Phytoforschung What does the future look like?

What is the future of herbal medicines research??

20.12.2012

What is the future of research in the field of herbal medicines? Experts dealt with this question in the context of an event organized by the charitable committee for research natural medicine e.V. in Munich. Their conclusion: the bureaucratic hurdles have to be revised and medical research as a whole has to be adapted more closely to the individual needs of patients. Phytotherapy can make an important contribution to this.

Germany has lost its leading position in self-medication in Europe: Number 1 is currently Russia. While the market for OTC preparations in Eastern Europe grew by nine percent last year and still increased by one percent in Europe as a whole, in the same period it fell by one percent in Germany, reported Prof. Dr. med. Michael Habs, Karlsruhe. This also has negative consequences for research in this country, which is almost always supported by industry. If Germany is to become more attractive again for phytoforestry, above all the inadequate industrial property rights and the high bureaucratic costs have to be corrected. Only then will you be able to maintain the traditional pioneering role. Phytoforestry can then also help to better meet the increasingly vociferous demand for individualized medicine.

Although high-quality herbal medicines, when used correctly, are clearly effective, as has been shown in numerous studies, they are rarely included in the guidelines of scientific societies. Theo Dingermann, Frankfurt. This is mainly because even experts in the assessment generally perceive only the medicinal plant and not the specific remedy. At the same time, research has long shown how different products from a drug drug can be in terms of their molecular composition and profile of action. The quality of the medicinal plant or of the medicinal plant part used is just as important here as the solvent for the extraction and the concrete production process. One would therefore have to optimize the previous evaluation practice: more phyto experts should be represented in the guidelines committees, demanded Prof. Dingermann. (KFN)

Image: Leonora Black