National Toxicology Program

[Federal Register: July 10, 1998 (Vol. 63, Number 132]
[Notices]
[Page 37404-37405]

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Public Health Service

National Toxicology Program: Notice of International Workshop to "Evaluate Research Needs on the Use and Safety of Medicinal Herbs"

The Workshop will be held at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Conference Facility in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina September 23 and 24 1998 from 8:30 to 5:00 each day.

[Note: The workshop location has been changed to the Brownestone
Hotel in Raleigh, NC - for more information, contact the NTP Liaison
Office at 919-541-0530; FAX 919-541-0295; email: britton@niehs.nih.gov ]

Background

Herbal medicines and dietary supplements account for one of the fastest growing markets in US pharmacies and constitute a multi-billion dollar industry. It is estimated that as many as 1,500 botanicals are sold in the US as dietary supplements or ethnic traditional medicines. It is further estimated that greater than 50% of the US population uses one or more dietary supplements including medicinal herbs. Medicinal herbs are not, however, subject to the same testing for efficacy or safety mandated for prescription or over-the-counter drugs. Given the increasing use of some medicinal herbs and the paucity of toxicological data, this workshop will bring together a panel of national and international experts to discuss the use of the medicinal herbs and dietary supplements and to establish research needs that address public health concerns. The tentative program follows:

Wednesday, September 23, 1998
	Opening Comments
	The NIEHS	Dr. Carl Barrett National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
	The National Toxicology Program	Dr. George Lucier National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
	Comments from NIH Office of Dietary Supplements	Dr. Bernadette Marriott National Institutes of Health
	DHHS Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion	Dr. Kenneth D. Fisher Dept. of Health & Human Services
	Society for the Advancement of Women's Health Research	Ms. Phyllis Greenberger Society for the Health Research Advancement of Women's Health Research
Keynote Speaker      "Science, Politics, Public Opinion and      Herbal Dietary Supplements"		Dr. Norman R. Farnsworth University of Illinois, Chicago
Session I:	Benefits and Risks Associated with the Use of Medicinal Herbs	Dr. H. B. Matthews (Session Moderator)
	Commonly Used Medicinal Herbs in the United States	Mr. Mark Blumenthal American Botanical Council
	Ranking Possible Toxic and Carcinogenic Hazards of Natural and Synthetic Chemicals	Dr. Lois Gold Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
	USP Panel on the Identification and Standardization of Natural Products	Dr. V. Srini Srinivasan U.S. Pharmacopoeia
Session II:	International Research on the Efficacy and Safety of Dietary Supplements and Medicinal Herbs Worldwide	Dr. Bernadette Marriott (Session Moderator)
	Research of Medicinal Herbs in Germany	Dr. Prof. Hildebert Wagner Institute for Pharmaceutical Biologie
	Ancient - Modern Concordance in Ayurvedic Medicinal Plants	Dr. Sukh Dev New Friends Colony, India
	Medicinal Herbs in Japan	Prof. Yutaka Sashida Tokyo Pharmaceutical University
	Open Discussion & Public Comment
Thursday, September 24, 1998
Session III:	Research on Medicinal Herbs and Dietary Supplements in the U.S.	Dr. Norman Farnsworth (Session Moderator)
	Methodology and Testing to Insure	Dr. Joe Betz &
	Product Content and Quality	Dr. William Obermeyer Food & Drug Administration
	Research on Dietary Supplements: An Industry Perspective	Loren D. Israelsen Utah Natural Products Alliance
	Current Research Programs of the U.S. Dietary Supplement Industry	Dr. Jill Ellis National Nutritional Foods Association
Session IV:	Panel Discussion on Research Needs to Assure Safety of Medicinal Herbs and Dietary Supplements in the U.S.	Dr. Kenneth D.Fisher (Session Moderator)
	Dr. Bernadette Marriott, Director, NIH Office of Dietary Supplements
	Dr. Wayne B. Jonas, Director, NIH Office of Alternative Medicine
	Dr. Linda D. Meyers, Deputy Director for Science and Nutrition DHHS, Office of Disease Prevention and Nutrition
	Dr. Elizabeth A. Yetley, Director, Office of Special Nutrition, US FDA
	Mr. Loren Israelsen, Executive Director, Utah Natural Products Alliance
	Dr. Jill Ellis, Scientific Director, NNFA
	Dr. Rossanne M. Philen, Chief Environmental Hazards Epidemiology Section, NCEH
	Mr. David Schardt, Associate Nutritionist, Center for Science in the Public Interest
Session V:	Open Discussion on Research Needs to Assure Safety of Medicinal Herbs and Dietary Supplements in the U.S.	Dr. H. B. Matthews (Session Moderator)
	Workshop Adjourns

Co-sponsors for the workshop include National Institutes of Health's Office of Dietary Supplements and National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences; the Department of Health and Human Services National Toxicology Program and Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion; the Food and Drug Administration's Office of Special Nutrition and the Society for the Advancement of Women's Health Research

The meeting is open to the public, limited only by space available. The program includes time for open discussion. In addition time will be allotted to persons wishing to make oral comments. Those wishing to speak are encouraged to pre-register. The time allotted for each presenter will be dependent on the number of speakers.

To register, please submit the following: name, address, institutional affiliation, department, address, city, state, phone, fax and email address to Jaime Edge, NIEHS, P.O. Box 12233, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709 (fax: 919-541-0295 or email to edge@niehs.nih.gov.

For further information on the meeting plans contact Dr. Matthews at (919) 541-3252; for any other information on the workshop contact Alma Britton (919)-541-0530; FAX (919)-541-0295 or email: britton@niehs.nih.gov

Dated: June 30, 1998


_____________________
Kenneth Olden, Director
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

[FR Doc. 98-18319 Filed 7-9-98; 8:45 am]
Billing Code 4140-01-M