CAM at the NIH - October 2008 Thu, 02 Oct 2008 15:30:00 -0500
Feature Stories
Tips for Talking with Your Health Care ProviderAre you using—or thinking about using—complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)? If so, NCCAM provides some ideas on how to get a conversation started about CAM use when you talk to your health care providers.
NCCAM Hosts Meditation WorkshopExperts from a wide range of fields and disciplines who share a common interest in meditation for health purposes met to assess current scientific knowledge and identify areas of opportunity for future research.
Meet NACCAM Member Margery Gass, M.D.What are some things that women can do to stay healthy at midlife and beyond? NCCAM National Advisory Council member Margery Gass, M.D., a specialist in women's health, discusses this topic.
Happiness and Systematic Mind-Body TrainingWhat do monks, meditation, and music have in common? Dr. Richard Davidson discusses his work on the science of happiness and on systematic training of the mind and body.
Tips for Talking With Your Health Care Providers About CAM Wed, 01 Oct 2008 16:00:00 -0500
Like many Americans, you may be using or considering some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). If so, it is a good idea to talk with your health care providers about your CAM use. This fact sheet explains why and offers some tips to help you get the conversation started.
Key Points
Tell your health care providers about all the complementary and alternative practices you use. Give them a full picture of what you do to manage your health. This will help ensure coordinated and safe care.
Be proactive. Don't wait for your health care providers to ask about your CAM use.
When you talk with your health care providers about CAM, make the most of the conversation. Bring a list of everything you use, keep a record of the information you receive, and ask questions if something is unclear.
Dietary Supplements Glucosamine and/or Chondroitin Fare No Better than Placebo in Slowing Structural Damage of Knee Osteoarthritis Mon, 29 Sep 2008 15:30:00 -0500
The dietary supplements glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, together or alone, appeared to fare no better than placebo in slowing loss of cartilage in osteoarthritis of the knee, researchers from the Glucosamine/chondroitin Arthritis Intervention Trial (GAIT) team report in the October issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism. Interpreting the study results is complicated, however, because participants taking placebo had a smaller loss of cartilage, or joint space width, than predicted. Loss of cartilage, the slippery material that cushions the joints, is a hallmark of osteoarthritis and its loss is typically measured as a reduction in joint space width—the distance between the ends of bones in a joint as seen on an X-ray.
"While these results are of interest, we cannot draw definitive conclusions about the utility of glucosamine or chondroitin in reducing joint space width loss, in part because the placebo group fared better than anticipated based on prior research results," said Josephine P. Briggs, M.D., director of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), one of the study's funders. "The results of the study provide interesting insights for future research."
Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine - current issue
Can Vitex Agnus Castus be Used for the Treatment of Mastalgia? What is the Current Evidence? Carmichael, A.R. Thu, 04 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0000
There have been many treatments suggested for the management of mastalgia; one of these is the fruit extract of Vitex Agnus castus L. commonly known as Agnus castus, an extract of a deciduous shrub native to Mediterranean Europe and Central Asia. It is postulated that A. castus suppresses the stress-induced latent hyperprolactinemia which is a release of supra-physiological levels of prolactin in some patients in response to stressful stimuli. It is postulated that A. castus could be effective in the treatment of cyclical mastalgia by inhibiting the release of excess prolactin by blocking Dopamine-2 receptor type on pituitary. The adverse events following A. castus treatment are mild and reversible. The aim of this review is assess the efficacy of A. castus in the treatment of mastalgia. Data from randomized and non-randomized studies regarding the efficacy and safety of A. castus is reviewed in a systematic fashion. It is concluded that A. castus can be considered as an efficient alternative phytotherapeutic agent in the treatment of mastalgia.
BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine - Latest articles
Echinacea purpurea and osteopathic manipulative treatment in children with recurrent otitis media: a randomized controlled trial Richard A Wahl, Michael B Aldous, Katherine A Worden and Kathryn L Grant Thu, 02 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0000 Background:
Recurrent otitis media is a common problem in young children. Echinacea and osteopathic
manipulative treatment have been proposed as preventive measures, but have been inadequately
studied. This study was designed to assess the efficacy of Echinacea purpurea and/or
osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) for prevention of acute otitis media in otitis-prone
children.
