The German Commission E Monographs are a therapeutic guide to herbal medicine Herbalism is a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts. Herbalism is also known as botanical medicine, medical herbalism, herbal medicine, herbology, and phytotherapy. The scope of herbal medicine is sometimes extended to include fungal and bee products, as well as minerals, shells and certain . There is an English translation[1] by the American Botanical Council, with 380 monographs evaluating the safety and efficacy of herbs for licensed medical prescribing in Germany. The commission itself was formed in 1978, and no longer exists.
The Commission E Monographs were imported into the United States with considerable fanfare in 1998 by The American Botanical Council. They were unequivocally endorsed in a foreword A foreword is a piece of writing often found at the beginning of a book or other piece of literature, before the introduction, and written by someone other than the author of the book. A preface, by contrast, is written by the author of the book, although sometimes the two terms are used interchangeably. A preface generally covers the story of how by the late Varro Tyler, a well-known professor of pharmacognosy Pharmacognosy is the study of medicines derived from natural sources. The American Society of Pharmacognosy defines pharmacognosy as "the study of the physical, chemical, biochemical and biological properties of drugs, drug substances or potential drugs or drug substances of natural origin as well as the search for new drugs from natural at Purdue University Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana, U.S., is the flagship university of the six campuses within the Purdue University System. Purdue was founded on May 6, 1869, as a land-grant university when the Indiana General Assembly, taking advantage of the Morrill Act, accepted a donation of land and money from Lafayette businessman John. Tyler states in his foreword that "...safety data were reviewed by the Commissioners according to a "doctrine of absolute proof" and efficacy according to a "doctrine of reasonable certainty."
"Certainly worth studying, the Commission E monographs detail which herbs are approved or disapproved, along with their uses, dosages, contraindications In medicine, a contraindication is a condition or factor that increases the risks involved in using a particular drug, carrying out a medical procedure, or engaging in a particular activity, adverse effects, drug interactions, and pharmacologic actions. The therapeutic, taxonomic Taxonomy is the practice and science of classification. The word finds its roots in the Greek τάξις, taxis and νόμος, nomos ('law' or 'science'). Taxonomy uses taxonomic units, known as taxa (singular taxon), and chemical indexes are helpful, as is the glossary." -- Journal of the American Medical Association JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association is an international peer-reviewed general medical journal, published 48 times per year by the American Medical Association. JAMA is the most widely circulated medical journal in the world, 1999[2]
Criticism
The 1998 book mentioned 10 but omitted 11 possible fatal reactions to the medicines described.[2]
"All [of the monographs] lack literature references. . .."[2]
The best known critic of Commission E is Jonathan Treasure, MNIMH, a UK licensed medical herbalist [3] and author of numerous herbalism monographs[1]
Treasure's lengthy review[4] (31K) offers detailed evidence that the book is not a work of science, medicine, or vitalist Vitalism has a long history in medical philosophies: most traditional healing practices posited that disease was the result of some imbalance in the vital energies which distinguish living from non-living matter. In the Western tradition founded by Hippocrates, these vital forces were associated with the four temperaments and humours; Eastern herbalism. Rather it is a book of German legal-medical regulations, since "In Germany, only those herbs with Commission E Approved status are (or will eventually become) legally available."
References
- ^ The Complete German Commission E Monographs, Therapeutic Guide to Herbal Medicines, 1st ed. 1998, Integrative Medicine Communications, pub; Bk&CD-Rom edition, 1999.
- ^ a b c Journal of the American Medical Association. 1999;281:1852-1853.
- ^ Jonathan Treasure - Author's biography by Herbal Educational Services.
- ^ Making Sense of Commission E, review by Jonathan Treasure, 1999-2000.
Categories: Biologically based therapies | Medical manuals This category lists articles about medical manuals. Alternatively, see Category:Handbooks and manuals and Category:Health | German law Categories: Civil law legal systems | Germany | Law by country | Alternative medicine publications
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