Druggist Branches Into Herbal Medicine

Michael Angelo had seen the baffled looks. Which brand of Saint Johnswort is the best? What strength of echinacea is appropriate? Which herbal remedy helps relieve joint pain or stomachaches or anemia?

As a pharmacist, Michael wanted to help. But as a pharmacist, he was trained to know drugs, not herbs. The problem nagged at him as the number of people interested in herbal treatments grew.

Finally, he decided to learn. And now, after 10 years of study, he’s opening a consulting service to help people find herbal equals to their pharmaceutical drugs.

“Most people are amazed that I pursued herbal medicine,” says Benewah Medical Center’s soft-spoken pharmacist. “But I think it’s quite appropriate.”

Western medicine typically is skeptical of herbal treatments and the practitioners who use them. But Michael is a man of science and his work earns respect.

“He’s not a quack,” says Daniel Baker, a professor of pharmacy practice at Washington State University, where Michael earned a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy in 1975. “What he’s trying to present is reasonable. If the public chooses to go those avenues, it’s nice to have a person around who can discuss it in a reasonable format.”

Michael built his reputation on solid science and a desire to improve the status quo. He created several programs to help health care workers manage drug doses for patients.

For eight years, he traveled throughout the Northwest, helping doctors balance the goulash of medications some nursing home patients require. He’d eliminate, condense and combine drugs to net the best results.

During this work, he saw symptoms disappear, then recur after associated drugs had been stopped. He began to search for natural substances that would sustain good results.

His hunt took him to the University of Colorado, where he studied with experts in medicinal herbs - James Duke, a U.S. Department of Agriculture scientist who searched out the world’s remedies and compiled them into a book, and Mark Blumenthal, who helped the World Health Organization produce guidelines on herbal medicines.

Michael was university-certified in botanical medicine in 1997. He left Colorado equipped with scientific case studies and references that identify herbal substitutes for drugs that are used to treat any number of maladies - diabetes, fibromyalgia, Crohn’s disease, etc.

In 1998, he completed a program in Seattle in nutritional therapy in medical practice.

By that time, he had moved onto 40 acres south of Plummer, Idaho, with his family and had accepted a job at the Benewah Medical Center.

In the pharmacy, he stuck to dispensing prescribed drugs.

But at home, he researched ways to incorporate herbal medicine into Western medicine.

He developed a program in which he first studies a patient’s medical data and determines what nutritional toll each drug is taking.

For example, some drugs leach iron, and patients grow anemic.

Michael recommends nutritional supplements to replenish the body.

Then he analyzes his patient’s drug therapy and lists herbal medicines that provide similar results - similar because herbs work more slowly than drugs and usually don’t include side effects.

Michael’s finished product is a report that goes to the patient’s doctor. It includes references so doctors can read case studies until they’re satisfied.

A few months ago, Michael decided to offer his services as a consultant.

He hasn’t advertised, partly because he fears losing credibility among his peers and partly because he’s not sure how to handle the crowds he might attract.

But word of his expertise has trickled out.

People periodically ask him why the same herbal remedies vary in price or which ones are most appropriate for their ailments.

Michael answers amiably. Finding a scientifically sound means to include herbs in Western medicine was his goal.

He’s happy to share the expertise he has learned along the way.

Michael can be reached by e-mail at angelo@nidlink.com.

This sidebar appeared with the story: IF YOU GO Workshop

Michael Angelo will speak about his work in pharmaceuticals and botanicals at the sixth-annual Horticulture Kickoff Day on Jan. 29 at Cavanaughs Templin’s Resort in Post Falls. His workshop will run from 9 a.m. to noon.

From 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., the program will feature a workshop on identifying, transplanting and propagating native shrubs and wildflowers.

The Master Gardener program through the University of Idaho-Kootenai County extension office is sponsoring the event.

Tickets cost $20 and include lunch. Reservations are due by Thursday. For more information, call (208) 667-6426.