Anacoluthon64
Defollyant Iconoclast
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2006
- Messages
- 1,018
“South Africa’s most respected practitioner of Chinese herbal medicine,” Dr Feroz Osman-Latib, claims to have formulated a tea called “Revivo” for the treatment of HIV – see here and here. Specifically, the main claim is that this concoction has “been proven to reduce HIV viral load and increase CD4 count in HIV positive individuals.” At the same time, the product’s FAQ states that this brew “is not a cure for HIV/AIDS.” The tea contains seven herbs/plant extracts that have, in one way or another, a proven effect against HIV when in direct contact with the virus.
Almost needless to add, South Africa has had a less-than-exemplary record as far as HIV/Aids goes. Thabo Mbeki’s denialism, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang’s vegetable diet (including certain distillates) and Matthias Rath’s vitamin megadose advocacy are a few of our less laudable moments, and so it is my aim to challenge this Revivo tea product’s promotion and advertising on the basis of unproven associations and/or unwarranted claims. Any input towards this endeavour will, of course, be both helpful and appreciated.
The basic issue as far as I can tell is that there is no direct evidence in support of this product being able to do what it claims. The fact that some of its ingredients can be shown to destroy HIV in a test tube does not mean that they are effective when ingested — in a comparable way in which although carbolic acid has antiseptic properties, that does not mean one should be drinking it as cure for, say, tuberculosis.
'Luthon64
Almost needless to add, South Africa has had a less-than-exemplary record as far as HIV/Aids goes. Thabo Mbeki’s denialism, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang’s vegetable diet (including certain distillates) and Matthias Rath’s vitamin megadose advocacy are a few of our less laudable moments, and so it is my aim to challenge this Revivo tea product’s promotion and advertising on the basis of unproven associations and/or unwarranted claims. Any input towards this endeavour will, of course, be both helpful and appreciated.
The basic issue as far as I can tell is that there is no direct evidence in support of this product being able to do what it claims. The fact that some of its ingredients can be shown to destroy HIV in a test tube does not mean that they are effective when ingested — in a comparable way in which although carbolic acid has antiseptic properties, that does not mean one should be drinking it as cure for, say, tuberculosis.
'Luthon64