MONDAY, Sept. 16, 2002 (HealthDayNews) -- Doctors, dieticians and pharmacists still have a long way to go when it comes to learning about herbal supplements.
That's the conclusion of a new survey of more than 500 healthcare professionals who were quizzed on their knowledge of herbs and other dietary supplements. On average, they were only able to answer 67 percent of the questions correctly at the start of the study. After 10 weeks of cyber class, their scores went up to 80 percent, according to the study published in the current issue of Academic Medicine.
"[The study participants] had received far more education about herbs than I'd have expected," says study author Dr. Kathi Kemper, a professor of pediatrics at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. "Despite their education, their baseline scores generally left a lot of room for improvement."
Plus, Kemper says that because these professionals volunteered for this study, they proably have a greater interest in herbs and dietary supplements than the average healthcare professional who may know even less about such products.
But, it's increasingly important that physicians and other healthcare professionals learn more about herbs because many of their patients are taking them. According to the study, as many as 50 percent of all people with a chronic illness take herbs or dietary supplements. And, half of those people never mention this to their physician.
Both consumers and their physicians need to understand that these products can be dangerous, health experts say.
For example, people with aspirin allergies should not take any supplement containing willow bark because it may trigger a reaction, but few people -- even doctors -- know this, says New York University Medical Center nutritionist Samantha Heller.
"People think if something is sold over-the-counter or it's all natural that it's safe, and that's not necessarily true. Hemlock and arsenic are natural," adds Heller.
To address this lack of knowledge, Kemper, working with doctors from the Massachusetts-based Longwood Herbal Task Force, designed a series of e-mail "classes" that presented a clinical situation with a question about herb use, as well as information about the supplements and links to reputable Internet sites where more information could be found.
For 10 weeks, 537 healthcare professionals took part in the series. Three hundred and fifty were registered dieticians, 111 were physicians -- mostly specializing in pediatrics, family medicine or internal medicine -- 46 were pharmacists and 30 were advanced practice nurses. Almost 90 percent of the participants were women.
Kemper says the response to the program was overwhelming. The researchers had originally planned on only 200 participants. She says her results are encouraging because it means healthcare professionals are interested in learning more about these products.
"Doctors are notoriously poorly informed about herbs," confirms Heller. One reason is that it's difficult to locate the information. She says she uses five or six reference books and the Internet to locate information on herbs. But because many of these products are new or poorly studied, it's difficult to find accurate information.
Heller says medical schools should add classes on nutrition and dietary supplements to their curriculum, but notes that the Internet classes are a great way to get information out to busy professionals who have already completed school.
Kemper says consumers shouldn't be afraid to ask their doctor or dietician about herbal supplements, but not to be disappointed if they don't know the answer. She suggests working as a team to learn more about which preparations could help your condition and which could be dangerous for you.
What To Do
To learn more about taking supplements safely, read the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's "Tips for the Savvy Supplement User." For information about specific herbs or supplements, go to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center's Best Health site.
