Brussels, 15/04/2011 (Agence Europe) - During a conference organised on 13 April at the European Parliament, MEPs, experts and stakeholders of the health sector called on the European Commission to grant greater importance to research into complementary or alternative medicine (CAM), in particular homeopathy and anthroposophic medicine, in future European programmes. According to Marian Harkin (ALDE, Ireland), the public's growing demand for homeopathic and anthroposophic medicine stems from many years of successful practical experience, and the EU should act now in support of these therapies to the benefit of more than 100 million European patients and users. Doctor Robert Mathie of the British Homeopathic Association made a convincing case for the need for further research in homeopathy, a complex medical intervention that has demonstrated its efficacy but which requires more research work done on it. Doctor Harald Matthes, Medical Director at the Havelhöhe Hospital in Berlin, which specialises in anthroposophic medicine, said anthroposophic medicine is an independent holistic medicine system that considers the multidimensionality of the human being (psychic, mental and spiritual) and develops specific scientific methods of diagnosis and therapy. It is, he said, a “valid approach of integrative medicine” as defined by the World Health Organisation. By way of conclusion, the participants at the conference - who called for a more integrated and holistic approach to healthcare in Europe - said that homeopathy and anthroposophic medicine must be integrated into EU health policy and research programmes in the same way as conventional medicine. (I.L./transl.jl)