How SFI Health is transforming the industry

Sponsored by SFI Health September 2, 2024

SFI Health makes proven, natural healthcare solutions accessible by bridging the gap between naturopathy and clinical healthcare. We speak to SFI Health’s Science and Education Coordinator Patrick Harrison to find out more.

Can you explain the role and value of naturopathic principles and how they guide your work at SFI Health?

Two fundamental principles of naturopathy are “vis medicatrix naturae”, which translates to the healing power of nature, and “first do no harm”. Conducting research on a particular formulation — or by following research — provides assurance to the practitioner of the effects they can expect to observe in their patient over a period of time. The safety data from clinical trials, observing the product in the market and post-market data provides further assurance in clinical decisionmaking. Practitioners can discuss these expectations with patients, which enhances trust in the therapeutic relationship.

As research progresses, we have a greater understanding of the causes of disease. This encompasses the other principles of naturopathy; “Identify the cause”, “Treat the whole person” and “Prevention”. An example of this is the emergence of the gut-brain axis in research. SFI Health has been specialising in this area for many years and continues to do so to ensure we stay true to naturopathic principles.

How does SFI Health bridge the gap between naturopathy and clinical healthcare?

By closely reviewing and advancing research, SFI Health provides greater assurance on how a therapeutic may be prescribed. Understanding the chemistry of a plant or therapeutic is a key step, and that the chemistry maintains standardised as it is in clinical trials. Further, the pharmacokinetics, how the therapeutic is absorbed, distributed, metabolised and eliminated from the body must be considered to have the desired effect (pharmacodynamics). This includes safety and potential interactions. Finally, how the product is packaged must be considered.

For example, let’s look at SFI Health’s cranberry product Ellura. Research has isolated that a specific antioxidant, A-type proanthocyanidins (PACs), is essential at a specific dosage to achieve the therapeutic effect of preventing the adhesion of bacteria to the urothelium (urinary tract). To achieve this, we have trusted sources of cranberries with high PAC content. The cranberry extract then must be concentrated to match the therapeutic dose defined in studies. This process occurs in a state-of-the-art facility with the ability to adjust to the clinically researched therapeutic dose of 36mg PACs. Finally, packaging in blister packs to prevent against oxidation is essential to prevent degradation and ensure the therapeutic dose is present over its shelf life.

Randomised placebo-controlled trials demonstrate efficacy, however we must also monitor post-market data. We encourage practitioners to report any adverse events to us as this ensures we can prescribe as safely as possible. Practitioners can then confidently work with other healthcare professionals with research and data to support their prescriptions.

Why is the healthcare practitionerpatient relationship vital in your view?

While there are several answers to this, I will highlight two. Again, using Ellura as an example, when we have tested generic cranberry products on the market for PACs, there has been a fraction and variable levels of PACs — without any of them having the ability to achieve a therapeutic dose. Without the trust of a therapeutic relationship with a practitioner, a consumer who has done their research will understand cranberry can be effective, but may be unaware how different the extracts can be. It is the role of the practitioner to prescribe therapeutic doses according to the individual’s presentation.

The other answer I’ll raise is that we do randomised controlled trials with placebo for a reason. Placebo nearly always initiates a positive response. This provides assurance that the treatment is therapeutic over placebo, but the study design also acknowledges how beneficial the caring therapeutic relationship is.

How does SFI Health support the healthcare practitioner-patient relationship through partnerships with industry bodies like NHAA and NICM?

As we look to progress research, partnering with institutes, universities and associations is essential. We continually engage in discussions that lead to conducting research to improve our understanding of natural medicine. It is essential we also freely share the information to these academic institutions and professionals. Often students themselves bring fresh insights that may also lead to future research.

What are some of the key initiatives SFI Health has implemented to promote sustainability?

We are about to release our secondyear sustainability audit globally across the business. This has provided us with areas of focus we can work on and make the biggest improvements. Through these audits, SFI Health is leading the industry in our commitment to sustainability. New product development provides us with opportunities to get sustainability right from conception.

An example of this is our Pure Mg+ Magnesium range, whereby the wastewater left over from salt harvesting in Western Australia is utilised to become a source of magnesium. Simply through solar drying, we are able to extract magnesium from this water. The remaining wastewater returned to the ocean more closely mimics the mineral composition of what was taken from the ocean initially. Through circular economic principles, this helps to mitigate the environmental impact of the salt harvesting.

How does SFI Health provide commercial support to naturopaths?

Wardle et al., (2019) reported that only 6.2 per cent of the Australian adult population consult naturopaths. About half (50.3 per cent) of Australians use complementary medicine (Harnett et al., 2019). This exposes many more people to our brand and therefore the benefit of evidence-based natural medicine. Naturopaths are the healthcare professionals with the potential to understand our products in the most detail and apply this knowledge to the individual to achieve the best efficacy and safety. We advocate for this at every level.

When a practitioner has signed up with one of our sales team members, we add them to our searchable web tool where the public can find practitioners who are supported by us through education. Often, we will get calls to product support from consumers askin questions that ethically should be addressed with a practitioner. We never go beyond our scope of practice, which often results in advising consumers to consult their healthcare professional. It is often appropriate to advocate for evidence-based naturopathic care, as these healthcare professionals are best trained to assist. Ultimately this enables greater access and understanding for consumers, while supporting efficacy and safety.

We have further conducted our own surveys, mapping what actions consumers take for specific health concerns. Trust and confidence in therapeutic outcomes are major driving factors.

The SFI Health Professionals Portfolio is “Practitioner Only”, and available behind the counter in pharmacy or health-food channels.

What do you see as the potential role or benefit of industry support for new and future naturopathic practitioners?

I acknowledge we have competitors in the market. This should only drive us to search for better health outcomes. Our range is clinically trialled or formulated according to research in the initial stages with a single nutrient or plant. When we combine two therapeutics together, the synergy is very interesting. We have seen this when combining Panax ginseng with Ginkgo biloba, whereby higher doses were not more effective than placebo and lower doses of Ginkgo were more beneficial when accompanying Panax. This is rooted in traditional knowledge by herbalists, however through research, we can further improve our understanding of natural medicine chemistry, synergy and optimal dose therapy. Traditionally, natural medicine quality was controlled through growing methods and standards and traditional extraction methods, improved and learned upon by trial and error. This is still true, yet with modern commercialism, often the quality of plant material being supplied does not provide the needed therapeutic potential and safety. Testing standards to ensure we are true to the therapeutic potential and safety of any given natural medicine is something I feel we must stay true to at a professional level to ensure the future of our profession.