So we need to promote good circulation to ensure the blood is able to deliver nutrients around the body, and particularly to the head and eyes. Remember: it’s the lack of circulation and lack of oxygenation to the brain that gives rise to dementia.
Daily Stress
Our eyes need a constant and abundant supply of nutrients to help them cope with the stress we place them under as we go about our daily lives: adapting to sun, glare, and shade; focusing on close objects and those in the far distance: sitting at a computer or in front of a television screen: working or studying intensely for long periods; living and working in a dry, dusty environment, or in an air-conditioned building.
Hormonal function can also affect the blood and, ultimately, the tissue around the eye, so maintaining a well-balanced hormonal system is important. A starting point is to consult a natural therapist when you feel off-balance.
If we don’t have good circulation around the eyes, our vision will start to deteriorate, and we’ll need spectacles. So the more we can keep that blood flowing right into the eyeball and through those tiny capillaries to feed the tissue, the more chance we have of preserving our vision.
Enhancing Circulation
We know that spicy foods such as chillies (including Tabasco sauce), black pepper, and wasabi get the circulation moving. On the other hand, stodgy foods such as potatoes, white bread, and highly processed foods slow the circulation to the point where it becomes significantly sluggish. So include these hot spices in your meals as often as possible, and limit the stodge.
For those who insist they don’t like hot chillies, very small amounts are better than nothing, so start with enough to underscore the meal with warmth rather than heat, and build up gradually.
In clinical practice, we also use eye compresses to promote blood circulation. This simply involves alternating warm and cold saltwater (use just a pinch of salt) compresses on the eyes: the warm one, which should be baby’s bottle temperature, goes on first – just for a couple of seconds; the cold compress, using water from the cold tap, follows. Repeat this three times. This gets blood washing backwards and forwards over the eye.
Cucumber slices applied to the eyes is another old-fashioned remedy that is great to assist the tissue around the eye maintain its integrity, reducing excess fluid.
Nutritional Help
Two beneficial nutrients are betacarotene, which is the precursor to vitamin A; and bilberry, or European blueberry, an underrated herb that really helps prevent cataract development and macular degeneration. Taking both nutrients on a daily basis confers significant protection to the eyes – and they’re safe.
Cataracts can also be prevented with honey water, a remedy that’s been used for years and is something they still do for racehorses. Place one to two drops of good-quality honey such as Manuka in an eyebath, and top up with just-warm water. Swish the mixture around to ensure the honey is fully dissolved. Place the eyebath over the eye, then toss your head back and blink rapidly. It may sting slightly but it won’t harm the eye.
We’ve had clients with very early stage cataracts who have used this honey water over a three-month period – and when they went back to their doctor, the cataracts had disappeared.
Another thing we find is that often clients who follow these eye-health therapies don’t need to get stronger glasses, even though their optometrist had previously advised them they’d probably be necessary.
Additionally, eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, especially green leafy vegetables as they contain lutein, a nutrient that helps prevent macular degeneration.
Exercise
Here is a very effective exercise for building strength in the delicate muscles and tissue associated with the eye. Open your hand with the palm facing you and notice the muscle at the base of the thumb. If you set the muscle over your eye, you’ll find it fits perfectly into the eye socket. With the eye closed, press that part of the hand very gently onto the eye. Now, roll the eye while it’s under that pressure: you’ll feel the eye working. Perform 10 times a day
Finally – and so obviously – don’t smoke. One of the many harmful effects of this habit is that it constricts the blood vessels, which prevents the nutrient-rich blood from entering the capillaries and nourishing the eye tissue.
Since March 2010 members of the general public have been volunteering to participate in the ACTing on Weight research that includes attending a one day workshop focusing on emotional eating to assist them with their weight loss maintenance.
Weight loss maintenance has been targeted because previous research shows that most people know how to and can lose weight, however most people re-gain that weight. If people can be helped to maintain weight loss this could contribute to the fight against obesity, the leading cause of premature death and illness in Australia.
Instead of focusing on food like other interventions, the ACTing on Weight research has been designed to investigate the extent to which Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a psychological intervention, may help people to overcome emotional eating to assist them with their weight loss maintenance.
ACT is a psychological intervention, and a branch of behavioural therapy, which helps people deal with unpleasant thoughts and emotions without looking for ways to escape or suppress them, which in this context is through eating.
Chief Investigator Dr. Cate Bearsley Smith said that “many people engage in emotional eating because in the short term it seems to help them avoid difficult emotions states such as anxiety, boredom, loneliness, anger and depression. Where people turn to eating to regulate their emotional state they are inevitably going to sabotage their weight loss efforts”.
The ACTing on Weight approach works by teaching people psychological skills that will help them to better handle difficult thoughts and feelings that may be contributing to their emotional eating and weight loss maintenance struggle. That means that people may be less likely to use food as a coping mechanism.
Dr. Cate Bearsley-Smith said that “by attending the workshop as part of the ACTing on Weight research it is hoped that people will learn to feel their feelings and notice their thoughts without using food to avoid them, and in turn become more successful in their weight loss efforts”.
