Astragalus Side Effects

admin — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 17:25:05 +0000

What Are The Possible Side Effects Or Complications with Astragalus?

Astragalus is marketed and sold as a health supplement in North America and so distinctly different from pharmaceutical brand medications [which require stringent testing before they hit the market] it does not need to acquire Federal approval from the FDA that is evidence that is both safe and effective. This on the condition they do not make any wild claims the astragalus product is found to cure certain specific diseases.

There is no guarantee that you will be getting what you pay for or what is actually printed on the packaging and there is always the risk of unwanted material mixed into the formula. You may not receive accurate dosage requirements and genuine quantities per dose may also be exaggerated or non-existent.

Many of these supplements lack the research data to determine whether there are any adverse reactions or contraindications with certain foods, conventional medications or similar herbs and health supplements. There are some papers published regarding these side effects and reactions but they are far from thorough. When a drug is approved federally by the FDA there are copious amounts of research results and testing data available to determine patient risk and benefit ratios. In the case of astragalus there is limited evidence and deficient reporting about these interactions and adverse health effects so caution is the rule.

Overall astragalus is thought to be relatively safe with few side effects being reported. Symptoms documented to this point consist of bloating in the stomach region, loose stools, low blood pressure, and dehydration. If you are afflicted with an autoimmune illness you should avoid astragalus until you speak to your physician. There are fears that astragalus could interfere with blood clotting and anyone consuming blood-thinning meds should be careful. Certainly before taking any herbal remedy you should discuss potential risks with your doctor and astragalus is no different.

Astragalus has actually been documented as lowering blood sugar levels in some individuals, which is bad news if you are a diabetic or suffer from hypoglycemia. There is always the potential to have an adverse reaction when combining herbs and conventional medications, some of which can be extremely dangerous. Though reactions are uncommon, be sure to speak to either your pharmacist or physician, preferably both, before commencing on a herbal health regimen if you are currently taking additional meds for an illness.

Play it safe and speak to an expert about your plans for astragalus and your health routine. It may well be safe for you but why risk it? Anyone with an illness that includes bleeding should avoid astragalus as should anyone preparing for surgery, stay away from it for two weeks leading up to the date of surgery. There is little if any information regarding the safety of astragalus and pregnant women or nursing mothers, until more research is completed they would be advised to avoid it.

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Astragalus as a Treatment for HIV

admin — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 17:07:07 +0000

Astragalus as a Treatment for HIV

The astragalus root has recently been discovered as a major breakthrough as an alternative treatment in HIV/AIDS patients, as noted by researchers at the UCLA AIDs Institute. It offers both a natural and cost effective method to treat this disease. Many patients have limited results when being treated with HIV/AIDS drugs and these drugs can be very expensive.

In Asia, the Chinese use the astragalus root in the treatment of heart disease, diarrhea, and the immune system. As cells age, they lose their ability to divide and lose their disease fighting capabilities. Thus, the immune system is compromised. The astragalus root has shown success in curbing the development of telomere, which is the area in the rear of each chromosome cell, and it contains the repeated DNA series without genes; hence the telomeres instead protect the chromosome ends from becoming fused as one.
Of the 50 most utilized herbs in ancient Chinese remedies, astragalus is the most prolifically used of any of them. It is usually boiled in water or the roots used in soups and it has properties proven to improve human immunity to disease, so much so that it has raised the hopes of many researchers worldwide. There is optimism in the ranks of HIV research because of the capacity to augment telomerase action as well as the antivirus utility of CD8T-lymphocytes that leads researchers to believe a useful stratagem for treating HIV virus could be in expected or perhaps likely in the future.

Cell aging reduces the capability of cell division due to the telomere portion of the chromosome reducing regularly during cell separation. The consequence of this is the many variations of divided cells and the immunity potential then becomes suspect and even negated. When the cell can’t divide any longer this is known as replicative senescence and may appear that the cell has reached its end, though this is not the case, since the cell has simply morphed into a cell with fresh genetic and well-designed uniqueness.

Massive amounts of cell separation is required in the immunity system for this human immune structure to complete its role correctly. For instance, the aptly named “killer” CD8 T cells, which battle against infection, have exclusively sensitive nerve endings for exacting antigen matches. When a body is invaded by virus, those killer T cells, whose receptors distinguish that the virus, by virtue of its dividing, has created versions of itself, which now also enter into immunity combat against the viral invader.

Usually the telomeres within the cells are indeed lengthy enough that their ability to divide over and over again without trouble is not compromised. While fighting infections, T cells may introduce the telomerase enzyme thereby stopping any shortening of the telomeres. A large obstacle in this HIV fight or any virus is the T cells do not have the ability to produce telomerase indefinitely. The T cells will shut off, telomeres shorten and they enter into the replicative senescence phase.

Earlier testing has revealed when injection of the telomerase gene into T cells takes place, this may keep the telomeres from getting shorter thus allowing them to continue their battle against the HIV virus for a longer period. As a genetic therapy method, this really is not the most realistic method of treatment for the tens of millions of HIV sufferers worldwide.

In the most current study, instead of using genetic therapy, scientists utilized a compound known as TAT2 that had its origin from the astragalus plants that are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine and are known to activate telomerase actions in cells when tested. Tests were conducted in a few ways with TAT2. Initially showing the CD8 T cells from an HIV positive individual to TAT2 to measure if the compound actually stymied the shortening of telomeres and if the cells manufacture improved of soluble factors referred to as chemokines and cytokines which had already shown the ability to hinder HIV replication and it did!

Researchers then gathered blood samples of HIV infected patients, separating the CD8 T cells along with CD4 T cells that are the ones infected with HIV. They then treated the CD8 T cells with their TAT2 then mixed them among the CD4 T cells in the lab dish and realized their treated CD8 cells actually inhibited the manufacture of HIV via the CD4 cells.

This capability to improve telomerase action as well as the antiviral utility of the CD8 T – lymphocytes puts forward that this stratagem has the potential to be used in the treatment of HIV illness and the immunodeficiency plus the amplified vulnerability to more viruses out there that are linked with persistent illness or simply aging.