Methods:
A randomized, placebo-controlled, two-by-two factorial trial with 6-month follow-up, conducted
1999 - 2002 in Tucson, Arizona. Patients were aged 12-60 months with recurrent otitis media,
defined as three or more separate episodes of acute otitis media within six months, or at least
four episodes in one year. Ninety children (44% white non-Hispanic, 39% Hispanic, 57% male)
were enrolled, of which 84 had follow-up for at least 3 months. Children were randomly
assigned to one of four protocol groups: double placebo, echinacea plus sham OMT, true OMT
(including cranial manipulation) plus placebo echinacea, or true echinacea plus OMT. An
alcohol extract of Echinacea purpurea roots and seeds (or placebo) was administered for 10 days
at the first sign of each common cold. Five OMT visits (or sham treatments) were offered over 3
months.
Results:
No interaction was found between echinacea and OMT. Echinacea was associated with a
borderline increased risk of having at least one episode of acute otitis media during 6-month
follow-up compared to placebo (65% versus 41%; relative risk, 1.59, 95% CI 1.04, 2.42).
OMT did not significantly affect risk compared to sham (44% versus 61%; relative risk, 0.72, 95% CI 0.48, 1.10).
Conclusions:
In otitis-prone young children, treating colds with this form of echinacea does not decrease the
risk of acute otitis media, and may in fact increase risk. A regimen of up to five osteopathic
manipulative treatments does not significantly decrease the risk of acute otitis media.
Trial registration
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00010465 Neuroprotective efficacy and therapeutic window of curcuma oil: in rat embolic stroke model Preeti Dohare, Puja Garg, Uma Sharma, N. r. Jagannathan and Madhur Ray Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0000 Background:
Among the naturally occurring compounds, turmeric from the dried rhizome of the plant Curcuma longa has long been used extensively as a condiment and a household remedy all over Southeast Asia. Turmeric contains essential oil, yellow pigments (curcuminoids), starch and oleoresin. The present study was designed for investigating the neuroprotective efficacy and the time window for effective therapeutic use of Curcuma oil (C. oil). Method: In the present study, the effect of post ischemic treatment of C.oil after ischemia induced by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery in the rat was observed. C.oil (500mg/kg body wt) was given 4hrs post ischemia. The significant effect on lesion size as visualized by using diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and neuroscore was still evident when treatment was started 4 hours after insult. Animals were assessed for behavioral deficit scores after 5 and 24 hours of ischemia. Subsequently, the rats were sacrificed for evaluation of infarct and edema volumes and other parameters. Results: C.oil ameliorated the ischemia induced neurological functional deficits and the infarct and edema volumes measured after 5 and 24 hrs of ischemia. After 24hrs, immunohistochemical and Western blot analysis demonstrated that the expression of iNOS, cytochrome c and Bax /Bcl-2 were altered after the insult, and antagonized by treatment with C.oil. C.oil significantly reduced nitrosative stress, tended to correct the decreased mitochondrial membrane potential, and also affected caspase-3 activation finally apoptosis. Conclusion: Here we demonstrated that iNOS-derived NO produced during ischemic injury was crucial for the up-regulation of ischemic injury targets. C.oil down-regulates these targets this coincided with an increased survival rate of neurons. Antioxidant activities and phenolic contents of the methanol extracts of the stems of Acokanthera oppositifolia and Adenia gummifera. Adeolu A Adedapo, Florence O Jimoh, Anthony J Afolayan and Patrick J Masika Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:00:00 -0000 Background:
Acokanthera oppositifolia Lam (family: Apocynaceae) is a shrub or small tree with white latex, and the leaves of this plant are used in the form of a snuff to treat headaches and in infusions for abdominal pains and convulsions and septicaemia. Adenia gummifera Harv of the family Passifloraceae is a distinctive woody climber whose infusions are used as emetics and are said to help with some forms of depression. Lipid peroxidation has gained more importance today because of its involvement in pathogenesis of many diseases. Free radicals are the main agents in lipid peroxidation. Antioxidants thus play an important role of protecting the human body against damage by the free radicals. Plants containing phenolic compounds have been reported to possess strong antioxidant properties.