ACT and weight has been trialled internationally but the Monash University research is the first time it has been tested in Australia in the context of weight loss maintenance and emotional eating. ]]>
SANE Australia’s study found that almost 3 in every 4 expectant mothers were offered no support or information on how to plan for the stresses pregnancy and parenthood could place on their mental health.
This was despite the fact the majority of respondents reported having a mental illness such as depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia before becoming pregnant.
The study also found that more than half of the respondents received inconsistent and even conflicting information and advice regarding breastfeeding and medication.
“This is not only confusing and worrying for mums themselves, but it is also potentially dangerous,” says the executive director of SANE Australia, Barbara Hocking.
“Becoming a parent can be a joyful yet daunting time for anyone,” explains Hocking. “For parents managing a mental illness, the challenges can be even greater and they often need additional information and support from health professionals – be they doctors, mental health or maternal and child health care professionals.’
SANE Australia’s Research Bulletin 13 – Parenting and mental illness: the early years also found that practical help for this group of new parents, such as extra home visits or child care, was not offered to the vast majority of respondents.
In addition, one in every two people surveyed feared losing custody and one in five actively considered relinquishing their baby.
“It’s critical that new parents are told about, and where appropriate, referred to, any additional support services that are available,” says Hocking. “Health professionals – especially GPs and case managers – need education and encouragement to help parents prepare a contingency plan, in the event that the mother becomes unwell in the future.”
Prof Fiona Judd, director of the Centre for Women’s Mental Health at Melbourne’s Royal Women’s Hospital says: ‘Health professionals have a responsibility to advise and treat the whole person, but it’s clear from SANE’s research that they need to work together much more closely, so services are coordinated and information provided is consistent, as this is an especially vulnerable time.”
Fiona Sawyer’s story
“I was diagnosed with depression when I was 19. When I became pregnant last year, I was very worried about what was going to happen when I had the baby and how I would cope if my illness worsened. I didn’t know what to do about my medication – in fact I got conflicting information.
Since having William, in September, I have regularly reminded myself of how to manage my depression. I had no idea it was possible to get additional parenting support. Personally, I’ve been lucky because I’ve had great family support.’
Fiona Sawyer is an event manager and proud mum to William. She lives in Sydney with her husband.
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“Keeping people healthy and out of hospital is a key focus for the Gillard Government and we want to bring together the best expertise in the country to tackle chronic disease,” Roxon said.
“We know that preventive health measures work, that’s why we established the agency and are investing more than $870 million in prevention, the largest single investment ever of its kind.
“Already, government action such as increasing the tobacco excise and our support of campaigns like Measure Up and community prevention initiatives such as healthy cooking classes, community vegetable gardens, walking and bike tracks are making a difference around the country.”
The agency, which began on 1 January of this year, is an independent statutory authority created to lead the fight against preventable diseases through preventive health initiatives targeting obesity, along with alcohol, tobacco and other substance abuse.
The Advisory Council will consist of one member from the Australian Government, one or two members from state and territory governments, and between five and eight non-government experts. Members will be appointed by the Minister, in consultation with the Australian Health Ministers Conference.
The council will provide advice and make recommendations to the agency’s Chief Executive Officer. The interim CEO is Dr Rhonda Galbally.
“The expression of Interest process aims to identify a broad mix of individuals with skills, experience and energy to contribute to preventive health policy debate in Australia,” Roxon said.
For more information contact the Canberra office of Talent Partners Hansen and Searson.
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By Sandi Rogers Ed.D
Until the 19th century, natural medicine was the primary form of healing for every population. Only then was the medical profession formalised, and doctors trained.
Sir William Osler (1849-1919) wrote what became the key text for students and clinicians: The Principles and Practice of Medicine, which remained in publication until 2001.
He also broke the body into parts in order to be able to teach it better, thereby creating the reductionist paradigm that is the hallmark of allopathic medicine.
So in the early 1800s the medical profession was at a crossroads, because GPs were not accepted: they had to gain the support of the population. In the early 2000s, natural medicine is at a similar crossroads, with the big difference being that we have the support of the consumer.
This is clearly evidenced in the fact that the ATMS’s 12,000 members perform 1.9 million consultations per year – and this is just one professional association of the 43 in Australia.
We’ve also held positive discussions with politicians at both the state and federal level, who have shown they’re willing to talk to our profession through the Inter-Association Regulatory Forum (IARF), the alliance of 15 major professional associations formed to negotiate these crossroads by working to achieve co-regulation, while ensuring the profession retains its own identity.
Medical Opposition
However, we do have opposition – and it comes from the medical profession. Essentially, their attitude is that they have to accept us first. We say no, we operate in a different field of medicine – our own specialised field – therefore we don’t have to engage with you.
The broader medical profession will fight tooth and nail for us to come under the allied health umbrella, which incorporates chiropractors, osteopaths, physiotherapists, podiatrists, optometrists, and dentists.
This would mean regulation under the restrictive statutory registration model, which would inevitably lead to the loss of our identity. And for clients, it will mean higher costs, as our insurance would treble.
