AJHM Vol 24 (4) Dec 2012
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Volume 24 • Issue 4 • 2012 Herbal Medicine A publication of the National Herbalists Association of Australia Australian Journal national herbalists of Herbal association of australia Medicine The Australian Journal of Herbal The NHAA was founded in Full ATSI membership Medicine is a quarterly publication of 1920 and is Australia’s oldest Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander practitioners who have undertaken formal the National Herbalists Association of national professional body of studies in bush medicine and Western herbal Australia. The Journal publishes material herbal medicine practitioners. medicine. on all aspects of western herbal medicine The Association is a non profit member Annual fee $60 and a $5 joining fee. and is a peer reviewed journal with an based association run by a voluntary Student membership Editorial Board. Board of Directors with the help of Students who are currently undertaking interested members. The NHAA is studies in western herbal medicine. Members of the Editorial Board are: involved with all aspects of western Annual fee $65 and a $10 joining fee. Ian Breakspear MHerbMed ND DBM DRM herbal medicine. Companion membership PostGradCertPhyto The primary role of the association is to Companies, institutions or individuals Sydney NSW Australia support practitioners of herbal medicine: involved with some aspect of herbal Annalies Corse BMedSc(Path) BHSc(Nat) medicine. Sydney NSW Australia • Promote, protect and encourage the Annual fee $160 and a $20 joining fee. Jane Frawley MClinSc BHSc(CompMed) DBM study, practice and knowledge of GradCertAppSc western herbal medicine. Corporate membership Blackheath NSW Australia • Promote herbal medicine in the Companies, institutions or individuals Stuart Glastonbury MBBS BSc(Med) DipWHM community as a safe and effective interested in supporting the NHAA. Toowoomba Queensland Australia treatment option. Annual fee $3000.00. Erica McIntyre BSocSc(Psych)(Hons) BHSc • Maintain and promote high All prices include GST DipBM educational standards for practitioners Blackheath NSW Australia Enquiries: Office Manager PO Box 45 Rob Santich DMH of herbal medicine. Concord West NSW 2138 Sydney NSW Australia • Encourage the highest ideals of Gill Stannard DipAppSci(Nat) BA professionalism and ethical standards Email: [email protected] Street address: 4 Cavendish Street Melbourne Victoria Australia for practitioners of herbal medicine. Concord West NSW 2138 Jon Wardle BHSc MPH • Advocate ethical and sustainable Brisbane Queensland Australia Editor: Anne Cowper methods of growing, harvesting and Email: [email protected] Dawn Whitten BNat manufacturing herbal medicines. Hobart Tasmania Australia Telephone: (02) 8765 0071 Hans Wohlmuth PhD BSc • Provide peer support for practitioners + 61 2 8765 0071 Ballina NSW Australia and students of herbal medicine. Fax: (02) 8765 0091 + 61 2 8765 0091 The Editorial Board advises on content, Website: www.nhaa.org.au structure and standards for the Journal, There are four categories of NHAA keeping it relevant to the profession of herbal membership: Editorial Committee: Erica McIntyre (Blackheath NSW) medicine. Peer reviewers will come from Full membership Stuart Glastonbury (Toowoomba QLD) the Editorial Board as well as being sourced Practitioners who have undertaken formal Anne Cowper (Morisset NSW) globally for their expertise in specific areas. studies in the health sciences and the princi- Contributions are invited to the journal. ples and practice of herbal medicine. Proofreaders: Instructions for contributors can be found on Annual fee $250 and a $30 joining fee. Greg Whitten (Hobart TAS) the inside back page. Kath Giblett (Perth WA) 20122008/2009 Corporate Corporate Members Sponsors ISSN 10338330 ABN 25 000 009 932 PP 23692/00006 CommentaryEditorial Australian Journal of Herbal Medicine 2012 24(4) Editorial Anne Cowper BHSc (CompMed) DBM ND LFNHAA Editor, Australian Journal of Herbal Medicine PO Box 45 Concord West 2138 [email protected] Next year will see 100 editions and a quarter of a With medicines at least partially now under control, the century of publication of the Australian Journal of security of the future of the profession was the big topic, Herbal Medicine. This in itself is not exceptional for as it remains today. Government registration has been an association that will be turning 100 years old in the on the agenda since 1925 but in 1989 it was recognised that it would depend on more than just government next decade, but it does provide a fascinating history registration to secure its future; the profession would need of the changes that have occurred in the profession to continiually assess and re-assess its