Methods:
The antioxidant activities and phenolic contents of the methanol extracts of the stems of Acokanthera oppositifolia and Adenia gummifera were evaluated using in vitro standard procedures. Spectrophotometry was the basis for the determinations of total phenol, total flavonoids, flavonols, and proanthocyanidins. Tannins, quercetin and catechin equivalents were used for these parameters. The antioxidant activities of the stem extract of Acokanthera oppositifolia were determined by the 2,2' -azinobis-3- ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS), 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and ferrous reducing antioxidant property (FRAP) methods.
Results:
The results from this study showed that the antioxidant activities of the stem extract of Acokanthera oppositifolia as determined by the 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), and ferrous reducing antioxidant property (FRAP) methods, were higher than that of Adenia gummifera. The levels of total phenols and flavonols for A. oppositifolia were also higher. On the other hand, the stem extract of Adenia gummifera had higher level of total flavonoids and proanthocyanidins than that of Acokanthera oppositifolia. The 2, 2' -azinobis-3- ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS) activities of the 2 plant extracts were similar and comparable to that of BHT.
Conclusions:
Thus, the present results indicate clearly that the extracts of Acokanthera oppositifolia and Adenia gummifera possess antioxidant properties and could serve as free radical inhibitors or scavengers, acting possibly as primary antioxidants. This study has to some extent validated the medicinal potential of the stems of Acokanthera oppositifolia and Adenia gummifera.
Botanical.com - Provides an electronic, searchable version of A Modern Herbal, by Maud Grieve. Also includes message boards, articles, book reviews, and links.
Herbs and Aromas - Presents properties and uses of medicinal plants, and instructions for home made herbal remedies, capsules, perfumes, flavored oils and cosmetics.
Meta Description: [ Herbs and medicinal plants properties and uses. Description on how to prepare home made herbal remedies, cosmetics, perfumes and flavored oils ]
Alternative Nature Herbals - Includes articles, herb profiles with horticulture and remedy information, a gallery of photographs, and links to other herbal sites.
Meta Description: [ Extensive herbal site, featuring medicinal herbs, hundreds of herb pictures, herbal medicine uses, Herbal Videos, medicinal plant cultivation ]
American Botanical Council - Provides information about the responsible use of herbs and phytomedicines. Includes news, information on their events, and a guide to common herbs.
Meta Description: [ Welcome to the American Botanical Council, educating the public on the responsible use of herbs and phytomedicines. ]
BC Herb Growers Association - Provides information about the organization and its members, news, educational opportunities, and an online herb database.
Botanical Dermatology Database - An electronic, searchable version of Botanical Dermatology, by John Mitchell and Arthur Rook, which includes a botanical index.
Bouquet Garni Herbs - Provides information about growing herbs, and using them for health, beauty, and cooking.
Meta Description: [ Discover the secrets of herb gardening and master the art of using herbs in mouth watering recipes, home remedies and natural skin care products... ]
Culpeper's Herbal Online - Full text of Culpeper's Complete Herbal (1653 edition). Includes breakdown by individual herb, directions for making remedies and catalog of simples.
Meta Description: [ 800+ texts of classic literature, drama, and poetry
together with detailed literature study guides. Large reference book and non-fiction section ]
Diet-and-Health.net: Naturopathy - Includes list of herbs using in naturopathic remedies, with information about their uses and hazards.
404Elchai's Herbal Lore and Remedies - Information preparations and formulas, therapeutic terms, and ceremonial use. Also includes herb profiles with uses, actions, precautions, and active constituents.
Meta Description: [ An Herbal Internet Magazine with a focus on today's health concerns. ]
500Essiac Information Site - Information about the herbal tea known as essiac, including history, controversial issues, scams, marketer ethics, product prices, and recipes.
Evening-Primrose-Oil.com - Provides articles and information about the possible health uses of evening primrose oil, including PMS, autoimmune conditions, inflammation, and weight loss.
Meta Description: [ A guide to the health benefits of evening primrose oil. ]
goodHealthinfo.net - Seven Boston-area herbalists discuss their approaches to correcting imbalances in the body's energy, using herbs and muscle testing.
