Several people have called the Helpline or emailed to ask about herbal remedies for Behçet's disease. One in particular, called Coribex, is appearing on Google searches and claims to be a cure for Behçet's disease. In order to help our members with these queries, we contacted the Herbal Medicine Association, who provided us with the following response.
Questions and answers
We're receiving an increasing amount of enquiries asking about a herbal remedy called Cobirex, which is advertised on American websites as a cure for Behçet’s disease. We don't have any details about it and wondered if you could help?
Could Cobirex potentially calm inflammation?
The first important point is that the ingredients are given using the common names. This point in itself can lead to confusion as some plants have several common names. It is normal practice for Medical Herbalists to use the official Latin name – this eliminates any doubt about the plant in question. Bearing this in mind and having examined the ingredients, there is reasonable certainty about some of the herbs contained within. For example, neem has anti-inflammatory effects and the radish family contain minerals sometimes helpful in those suffering from arthritis. The barberry family help support the liver and digestion, which may help in reducing the body’s toxin levels, easing pain and inflammation in joints.
Have you any comments around the ethics of advertising it as a “cure” and whether it could be taken with pharmaceutical medicines?
I would always doubt any claims made for a remedy to be a "cure" for a specific condition. Herbal medicine as prescribed by a qualified medical herbalist involves a lengthy consultation and careful consideration of the herbs to be used. It addresses the root cause of development of disease and this will be different in each person. Yes, herbs do have specific actions - eg, anti-inflammatory or anti-bacterial effects – but that is a very simplistic and somewhat limited use of plant medicine. With regard to taking the remedy in question alongside pharmaceutical medicines, I would have to suggest not to. Furthermore, I would actually discourage the use of at least one of the ingredients in those who were suffering fatigue and/or emaciation.
We're also looking to offer our members guidance on taking herbal remedies, so any help you can give about taking these whilst taking prescription medication and what type of results could be expected would be much appreciated. The symptoms involved with Behçet’s disease tend to be an exaggerated inflammatory response, which commonly causes ulcers and can cause joint pain, headaches and bowel inflammation.
Herbal Medicine can be very helpful in inflammatory and digestive conditions. Herbs bought “over the counter” with professional guidance can be most helpful for “self-limiting” conditions. The best way forward would be consulting with a medical herbalist in their own area. Members’ details can be found on our website at http://www.nimh.org.uk. For general advice regarding remedies, your members could call the NIMH office on 01392 426022. They will be able to provide the telephone number of the medical herbalist handling the general information line enquiries for that day.
Lynda Jones BSc(Hons) MNIMH, Medical Herbalist, Information Officer on behalf of The National Institute of Medical Herbalists
