Coumadin and Herbal Remedies Book

[Shari]

I cut this article out of The Plain Dealer (in Cleveland) about two weeks ago. It was in the "People's Pharmacy" column. A woman has arthritis and takes Coumadin. She has been looking around for herbs and supplements since she can't take Vioxx or Celebrex. The Pharmacists wrote that Ginko is not good if you're on Coumadin (can increase the risk of hemorrhage) and garlic and ginger could make you more vulnerable to a bleeding problem. There is a book called Guides to Coumadin and Herbal Remedies that gives information on food, drug and herb interactions for people on Coumadin. It's available for $2 (check/money order) and they say to send a long (No. 10), stamped, self-addressed envelope to: Graedons' People's Pharmacy, No. DE-65, Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027. I'm going to send away for it and see what it says.

 

[LUVMyBirman]

Thank you for sharing the information on the pamphlet with us!

Hope your husband continuities to feel better each day.

Most of us have found that the first year after surgery is the most difficult adapting to the Coumadin. You can go by all the rules in the book and still bounce all over the place.

I truly believe it takes time for your body to adapt to this new way of life and medication. The more the dose is messed around with either way...the more he will fluctuate.

Hang in there!

 

[Sharon]

Coumadin and Herbal Remedies Book

Hi Shari,
Thanks for the book info. I will probably send for it too. Actually, I was taking Gingko for awhile - without any problems - but decided to stop taking it just in case. Before my surgery I would get Reynaud's syndrome (when your fingers don't get enough blood circulating and they feel icy and numb-even when it's not cold out) pretty bad and it really helped me. Since I stopped taking it a couple of years ago the Reynaud's isn't as bad - I'm hoping that now that the valve is working since the surgery 4/97 my circulaton has improved.
Shari, did I visit you and your husband at Strong hospital? I am a visitor for Mended Hearts. Welcome to the site.
Sharon

 

[LUVMyBirman]

Hi Sharon



Funny you mention 'circulation problems' prior to surgery. I had very bad, what they thought to be arthritic pains in my knees since my late teens. In my early twenties little white spots started to appear on the backs of my legs.

Since my surgery m....my knee pain is to a minimum and the spots from poor circulation have disapeared.

None of my doctors ever correlated it together. My heart is working more efficient, thus the sufficient circulation.

 

[Sharon]

circulation

circulation

Hi Gina M,
Do you think we may have stumbled onto something? I wonder if anyone else has noticed that their circulation got better after vr?

 

[Sharon]

Herbal remedies book

Herbal remedies book

Shari,
I sent for it and just received the "book". Actually it is just 2 pamphlets and some ad about their pharmacological book. The pamphlets really didn't say anything new - we already know the info contained in them and most of the info was not about coumadin - at least not the on about the herbs.
Sharon

 

[Guest]

I have a lot of herbal information on my website www.warfarinfo.com Last spring I had a pharmacy student student who was very interested in this. She did a lot of research in the medical library and found journal articles which she cited in the bibliographies. We ruled out all sites that were selling something.
The problem with ginkgo is that it is standardized to one set of ingredients. These are not the ingredients that cause coagulation problems. Those ingredients are not standardized, so you can get a great deal of variation even with different batches of the same product. Since it is a natural product, rainfall, sunshine, temperature all influence the tree to produce chemicals in varying proportions.

 

[Sharon]

Hi Allodwick,
We've not been introduced, but I think I remember reading a post of yours awhile ago - when you first joined the group and I think you mentioned that you ran a coumadin clinic or something like that? Is that where you get your info from oh knowledgeable one? The gingko really helped me with my Reynaud's syndrome. I started taking it way back before valve problems because I heard that it was good for memory. After taking it for about 6 months I realized I had gone through an entire winter without having any problems with my fingers freezing up on me. It was always so painful when that would happen. It never returned until after my surgery when I had stopped taking the gingko supplement. Now I just get the Reynauds occasionally. I used a very reputable brand and was very delighted with the results. I had suffered with it for years before stumbling upon the gingko cure.

 

[Guest]

I'm glad that you had good results. As with most things concerning warfarin and medicine in general there are few absolutes. I did not mean to convey the idea that if you took ginkgo and warfarin that blood would immediately squirt out of somewhere. But it does increase the risk of bleeding and people should have that knowledge before they decide to add it to warfarin. Also, the reputation of the brand does not matter - it just is not standardized for the contents that cause bleeding. Every brand varies from batch to batch in this regard - it is always a shot in the dark.