folk medicine
noun
: traditional medicine as practiced nonprofessionally especially by people isolated from modern medical services and usually involving the use of plant-derived remedies on an empirical basis
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web It’s been used for hundreds of years by the Cherokee and in Appalachian folk medicine. 
Laura Hancock, cleveland, 26 Aug. 2022 It has been used in Ukrainian folk medicine for ailments, and is said to represent the beauty of women and the family home. Liana Satenstein, Vogue, 20 Apr. 2022 Holy basil is used widely in Ayurvedic and folk medicine, often in the form of herbal tea, and is considered sacred in Hinduism. Kate Kassin, Bon Appétit, 10 Feb. 2022 Born in Milwaukee and raised by Slovenian parents, Rachel Budde grew up around folk medicine. New York Times, 31 Dec. 2020 After receiving a certification in reiki, Rodriguez later discovered that curanderas and healers ran in her lineage, including her abuelo, who has practiced folk medicine in the Dominican Republic for years. Johanna Ferreira, refinery29.com, 29 Dec. 2020 Throughout human history and across cultures, fossils were prized as amulets or used in folk medicine. Hans-dieter Sues, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Jan. 2020 The fact-checking website Snopes — which investigated this claim nearly a decade ago — found a medical journal in the 1840s that said flour could prevent scarring, but its advice appears to be nothing more than folk medicine. Devan Patel, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2011 Women who were not physicians, but [practitioners of] folk medicine. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 17 Sep. 2020 See More
Laura Hancock, cleveland, 26 Aug. 2022 It has been used in Ukrainian folk medicine for ailments, and is said to represent the beauty of women and the family home. Liana Satenstein, Vogue, 20 Apr. 2022 Holy basil is used widely in Ayurvedic and folk medicine, often in the form of herbal tea, and is considered sacred in Hinduism. Kate Kassin, Bon Appétit, 10 Feb. 2022 Born in Milwaukee and raised by Slovenian parents, Rachel Budde grew up around folk medicine. New York Times, 31 Dec. 2020 After receiving a certification in reiki, Rodriguez later discovered that curanderas and healers ran in her lineage, including her abuelo, who has practiced folk medicine in the Dominican Republic for years. Johanna Ferreira, refinery29.com, 29 Dec. 2020 Throughout human history and across cultures, fossils were prized as amulets or used in folk medicine. Hans-dieter Sues, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Jan. 2020 The fact-checking website Snopes — which investigated this claim nearly a decade ago — found a medical journal in the 1840s that said flour could prevent scarring, but its advice appears to be nothing more than folk medicine. Devan Patel, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2011 Women who were not physicians, but [practitioners of] folk medicine. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 17 Sep. 2020 See More Word History
First Known Use
1878, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
folk medicine
noun
ˈfōk- 
: traditional medicine as practiced especially by people isolated from modern medical services and usually involving the use of plant-derived remedies on an empirical basis compare home remedy