The medical profession wields huge power, and also believes it owns the rights to the human body. Our view is that they have one way of dealing with the body, and we have another way: put the two together, and it becomes very powerful.
If we are forced into the allied framework, because we practise so differently we’ll lose the strength of who we are. An illustration of this can be found in the chiropractic profession. Before becoming registered in the 1970s, chiropractors could do their own x-rays; once they became registered, they had to write scripts for x-rays: they couldn’t have their own x-rays in their own practices.
Additionally, chiropractors have long wanted to practise in hospitals, but they’re still not permitted to. Why? Because the medical profession controls them. So the chiropractic profession has lost its identity – and this is something that must not happen to natural therapy disciplines.
We want a rightful place within a biomedical model, with government support, while retaining our specialised management of the client. While our safety record means we don’t need government supervision, we’re nonetheless happy to have government oversee us, as some in the AMA consider us uncontrolled, freewheeling practitioners.
We can address this under the co-regulation model by having a representative from both the government and the AMA on the board.
Regulatory Process
Another threat to what our profession stands for comes in the form of the Australian Register of Naturopaths and Herbalists (ARONAH), an association formed by 100 or so university-trained naturopaths and herbalists to pursue statutory registration, which they state is the only suitable form of regulation for them.
This group has made the extraordinary claim that the professional associations can’t work together to come up with a regulatory model. The regulatory process takes time: in a democracy, you treat colleagues with respect.
Everyone has their say, and this is time consuming. We have working parties looking at each association’s standards and code of practice, and formulating consistent standards across all disciplines.
Inevitably, there will be disagreements, but we just keep working until everyone is happy with the finished document. This takes considerable amounts of money and dedication by a lot of people.
Degree Vs Advanced Diploma
ARONAH also claims university-trained practitioners are the only practitioners consumers should consider. Yet the only difference between a degree and an advanced diploma, which is the baseline entrance level to naturopathy, is a single research semester.
Clinical training is exactly the same, including structured clinical practice. The advanced diploma is government accredited, and compliant with the Australian government standard for the training of naturopaths.
A strength of the ATMS is that we represent around 80 training colleges, so we have an academic review committee that oversees and constantly reviews standards of education to ensure the consumer gets the best- qualified practitioner.
Qualified practitioners who have the empirical knowledge and also the clinical knowledge of how to ensure these medicines work deliver the courses. Universities find it very hard to get experienced practitioners who have the qualifications to teach in the university structure, and so degree courses are often taught by academics who lack practical clinical experience.
Statutory registration would mean that a degree becomes the entrance level to the profession. I’m an academic with an Ed.D., but I firmly believe the advanced diploma should remain the entrance level.
However, I welcome the idea of vocational graduates going on to do a degree. At university you learn research skills – and research is something that’s missing in natural medicine. We need good research to confirm the safety and efficacy of the disciplines.
In Australia alone, 230,000 people are afflicted with this brain-atrophying disease, and this number is expected to double in the next decade. Twenty-six million people throughout the world suffer from Alzheimer’s, and in the US, it now ranks as the sixth leading cause of death.
However, current research suggests there’s a lot we can do to prevent it, that it need not be inevitable even when there’s a family link. The main steps are controlling blood pressure; eating a diet loaded with fruits and vegetables; and exercising both the body and the brain every day.
Health Watchpoints
In his book: It’s Never Too Late to Change Your Mind, Michael Valenzuela PhD reviews the latest medical thinking on dementia prevention. He identifies a link between dementia and uncontrolled high blood pressure, which often arises from a high-stress lifestyle. As high blood pressure starves the brain of oxygen, which sets you on the path leading into dementia, it’s absolutely imperative to keep blood pressure in check.
Other health conditions associated with Alzheimer’s disease include high cholesterol; diabetes and insulin resistance; obesity, especially increased belly fat; high uric acid levels; thyroid dysfunction; heart disease and deficiency of intracellular T3 (immune system cells).
The Fruit and Vegetable Link
In my clinical practice, I have clients of 20 or 30 years standing who are now in their 70s and 80s. One pattern I observe is that the people who have led off into dementia, or are bordering around it, are usually the ones who have not exercised much, and who eat a diet high in processed foods and low in fruit and vegetables, usually because they don’t like them.
So it’s interesting that a recent study made the link between dementia and low levels of B vitamins: fresh fruits and vegetables – especially leafy green vegetables – are very high in these vitamins, as are other plant foods such as nuts, seeds, pulses and whole grains.
The two-year clinical trial, which involved 168 volunteers, found that high doses of B vitamins could substantially reduce the rate of brain shrinkage in older people with memory problems, known as mild cognitive impairment. MCI affects around 16 per cent of people over age 70, and is a major risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease.
Participants were given either a vitamin supplement containing high doses of vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid, or a placebo. The brains of the people taking the vitamins shrank by 0.76 per cent per year on average, whereas the group taking the placebo experienced an average shrinkage of 1.08 per cent.
