Ginger for Post Operative Nausea- Botox-a neurotoxin

[Guest guest]

Health e-Tips

December 18, 2003

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Dear reader,

When my sister had cancer surgery two years ago, she had a

tremendous amount of healing to do both inside and out. But the

pain, though excruciating, wasn't what she remembers as the

worst part of the healing process. She says the worst part was

the severe nausea she suffered in the hospital.

Post-operative nausea and vomiting (PONV) is one of the most

common side effects associated with surgical procedures. This

condition is obviously uncomfortable for patients, but it can

also lead to complications with healing that are expensive and

require longer hospital stays.

Though there are anti-nausea drugs to control PONV, they can

have negative side effects such as drowsiness, restlessness, or

neurologic side effects similar to those seen in Parkinson's

disease. My sister tried one called Prochlorperazine, and ended

up with excruciating muscle cramping in her face that lasted two

days after she stopped the medicine.

But studies also show that ginger has an excellent stomach

settling effect and can be a great alternative for patients

suffering from PONV. In one study, 120 women undergoing

gynecologic surgery were given capsules containing either

metoclopramide, (an anti-nausea drug), 1 gram of powered ginger

root, or a placebo. The capsules were taken one hour before the

patients underwent general anesthesia. Results showed that the

incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting was 21 percent

with ginger, 27 percent with metoclopramide, and 41 percent with

the placebo. In addition to being slightly more effective than

standard medication, the ginger did not cause any negative side

effects.

If you're going to need surgery, you may want to consider taking

some preventative ginger as a precaution. It certainly can't

hurt, and may very well help.

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Is botox to blame for nerve damage?

Q: I am a subscriber to your newsletter, which I enjoy very

much. I have been diagnosed with nerve damage in my feet. My

neurologist has been treating me for torticollis (a wry neck)

with botox for six or seven years. Could botox be the cause of

the damage? He says not. He also says there is no cure for the

damage I have. I am not diabetic. I am a 72-year-old woman in

reasonably good health otherwise. (I am being treated for high

blood pressure too.) Can you help?

JVW: Botulinum toxin, more commonly known these days as " botox "

is a very potent neurotoxin, which means that

it's toxic to your nerves. So, although it's almost impossible

to prove in any individual case, it's certainly a

reasonable hypothesis that long-term botox use may have

damaged your nerves, especially since you are otherwise

healthy. It's best to err on the side of caution and

discontinue the botox. But you'll need a doctor's help with

finding and making the switch to an alternative therapy.

Contact the American College for Advancement in Medicine at

(800)532-3688 or the American Association of Naturopathic

Physicians at (703)610-9037 for a list of Physicians near

you skilled and knowledgeable in nutritional therapies.

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One last thing...

In addition to saving many patients from post-operative vomiting

and nausea, previous studies have shown that ginger is effective

against both motion sickness and morning sickness.

Yours in good health,

Ross

Managing Editor

Nutrition & Healing

Source:

S, et al. Zingiber officinale (Ginger)-an antiemetic

for day case surgery. Anaesthesia 1993; 48: 715-717

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