Meta Description: [ Holistic healing methods related to internal energy. Information on herbs, macrobiotics, chi kung, meditation, energy balance, and radiation. Interviews with seven Boston-area herbalists. ]
GreyWing’s Herbal - An online text with chapters about history, harvesting, drying, horticulture, preparations, and therapeutic actions.
Meta Description: [ Herbal Grimoire,Herb Preparation and Lore from a New England Wiccan Garden,Wicca Basics,Book of Shadows and Spells and Rituals ]
Healing Herbs - An interactive community offering herbal information, recipes, chat, discussion groups, events, gardening information, and herb photos.
Meta Description: [ Healing Herbs is an interactive community offering herbal information, gardening, chat, discussion groups, recipes, herb photos and more. Your presence, questions and contributions to content are welcome! However, regrettably I've had to restrict membership in an effort to keep out the spammer... ]
Herb Net - Collection of resources, including herb profiles, a practitioner directory, and a calendar of events.
Meta Description: [ The most comprehensive site for all things herbal: marketing, growing, using and more. We cover all aspects of herbs: medicinal, culinary, aromatic and ornamental. We offer links to herbal associations, publications and information on herbs as well as a calendar of events. ]
Herb Research Foundation - Orgainization dedicated to researching and providing scientific information on the safety and health benefits of botanicals throughout the world from multiple medical traditions. Find information about services and resources, news, and sustainable development.
Meta Description: [ Learn about herbs for health from the nonprofit Herb Research Foundation dedicated to responsible informed self-care with medicinal plants ]
Herb Wisdom - Includes information about toxicity, recipes, lore, history, remedies, and herbs for pets.
Herbal Contraception - Discussion of herbs that have been used through history to prevent conception, with modern observations on how they work.
Herbal Legacy - Offering herb information sponsored by Christopher Publications. Includes sections about recipes, ailments, formulas, programs and literature.
Meta Description: [ The Herbal Legacy of America's herbology pioneer, Dr. John R. Christopher.
Includes ailments, formulas, recipes, programs and literature about herbs and natural healing. ]
Herbal medicine resources - Herbal medicine focused search resource, find herbal drug products, herbal
supplements, herbal remedies, Chinese herbs and traditional native medicine
remedies.
Meta Description: [ Inula viscosa products scientific studies and formulations by Avisco Ltd. The only company in the world that focuses on Inula viscosa R&D, cultivation, processing, production and applications. ]
Herbal Safety - Facts and safety information presented by the University of Texas El Paso. Includes an introduction to scientific monographs, herb fact sheets, articles, and presentations.
Herbs for Weight Loss - Article about effectiveness and safety of herbs for weight loss, including ephedra, hoodia gordonii, cayenne, green tea, seaweed, nettle, ginseng, cascara, and senna.
Meta Description: [ About effectiveness and safety of herbs for weight loss and herbal diet supplements, including ephedra, hoodia gordonii, cayenne, green tea, seaweed, nettle, ginseng, cascara, and senna ]
Herbs Herbals - Information about individual herbs, and instructions for making various types of herbal preparations.
Meta Description: [ Herbs Herbals herb and herbal remedies - www.HerbsHerbals.com ]
Herbtalk Discussion - A free email discussion group with information about herb safety, remedies, and recipes.
Meta Description: [ Herbtalk-discussion: Welcome to Herbtalk, a discussion group for people who are interested in herbs and alternative medicine. ]
Holisticonline.com: Herbs - Herbal knowledgebase covers more than 2000 herbs from around the world. Also provides information about remedies, interactions, preparations, and regulation.
Meta Description: [ Herbal Medicine, sometimes
referred to as Herbalism or Botanical Medicine, is the use of
herbs for their therapeutic or medicinal value. An herb is a
plant or plant part valued for its medicinal, aromatic or savory
qualities. Herb plants produce and contain a variety of chemical
substances t... ]
Home Made Medicine - Provides information about herbal healing, home remedies, and a complete guide listed by illness.
