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Clinic Services | The Nurtura Health Program
“An ounce of prevention is worth many pounds of cure”
(especially after the fact).
The first step in achieving wellness is to analyse why you are unwell and what is the underlying cause of your body’s lowered immunity, pain or discomfort, faulty metabolism, hormonal imbalances, inability to cope with stress, or simply low energy or fatigue. If we are unwell in any way, it indicates that our body’s ability to heal is impaired or compromised.
Accurate assessment ensures that precise treatment is administered to address the real underlying cause of the problem. Trying to “whip” the organism, or make alterative changes to an already unwell or compromised body, can dramatically worsen the problem in question.
At Nurtura Health,in addition to Naturopathic consultations, we have a variety of testing procedures available including:
Treatment programs at Nurtura Health may include:
Nurtura Health’s Dispensary
“Where our first priority is Quality Assurance and your Health!”
Your health and that of your loved ones is far too important to compromise on. That is why we have equipped our centre with a Natural Dispensary in order to provide you with the highest quality nutritional and herbal substances available today.
The suppliers of our nutritional and herbal preparations are industry leaders in the development of science-based and validated products. The research and development teams draw on the time-honoured wisdom of the traditional use of medicinal plants, plant extracts, and nutrients; sound clinical experience; and the rigor of scientific research to discover better solutions for chronic disease and therapeutic lifestyle programs. Our suppliers are constantly investing in nutrigenomic research and Quality Assurance where new effective, natural ingredients and ingredient combinations are discovered and evaluated. Ongoing clinical testing has resulted in the discovery of novel, natural products that are setting a new industry standard for safety, effectiveness, and quality. All of the nutritional and herbal products we dispense are researched, developed, manufactured and analysed according to:
Selection of highest quality ingredients based on levels of:
- Scientific and Clinical Research
- Active Constituents
- Pesticides and Heavy Metals
- Safety and Toxicology
- Radiation
Ingredient Quality Control checks:
- Fungal and Microbial Contamination
- Qualitative Identity
- Thin layer Chromatography Fingerprinting to guarantee Product Identity
- Content of Specified Active Ingredients
- Stringent Testing Guards against substitution, adulteration and poor quality of herbs
The same ingredient may be available from different forms, eg. Vitamin E can be a natural (derived from food) or it can be a synthetic (manufactured). The natural, food-identical Vitamin E is called d-alpha tocopherol, while the synthetic form is called dl-alpha tocopherol. That “I” in “dl” is the only way you can tell a natural from a synthetic Vitamin E, but science has shown there is a significant difference in the way the body uses it. Another example is Calcium. The nature of the compound is related to the ability of the body to absorb and use the mineral, eg. Calcium carbonate is inexpensive but relatively more difficult to absorb. Calcium microcrystalline hydroxyapatite (MCHC) is a more expensive raw material, but one of the most absorbable Calcium supplements available.
SUBSTITUTION OF THE TRUE PRODUCT CAN HAVE ISSUES OF SAFETY, EFFICACY AND COST.
Safety: The substitution of Stephania tetrandra with Aristolochia spp. has been widespread in the herbal market with safety alerts being issued by the TGA. This followed more than 70 cases of renal failure in Belgium associated with a weight-loss product that mistakenly contained a species of Aristolochia (Guan Fang Ji) instead of Stephania (Fang Ji). Research on 8 samples of herbs labeled as Stephania tetrandra found only one was believed to be the true herb.
Efficacy: Through research it has been demonstrated that the alkylamide rich roots of Echinacea angustifolia and to a lesser extent E. purpurea have a modulatory effect on the immune system. However, when market surveillance was performed in February 2005 of 4 Australian professional products of Echinacea tablets and capsules, none were found to have appropriate levels of alkylamides. This renders these particular products ineffective!
Cost: A very common case of substitution is with the herb Tribulus terrestis (Tribulus) due to the very high cost of the raw material. Only the leaves and stems of Tribulus from Bulgaria or Slovakia contained any amount of the active marker compound, protodioscin. Many Chinese and Indian sources typically specify the fruit analysed at 40% by gravimetry – not the accepted plant part nor analytical method. The material is much cheaper, but does not contain the active ingredient.
Manufacturing Standards that exceed Industry Good Manufacturing Practices:
- Low Moisture
- Low Heat
- Natural, Low Allergy Excipients
- The non-use of polyplasdone, polyvinylpryolodine, talc, shella, sodium lauryl sulphate
- Unique Extraction of Herbs: 1:2 Cold Percolation Process preventing any damage to Herbs
Finished Product Analysis:
- Microbial Contamination
- Quantitative Analysis of Active Ingredients
- Disintegration Time (absorption)
- Weight and Size Uniformity
- Moisture Content (stability)
- Herbs: quantified to contain the complex range of active constituents
- Ensuring product meets therapeutic goals
It is only when the nutritional or herbal substances meet all safety and efficacy criteria that they are released for sale. We can provide documentation from the scientific literature on the specific ingredients in the products we prescribe, to give you confidence that they are the best for your health and that of your loved ones.
DISPENSARY HOURS: 11.00am - 2.00pm (Monday to Thursday) and 11.00am - 1.00pm (Friday)
Our staff are aware that you all have very busy lives. To avoid prolonged waiting times and to make dispensing more efficient, we suggest that you drop in a completed order form, fax or e-mail your orders to Nurtura Health with a requested pick-up time and we will always endeavour to have your orders ready for you when you call in. If you find you are too busy to call in and collect orders, we can post your orders to ensure that you do not lose the continuity of your treatment. During the dispensary hours from 11.30am to 1.30pm additional staff are employed to assist this process. We attempt to dispense country orders on the day they are received, either by ordinary / express mail or courier.
Private Health Fund Rebates
Our Naturopathic services are covered by most Health Funds. We are members of both SNTR Inc., and NHAA. It is always wise to check with your Health Fund as to your own level of cover, and which services you are covered for.
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