An earlier study investigating the impact of vitamin B12 on brain wasting found older people who had lower levels of this vitamin at the beginning of the study also had a greater decrease in brain volume at the end.
Participants with the lowest levels of B12 experienced a six-fold greater rate of brain volume loss compared with participants who had the highest levels of B12. This study was based on the premise that by controlling the amino acid homocysteine – high levels of which are linked to a greater risk for Alzheimer’s, stroke and heart disease – it may be possible to reduce the amount of brain shrinkage. B vitamins generally are known to suppress homocysteine, and B12 specifically is crucial for neurological function.
Other nutritional deficiencies associated with Alzheimer’s include omega-3 essential fatty acids, and vitamin K which, like folate, is abundant in leafy green vegetables.
Start Early
The earlier you start prevention, the better. By the same token, it’s never too late – and the best move you can make is to head to the best pharmacy of all – your local fruit and vegetable shop – and load up on fresh produce.
If you don’t like fruit and vegetables, try juicing them. Mix a little bit of cabbage, apple, carrot, and celery to create a fairly palatable combination. If the flavour is still a problem, dilute it by half with water. Commit to drinking just a port wine glass of this juice daily for 14 days.
Most clients who start on this juice come back and say they can’t believe how well they feel, they look better, and their skin, vision and digestion have improved. Although they may hate the juice initially, they eventually reach the point where they look forward to it every day and really enjoy it – and if they stop because they go on holidays, for example, they quickly feel the (negative) effects.
Blueberries with their high anthocyanin and antioxidant content appear to offer protection against Alzheimer’s, so if you love them eat them in abundance, or blend them into a smoothie.
One thing to be aware of: if you take blood-thinning medication such as Warfarin, you must avoid leafy greens because the vitamin K that helps prevent Alzheimer’s can also counter the action of the medication, as it promotes blood clotting. Small quantities of leafy greens may be acceptable, but consult your healthcare professional to be safe.
This is a perfect example of where the collegial focus of orthodox medicine and natural medicine can work so well. Western medicine prescribes the Warfarin, which works fantastically and saves lives every day. The naturopath or nutritionist understands the complexity of the drug and can formulate a diet to ensure nutrient-rich foods still come into the body, although not necessarily as leafy greens.
Supplement Substitute?
Many clients tell me they don’t need to eat fruit and vegetables because they take nutritional supplements. Supplements may be important for some conditions – be guided by a professional – but they should always be regarded as complementary to a healthy and highly varied diet, not a replacement. Mother Nature knew what she was doing, for all the nutrients present in food are in balance. It isn’t possible to replicate this in a tablet.
Eating a healthy diet does not mean you have to become vegetarian or vegan. It’s a matter of replacing processed foods with fresh, unprocessed whole foods – and this includes meat and fish. The latter is particularly important for its highly protective omega 3 essential fatty acids.
Exercise
Get that oxygen flowing to the brain by taking a brisk 15 to 20 minute walk every day.
All activity – passive and active – is important for staving off Alzheimer’s: the saying ‘use it or lose it’ was never more apt when it comes to mental function.
Continue to acquire new skills for your work and your personal interests. Challenge yourself to try new activities, and also experiment with new ways of doing everyday activities to avoid settling into a comfortable rut.
Learn a language; do crosswords, board games and puzzles such as Sodoku; paint, draw, write, play a musical instrument; travel; enjoy an active social life interacting with lots of different people. Brain Gym exercises are also beneficial.
The key message is: don’t wait, start moving into prevention now. Even if you do develop Alzheimer’s, eating well and exercising will slow its progress.
]]>‘Among men, coronary heart disease was the most common cause of premature mortality, accounting for 16% of years of life lost from chronic disease,’ said Karen Bishop of the Institute’s Population Health Unit.
For women, the leading cause was breast cancer, which made up 12% of years of life lost from chronic disease. Chronic diseases―such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and mental disorders―are usually long-lasting and persistent, often with associated disability.
The report uses potential years of life lost (PYLL) as an indicator of premature death. PYLL are determined by age at death and only take into account deaths that occur before the age of 75.
Among men, lung cancer (8%) and depression (6%) were the second and third most common causes of PYLL. For women, lung cancer (9%) and coronary heart disease (6%) were responsible for the next greatest number of chronic disease PYYL, after breast cancer.
‘The highest number of premature chronic disease deaths were among people aged 65-74 years, while deaths of those aged 55 to 64 contributed to the greatest number of PYLL,’ Bishop said.
More than one-quarter (26%) of chronic disease mortality was experienced by people from the most socioeconomic disadvantaged areas.
‘Among men, the chronic disease mortality burden was almost twice (1.9 times) as high for those from the ‘worst off’ areas as it was for those from the ‘best off’ areas,’ Bishop said.
For women, it was 60% higher than for those from the ‘best off’ areas.’ In 2007, the total potential years of life lost amounted to nearly 870,000 years―565,500 (65%) of these years were due to chronic disease.