Meta Description: [ Home Remedies are the best way to treat diseases, this site shows a complete Natural Remedies guide of home remedies and natural remedies to show how to use home remedies to cure and improve health with natural remedies. ]
Juniper and Sage - Includes information on preparing and using herbs for medicinal and culinary purposes, and organic growing and wildcrafting.
kellymom.com: Herbs and Breastfeeding - Provides articles about how herbs affect lactation, and safety information for nursing mothers. Includes research and book references.
Meta Description: [ kellymom.com - Breastfeeding and Parenting. Evidence-based information on breastfeeding and parenting issues. ]
Laurie Lacey's Wild World of Plants - Information about traditional use of plant and tree medicines. Also offers workshops, a blog, and links.
Meta Description: [ Laurie Lacey is a naturalist author/speaker on Nature Therapy, and Natural Healing, and a specialist in Native plant medicines and ethnobotany. ]
Medicines and Foods from the Wild - Information about identifying, preparing, and using wild medicinal and edible plants in the northeastern United States.
National Institute of Medical Herbalists - Founded in 1864, NIMH is the oldest body of professional practising herbalists in the western world. Information and frequently asked questions about herbs.
Natural Facts - Presents facts sheets by ailment and by herb or nutrient.
Meta Description: [ Cenovis™ Kids Brain Power has been specially formulated to help support children’s brain development and learning ability, including concentration, memory and problem solving. ]
Pioneer Thinking: Herbal Health - Offers an alphabetical database of herbs and ailments, and articles about gardening and making herbal preparations.
Meta Description: [ A guide to what herbs can be helpful to you, we have compiled an A-Z database of herbs and ailments they have been known to help.. ]
Southwest School of Botanical Medicine - Medicinal plant photographs, illustrations, maps, abstracts, constituents, monographs, major papers and folios by genus and species.
Suite 101: Herbalism - Articles, discussions, and links on the uses of herbs for medicinal and magical purposes. Also includes suggestions for seasonal home remedies, crafts, tricks, and tips.
Meta Description: [ An in-depth study of the uses of herbs from medicinal to magical, covering facts to folklore, using, growing, etc. Each herb is taken individually and investigated in depth. In addition, we will branch out into specific uses, such as using natural dyes, to suggestions for seasonal (and safe!) hom... ]
Suite 101: Historical Uses of Herbs - Offers articles on history, as well as information on current research.
Meta Description: [ Within my topic "The Historical Uses of Herbs" it is my intent to write articles regarding herbs and their historical uses. Sometimes I will examine on a single herb attempting to outline it's history. Other times I may focus on herbs generally for a specific historical period. ]
The Daisy Institute - Information and testimonials about using herbal remedies for various life-threatening diseases.
Meta Description: [ The Daisy Institute is a progressive field research organization devoted to the identification of therapeutic/healer-plants with superior medicinal properties against deadly diseases -- priceless new discoveries that everyone should know and have. ]
The Herb Coach - An e-zine containing herbal and natural health news.
Meta Description: [ We have a large range of Non-toxic soaps and creams, neutralizing liquids and gels. Come in and have a look at what we have on offer for you and your family. ]
The Herb Index - An online guide for herbs and supplements, includes scientific names and contra-indications.
Meta Description: [ dedicated to .NET Software Development and ORM ]
The Herb Society of America - Provides history and purpose, membership information, projects, programs, publications, calendar, conferences and scholarships. Includes herb profiles, seed exchange forum, and plant collection information.
Meta Description: [ Welcome to The Herb Society of America Homepage ]
The Herbal Encyclopedia - Alphabetical listing of healing herbs, with information about medicinal and religious uses, and culivation. Also provides articles about safety, storage, remedies, recipes, and special uses.
Meta Description: [ natural health, alternative health, herbs, herbal medicine, natural medicine ]
The Herbal Nexus - Herbs, their uses, folklore, medical information, photos, and a bookstore.
Meta Description: [ The Herbal Nexus: Herbs are discussed from folkloric and research
perspectives. Photographs. Includes a message forum. Essays and articles. ]
Trickstar in the Herb Garden - Includes a glossary, monographs, properties and phytochemicals, and an email newsletter.
Meta Description: [ Native American and Traditional Plant Medicines ]
