UK Farmers Embrace Herbal Medicine

With concern rising over the use of powerful antibiotics in farming cows, sheep and horses, some British farmers are turning to traditional herbal medicine as an alternative.

Echinacea, used originally by the North American Indians, stimulates white blood cells and helps to boost the immune system. Echinacea has long been used to fight bacteria in the treatment of colds, flu and infections. Now farmers at the natural and Organic Products Expo in London showed their commitment to using natural alternatives to antibiotics, ordering several hundred kilograms of dry Echinacea and around 100 litres of liquid Echinacea from a New Zealand exporter. The herb can be added to animal feed or used to bathe livestock.

Meanwhile, a new study published in the Journal of Human Reproduction suggests a further link between the use of pesticides and male infertility.

Scientists studied 225 men from a farming region in Argentina. The study found a strong association between exposure to pesticides, low sperm counts and higher than average levels of female sex hormones.

Dr Luc Multigner explained, "The testicles are one of the most vulnerable organs to environmental, physical and chemical agents".

Sperm counts are falling worldwide and this phenomenon has already been linked to increased use of pesticides. Pesticides may also be responsible for an increase in testicular cancer.

Friday, 10 August 2001