German and British Botanical Medicine Experts Recognized for Best Book of 2006 and Body of Research

(Austin, Texas, April 9, 2007). The American Botanical Council (ABC) announced the recipients of its annual Botanical Excellence awards for literature and research, which were presented at the American Botanical Celebration banquet held in March, in Anaheim, California in conjunction with the Nutracon scientific conference and Natural Products Expo West. The Awards are given annually, commencing last year, by ABC, an independent, international, nonprofit research and education organization headquartered in Austin, Texas.

The James A. Duke Botanical Literature Award for 2006 was presented to Professor Doctor Eberhard Teuscher of Germany for his book Medicinal Spices: A Handbook of Culinary Herbs, Spices, Spice Mixtures and Their Essential Oils (Medpharm, CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, 2006). The Norman R. Farnsworth Botanical Research Award for 2006 was presented to Professor Edzard Ernst, MD, PhD, Laing Chair in Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter & Plymouth, United Kingdom for his extensive body of research publications on various clinical aspects of herbal medicine.

“Prof. Teuscher and Prof. Ernst are two major figures in the international herbal medicine research community,” said ABC Founder and Executive Director Mark Blumenthal. “They have each made significant contributions to the body of knowledge in this important and growing field of medicine. ABC is honored that they both have accepted our recognition of their accomplishments.”

The James A. Duke Botanical Literature Award was presented by ABC Trustee Steven Foster, president of the Steven Foster Group of Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Mr. Foster, a world-renowned botanical photographer and author of over a dozen books on herbal medicine, said, “In the tradition of the pen of Jim Duke, Eberhard Teuscher’s Medicinal Spices is peppered with science, flavored with human appreciation for the essence of medicinal and aromatic spices for pleasure and delight. Here one can expect the unexpected such as a ‘Jamaican Jerk Pork’ recipe alongside discussions of the history, identity, chemistry and pharmacology of venerable favorites of the spice rack such as allspice. The book is the perfect bouquet garni, blending fascinating human interest knowledge with applied information for the spice trader, scientist or savvy consumer.”

Medicinal Spices: A Handbook of Culinary Herbs, Spices, Spice Mixtures and Their Essential Oils contains 84 monographs of culinary herbs with details of their cultivation, production, constituents, sensoric properties, pharmacologic actions, potential toxicity, and their culinary and medicinal uses.

Accepting the Duke award on behalf of Prof. Teuscher was Josef Brinckmann, vice-president of Research and Development at Traditional Medicinals herb tea company in Sebastopol, CA. Mr. Brinckmann, a member of the ABC Advisory Board, was one of the two translators of Medicinal Spices from the original German to English. Mr. Brinckmann said, “After reading the German edition of Medicinal Spices I felt that it was an important book. So I was honored to be entrusted with its translation to English. Prof. Dr. Eberhard Teuscher insisted on accuracy and thoroughness, and therefore he very carefully reviewed and edited every page of our translated manuscript. I am proud to have played a role in making this scientific handbook available to English readers and I was greatly honored to accept the James A. Duke Botanical Literature Award on behalf of Dr. Teuscher, who was not able to travel to California at the time of the ceremony.”

In presenting the eponymous award to Prof. Ernst, Prof. Farnsworth said, “Edzard Ernst has undoubtedly published more reviews and meta analyses than anyone, involving primarily botanicals and botanical products. These reviews are invaluable references to anyone involved in research in the area of Botanical Dietary Supplements.”Professor Ernst was unable to attend the award ceremony in California, but responded via a digitally-recorded acceptance speech. Among his many comments, he said, “Thank you for giving me this prestigious award. It is my entire team being honored here. Our team is best known for our many meta-analyses that have been published, which is probably the main reason I received this award.” He ended a humorous story about research they conducted on artichoke for use as a remedy for alcohol hangover by saying, “research does not need to be a dry enterprise. For us it is very much fun.”

About Professor Dr. Eberhard Teuscher

Eberhard Teuscher was born in Halle, Germany in 1934 and now lives in Triebes, Thuringia, Germany. He received his pharmacy degree at University of Halle in 1958, and was an assistant in the Department of Pharmacognosy from 1959 to1961. He received his doctorate in 1960. He was a lecturer and assistant professor of pharmacognosy and later a professor of pharmaceutical biology at the University of Greifswald from 1962 to1992. From 1975 to 1990 he served as Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences at the University of Greifswald. He is the author of several key textbooks used in German pharmacy and pharmaceutical training, including Pharmacognosy, published in German in 1970 and revised in 1978, 1983, 1988, and 1990. Since 1992 this book’s title was changed to Biogenic Drugs, and was revised in 1997 and 2004 (the last edition included M. Melzig, U. Lindequist as co-authors). He is also co-author of Natural Toxins (together with U. Lindequist, in German), published in 1988, 1994, with a new edition forthcoming in 2007. His book Medicinal Spices was initially published in 2003 (in German), in 2005 (French translation), and 2006 (English).

