Is Dr. Oz For Real?

Dr. Oz had a segment on television called Dr Oz Middle Age Cures. During a brief segment, he mentions using lemon balm oil to reduce stress. What they were actually using on the show was lemon balm tincture, not lemon balm oil. Lemon Balm Oil is used topically for skin conditions and should not be taken internally. Lemon balm tincture is used for stress, but it is medicine, and you can’t start putting droppers full of it into your mouth willy nilly like they did on the show. Nor should you squirt dropper fulls into your glass of water. What are these people thinking? Herbs are medicine and Dr. Oz should treat them as such. It was totally irresponsible for him to start adding dropperfuls of lemon balm into a glass, and then putting more right into her mouth. A normal dosage of lemon balm tincture would be 1 dropperful in a glass of water or tea 3-4 times a day. Dr. Oz overdosed this woman on national television, and made a joke of it. Yes, lemon balm is used for stress and anxiety. Lemon balm is a sedative herb. All you need is lemon balm herb and a cup of hot water to drink it as a medicinal tea. Tinctures are made from alcohol, and they never even mentioned this. People who are sensitve to alcohol should not be taking tincures. Lemon balm can be drank as a tea, 3-4 times a day. You don’t want to mix it with other sedative herbs like valerian as Terri Trespicio stated. Valerian is nature’s Valium. It isn’t necessary to mix Valerian with other sedative herbs. When you start mixing herbs, you have to know what you are doing. Too many sedative herbs can harm you. An important aspect not mentioned on the show by Dr. Oz or Ms. Trespicio are side effects nor interaction with other drugs. Remember that herbal medicine is medicine. Just like prescription drugs, you shouldn’t mix them without consulting someone who understands interactions. For example, if you are taking medication for thyroid issues, you shouldn’t even touch lemon balm much less inject it. Know what you are doing before taking any medicine including herbs. You can read more about lemon balm herb here: Lemon Balm Herbal Information. Since doctors normally don't study herbal medicine, why are they doling out advice on national television. Wrong advice at that! So, who is Terri Trespicio, and why is she giving out that kind of advice? According to her bio, she does not have a background in herbal medicine. She has a degree in fine arts and creative writing but there is no mention of any training to discuss herbalism or treatments using herbs. We are concerned that people setting themselves up as experts throw out advice with no mention that individuals should do their homework before taking herbs as medicine. It is unprofessional to have such a light hearted approach to herbal medicine. It is totally irresponsible for Dr. Oz or Terry Trespicio to be doling out herbal advice in a playful manner as they did on this show.