DIFM is your link to evidence-based resources in integrative, holistic and functional medicine. Choose a link below to explore scientific research and peer-reviewed information regarding the use of complementary and alternative therapies.
Online Resource for Natural Products
NAPRALERT is a database of all natural products, including ethnomedical information, pharmacological/biochemical information of extracts of organisms in vitro, in situ, in vivo, in humans (case reports, non-clinical trials) and clinical studies. The cost to retrieve a list of citations and a summary of the relevant ethnomedical, pharmacological and/or phytochemical information is based on the number of citations that are retrieved. To access the database click here. (NAPRALERT is maintained by The Program for Collaborative Research in the Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago).
Online Resources for Drugs and Supplements
MedLine Plus from the US National Library of Medicine is now providing a supplement database with reviews compiled by the group Natural Standard. Supplement information is available in both English and Spanish. Natural Standard is an international research collaboration that aggregates and synthesizes data about complementary and alternative therapies, providing rankings for ingredients. The site features information about prescription and over-the-counter medication from MedMaster™, a product of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), and USP DI® Advice for the Patient® from the United States Pharmacopeia (USP). To access the database, click here. For more information about Natural Standard and the database compilers, click here.
Who's Minding the Bottle?
Ever wonder who is in charge of making sure those dietary supplements you take are safe and effective? The answer may surprise you. If you're taking any dietary supplements; vitamins, herbs, enzymes or amino acids, just to name a few, you'll want to take a look at the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine's web page What's in the Bottle? An Introduction to Dietary Supplements. This informative site gives you the 411 on everything you ever wanted to know about dietary supplements including how they are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. To access this site click here. You'll also learn how dietary supplements are defined, where you can find out more about a specific supplement, and what kind of dietary supplement research is underway.
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (DIFMAM) has created a new background article with information about CAM therapies for menopausal symptoms, the scientific evidence for these therapies, and tips for your patients. Click here for more information.
Skin Deep
The Environmental Working Group, a non-profit organization in Washington DC, has developed an online, interactive database with safety information about personal care products. Using the "Skin Deep" database, consumers can consult brand-by-brand safety ratings for more than 14,000 products. The database contains information about shampoos, lotions, deodorants, sunscreens and other products for almost 1,000 brands, built from a core of 37 toxicity and regulatory databases. Click here to find out more.
Ayurvedic Medicine: What Should We Know?
DIFMAM has an article to help clinicians understand Ayurvedic medicine, one of the world's oldest medical systems of healing that originated in India several thousand years ago. The term Ayurveda combines two Sanskrit words--ayur, which means life, and veda, which means science or knowledge. "Ayurveda" literally means the science of life. The DIFMAM backgrounder outlines the history of Ayurvedic medicine, its current use, research in this area, and tips for you and the consumer. Click here for more information.
Which herbs and supplements help children with GI complaints?
Gastrointestinal complaints are common among children, as is the use of herbs and supplements to treat them, especially when symptoms are recurrent. Some remedies work well but others are best avoided. In a review for Contemporary Pediatrics, clinicians Paula Gardiner, MD, and Kathi J. Kemper, MD, MPH discuss the pros and cons. To access the article, click here.
ADA Position Statement on Fortification and Nutritional Supplements
One of the founding members of the DIFM, Rosalyn Franta Kulik, is the author of the new ADA position statement about fortification and nutritional supplements. The paper appears in the August Journal of the American Dietetic Association. The bottom line: By keeping abreast of the rapidly expanding science and by maintaining questioning yet open minds, discerning dietetics professionals who apply evidence-based techniques to their practices are well positioned to build on previously acquired knowledge and skills to lead the future of dietetics with respect to nutrient fortification and supplementation. Click here to read the article.
ADA Practice Paper: Nutrient Supplementation
Our parent organization, the American Dietetic Association, has published the new Practice Paper on the topic of Nutrient Supplementation. You can read the paper here.
Black Cohosh Report from DIFMAM
A new report from the DIFMAM summarizes presentations and discussions from a workshop to discuss the safety of black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa) in clinical studies. To view or download the report, click here.
Expert Report on Functional Foods: Opportunities and Challenges
In light of the promising health benefits offered by functional foods, the Institute of Food Technologists commissioned an expert panel to review available scientific literature related to functional food development. The report suggests that the industry is not keeping up with science. Read the full report and panel's recommendations here.
Effects of Omega-3 Fatty Acids on Cancer
This report is the result of efforts by the Agency for Health Care Quality to assess the effect of fish oil on tumor incidence and outcomes following treatment. The agency convened a technical expert panel that reviewed 52 studies. Click here to read the article. Get more information on Omega-3 Fatty Acids.
Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine Are Compared
A review in the Oxford Journal, Evidence Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, examines the traditional Indian medicine and traditional Chinese medicine, the two most ancient yet living healing traditions. This review highlights basic principles and commonalities of both modalities and discusses key determinants of success in the context of global audiences. Click here for more information.
Documentary Videos on Nutrition Policy and Politics
Future of Foods (2004)- provides an excellent overview of the key questions raised by consumers as they become aware of GM foods. http://www.thefutureoffood.com/
Food Fight – (2008) is a fascinating look at how American agricultural policy and food culture developed in the 20th century and how the California food movement has created a counter-revolution against big agribusiness. To be released. Info/Trailer see: http://www.foodfightthedoc.com/foodfight.html
Food Matters (2008) - seeks to uncover the business of disease and at the same time explore the safe, cheap and effective use of nutrition and supplementation for preventing and often reversing the underlying causative aspects of the illness. http://www.foodmatters.tv/ (Note: This film was criticized for being biased against the allopathic medical community including RD’s.)
Two Angry Moms (2008)- Q & A panel with the director Part exposé, part "how-to", Director Amy Kalafa chronicles the efforts of Susan Rubin and other leaders in the fledgling better school food movement as they take on the system nationwide. From Chefs Alice Waters and Ann Cooper reinventing school food in Berkeley, California to Chef Tony Geraci's student designed meals in New Hampshire, Amy discovers programs that connect the cafeteria with the classroom and connect our kids with the earth.
http://www.shop.angrymoms.org/product.sc?categoryId=3&productId=28
The Organic Opportunity (2008) -explores Woodbury County's pioneering program of (1) economic development tax rebates for farmers who transition to organic, (2) county purchasing that prioritizes local, organic food, and (3) financing for new, small farmers committed to organic agriculture. http://www.localharvest.org/store/item.jsp?id=9394