Complementary and Integrative Health: Twenty Years of Research Progress

October 6, 2019 Joe Brady

The “NCCIH at 20” symposium examined accomplishments and progress in complementary and integrative health research – past, present, and future. Twenty years have passed since the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) was established and became one of the 27 Institutes and Centers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

Hosted by NCCIH at the NIH campus and is partially supported by the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health with a generous gift from Bernard and Barbro Osher.The symposium examined NCCIH milestones related to the development of research methods and how this work continues to address evolving public health concerns, including chronic pain, military and veteran health, depression, and anxiety. The symposium also explored priority areas for scientific discovery, including the human microbiome, the neuroscience of pain, complementary and integrative approaches to tackle the opioid crisis and whole health systems. 

Complementary and Integrative Approaches To Tackle Opioid Crisis

NIH funds $945 million in research to tackle the national opioid crisis through NIH HEAL Initiative  (NIH)

To reverse the opioid crisis that continues to grip the nation, the National Institutes of Health has awarded $945 million in 2019 funding for grants, contracts and cooperative agreements across 41 states through the Helping to End Addiction Long-term Initiative or NIH HEAL Initiative. 

For More on the Heal initiative information See:

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-funds-945-million-research-tackle-national-opioid-crisis-through-nih-heal-initiative

Watch the Entire Symposium For Latest Finds in Integrative Medicine Research

The September 23 symposium celebrated progress in complementary and integrative health research and considered the future of the field. The day featured a Stephen E. Straus Distinguished Lecture in the Science of Complementary Therapies by Dr. Lorimer Moseley of the University of South Australia titled “Why We Need a Pain Revolution: From Science to Practice,” lightning round presentations with early-stage investigators, and two panel discussions on pain research in military and veteran populations as well as the future of natural products research.The day’s program featured a Stephen E. Straus Distinguished Lecture in the Science of Complementary Therapies by Dr. Lorimer Moseley of the University of South Australia, titled “Why We Need a Pain Revolution: From Science to Practice.” Other highlights included lightning round presentations by early stage investigators and two panel discussions – one on pain research in military and veteran populations and one on the future of natural products research.

Watch the symposium

https://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?live=33411&bhcp=1