The 140th Annual Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society of Japan (Kyoto)

Organizers: Yukihiro Goda (NIHS, Japan), Michiho Ito (Kyoto Univ Grad Sch Pharm Sci)

Japan will be soon facing the reality of ultra-aging society and forced to cope with it. The Japanese government made policies for health promotion aiming at "extension of healthy life expectancy" and "prevent onset of and becoming serious condition of lifestyle-related disease". It seems that importance of prevention of diseases, preservation of health, and public health control are gradually recognized by people, and medical services can contribute not only to the patient's disease but also to those activities for maintenance of health. As for contents of education and research activities in pharmaceutical sciences relevant to primary health care and self-medication, topics on OTC drugs made from natural ingredients or herbal medicines, functional health foods, dietary supplements, and so-called health foods are often chosen and discussed; however, apart from issues on medical supplies mentors and students are seemed not so much interested in these topics. Accordingly, either legislative system nor research activities for these products are not well described. In order to draw more attention to primary care and self-medication and recognize role position of pharmaceutical sciences and role assigning of pharmaceutical education anew, this symposium was planned by Subcommittee of Medical Pharmacy in Committee of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Science Council of Japan to be held in PSJ annual meeting.