herbal medicine

herbal medicine,

use of natural plant substances (botanicals) to treat and prevent illness. The practice has existed since prehistoric times and flourishes today as the primary form of medicine for perhaps as much as 80% of the world's population. Over 80,000 species of plants are in use throughout the world. Along with acupunctureacupuncture
, technique of traditional Chinese medicine, in which a number of very fine metal needles are inserted into the skin at specially designated points. For thousands of years acupuncture has been used, along with herbal medicine, for pain relief and treatment of various
..... Click the link for more information. , herbal medicine is considered primary health care in China, where it has been in documented use for over 2,500 years.

Herbs may be used directly as teas or extracts, or they may be used in the production of drugs. Approximately 25% of the prescription drugs sold in the United States are plant based. Many more herbal ingredients are present in over-the-counter drugs, such as laxatives. Medicines that come from plants include aspirinaspirin,
acetyl derivative of salicylic acid (see salicylate) that is used to lower fever, relieve pain, reduce inflammation, and thin the blood. Common conditions treated with aspirin include headache, muscle and joint pain, and the inflammation caused by rheumatic fever and
..... Click the link for more information. from willow bark (Salix species) and digitalisdigitalis
, any of several chemically similar drugs used primarily to increase the force and rate of heart contractions, especially in damaged heart muscle. The effects of the drug were known as early as 1500 B.C.
..... Click the link for more information. from foxglove (Digitalis purpurea).

Scientific interest in herbal medicine in the United States has lagged behind that in the countries of Asia and W Europe; in Germany, for example, one third of graduating physicians have studied herbal medicine, and a comprehensive therapeutic guide to herbal medicines has long been published there. Nonetheless, millions of people in the United States use herbal products to treat a wide variety of ailments or to enhance health. Among the more popular remedies used are ginsengginseng
, common name for the Araliaceae, a family of tropical herbs, shrubs, and trees that are often prickly and sometimes grow as climbing forms. The true ginseng (Panax ginseng
..... Click the link for more information. , to increase stamina and as a mild sedative; St.-John's-wortSt.-John's-wort,
any species of the large and widespread herbaceous or shrubby genus Hypericum of the family Hypericaceae (St.-John's-wort family), usually found in moist, open places and often having bright yellow flowers and dotted leaves. A St.
..... Click the link for more information. , for mild depression; echinaceaechinacea
, popular herbal remedy, or botanical, believed to benefit the immune system. It is used especially to alleviate common colds and the flu. Several controlled studies using it as a cold medicine have failed to find any benefit from its use, but a 2007 review of 14
..... Click the link for more information. , to aid the immune system and alleviate colds; kava, to calm anxiety and treat insomnia; saw palmetto, for enlarged prostate; and ginkgo biloba, to improve short-term memory (see ginkgoginkgo
or maidenhair tree,
tall, slender, picturesque deciduous tree (Ginkgo biloba) with fan-shaped leaves. The ginkgo is native to E China, where it was revered by Buddhist monks and planted near temples.
..... Click the link for more information. ). Some people have used botanicals in an attempt to stave off serious illnesses such as AIDS.

This widespread use has prompted demands that herbal remedies be regulated as drugs to insure quality standards. The U.S. Food and Drug AdministrationFood and Drug Administration
(FDA), agency of the Public Health Service division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is charged with protecting public health by ensuring that foods are safe and pure, cosmetics and other chemical substances harmless, and
..... Click the link for more information. (FDA) can require a clinical trial on any herb that has a health claim on its label, but medical testing, which is geared toward observing a particular active component, is difficult to apply to herbs, which may have many interacting ingredients. Debate over botanicals' validity and safety as medicines and over the appropriate degree of government regulation continues. The Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, passed in 1994, reclassified herbs as dietary supplements rather than food additives. It forbids unreasonable health claims by the manufacturers, but makes it the FDA's responsibility to prove that a marketed product is unsafe. (In contrast, in prescription and over-the-counter drugs, it is the manufacturer's responsibility to prove safety and effectiveness before a drug can be marketed.)

