Bach flower therapy

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The Bach Flower Therapy ( pronounced [ bætʃ ] -Blütentherapie, listen ? / I ) is a in the 1930s by British physician Edward Bach ( listen ? / I ) (1886-1936) reasoned and named after him as an alternative medical procedure . According to Bach's central thesis, every physical illness is based on a mental imbalance. He saw the cause of this disturbance in a conflict between the immortal soul and the personality , and healing can only be brought about through harmonization on this spiritual-spiritual level. Bach initially described nineteen states of mind, but then expanded the repertoire to include "38 disharmonious states of mind in human nature". He assigned flowers and plant parts to these, which he put or boiled in water and which were supposed to transmit their "vibrations" to the water. The so-called flower essences were then produced from these mother tinctures through strong dilution . Audio file / audio sample Audio file / audio sample

Several randomized, controlled studies did not provide any indications of the actual pharmacological or medical effectiveness of Bach flower therapy; from a scientific point of view, it is classified as implausible . The underlying concepts are considered pseudoscientific .

history

Bach developed his therapy in the 1930s. As a follower of the teachings of Carl Gustav Jung , he chose the plants according to his own statements " intuitively " according to which "positive archetypal soul concepts" they embody. After his death in 1936, the therapy initially disappeared into insignificance.

At the end of the 1970s, Bach flower therapy was again represented by the esoteric journalist Wulfing von Rohr and subsequently marketed by the Hamburg non-medical practitioner Mechthild Scheffer . It experienced further increases in popularity in German-speaking countries since the mid-1980s through reports in the tabloid and rainbow press and through a performance in three consecutive editions of the then very popular Sat.1 talk show Schreinemakers Live in June 1995. In the days after it was broadcast of the broadcasts, the demand for Bach flower essences in pharmacies increased three to ten times. The Dr. According to its own information, the Edward Bach Center in Hamburg recorded 80,000 written inquiries per month instead of the previously usual 1000 requests for the broadcasting of the programs.

Essences

All 38 Bach flowers
No. designation plant
1 Agrimony Common ormennig
2 Aspen Aspen / aspen
3 Beech European beech
4th Centaury Centaury
5 Cerato Lead root
6th Cherry Plum Cherry plum
7th Chestnut Bud Horse chestnut bud
8th Chicory Chicory
9 Clematis Common clematis
10 Crab Apple woodapple
11 Elm English elm
12 Gentian Autumn gentian
13 Gorse Gorse
14th Heather Scottish heather
15th Holly European holly
16 Honeysuckle honeysuckle
17th Hornbeam Hornbeam
18th Impatiens Glandular balsam
19th Larch European larch
20th Mimulus Spotted juggler flower
21st Mustard Mustard
22nd Oak Oak
23 olive Olive tree
24 Pine Scottish pine
25th Red Chestnut Red chestnut
26th Rock rose Yellow sun rose
27 Rock water Rock spring water
28 Scleranthus annual ball
29 Star of Bethlehem Doldy Milky Star
30th Sweet Chestnut Sweet chestnut / sweet chestnut
31 Vervain Verbena
32 Vine grapevine
33 Walnut walnut
34 Water violet Water spring
35 White Chestnut White flowering horse chestnut
36 Wild Oat Forest bramble
37 Wild rose Hedge rose
38 Willow Yellow willow

Bach assigned an “essence” to each of the negative mental states postulated by him, which are supposed to be responsible for all ailments and diseases, which is supposed to promote “harmonization”. The numbered essences traditionally have English names and are assigned to different areas of application. In contrast to the simile principle in homeopathy , these essences, as a positive antipole, should directly bring about a harmonization of negative mental states. Critics argue that the moralizing character of this concept can exert psychological pressure on the sick, as one's own personal behavior is seen as the cause of illness.

Bach flower therapy is usually not included in phytotherapy (herbal medicine). The plant parts used are usually not known medicinal plants and were not selected as such by Edward Bach.

In recent years, numerous “new essences” have appeared on the market that are based on the Bach flowers in terms of their production, but are not included in Bach's canon.

Systematics

Bach postulated 37 essences from 37 flowers and an essence from rock spring water ( rock water ) without the addition of flowers. In addition, he determined a combination of five essences, which he recommended as emergency drops ( "Rescue Remedy" ) for acute stressful situations. He divided the 38 essences into seven groups, each of which he assigned to certain states of mind ( depression , fear , lack of interest in the present , loneliness , excessive concern for others , oversensitivity and insecurity ). The essences should help in overcoming these states of mind. Examples of individual flowers used are common ormennig ( Agrimony ), larch ( Larch ), field mustard ( Mustard ), grapevine ( Vine ) or dog rose ( Wild Rose ). The common or mennig should be used when there is fear of conflict, dishonesty or covering up personal problems with repression as well as tension and cramping. The larch, on the other hand, helps with feelings of inferiority, shyness and timidity. The dog rose helps people who suffer from listlessness, resignation and "pathological devotion to fate" .