About Professor Edzard Ernst MD, PhD

Professor Edzard Ernst MD, PhD, FRCP is the Laing Chair in Complementary Medicine, Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter & Plymouth. Professor Ernst was born in 1848 in Wiesbaden, Germany. He qualified as a physician in Germany in 1978 where he also completed his MD and PhD theses. He has received training in acupuncture, autogenic training, herbalism, homeopathy, massage therapy and spinal manipulation. He was Professor in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) at Hanover Medical School and Head of the PMR Department at the University of Vienna. In 1993 he established the Chair in Complementary Medicine at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom. He is founder/editor-in-Chief of two medical journals (Perfusion, a journal dealing with cardiovascular medicine, and FACT Focus on Alternative and Complementary Medicine). Known internationally for being highly prolific, he has published more than 30 books and in excess of 700 articles in the peer-reviewed medical literature, with primary emphasis on systematic reviews and meta-analyses on complementary and alternative medicine subjects, particularly herbs and phytomedicines. For his extensive work he has been awarded eight scientific prizes. In 1999 he became a British citizen.

About James A. Duke, PhD and the Duke Award

The James A. Duke Botanical Literature Award honors the singular, outstanding contribution by a book to the knowledge and understanding of medicinal and aromatic plants. Such recognition may result from scholarship, comprehensiveness, or relevance to and utility for the herb and phytomedicine movement. This award was initiated in 2006 by ABC in honor of James A. Duke, PhD, a plant taxonomist, ethnobotanist, and author or co-author of 32 books on ethnobotany, herbal medicine, plant taxonomy, and related subjects. Dr. Duke is retired from the United States Department of Agriculture where he worked on various international plant research programs for 30 years. At age 78 he is still active in medicinal plant affairs, working on several new books and book revisions as well as leading ABC’s forthcoming ecotour to the Peruvian Amazon and the Andean citadel of Machu Picchu in August, 2007. (http://www.herbalgram.org/default.asp?c=ed_tours)   Dr. Duke was a co-founder of ABC and is an Emeritus member of the ABC Board of Trustees.

About Prof. Norman R. Farnsworth, PhD and the Farnsworth Award

The Norman R. Farnsworth Botanical Research Award honors the outstanding effort of an individual or research group that has made a significant contribution to or advancement of knowledge of medicinal plants or other natural products. Such recognition may result from exceptional scientific research, achievements in education or publications, or a significant or groundbreaking development in the fields of pharmacognosy, medicinal plant research, phytomedicine, phytochemistry, ethnobotany and/or related scientific endeavors. The award was established by ABC in 2006 in the name of Prof. Norman R. Farnsworth, PhD, Research Professor of Pharmacognosy and Senior University Scholar at the University of Illinois at Chicago. At age 77 Professor Farnsworth is actively involved in medicinal plant research, being the head of the Program for Collaborative Research in the Pharmaceutical Sciences at UIC as well as the UIC Center for Botanical Dietary Supplements Research funded by the Office of Dietary Supplements and the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine of the National Institutes of Health. Professor Farnsworth is a co-founder of ABC and currently sits on the ABC Board of Trustees.

About the American Botanical Council

Founded in 1988 the American Botanical Council is the leading nonprofit organization in the United States addressing research and educational issues regarding herbs and medicinal plants. ABC’s members include academic researchers and educators, universities and libraries, health professionals and medical institutions, botanical gardens and arboreta, government agencies, members of the herb, dietary supplement, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries, journalists, consumers, and other interested parties from over 70 countries. The organization occupies a historic 2.5-acre site in Austin, Texas where it publishes HerbalGram, a peer-reviewed journal on herbal medicine, a monthly e-newsletter, reference books and other educational materials. ABC has published a reference book and a continuing education course for healthcare professionals, The ABC Clinical Guide to Herbs, containing extensive monographs on the safety and efficacy of 29 popular herbs. Information: Contact ABC at P.O. Box 144345, Austin, TX 78714-4345, Phone: 512-926-4900. Website: http://www.herbalgram.org/.

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