Society’s herbal session at BA festival makes the news
Peter Houghton |
A session on herbal medicines hosted by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society at the British Association for the Advancement of Science annual BA Festival of Science has attracted national media interest.
On the theme “Can herbs improve your health?”, the 6 September
session included a talk by Peter Houghton, of King’s College London,
on the risks of taking herbal remedies alongside conventional medicines.
Key findings from Professor Houghton’s research were reported in
the Evening Standard of 6 September and The Independent, Daily
Mail and
Daily Express of 7 September.
Commenting on the coverage, Professor Houghton said: “I am pleased
that my research has been picked up by national media. With one
in four of the population taking herbal remedies at least once a year
it is important that people understand that just because something is
natural does not mean that it is safe. Pharmacists are in an ideal
situation to advise the public on safe use of herbal medicines and this
was stressed in my talk.”
John Clements, the Society’s Science Secretary, said: “The
sessions at the BA Festival are an important part of the work that the
Society does to take pharmaceutical science out to the wider public audience
and I am delighted by the media interest that has been achieved this
year.”
The session, chaired by Olivia Timbs, editor of The Pharmaceutical
Journal,
also included talks by Joanne Barnes (University of London), Brian Whittle
(GW Pharmaceuticals) and Elizabeth Williamson (University of London).
|
The
Pharmaceutical Journal