Another concern surrounding herbal medicine is the availability of wild plants for a growing market; it is feared that the limited supplies of known wild herbs are being threatened by overharvesting and habitat loss. The potential of isolating beneficial drugs from plants, however, has prompted large pharmaceutical companies to contribute to the conservation of the tropical rain forest. Biologists have called for more careful study of medicinal plants, especially regarding their capacity for sustainable harvesting and the effects of cultivation on their efficacy as medicaments.

Bibliography

See V. E. Tyler and S. Foster, Tyler's Honest Herbal (rev. ed. 1999); The Physicians' Desk Reference for Herbal Medicines (annual).

herbal medicine

n.1. The study or use of medicinal herbs to prevent and treat diseases and ailments or to promote health and healing.2. A drug or preparation made from a plant or plants and used for any of such purposes.

herbal medicine

The use of substances extracted from flowers, fruits, roots, seeds and stems, either alone or as an adjunct to other forms of alternative healthcare or physical manipulation.
Subspecialties
Aromatherapy, ayurvedic herbal medicine, Bach flower remedies, Chinese herbal medicine.
Classic texts on herbal medicine
Chakra Samhita, The Complete Herbal, De Materia Medica, Pen Ts’ao, Rigveda, Theatrum Botanicum.
Used for
Abcesses, acidity, acne, addiction disorders, adenoids, agoraphobia, alcoholism, allergies, anaemia, anxiety, arthritis, asthma, atherosclerosis, athletes’ foot, bedwetting, bites and stings, bladder problems, blisters, bone fractures, bronchitis, bruxism, bruises, bunions, burns, bursitis, candidiasis, celiac disease, chickenpox, chronic fatigue syndrome, circulatory defects, claustrophobia, the common cold, coughs, cramps, dandruff, earache, eczema, emphysema, eyestrain, fatigue, fever, flatulence, fluid retention, food poisoning, frozen shoulder, gallstones, gastrointestinal tract complaints (e.g., anal changes, gastritis, nausea, vomiting, indigestion, diarrhoea and irritable bowl syndrome), gout, halitosis, hangover, hay fever, headaches, heat rash, heartburn, haemorrhoids, hiccups, hives, hypertension, hypotension, incontinence, infertility, insomnia, jaundice, jet lag, laryngitis, low back pain, measles, menopausal disorders, mental depression, menstrual dysfunction, migraines, mineral deficiencies, mood swings, morning sickness, mumps, neurologic complaints, obesity, painful conditions (e.g., neuralgia), panic attacks, parasites, periodontal disease, phobias, postpartum depression, premenstrual syndrome, prolapsed vertebral disks, prostate disease, psoriasis, renal disease, rheumatic disease, sciatica, sexual dysfunction, shortness of breath, sinusitis, sleep disorders, sports injuries, stasis (decubitus) ulcers, stress, tension, thyroid disease, tics, tinnitus, vaginitis, vertigo, warts, wheezing, whooping cough, and other conditions.
There are few peer-reviewed studies supporting the efficacy of herbal medicine.
Herbs and plants used
Agrimony, anise, apple, balm, bayberry, blackberry leaves, boneset, borage, buchu, burdock, calamus root, caraway, catnip, cayenne, celandine, chamomile, chicory root, coltsfoot, comfrey, coriander, damiana, dill, echinea, elder, elecampene, fennel, feverfew, flax, garlic, gentian, ginger, ginkgo, goldenrod, goldenseal, gota kola, ground ivy, hops, horehound, horseradish, hyssop, Irish moss, juniper, lavender, lemon, liquorice, lobelia, marshmallow, milk thistle, mistletoe, motherwort, mugwort, mullein, mustard, myrtle, nettle, nutmeg, oak bark, pennyroyal, peppermint, plaintain, pokeroot, purslane, red clover, rosemary, rue, sage, Saint John’s wort, saw , skullcap, senna, slippery elm, sumac, tarragon, valerian, wormwood, yarrow, yellow dock and others.

herbal medicine

Botanical medicine, botanomedicine, herbalism, phytomedicine, phytotherapy, vegotherapy Alternative health As usually defined in alternative medicine, the therapeutic use of extracts from flowers, fruits, roots, seeds, and stems, alone or as an adjunct to other forms of alternative health care or physical manipulation–eg, massages. See Alterative, Alternative medicine, Analgesic, Anthelmintic, Antibiotic, Antiseptic, Antispasmodic, Astringent, Botanical toxicity, Carminative, Cathertic, Decoction, Demulcent, Diaphoretic, Diuretic, Douche, Emetic, Emmenagogue, Enema, Ethnomedicine, Fluid extract, Green extract, Hepatic, Infusion, Laxative, Naturopathy, Nervine, Ointment, Poultice, Stomachic, Suppository, Syrup, Tincture.

