'Natural' vs. 'Artificial' Medicine - Chicago Tribune article

[bmillsap]

I had to laugh when I read this paragraph in the Chicago Tribune this morning in a story on 'bioidentical' menopause therapy:

"Bioidenticals also seem more natural because they are derived from plants such as yams and soy, unlike one of the most common conventional hormones, Premarin, which is made from the urine of pregnant mares."

It's bad enough that so many people think that 'natural' things are somehow so much better/safer than 'artificial' versions of the same chemical, but now we've apparently progressed to the point where plants are more 'natural' than animals, or at least the urine of animals.

[Rolfe]

I agree with you about the "natural" bit of course, but what really needs to be said there is that the treatment of the mares used to produce the hormones is way less than ideal and humane, so any alternative way of producing the stuff, either by artificial synthesis or by plant synthesis is to be preferred.

Rolfe.