Press Releases 1997–2000
- 12/11/2000
Glucosamine/Chondroitin Arthritis Intervention Trial (GAIT) Begins Patient Recruitment
The first U.S. multicenter study to investigate glucosamine and chondroitin, two dietary supplements widely marketed in the United States as effective natural remedies for osteoarthritis (OA), is about to begin. In September 1999, the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) in collaboration with the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) announced a contract award to the University of Utah to determine conclusively whether glucosamine or chondroitin are more effective than placebo for treating knee pain associated with OA. The study is now enrolling participants. - 12/04/2000
Milk Thistle: Effects on Liver Disease and Cirrhosis and Clinical Adverse Effects
This evidence report details a systematic review summarizing clinical studies of milk thistle in humans. The scientific name for milk thistle is Silybum marianum. It is a member of the aster or daisy family and has been used by ancient physicians and herbalists to treat a range of liver and gallbladder diseases and to protect the liver against a variety of poisons. - 11/14/2000
Leading Experts To Explore the Basis for and Potential Applications of the Placebo Effect
The January 2000 cover story in The New York Times Magazine stated: "Astonishing Medical Fact: Placebos Work! So Why Not Use Them as Medicine?" When prominent national newspapers and health consumers are asking their doctors to add sugar pills to their arsenal of medical treatments—surely something medically significant is on the horizon. - 10/05/2000
NCCAM Awards Grants to Establish Two Specialized Cancer Research Centers
Today's announcement of research awards totaling some $8 million each, over a 5-year period to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, and the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, will bring the total of NCCAM-supported Centers studying the mechanisms underlying the health effects of CAM therapies to fifteen. - 10/03/2000
AHRQ Report Finds Little or Inconclusive Evidence of Health Benefits of Garlic
Dietary use of garlic may lower some types of cholesterol in the short term, but it does not appear to offer long-term protection against cardiovascular disease, says a new evidence report released today by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Garlic may help to reduce low-density lipids (LDL), or "bad" cholesterol, and triglycerides. However, the evidence is only for short-term (1 to 3 months) effects. The long-term benefits have not been determined. - 09/28/2000
Trans-NIH/DDHHS Workshop: The Science of the Placebo: Toward an Interdisciplinary Research Agenda
This workshop was organized to explore the basis for and potential applications of the "placebo effect." It will bring together researchers from a wide range of disciplines to examine the biological, behavioral, social, cultural, and ethical aspects related to the placebo effect. - 09/20/2000
NIH Announces Two Additional Centers for Dietary Supplement Research
The Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS), in collaboration with the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), announces plans to establish two additional Centers for Dietary Supplement Research with an emphasis on botanicals. - 06/08/2000
NIH to Hold Workshop on Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Cardiovascular, Lung, and Blood Research
Alternative medicine practitioners and mainstream researchers will meet next week to exchange ideas, report on current research, and discuss ways to foster collaborative research in cardiovascular, lung, and blood research. - 02/24/2000
Town Meeting on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Research in Boston, MA
NCCAM and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, are sponsoring a town meeting on complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) on March 15, 2000. - 02/10/2000
NIH Clinical Center Study Demonstrates Dangerous Interaction between St. John's Wort and an HIV Protease Inhibitor
Researchers at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center have demonstrated that a widely used herbal product—St. John's wort—could significantly compromise the effectiveness of an antiviral drug often prescribed to treat HIV infection. - 01/18/2000
Dr. Richard L. Nahin Named Director of Extramural Research, Training and Review for NCCAM
Richard L. Nahin, Ph.D, M.P.H., has been appointed the first Director of the Division of Extramural Research Training and Review (DERTR) at the NCCAM. Dr. Nahin will direct the division responsible for fostering, designing, and implementing the vast majority of the research and training in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) conducted or supported by the Center, as well as the administration of all grant applications reviewed by NCCAM. - 12/15/1999
Pancreatic Cancer Research News—The Phase III Gonzalez Protocol Trial: Questions and Answers
Frequently asked questions concerning the NCCAM and National Cancer Institute co-sponsored clinical trial involving patients with pancreatic cancer. - 10/06/1999
NIH Office of Dietary Supplements Announces Funding of Dietary Supplements Research Centers
The Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced awards, in collaboration with the NCCAM, to establish the first Dietary Supplements Research Centers with an emphasis on botanicals. The Research Centers are expected to greatly advance the scientific base of knowledge about botanicals, including issues of their safety, effectiveness, and biological action. - 10/05/1999
Stephen E. Straus, M.D., Appointed Director, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at NIH
DHHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today announced the appointment of Stephen E. Straus, M.D., as the director for the NCCAM at the NIH. - 09/30/1999
NIH Awards Multicenter Study on Ginkgo Biloba for Dementia
A multicenter study to test the efficacy of Ginkgo biloba (botanical product) on older individuals who are at risk for dementia (cognitive decline in memory) has been awarded by the NCCAM in collaboration with the National Institute on Aging (NIA). - 09/30/1999
NIH Awards Grants to Five Specialized Research Centers
The NCCAM recently awarded five Specialized Center Research Grants to further complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) research in the following areas: aging, arthritis, craniofacial disorders, neurological disorders, women's health, and cardiovascular disease in African Americans. - 09/15/1999
NIH Awards Study on Glucosamine/Chondroitin Sulfate for Knee Osteoarthritis
The first U.S. multicenter study to investigate the dietary supplements glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate for knee osteoarthritis has been awarded by the NCCAM in collaboration with the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS). Includes a Q&A Factsheet on Glucosamine/Chondroitin Sulfate for Knee Osteoarthritis attachment. - 08/30/1999
DHHS Secretary Appoints Members to New Advisory Council on Complementary and Alternative Medicine
DHHS Secretary E. Shalala today announced the appointment of 17 members to the new National Advisory Council for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. The council will provide advice to the director of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of Health in carrying out the new Center's congressional mandate, core programs, and activities. - 07/06/1999
Federal Advisory Panel on Cancer and Alternative Medicine Chartered
A federally chartered Cancer Advisory Panel on Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAPCAM) has been established to provide advice and recommendations in the evaluation of complementary and alternative (CAM) therapies for cancer treatment and prevention. - 11/03/1998
Appropriations Bill Establishes the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
The recent passage of the 1999 Omnibus appropriations bill, which was signed by the President of the United States on October 21, 1998, established the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)--formerly the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM). - 10/01/1998
OAM Awards Clinical Research Grants to Three Additional Centers
The OAM recently awarded grants to three research centers to conduct clinical investigations into complementary and alternative approaches for the treatment of addictions, cardiovascular diseases, and pediatric conditions. - 03/03/1998
Chiropractic Consortium Becomes OAM's Eleventh Research Center
The NIH National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) have awarded a research grant to support the first federally funded Center for Chiropractic Research. - 11/05/1997
NIH Panel Issues Consensus Statement on Acupuncture
A consensus panel convened by the NIH concluded there is clear evidence that needle acupuncture treatment is effective for postoperative and chemotherapy nausea and vomiting, nausea of pregnancy, and postoperative dental pain. See also, the NIH Consensus Statement on Acupuncture. - 10/01/1997
St. John's Wort Study Launched
The first U.S. clinical trial of St. John's wort, an herb widely used in Europe to treat depression will be a 3-year study sponsored by NIH's Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS).
