

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