How will the Ministers overruling of the EU Traditional Herbal Medicines Directive effect availability of over the counter herbal products

Under an EU directive passed in 2004 means that from May 1^st this year, consumers will no longer be able to purchase unlicensed traditional herbal products.

However, a last minute overruling by ministers means that these unlicensed herbal products, will still be available only when prescribed by a registered professional. This over-ruling is ‘to meet individual patient needs’, and plans are in motion for the Health Professions Council to establish a compulsory register of practitioners supplying unlicensed herbal medicines, which should be in place in 2012.

Why has this happened now?

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Agency has issued more than a dozen alerts in the past two years, an indication that stricter guidelines are needed in obtaining herbal products.

Why don’t more herbal products have a licence?

In order for a herbal product to be licensed, the EU directive demands that it is shown to be in use for 30 years in the EU, or 15 years in the EU and 15 years elsewhere. Even if this can be proved, the process in obtaining a licence costs £80,000 to £120,000, which is a cost most companies can not meet the expense of.

Overdose on homeopathic pills? Whatever will they think of next!

The recent publicity stunt 10:23 demonstrated sceptics of homeopathy attempt to overdose on homeopathic pills in protest to Boots stores across the country for selling homeopathic remedies with supposedly no evidence of effectiveness.

The stunt involved hundreds of people taking to the streets, swallowing entire bottles of pills, to try and prove that they are nothing more than sugar pills.

The lack of understanding of how homeopathic remedies work and how they are prescribed is the obvious flaw to the whole stunt. Is there more call for scientific research, absolutely, but when evidence is provided, it gets ridiculed or ignored. Luc Montagnier recently investigated the electromagnetic properties of highly diluted biological samples http://www.homeopathyeurope.org/nobel-prize-winner-reports-effects-of-homeopathic-dilutions

More and more is being understood about how these highly diluted substances work and with more findings such as these, we may even be able to shut the sceptics up once and for all. After all many things in life once deemed impossible are possible with emerging scientific technologies http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2007/06/07/tech-electronmovie-20070607.html

Do these publicity stunts actually have a negative impact on homeopathic practices, or do they fuel interest from the public who normally wouldn’t use homeopathy?

Would these sceptics prefer to continue looking at the world with their narrow minds, continue going to the doctor and receiving drugs which have proven horrific side-effects and evidence that they often don’t even do what they are intended for http://www.patrickholford.com/index.php/blog/blogarticle/682/

If trials were conducted which allowed for the same prescribing methods as practised by homeopaths during consultations, then this would give a much stronger basis of evidence for the effectiveness of homeopathy. This can only be achieved with a sound understanding of how homeopathy works, and by the above mentioned publicity stunt and other poor trials which have been conducted in the past, this does not seem the case.

I will throw out this to the sceptics, ‘how do you explain the beneficial effects homeopathic remedies have on children and animals?’ I have not received a response which would make me think anything other than the remedy prescribed is causing the benefits. Some might argue that the illness has run it’s course and the child or pet would have improved regardless if a remedy was prescribed or not. I would argue that often the results are so dramatic immediately after the remedy has been given, it is hard to believe that it be as a result of anything else.

Does anybody have any thoughts on this?

New year health tips

If the festive season has left your nerves frazzled and keeping the family entertained was more challenging than easy, and you are looking for a natural solution to help bring a sense of calm, then my tip top is Rescue Remedy! A combination of 5 flower remedies which is great in any stressful situation in creating a calmer you, check this link for more information http://www.rescueremedy.com/.

January often means an added few extra pounds in weight and a feeling of over-indulgence and sluggishness from all the never-ending food and drink! If this sounds like you, then you could benefit from the homeopathic remedy Nux Vomica 30c. Nux Vomica can help with feelings of nausea and sluggishness that often arise from eating and drinking excessively. It is such a useful remedy to have at this time of year! Nux Vomica is available at most Boots and Holland and Barrett stores.

As the temperature continues to drop, and it seems more and more people are coming down with bugs, it may be worth thinking about boosting your body’s defences. One way is to take a pro-biotic which will help to normalise and increase the friendly bacteria in the gut. More friendly bacteria means a higher chance of eliminating any nasties that enter the body. Another positive effect is improved digestion with less bloating and wind…a win win situation really! My personal favourite is Biocare’s Bio-Acidophilus Forte see http://www.biocare.co.uk/ for more details.

The short days and late nights can lead to tiredness and fatigue. One way to beat this is to take a daily sachet of Spatone. Spatone is spa water fortified with iron. You don’t have to be anaemic to take Spatone, it’s a fantastic way to top up your energy levels and give you an extra oomph in January! I mix my Spatone with orange juice and take it every morning about half an hour before breakfast to ensure maximum absorption.

These are just some of the treasures I count on to get me through January fighting fit!

Mind Makeover - Detoxify your mind

Is it enough to only detoxify the body in the New Year? According to some, no. The best way to get the New Year off to a gallant start is by also paying attention to the mind. What does this mean exactly? Well, with all the recent research on what we think having a direct effect on our physical well-being, it seems giving our mind a MOT has many benefits.

It’s claimed negative thought patterns can lead to ill health, so consider if your thoughts could be playing a part in any physical problems you may be suffering from. If you feel this could be an issue and find it difficult ridding the negative thoughts, there are techniques you can use to banish those negative thoughts and in turn improve the way you see and deal with life’s challenges and possibly even improve your health!

Firstly, try to be more conscious of your thoughts, if you find yourself thinking of something that would be counter productive to achieving your goals, recognise it and replace the thought with a positive one. Keep doing this, it will become easier to notice the rogue thoughts and change them. You will find as time goes on you will gradually be having more positive thoughts, until it becomes habitual and the negative thoughts will no longer be an issue!

If this isn’t enough and you still struggle with negative thought patterns, you may have some deep rooted beliefs which may take a bit more work to shift. There are many effective therapies which can help to combat limiting beliefs and put you on the right path. You can enlist the help of practitioners from a number of therapies such as;

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) which is a therapy which aims to solve problems through a goal-orientated systematic procedure. By identifying limiting beliefs, new ways of reacting and behaving are provided in order to change how a situation is viewed.

Hypnosis is another effective therapy which speaks to the sub-conscious when in a relaxed state. Suggestions are made which are said to by-pass the conscious rational mind in this state. This allows changes in core beliefs to take effect with ease and in a short amount of time.

Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) involves tapping on acupuncture points while focussing on a specific negative memory. The tapping is said to positively affect the body’s electrical system, releasing the memory and diminishing its negative impact.

These are just a few of many ways of addressing negative thought patterns. All differ in technique but lead to the same result. Whichever technique you use in ridding yourself of negative thoughts, once achieved, can only lead to a more lighter and happier you, which can also only have a positive effect on your health, right?