]]>Commenting on the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s newly released Cancer in Australia 2010, Cancer Council Australia CEO, Professor Ian Olver, said the report reflected Australia’s successes in controlling cancer but also showed where we could do better.
“Cancer survival in Australia is high by international standards, but our successes are not shared equitably,” Professor Olver said. “There are, however, policy measures available to government for reducing many of the disparities and addressing alarming trends.”
Professor Olver said key findings in the report should provide a guide to improved cancer control policy at the national level included:
The aberrant trend towards higher rates of lung cancer death in women. The Government’s visionary plan to introduce plain packaging of tobacco products has the potential to significantly reduce smoking rates (and subsequent lung cancer deaths), hence the tobacco industry’s trenchant opposition to the plan;
Significantly higher cancer deaths in men than in women (57% v 43%), a gap reflected in bowel cancer mortality. With the future of the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program, which could save up to 30 lives a week (more than half of them male) subject to 2011-12 budget considerations, the Government is uniquely placed to immediately cut male cancer deaths with a single program; and Australia’s unwanted status as the world’s melanoma capital – with rates 13 times the global average. Yet Australian Government investment in skin cancer campaigns has declined since 2007-08, despite independent research showing its effectiveness.
Professor Olver said inequitable cancer outcomes were also reported among Australians in remote areas, who should receive improved travel and accommodation assistance when diagnosed with cancer, as well as other disadvantaged groups such as Indigenous people.
“The issue of cancer in Indigenous people is complex and under-researched, but higher rates of smoking are likely to be one reason for the disproportionate level of cancer mortality,” he said.
“So the Government should be commended for its Close the Gap initiatives, particularly the substantial planned investment in tobacco control.” ]]>
The new ‘High Fibre Grains Cluster’ will focus on wheat, barley and rice. One of the primary research goals is to boost the amount of beneficial compounds, such as beta glucans and arabinoxylans, which are key contributors to the soluble component of dietary fibre in the various grains. The collaboration between CSIRO’s Food Futures Flagship, The University of Adelaide, The University of Melbourne and The University of Queensland will bring together Australia’s foremost plant and human nutrition researchers with the aim of boosting the healthy fibre content of common grains. The Director of CSIRO’s Food Futures Flagship, Dr Bruce Lee, said the key to success is collaboration across Australia’s national innovation system. “By bringing together scientists from CSIRO and leading Australian research institutions, the High Fibre Grains Cluster will produce more significant outcomes far more rapidly than if we each tackled these problems on our own,” Dr Lee said. “This is world-leading and groundbreaking research in the area of grains and their impact on human health.” Professor Geoff Fincher from the University of Adelaide, the university partner leading the High Fibre Grains Cluster, said improving the fibre qualities of grains could have major health benefits for the wider population. “Research has shown that the beta glucans and arabinoxylans found in soluble fibre block the re-absorption of cholesterol from the gut so more of this cholesterol is lost naturally from the body during the digestive process,” Professor Fincher said. This is believed to contribute to the protective effects of wholegrains in lowering the risk of heart disease and stroke. The High Fibre Grains Cluster follows on from a previous Flagship Collaboration Cluster, which was set up to investigate the biggest source of fibre in grains – non-starch polysaccharides (NSP) in the plant cell wall. The successful three-year program, which concluded in March this year, focussed on the functions of NSP, factors controlling their synthesis and improving the ability to manipulate their levels and composition in grains.
The cluster will invest more than $7 million over three years, with the university partners receiving more than $3.4 million from the Flagship Collaboration Fund. The Fund was established to enable the skills of the wider Australian and global research community to be applied to the major national challenges targeted by CSIRO’s Flagship research programs.
“Grains, such as barley, are good sources of soluble fibre, but levels are low in wheat and rice. The many health benefits that grains can bring have been proven, so the next step is to boost the amount of beneficial fibre in these grains, and this will be our focus over the next three years,” he said.
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It has been estimated that almost a billion people world-wide have high blood pressure, with two-thirds of these living in developing countries. This pandemic is occurring despite the progress that people have made in preventing and treating hypertension and the chronic diseases that result from it.
“In developed countries, the rate of chronic health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, kidney diseases that result from high blood pressure is dropping by significant numbers. Over the past forty years, premature deaths from cardiovascular disease in Australia have decreased by greater than 70 percent” Professor Warwick Anderson, Chief Executive Officer of the NHMRC said.
“The health evidence shows that mortality associated with chronic non-communicable diseases is increasing in developing countries. Creating an international evidence base to inform strategies to overcome the key barriers to reducing death and the health burden in developing countries must be a priority. Cultural, language and socio-economic barriers should not limit populations’ access to health benefits.
“All of our biggest health threats require an international research effort. Having global health and medical research funds united in coordinated approaches to research, research evaluation and data sharing will lead to faster solutions.”
Responses to the Alliance’s call for research will need to demonstrate how researchers will ensure that results are interpretable and applicable across a range of locations.
Standard metrics and protocols for examining outcomes and for assessing features of the health care system and broader context will ensure that research will be applicable to all settings. It will provide important frameworks for future research into applying prevention and treatment strategies to other global health issues, including obesity and mental health.
