The much-touted polypill for heart disease is a blood-pressure-lowering drug, a cholesterol-knocking statin, and aspirin, all rolled into one. The pill may work for some, according to a session of American College of Cardiology, Orlando. Also heart experts are of clear opinion that polypill is no magic bullet for most with heart disease as the low dosages of its ingredients may not suffice individual needs.
However, the pill showed encouraging results in an Indian study comprising 2000 people. It was better only when compared to the other approaches. Yet, the side effects remain similar to what one has when any one or more ingredients are taken.
The pill has been received with excitement for its possible ability to address multiple cardiovascular risk factors.Apart from its possible benefits to heart patients, the pill has been talked about as a preventive, notwithstanding its side effects. The latter are known to be similar to those one has with one or more ingredients taken individually.
Reading about the pill one would imagine that every such modern medicinal invention is fraught with the unseemly benefits-versus-harms phenomenon. The extent of the latter often cannot be understood over short period of its usage, the fact well known to both men of medicine and commoners. Often the potential harm would go unnoticed or unproved besides the possibility of its being lost in statistical jugglery.
The hype about such inventions- the polypill is being called a magic bullet- thus often (read, invariably) is misplaced. The marketing hype, to sell the product, which follows later, in no uncertain terms could be even disastrous- the common use of morning-after pills to rule out an unwanted pregnancy, meant to be used in rare situations of unprotected sex, is a handy illustration on the point.
Medical science would do good and earn itself a better name if it just investigated the gains of yoga and ayurveda. Yoga is now routinely prescribed to heart patients by the top cardiologists and cardiac surgeons while ayurveda's effectiveness has surpassed the best favourable statistics one would come across in case of modern medicine. The dietary fibre in bottle gourd is now known to set right the cholesterol, successfully ruling out the need for bypass or any other procedures.
Would anyone rise over the din of modern medicine and pay heed to this?
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