Given the comments on our blog following last week\u2019s post on glandular therapies, let me say first that if you\u2019re a vegetarian or vegan, glandular therapies are definitely not for you. But if you\u2019re a veggie or vegan needing digestive enzymes, there are plenty of plant-based products. You\u2019ll also face no compromise if you need thyroid (Synthroid), adrenal (Cortef), or ovary (birth control pills) hormones. Synthetic versions are readily available for these, as well as for others I\u2019ll review today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Using the glands or other organs of animals for medicinal treatment, also called organotherapy, goes back to ancient medical times, part of the timeless phenomenon known as \u201clike heals like.\u201d Cultural anthropologists have been encountering this phrase, along with \u201cas above, so below,\u201d quite literally since the dawn of man. Contemporary Western physicians tend not to think too much about these old medical tenets, dismissing them as too arcane to be of any use today even as they routinely prescribe these well-known \u201clike cure like\u201d treatments:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2022 Flu shots and other immunizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2022 Allergy shots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2022 Hormones to prevent pregnancy or hot flashes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2022 Hormones to support thyroid or adrenal glands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Interesting, isn\u2019t it, that in each of these like is literally curing like\u2014the flu vaccine giving you a tiny bit of inactivated flu virus, allergy shots delivering a miniscule amount of what you\u2019re allergic to, and tiny doses of hormones providing what may be missing from your body. How tiny? Birth control pills are currently dosed in micrograms. If you didn\u2019t know, a microgram is one-millionth of a gram.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a rule, doctors are far more comfortable prescribing synthetic versions of everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By the final decades of the 20th<\/sup> century, the development of synthetic hormones brought research using animal-based glandulars to a halt. Yet clinicians did agree that certain animal gland and organ preparations, when taken orally, were quite effective in treating a variety of conditions. What makes these treatments effective? There are probably two reasons. First, and this is especially in the case of glands like the thyroid and adrenals, the glandular is replacing missing hormone. But second, and this is where \u201clike cures like\u201d comes in, the complex molecules of the gland or organ in the supplement provide the precise building blocks necessary for repair or restoration. What better source for the missing components of, for example, a damaged liver than concentrated liver?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Virtually all animal-derived products used medicinally today originate from organically fed livestock that live outdoors and receive no chemicals or antibiotics. The most common method of extracting active ingredients is by immediately freeze-drying the gland or organ to 60 degrees below zero and then placing it into a vacuum chamber to remove water and concentrate the active ingredients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition to integrative doctors like me, naturopathic physicians prescribe glandulars quite frequently. But since most of the 5,000 naturopaths in the US can\u2019t obtain a license in Illinois, Midwesterners are generally unfamiliar with using a naturopath as a primary caregiver. The National University of the Health Sciences in suburban Chicago offers a degree in naturopathic medicine, but in order to practice in Illinois graduates must also hold a \u201clicensable\u201d degree like chiropractic. Virtually all graduates of the other certified naturopathic colleges in North America<\/a> practice outside our state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Since so many glands and organs are used in naturopathic medicine, I\u2019ll list the better-known products and the conditions they treat. If you\u2019re prone to doing your own research, you\u2019ll find clinical studies in conventional medical journals on most of these. Those marked with an * are currently stocked in our apothecary<\/a>. The others can be ordered and generally arrive in a few days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chronic fatigue, asthma, eczema, psoriasis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Aorta <\/b>(the largest artery of the cardiovascular system) extracts<\/b> Various anemias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Various dementias and stroke damage. Occasionally as part of an anti-aging protocol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chronic heart disease of all types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Exhaustion of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) stress responding circuit, when it\u2019s best used with adrenal cortex extract. Chronic fatigue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chronic kidney diseases of all types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chronic liver diseases, including chronic hepatitis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chronic bronchitis and emphysema; asthma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Weak immune system; frequent colds and flu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Male infertility; low sex drive in men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Female infertility; low sex drive in women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Poor digestion. Very high doses used for some cancers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Prevention and\/or treatment of prostate disorders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Immune enhancement. Autoimmune disorders such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, and celiac disease.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chronic or recurring viral infections. Chronic fatigue syndrome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thyroid <\/b>(prescription only) You might now be wondering \u201cIs this all for me to decide myself, as a do-it-myself doctor? Am I supposed to start taking bits of brain or ovary or hypothalamus without any guidance?\u201d No. But I\u2019m of two minds about this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the one hand, when it comes to making your own diagnosis (with the exception of something relatively minor, like a cold or bladder infection), you, like most people, will likely get your diagnosis wrong, regardless the hours invested on the internet. Medical diagnosis is non-syllogistic and this can be highly confusing for people looking up their symptoms on the web. Here\u2019s an example:<\/p>\n\n\n\nGlandular products and conditions they treat<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Adrenal cortex extract*<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Blood vessel diseases: stroke, arteriosclerosis, varicose veins, hemorrhoids.<\/p>\n\n\n\nBone marrow extracts<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Brain extracts*<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Heart extract<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Hypothalamus-pituitary*<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Kidney extract<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Liver extract<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Lung extract<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Lymph gland (often combined with thymus gland) <\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Orchic (testicle)<\/b>*<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Ovary*<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Pancreas*<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Prostate<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Spleen extract<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Thymus*<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Underactive thyroid.<\/p>\n\n\n\nHow to use glandular therapy<\/b><\/h3>\n\n\n\n