When we first started growing neem in 1992, the internet didn’t even exist. Researching neem required that we order hard copies of reports that arrived weeks (sometimes months) later.
Like so much of life in the past 30 years, that’s changed dramatically. When a researcher anywhere in the world files a report with a peer-reviewed publication, it’s automatically uploaded to the National Institutes of Health website (www.pubmed.gov). Abstracts are available at no charge and full-text articles can be downloaded for a fee. They even notify us every time a new article is published.
That’s obviously a benefit for anyone interested in the lastest neem research. It has its downside though. Articles written for peer-reviewed publications aren’t necessarily easy to read for the rest of us. As the science has gotten more focused on neem, the articles increase in complexity.
That’s where researchneem.com can help. We’ve been “translating” those reports for decades focusing on news that normal people can use — not researchers taking the next step in understanding how and why neem works.
We’re a team of journalists and writers with expertise in different facets of science. More importantly, we’re backed by our husbands, sisters and friends who review our work and make recommendations on what they liked and didn’t like about our reports on neem research.
We’re still deciding what format will be most effective for readers. The original researchneem.com was an easy-to-read introduction to the research grouped by topics people are most interested in. For instance, we had sections on antibiotics, skin disease, immune system boosting, liver damage and repair, etc. Each of those reports included the abstracts from publications that supported that introduction.
At the same time, a group of cooperating neem companies had created a website called usingneem.com. It was much simpler to read and included comments from our customers on how neem had made a difference in their lives.
As we move forward, we’re looking at creating a hybrid between the two formats. We want something that gives our readers the opportunity to review the original research with hyperlinks to those pubmed.gov reports.
We also recognize that the research is far more complex than it was 30-odd years ago. At the same time, the average reader is just as concerned with reviews from their peers as a report from an Ivy League university.
We’ll certainly be listening to our core group of reviewers, but hope to hear from other people about what they like — or don’t — about these reports. Your comments on how you use neem also will be welcome.
You can comment on this post, or contact us at comments@researchneem.com
We’re looking forward to a new journey and are delighted to have you on board!