Anthroposophic Pharmacy

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Anthroposophic Pharmacy is the discipline related to conceiving, developing and producing medicinal products according to the anthroposophic understanding of man, nature, substance and pharmaceutical processing[1].

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[edit] Anthroposophic medicinal products

Anthroposophic medicinal products are conceived, developed, and produced following the investigation of the relationship between man and nature in a process-oriented way: Raw materials are considered to be the result of the formative forces of the mineral, plant, and animal worlds. These forces are similar to the formative forces acting on the human organism, whether healthy or diseased. The study of formative forces is the specific discipline within anthroposophic pharmacy.

According to the starting hypothesis the relationship between the human being and the origin of the substances exists at “three plus one” levels:

Human Nature
Physical level, visible and measurable mineral world
Life- maintenance level, maintenance of biological identity, regeneration and physiological functions plant world
Impulse level, passion, feeling, movement and psychological organisation animal world
Individual level, biography, self consciousness, creativity and self-determination unique to humanity

Furthermore it asserts that man and nature have an interconnected evolutional history during which gradually man has emancipated himself from nature. In illness though man finds himself becoming similar to the processes in nature. This constitutes the rationale why in order to regain control over his humanity, transformed natural substances can be administered as medicines. Raw materials from nature are then to be processed in such a way to be incline to stimulate the „overcoming“ of the nature-similar processes characteristic of the diseased state.

[edit] Pharmaceutical processing

Pharmaceutical processing involves specific anthroposophic and typical homoeopathic pharmaceutical procedures. Examples of pharmaceutical processes regarding raw materials of botanical origin:

Pharmaceutical process Heat /cold degree Raw material Reference Pharmacopoeia or Pharmaceutical Codex
Cold maceration 2-8 °C fresh or dried plants, all parts German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia,

Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
Maceration ca. 15-20 °C fresh plants, all parts European Pharmacopoeia, German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia, Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
Rhythmic processing 4 / 37 °C fresh plants, all parts German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia, Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
Digestion 37 °C fresh plants, leaves, flowers German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia, Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
Infusion 60-90 °C dried leaves, flowers German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia, Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
Decoction ca 100 °C dried roots, barks, seeds German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia, Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
Distillation steam,

ca 100 °C

 fresh or dried plants, all parts European Pharmacopoeia, German Homoeopathic Pharmacopoeia, Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex

Another pharmaceutical process widely used in anthroposophic pharmacy is potentisation (also widely used in homoeopathy): Potentised preparations are gradually diluted substances, whereby at each diluting step a rhythmic succussion (liquid potencies) or trituration (solid potencies) has been carried out. During this process the surface of the vehicle and the substance to be potentised are expanded and the mixing is thorough.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ IAAP - International Association of Anthroposophic Pharmacists. Accessed 2007-12-17.

[edit] Bibliography

  • Michaela Glöckler, et al. Anthroposophische Arzneitherapie (Anthroposophic Therapeutics). Wissenschaftliche Verlagsgesellschaft, Stuttgart, Germany, 2005.
  • Rudolf Hauschka. The Nature of Substance. Bristol, 233 pp. ISBN 1855841223.
  • International Association of Anthroposophic Pharmacists: Anthroposophic Pharmaceutical Codex
  • Gunver Sophia Kienle, Helmut Kiene, and Hans-Ulrich Albonico. Anthroposophic Medicine, effectiveness, utility, costs, safety. Schattauer Verlag, Stuttgart, Germany, 2006.
  • Wilhelm Pelikan. Healing Plants Insights Through Spiritual Science. Mercury Press, 1997.
  • Wilhelm Pelikan. The Secrets of Metals. Anthroposophic Press, 1973.

[edit] External links