Science and research are integral parts of anthroposophic medicine. They are not, however, restricted solely to natural scientific methods and criteria though – like the treatments – go further. Anthroposophic medical research aims above all to understand the human being as a whole and not just individual biological processes. It is the most fundamental task of anthroposophic medicine to overcome the arbitrary fragmentation of medicine into numerous subgroups which all have their own language and terminology.
The objective is to gain a view of the human being across specialisations which incorporates anthroposophical findings in such a way that they are reproducible and comprehensible to everyone else; because anthroposophic medicine is concerned with the encounter from one person to the other.

Another concern is to reflect reality in day-to-day practice. That includes the doctor-patient relationship as much as the therapeutic conviction of the doctor and the active participation of the patient in his or her recovery. Such a basic view leads to the conclusion that anthroposophic medicines do not replace particular substances in the body in the sense of a mechanistic concept or suppress excessive processes. On the contrary, their purpose is to influence processes which have become unbalanced in such a way that they return to a harmonious state.

In this sense the self-regulatory capacity of the patient forms the foundation of anthroposophic medicine. Self-regulation means balancing physical and mental imbalances, overcoming crises, being able to turn every situation encountered in life into something positive through one’s own strength. The inner and outer possibilities for this are different in each person. Hence the ability for self-regulation cannot be generally assumed or generalised. It shows itself in individually different weaknesses and strengths as well as in the absence of a uniform response to generally valid therapeutic measures. What is good for one person may be detrimental for another. Thus anthroposophic research wishes to and must take account of individual aspects in its methodology alongside the typical and general.

For general information, the information leaflet “Anthroposophic medicine in science and research”, published by the Medical Section, can be downloaded as a PDF file PDF-Download.

Addresses of research institutes