This research will particularly investigate the barriers to research translation that have prevented treatments that are effective in controlling high blood pressure being adopted by other at-risk populations.
A greater understanding of how preventative strategies and high blood pressure treatments can be introduced across a range of socio-economic and cultural settings will result from the project. This knowledge will provide the foundation for changes in systems (healthcare) and processes to reduce disparities in high blood pressure control across population sub-groups.
The results of this research will also help health care providers and policy decision makers in low and middle income settings to improve health systems across their population. The assessment of research proposals will also be strengthened internationally through the development of a prototype for the peer review of chronic diseases in low to middle income countries.
“Australia punches well above its weight in producing innovative health and medical research. The results of Australian research have paved the way to better prevention, better treatments, and cures for conditions once thought incurable. The NHMRC is committed to working with our sister funding bodies to ensure that social and economic benefits of health and medical research are translated into tangible results in global health systems” Professor Anderson said.
The Alliance is concerned about all chronic non-communicable diseases. In 2009, the World Health Organization identified that the leading global risk factors for death, particularly in low and middle income settings, were caused by non-communicable diseases. Trends suggest that the incidence of non-communicable disease in these settings is increasing, with a significant negative economic impact.
The potential benefits from the Alliance’s investment in this research are significant. Individuals’, families and societies will be more productive and less affected by the secondary health effects of chronic disease if research is able to translate existing knowledge into improved policies and practices in these developing countries.
The Alliance is formed by six of the world’s peak health and medical research funding agencies, which represent 80% of the world’s health and medical research funding.
Members of the Alliance are:
- National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia
- Canadian Institutes of Health
- Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences
- South Africa’s Medical Research Council
- United Kingdom’s Medical Research Council
- United States’ National Institutes of Health
Further information about this call for applications can be found on the Alliance website at the following link www.ga-cd.org
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The Bill will see the establishment of a National Preventive Health Agency to coordinate a national strategic approach in relation to preventive health. This will include promoting healthy lifestyles and coordinating national programs aimed at reducing alcohol abuse, obesity, and tobacco use in Australia.
RACGP president professor Claire Jackson said she was pleased that the Government is implementing a national, coordinated approach to preventive health.
“Often, underlying areas of health and well‐being are overlooked in favour of immediate health problems that can’t be avoided. The adverse effects of being overweight, smoking and excessive alcohol intake are regularly ignored until the health problems stemming from these areas become a problem.
“GPs provide ongoing care to people over time and play an essential role in health promotion and providing preventive counseling and advice. We are pleased that the Government is also focusing on the important area of prevention within our healthcare system,” she said.
Professor Jackson said that the College was looking forward to working with the National Preventive Health Agency to improve the health of all Australians now and in the future.
“GPs are at the forefront of primary healthcare in Australia and there is no group better equipped to provide solutions in regards to preventive health. We hope that the National Preventive Health Agency engages with GPs at a grassroots level,” she said.
The RACGP Guidelines for preventive activities in general practice (the Red Book), the RACGP Putting prevention into practice: guidelines for the implementation of prevention in the general practice setting (the Green Book) and the RACGP SNAP: a population health guide to behavioural risk factors in general practice are key resources for Australian GPs in regards to preventative health.
“These RACGP guides are international repositories of evidence‐based preventive care guidelines in primary care. They allow Australian GPs to play a key role in spear‐heading improved preventive care for Australians nationally,” professor Jackson concluded. ]]>
Starting early next year, the new agency will provide co-ordination and leadership in preventing illness and death due to unhealthy lifestyles and other preventable factors. VicHealth CEO Todd Harper said the agency will strengthen the front line in the battle against chronic illness caused by smoking, alcohol and obesity in Australia.
“The National Preventive Agency will have a major public education focus, which we know from the tobacco example is a highly effective way to encourage healthier lifestyles,” he said.
“Not only will this new agency make a significant difference to the health of all Australians, it will also have economic and financial benefits and reduce the burden on our hospital system. We look forward to working closely together.
“VicHealth’s economic research shows that if alcohol consumption was reduced by one-third, there would be 98,000 fewer new cases of disease a year. Similarly, if tobacco smoking in Australia was reduced by just 2%, this would save 5000 lives a year.”
Harper added that the new agency would not have been possible without the endorsement from COAG, the National Health and Hospital Reform Commission and the National Preventive Health Taskforce.
Their recommendations have highlighted the need for the agency to be capable of working effectively across many sectors, coordinating activities at national, state and local levels, informing government policy through the provision of strategic advice, and providing progress reports to the Australian community. ]]>
Two hundred and ninety six researchers across Australia have been awarded National Health and Medical Research Council awards and fellowships that will enable them to develop their research careers.
“When researchers are given an opportunity to develop their research careers they extend our knowledge of health beyond current understanding,” Butler said.
“Their dedicated work in areas as diverse as basic science and the development of better treatments in hospitals and nursing homes is the key to quality of life for Australians living with dementia, mental health problems and other health issues.”
