Lemon Myrtle

I love the taste of Lemon Myrtle tea and have been using it since I bought some to offer at my herbal tea tastings as part of a Health and Wellness day at the Chelsea Heights Community Centre a few years ago. People enjoyed it but unfortunately I only had a few packets to sell on the day. Since then I have been getting it in bulk. Recently I made up a herbal punch with lemon myrtle, fresh rosemary leaves, apple & pear juice, fresh mint leaves and bilberry fruits at my City of Kingston's Seniors event- Put Zing into your Life with foods and herbs. Yesterday I attended a fantastic workshop on Growing Herbs by Sustainable Gardening Australia and have just subscribed to their monthly newsletter. Here I saw an article on Lemon Myrtle that I am sharing the link to with you. It has information on this native tree with a recipe for you to make some truly authentic Australian biscuits. Lemon Myrtle tea has relaxing properties and can help ease respiratory complaints.

Lemon Myrtle

Healthy Eating Recipes for Women

We have been celebrating here in Australia National Nutrition Week. So it is great that the Jean Hailes clinic for Women's health here in Melbourne has put together for you some videos and recipes from their Naturopath and Herbalist Sandra Villella. Here are some wonderful healthy and tasty recipes for you to make and share with your friends. So click onto the link below for the Jean Hailes Kitchen series and also take a look at their current newsletter.

Jean Hailes Kitchen series | Health for Women

Published with the kind permission of the Jean Hailes Clinic for Women's Health.
website address www.jeanhailes.org.au and our toll free telephone number (In Australia)
1800 JEAN HAILES (532 642) for women seeking further health information.

Current Herbal Research Projects in Australia

Research is well and alive here in the world of Herbal Medicine in Australia. If you are an Australian resident and either a user of herbal medicines or interested in complementary healing then you may be interested in participating in some of these current studies. As a current full member of the National Herbalists Association of Australia I am sharing this information with you from their website which you can also view. Hoping that some of you may be able to help further the study and research into the uses of herbs and diet in healthcare.

Research Project: Attitudes, beliefs and barriers to herbal medicine use in adults who experience anxiety

PhD candidate Erica McIntyre from Charles Sturt University is seeking participants for a qualitative study exploring beliefs, attitudes towards and reasons for using herbal medicines in adults who experience anxiety. Participation involves a face-to-face interview. Erica is seeking participants in the Sydney, Blue Mountains and greater Western NSW areas. This study requires Australian participants of any background aged 18 years and over who are able to read and understand English, and who experience anxiety. For more details:
Download: Information sheet and Invitation to participate
Email: emcintyre@csu.edu.au or Phone: 0438 448 653

Clinical Trial: PCOS; herbal medicine, diet & exercise

PhD candidate Susan Arentz at the University of Western Sydney is looking into whether herbal medicine can help to regulate the menstrual cycle, improve body characteristics, hormone balance and/or quality of life for women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). They are looking for women with PCOS to participate in a twelve week clinical trial. Women aged 18-44, overweight (BMI more than 25) and not taking the oral contraceptive pill are invited to contact the researchers. For full details:
Download: the Information Sheet or visit the UWS facebook research page www.uws.edu.au/pcosfacebook
Email: Susan Arentz at s.arentz@uws.edu.au or Phone: 0403 044 247 

Research Project: Evidence-based medicine in Practice

PhD candidate Jeff Flatt from the University of New England is conducting this research as part of his PhD. The project aims to explore Australian complementary medicine practitioner experience of evidence-based medicine in practice. Specifically practitioners perspectives are sought on the integration of this evidence with your own professional knowledge and philosophies. There is no survey data collection, instead information is being collected via focus groups and interviews. For full details: 
Download: Letter to Participants or the Information Sheet
Email: Jeff Flatt at jflatt@myune.edu.au  

Clinical Trial: Elderberry Supplementation in Air Travellers

Dr Evelin Tiralongo and Dr Shirley Wee from Griffith University are conducting a clinical trial of elderberry supplementation in preventing upper respiratory symptoms in air-travellers on intercontinental flights. They are looking for healthy participants 18 yrs or older who are heading overseas for at least four days and who will be flying economy class (minimum 7 hour flight). For full details:
Download: the Info Flyer and the Recruitment Flyer
Email: Dr Shirley Wee on elderberry-trial@griffith.edu.au  or Phone: 07 5552 8131

Online Survey: Menstrual Health-study is still on going

Dr Karin Ried at the National Institute of Integrative Medicine is looking for responders for her online survey about menstrual health. Both men and women are encouraged to participate and the survey takes about 10-15 minutes. There are no right or wrong answers, questions can be answered with 'I don't know' and you can choose to enter their regular prize draw to win a shopping voucher.
For full details and the link to the survey: http://www.niim.com.au/research/womens-health