standards, aims, over the last 25 years. The most significant changes goals and policies. This has progressed significantly over have been in government regulation and education. the last 25 years and continues to do so. In 1988 the Commonwealth Department of Community The educational standards in Australia for qualified Health gave notice that it intended to introduce new herbal and naturopathic practitioners have gone legislation to nationally regulate all therapeutic goods, from the weekend workshop to certificate, diploma including herbal medicines. At the time it was considered and degree level, with many sets of competencies in this might result in drastic consequences for herbalists between. The Australian National Training Authority with each medicine dispensed being subject to an annual has a Health Training Package (HTP) for an Advanced registration fee of $350, herbalists making their own Diploma of Western Herbal Medicine. The NHAA has medicines being subject to an annual license fee of $6,250 a comprehensive set of curriculum training guidelines and practitioner manufacturing principles having to incorporating the HTP and in many areas exceeding those standards laid down in the HTP by including traditional conform to the Australian Code of Good Manufacturing knowledge and concepts such as history and philosophy, Practice. Submissions were sent to Canberra arguing which are integral to herbal medicine education. that herbalists should be exempt from the legislation as they had previously been in the Therapeutic Goods and All this recent work is well documented, while much Cosmetics Act of 1972. In March 1989 the Department of the earlier history of herbalists and herbal medicine succumbed and advised that practitioners had been made in Australia has been written and archived for posterity. exempt and the 1972 Act would stand. In 1989 the first female president of the NHAA, Robyn Kirby, was instrumental in setting up a History of The practitioner was still able to make their own Herbalism in Australia exhibition in the historical Rocks medicine but would they still have access to all the area of Sydney. During its 3 weeks of display some 600 herbs? In 1992 the Commonwealth Drugs and Poisons people from 18 different countries visited the exhibition. Scheduling Standing Committee (now National Drugs The majority of the material has since been stored in the and Poisons Schedule Committee) scheduled a number NSW State Library for safe keeping. Sue Evans continued of herbs containing pyrrolizidine alkaloids, restricting the this work in her 2009 publication Challenge, tension and use of such herbs as Borago off, Pulmonaria spp, Senecio possibility: an exploration into contemporary western spp, Tussilago farfara and Symphytum off (which, based herbal medicine in Australia. on lack of scientific evidence, was later rescheduled to This is my 70th and final edition of the journal as editor, allow its use topically). Many more herbs are listed on the ending a journey of 17 years that has seen much growth different schedules including Gelsemium, Convallaria, in the quality, content and professionalism of the journal. Ammi visnaga, Rauwolfia, Lobelia, Arnica and of course I look forward to watching the progression not only of Digitalis and Ephedra. the journal but of the association and the profession at In 1997, just 15 years ago, the line between practitioner large. With such significant changes happening globally and manufacturer was still blurred. The Traditional we are ensured of interesting times ahead! Medicines Evaluation Committee (later to become the Complementary Medicines Evaluation Committee) was formed to deal with traditional medicines. This resulted in an outburst from the Australian Medical Association declaring herbs as drugs are potentially dangerous and placing greater restrictions on access to herbs and herbal material by herbalists. © National Herbalists Association of Australia 2012 117 Commentary Australian Journal of Herbal Medicine 2012 24(4) Commentary 1,2, 1 3 Jerome Sarris PhD, MHSc *, Isaac Schweitzer MD , David Mischoulon MD, PhD 1 Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 2. Centre for Human Psychopharmacology, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia 3. Depression Clinical and Research Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA * Corresponding author: Dr Jerome Sarris, The Melbourne Clinic, Department of Psychiatry The University of Melbourne, 2 Salisbury St, Richmond, Melbourne, Australia Ph: +613 94209350 email: [email protected] This paper provides a reply to the Wong (AJHM 24:3;97-9) critique of the Rapaport et al (2011) study which found no significant difference between St John’s wort, citalopram and placebo in treating minor depression. Additionally