Professor Brian Dean, of the University of the Mental Health research Institute of Victoria, is one of these researchers. He will receive a $630,505 five-year NHMRC Research Fellowship to develop a better understanding of the chemical basis of common mental health disorders, including schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder, which could lead to new ways of treating these conditions.
“Professor Dean is a renowned academic and researcher of international standing,” Butler said.
“Today’s award will allow him to continue developing a better understanding of the chemical basis of common mental health disorders, including schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder, creating the potential to lead to new medication based treatments.”
Sharon Andrews, a nursing researcher from the Menzies Research Institute Tasmania, has been awarded a $124,000 Translating Research in to Practice Fellowship to extend her work in improving the quality of care for nursing home patients with dementia. She will focus on ways to build better staff-family relationships.
“With the ageing population and changing family structures around us, it is easy to see how stronger relationships have the potential to improve quality of life for elderly residents while providing emotional support to the family,” Butler said.
“Sharon’s work will help to address the challenges of caring for older Australians with dementia by combining the skills and knowledge of family and professional staff.
“The essential work being carried out by these two researchers shows us that medical research is not about developing knowledge for knowledge’s sake; it’s about better prevention, diagnosis, treatment and the hope of a cure.
“The Gillard Labor Government’s investment in medical research builds on our genuine commitment to mental health and aged care reform, and to our health reform nationwide.”
Today’s $127 million announcement comes on the back of $450 million worth of NHMRC health and medical research grants announced in Melbourne last week.
For more information, please contact Mr Butler’s office on 02 6277 7280. ]]>
By Rosemary Ann Ogilvie
For the down states related to life events such as death, redundancy, relationship breakdowns and other forms of loss; pain and illness; post-natal depression, or depression in teenage boys, a term such as ‘not-coping-with-life syndrome’ is more accurate.
This name gives a very clear picture that we need to develop the skills to cope with these events – and this usually involves counselling. Antidepressant drugs are not the answer, even though they tend to be prescribed as a magic bullet for people experiencing rough patches: behavioural modification forced by a sedative drug will not help the person find the motivation to move forward and develop the skills to get out of where they are. Instead, the drugs lock them into a rut.
Learning the life skills
In no way am I minimising the intensity of the life events people experience, but they are all things people can work through. One client lost her husband and three children in a car accident one morning when they were on their way to school and work. Of course she is going to be in a down state, but is it depression? No. It’s trauma. And she must learn the life skills to move through this trauma. You have to feel all the emotions, and you can’t do this by taking a drug that suppresses them.
Over the past five years, we have seen increasing numbers of people – primarily women – coming to our clinical practice in the wake of a GP’s diagnosis of depression and a recommendation to take antidepressants.
When I ask how this diagnosis was made, the typical response is that they have recently experienced a tragedy or an event and they feel sad, unmotivated and cannot get out of bed.
This is not depression: it is a lack of coping skills, and they should have been referred to a counsellor. In fairness to doctors, they are often restricted with the time they have to deal with these difficult situations, whereas natural therapists have the luxury of setting their consultation hours to suit the clients’ needs rather than being constrained by government budgets.
But you now we have a potential drug addict – albeit a legal one – as the majority of these medications are habit-forming. They are also associated with a slew of health-damaging side effects, ranging from weight gain, through digestive disturbances and adrenal gland dysfunction, to cardiovascular disease.
The longer the person takes the drugs without working to develop their coping skills, the more dangerous it becomes – and this is where the rising suicide rates come in.
I believe this borders on negligence in clinical practice – and friends of mine who are doctors agree. However these doctors, in common with all doctors, do not have the time to sit down and work with these patients.
What they do have, though, is a network of professional counsellors and/or hypnotherapists who can guide the person through the life event by acting as a sounding board, and work with them to develop coping strategies and re-engage with life.
Clinical Strategies
In my practice, I give clients a clinical diary where they can record their daily experiences. Each time we have a consultation, we write down strategies for dealing with issues as they arise.
We also have the client write down on little yellow sticky notes what makes them feel good, because when you are really down you can think only about what makes you feel sad. They can go through these sticky notes to find the little triggers that remind them what makes them feel good. This works fantastically well.
I may also recommend nervine tonics such as lavender tea. However, when people are taking antidepressants, certain effective herbal preparations can be contraindicated.
You might want to use St John’s Wort, and minerals such as magnesium, and improve the person’s diet, but the antidepressants suppress the body so much that you cannot.
Dietary Link
There is a huge link between down states and a poor-quality diet loaded with refined, highly processed carbohydrates. So it is crucial for women experiencing post-natal depression, for example, to look at the quality of their nutrition.
Similarly with young men who are having problems: some have atrocious diets, centred around processed carbohydrates and fatty takeaway foods, which means they are not getting the necessary vitamins, minerals, and amino acid chains. Changing their diet is something that must be done one step at a time over a long period: you cannot do it instantly, as many of these foods are comfort foods.