nat·ur·o·path·ic med·i·cine

(nā'chŭr-ō-path-ik mĕd-i-sin) A branch of health care based on recognition of the healing power of nature. It supplements conventional medical theory and practice with emphasis on understanding and treating the whole patient, avoiding potentially harmful therapies, adding education for self-care, and aiding nature to restore health and equilibrium. Methods include dietary revision, counseling for lifestyle modification, botanical medicine, physical medicine, and mind-body therapies. Naturopathic physicians are licensed in some states as primary health care providers with authority to write prescriptions.

herb·al

(ĕr'băl) An imprecise but common usage for any agent in any form intended to improve or affect health; sold over the counter, without prescription and without F.D.A. oversight about potency, appropriateness, or purity.
See also: naturopathic medicine

herbal medicine

A form of medical treatment using extracts of herbs. Many orthodox and important drugs are derived from herbs, but herbalists concentrate on those not considered by pharmacologists to be of sufficient medical value to exploit. Because of the variability of the amounts of the active ingredients in herbs and because these medicines are not assayed, instances of poisoning by herbal remedies regularly appear in the medical press. There are moves to regulate this trade.

Patient discussion about herbal medicine

Q. I don’t have any idea about herbal medicine. Hi! My 7 years old daughter is suffering from asthma and this gets severe with cold. I would like to know, is there any herbal medicine or syrup that my daughter can take for her asthma and cold. I don’t have any idea about herbal medicine. Thank You.A. HELLO JUSTIN,their is herbal meds out there,to help people from getting a cold,because when a person with asthma-gets a cold,it will bring on a attack. once an asthma attack starts,you have to use conventional meds.bronchodilators(inhalers)-steroids-methylxanthines-and sometimes oxygen. Herbal meds work slower than conventional meds-you cant use them for a disease like asthma,because time is everything when a person has and asthma attack,because no one can predict how long an attack will last---my suggestion to you is to find a pulmonologist(DR).--not a regular dr. IF you can keep your child from getting a cold--from being around dust in the house-smoke--fumes,and some odors--an asthma attack can start from exertion(exercise-induced asthma)---foods/wine-some dyes found in candy(yellow dye)--aspirin some cheeses--spores-pollens,animal danders.If you decide to try herbal meds(PLEASE)check with your DR. first------mrfoot56

Q. Can herbal medicine help for this and how much? I am diabetic for the past 3 years and I am taking glimeprimide for long. The moment I find my blood glucose level down I stop taking glimeprimide but soon my glucose jumps up to danger levels. I am fed up with this and I can’t control on my diet....can herbal medicine help for this and how much?A. actually herbal medicine can be that helpful, but unfortunately there is lack of valid studies of most herbal medication knowledge. I'm not saying that herbal medicine cannot help, but a lot of doctors don't aware or don't know about the good of herbal medicine.
i will suggest you to consult with your internist for that, but if you believe that herbal medicine can help you, try that. but it for start, cannot replace your glimepiride. slowly but sure, when you improve your diabetic level (by regularly checking your blood glucose level), you can discuss that progress with your doctor.
Good luck, and stay healthy always..

Q. Which HERBAL medicine will increase my memory? I am reporter working for a familiar news channel with reputed name. The management trusts my words because I am very good in my memory. But for the past few months I am facing some memory loss and took some English medicine which is not much effective. So now I like to change my medication. Which HERBAL medicine will increase my memory?A. Yes, Macska - I actually heard that that helps your memory a lot. Also math problems.

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Bibliography

herbal medicine

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herbal medicine

nat·ur·o·path·ic med·i·cine

herb·al

herbal medicine

Patient discussion about herbal medicine

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Words related to herbal medicine

noun a medicine made from plants and used to prevent or treat disease or promote health

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noun the use of medicinal herbs to prevent or treat disease or promote health

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