Manufacturing

The individual flowers are still collected today at the locations previously determined by Bach and ritually processed using the potentization methods described by Bach . With the sun method, the flowers are placed in a bowl filled with water for about three to four hours and placed in the sun; with the boiling method , the parts of the plant are heated in water for half an hour. The latter method is used for woody plant material or for plants that bloom during a seasons with little sunshine. According to Bach, the plants should give off their "vibrations" as "healing energy" to the water. The water is then mixed with an equal proportion of alcohol as a preservative. This mother tincture is diluted 1: 240 in order to produce the actual flower essences, and in this point it is similar to the homeopathy with which Bach had worked intensively. After adding five liters of alcohol and then diluting the five liters of water in which the flowers were placed, 2,400 liters of flower essence are created.

effectiveness

Clinical studies showed no efficacy of Bach flower essences beyond the placebo effect.

According to Stiftung Warentest, Bach flower therapy is not recommended for the targeted treatment of diseases .

The costs of treatment are covered by some German health insurance companies. However, this is justified with customer friendliness and not with the effectiveness of Bach flower therapy. The IGeL monitor of the MDS ( Medical Service of the Central Association of Health Insurance Funds ) last rated the study situation of Bach flower therapy in 2015 with regard to a possible, positive influence on various diseases as “unclear”. Although it does not show any direct side effects itself, it does not work better than a sham treatment. In addition, the monitor warns of so-called indirect damage that could occur if, for example, sensible and necessary treatments are not taken.

literature

  • Edzard Ernst , M. Pittler, B. Wilder (Eds.): The Desktop Guide to Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2nd Edition. Elsevier 2006, ISBN 0-7234-3383-6 .

Web links

Commons : Bach flower therapy  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Edward Bach: Heal Yourself. The Spiritual Basis of the Original Bach Flower Therapy. Translated by Karl Friedrich Hörner. 2000, ISBN 3-7205-2119-2 .
  2. ^ Theodor Dingermann et al. (Ed.): Pharmazeutische Biologie. Molecular principles and clinical application. Springer, 2002, ISBN 3-540-42844-5 , p. 12.
  3. ^ A b E. Ernst: “Flower remedies”: a systematic review of the clinical evidence . In: Wiener Klinische Wochenschrift . tape 114 , no. 23–24 , December 30, 2002, pp. 963-966 , PMID 12635462 .
  4. ↑ a b E. Ernst: Bach flower remedies: a systematic review of randomized clinical trials In: Swiss Med Wkly. 140, 24 Aug 2010, p. W13079. PMID 20734279
  5. ↑ a b Edzard Ernst , M. Pittler, B. Wilder (eds.): The Desktop Guide to Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2nd Edition. Elsevier, 2006, p. 306.
  6. ^ R. Monvoisin: Bach flower remedies: a critic of the pseudoscientific, pseudomedicinal concepts and philosophical postures inducted by Dr Bach theory. In: Ann Pharm Fr. 63 (6), Nov 2005, pp. 416-428. Review. French. PMID 16292234
  7. ↑ Colin Goldner : Die Psycho-Szene , 2000, p. 160.
  8. ↑ Ulrich Arndt: The boom of flowers . last accessed on December 19, 2017.
  9. ↑ Mechthild Scheffer: The original Bach flower therapy for beginners. Hugendubel, 2002, ISBN 3-7205-2330-6 .
  10. ↑ Krista Federspiel: Bach Flower Therapy ( Memento from July 24, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) 2002. Information sheet of the Society for the Scientific Investigation of Parasciences , accessed on August 13, 2012.
  11. ↑ C. Jänicke, J. Grünwald, B. Brendler: Handbuch Phytotherapie. Indications - Applications - Effectiveness - Preparations. Stuttgart 2003, ISBN 3-8047-1950-3 .
  12. ↑ Alternative medicine. In: The Brockhaus. FA Brockhaus, Mannheim 2008, ISBN 978-3-7653-3291-3 .
  13. ^ NC Armstrong, E. Ernst: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of a Bach Flower Remedy . University of Exeter, 2001. PMID 11876168
  14. ↑ Harald Walach , Christine Rilling, Ursula Engelke: Efficacy of Bach-flower remedies in test anxiety: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial with partial crossover . University hospital Freiburg. PMID 11474820
  15. ↑ S. Pintov, M. Hochman, A. Livne, E. Heyman, E. Lahat: Bach flower remedies used for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in children - a prospective double blind controlled study. In: Eur J Pediatr Neurol. 9 (6), 2005, pp. 395-398. PMID 16257245
  16. ↑ K. Thaler, A. Kaminski, A. Chapman, T. Langley, G. Gartlehner: Bach Flower Remedies for psychological problems and pain: a systematic review . In: BMC Complement Altern Med . tape 9 , 2009, p. 16 , doi : 10.1186 / 1472-6882-9-16 , PMID 19470153 , PMC 2695424 (free full text).
  17. ↑ Julia Harlfinger: Test anxiety: Bach flowers apparently not effective. In: Medicine transparent . July 24, 2019, accessed July 8, 2020 .
  18. ↑ "Relapse into the Middle Ages" . In: Spiegel Online . tape 21 , May 19, 1997, p. 22–32 ( spiegel.de [PDF; accessed November 8, 2019]).
  19. ↑ Edzard Ernst: Misunderstood "patient friendliness." In: MMW - progress in medicine. 8, 2007, p. 55.
  20. ↑ a b Bach flower therapy. In: IGeL Monitor. March 25, 2015, accessed July 13, 2020 .