--- title: 4 Natural 'Cures' That Are Bad for Your Health description: It’s a common misconception that natural or alternative medicine treatments are safer than prescription drugs and procedures. canonical: https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-03-29T18:18:42.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-08T08:26:27.589Z article:section: Health og:title: 4 Natural 'Cures' That Are Bad for Your Health og:description: Steer clear from activated charcoal and hydrogen peroxide og:url: https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdebde9f18495e078/6988c061fb4eac71d18914cb/turmeric.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4980 og:image:height: 2801 og:image:alt: turmeric og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 4 Natural 'Cures' That Are Bad for Your Health twitter:description: Steer clear from activated charcoal and hydrogen peroxide twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdebde9f18495e078/6988c061fb4eac71d18914cb/turmeric.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # 4 Natural 'Cures' That Are Bad for Your Health > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=cfc38ff1-4716-4683-857b-a6eee274711d&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: 5 "Healthy" Foods to Avoid Spending Money On Money [Watch (HLS stream): 5 "Healthy" Foods to Avoid Spending Money On Money](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rhvQTdZe.m3u8) (1:38)  _Published 2017-03-20. Explore 5 seemingly healthy foods that nutritionists say to keep out of your shopping cart._ by [Jenna Birch / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Jenna Birch / Health.com Contributor Mar 29, 2017 6:18 PM UTC by [Jenna Birch / Health.com](https://time.com/author/health-com/) ## Jenna Birch / Health.com Contributor Mar 29, 2017 6:18 PM UTC It’s a common misconception that natural or alternative medicine treatments are safer than prescription drugs and procedures done in traditional clinical settings. But a recent death from turmeric is proof that even natural treatments can be dangerous. According to a report from a local ABC News affiliate, Jade Erick from Encinitas, California died after an [IV infusion of turmeric](http://www.10news.com/news/team-10/encinitas-woman-dead-after-i-v-infusion-of-turmeric), which resulted in an adverse reaction to the spice. Her official cause of death was “anoxic encephalopathy,” after her heart stopped and her brain was deprived of oxygen. Erick had suffered from bouts of [eczema](http://www.health.com/celebrities/the-night-of-john-stone-eczema), which she hoped the [turmeric](http://www.health.com/nutrition/tumeric-tips) might cure. But an IV’s dose of turmeric is far too much, says Malcolm Taw, MD, director of the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine – Westlake Village. “I recommend turmeric orally, as it’s a great anti-inflammatory,” he says. “However, some substances can be both poison and remedy.” Dr. Taw had never heard of anyone introducing turmeric to the system via IV infusion—and you should _never_ use an IV of any substance without consulting a doctor first, he says. Also be wary of these other “natural” or alternative treatments, all of which can do serious damage to your health. ### **Activated charcoal** Doctors use activated charcoal to treat overdoses, because the substance “binds” harmful chemicals, preventing their absorption in the gut, explains Shanna Levine, MD, a clinical instructor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. “In the alternative medicine community, it is used as a means of decreasing [cholesterol](http://www.health.com/cholesterol) through ingestion,” she says. But there’s a laundry list of potential side effects: [Activated charcoal](http://www.health.com/nutrition/whats-the-deal-with-activated-charcoal-3-things-to-know) can reduce the effectiveness of other medications, including [birth control](http://www.health.com/birth-control). If inhaled instead of swallowed, it may cause lung damage. And it can also lead to upset stomach. “I strongly advise people don’t ingest activated charcoal, as the harms outweigh the benefits,” says Dr. Levine. ### **Aconite** Another California woman died recently after drinking [tea containing the Chinese herb aconite](http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2017/03/20/woman-dies-after-drinking-deadly-chinatown-tea/), according to the San Francisco Department of Health. When consumed, the purple plant might cause nausea, chest pain, heart palpitations, limb weakness or paralysis. While raw aconite is poisonous, processed aconite is sometimes used in small amounts in the alternative medicine community to treat pain. But Dr. Taw recommends avoiding it altogether. **_Health.com_**_:_ [_19 Natural Remedies for Anxiety_](http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20669377,00.html/?xid=time) ### **Hydrogen peroxide** Believe it or not, some alternative medicine stores sell high-concentration hydrogen peroxide as a natural health-booster. According to a recent paper published in the _Annals of Emergency Medicine_, some [300 people were poisoned](http://www.health.com/heart-disease/drinking-peroxide-heart-attack-dangers) and five died after consuming the substance. “For people who follow these regiments, the instructions involve placing a dropper-full of high-concentration peroxide into a large quantity of water or another liquid, so it’s fairly diluted,” author Benjamin Hatten, MD, assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, told _Health_ in a prior interview. “People believe that it’s hyper-oxygenating, putting extra oxygen into your beverage, and that it somehow improves your health.” There’s no scientific truth to back up these cleans, though, so don’t be fooled—and definitely don’t drink it. “If you accidentally take too much, it could have very serious consequences,” says Dr. Hatten. _This_ [_article_](http://www.health.com/mind-body/natural-remedies-to-avoid/?xid=time) _originally appeared on_ [_Health.com_](http://www.health.com) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/"},"headline":"4 Natural 'Cures' That Are Bad for Your Health","datePublished":"2017-03-29T18:18:42.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-08T08:26:27.589Z","description":"Steer clear from activated charcoal and hydrogen peroxide","url":"https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/","keywords":["Health Fad","medicine"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdebde9f18495e078/6988c061fb4eac71d18914cb/turmeric.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Jenna Birch / Health.com"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdebde9f18495e078/6988c061fb4eac71d18914cb/turmeric.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"turmeric","caption":"turmeric","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/health-fad/","name":"Health Fad"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/","name":"4 Natural 'Cures' That Are Bad for Your Health"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"5 \"Healthy\" Foods to Avoid Spending Money On Money","description":"Explore 5 seemingly healthy foods that nutritionists say to keep out of your shopping cart.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/rhvQTdZe/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-03-20T14:42:47.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/rhvQTdZe.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/","duration":"PT1M38S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4716482/harmful-natural-remedies/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```