What we do to initiate the body’s recovery via the nutritional pathway is to start the client on a nutrient-enriched protein powder, which they take in the form of an easily prepared drink first thing in the morning. In some instances, the person may need to have small amounts of these drinks three or four times through the day, while we slowly work at improving their diet one meal at a time.
Depression in young men
In many cases, depression in young men relates to sexuality. I do a huge amount of counselling with adolescents who are having sexual identity crises, which can degenerate into states of morbid type depression. But this is also about not coping, so it is important to identify what they are not coping with and develop their skills to deal with these events.
Organisations such as BeyondBlue do wonderful work with adolescent youth. However, the boys often refuse to see a doctor because they do not want to talk about their feelings: generally, they have never been encouraged to do this, having been told from toddler hood to be brave and get on with it. We really have to change our conventional mindset in this respect and encourage boys to talk about their feelings – and we are actually seeing more and more evidence of this changing.
Finally, two key factors in boosting mood are sunlight and exercise. People can usually find time to sit in the sun, but finding the motivation to get active can be challenging. So as with diet, it needs to be taken one (baby) step at a time.
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One of my key objectives as president of the Australian Traditional Medicine Society (ATMS) – and a reason I took on the role again – is to achieve regulation of the natural therapies profession under the co-regulation model.
Professor Karen Phelps, president of the Australasian Integrative Medicine Association, stated in March this year that the lack of regulation in alternative medicine was ‘alarming’.
Natural medicine, she added, deserved the same level of regulation as other health professionals such as doctors, dentists, and optometrists: in other words, statutory regulation. She claimed this was necessary to ensure natural therapists have a minimum level of education.
Natural Therapies Vs Integrative Medicine
Firstly, I must point out that Professor Phelps is not a spokesperson for the natural therapies profession. Integrative medicine is a different concept in which medical doctors incorporate natural therapies into their conventional practice.
Certainly, it is always positive to see the medical profession embrace natural therapies – and it is admirable that they are taking this step, for it is not without controversy.
However, the concern is that although they may be trained in the products they use, they continue to work within the reductionist paradigm rather than following the holistic paradigm: They substitute pharmaceutical drugs with natural medicines, but do not follow through by working with the entire person, looking at emotions and environment in addition to physiology.
Self-Regulation
The second thing I must clarify is that our profession is not entirely unregulated: We have been operating very successfully under self-regulation for some time.
Moreover, in order to qualify for private health insurance rebates – and also to purchase therapeutic practitioner- only products – therapists must belong to one of the 43 professional associations.
Each of these associations sets minimum education standards and has a requirement for 20 hours continuing professional development every year.
Private health funds also demand continuing education, and audit the associations around this. Under self-regulation, education standards for the profession have steadily risen.
The federal government’s Health Training Package, which was released in 2000 and revised in 2007, sets a minimum standard of education and ensures consistency of training within all government- accredited colleges.
Respected universities, such as Southern Cross and Charles Sturt, now offer degree courses in a number of disciplines, including naturopathy and western herbal medicine.
Post-graduate degrees are becoming increasingly available. This is one reason why we are working towards regulation: Unqualified, or minimally qualified, practitioners, have the potential to undermine the quality of our profession – and worse, cause harm to clients.
One of the requirements for statutory regulation is for the discipline ‘to demonstrate that it may pose a significant risk of harm to the health and safety of the public’.
In trained hands, our profession does not cause harm: Unlike allopathic practitioners, we do not have access to dangerous medications or techniques with the potential to cause significant harm.
Despite allopathic medicine having the scrutiny of statutory regulation, 1800 people in Australia are killed every year through the side effects of legally prescribed drugs. If we had similar statistics, the Government would insist it be statutory registered – or shut down.
Consistent Standards
Many people may be questioning why regulation cannot occur instantly. The main reason is the sheer number of professional bodies: 43, as mentioned earlier. ATMS is the largest, with almost 12,000 members, and over the past 12 months, we have taken the initiative to bring these associations together.
We now have 15 working together towards co-regulation, which involves formulating consistent standards, including complaints procedures, and education levels through the associations.
As the basics are already in place – most associations have a code of practice and code of ethics – it is about fine tuning present systems rather than establishing new systems. Currently two associations have rejected the co-regulation model, preferring to adopt the statutory regulation model.
This puzzles me: Many of my friends are doctors, and they often tell me how much they envy the freedom we have to run our practices as we want to. GP’s patients are allocated perhaps 10 minutes for a consultation, which gives little time for proper investigation and diagnosis.
We have the luxury of determining our own time frames and setting our own fees, as ours is a user-pay system. Under the co-regulation model, the Government will oversee the profession to ensure safety for clients who consult natural therapists.
For this reason, we need to engage Government as we move down the regulation path. Prior to the election, we held productive meetings with politicians from several parties including the Greens, as well as Independents.
Once the political situation stabilises, this work will resume. Regulation should lead to a further breakdown of the barriers between allopathic and natural medicine, thus enabling greater collaboration between practitioners.
People want their natural therapist and GP to work together: The consumer is heading a revolution for change and choice, and it is the way of the future for healthcare in Australia.