The History of Herbal Medicine

The History of Herbal Medicine

Medicinal plants have been used for medicinal purposes long before
recorded history. For example, ancient Chinese and Egyptian papyrus
writings describe medicinal plant uses. Indigenous cultures (e.g.,
African and Native American) used herbs in their healing rituals,
while others developed traditional medical systems (e.g., Ayurveda and
Traditional Chinese Medicine) in which herbal therapies were used
systematically. Scientists found that people is different parts of the
globe tended to use the same or similar plants for the same purposes.

In the early 19th century, when methods of chemical analysis first
became available, scientists began extracting and modifying the active
ingredients from plants. Later, chemists began making their own
version of plant compounds, beginning the transition from raw herbs to
synthetic pharmaceuticals. Over time, the use of herbal medicines
declined in favor of pharmaceuticals.

Herbal Medicine Today

Recently, the World Health Organization estimated that 80% of people
worldwide rely on herbal medicines for some aspect of their primary
healthcare. In the last twenty years in the United States, increasing
public dissatisfaction with the cost, efficacy and potential of
side-effect of prescription medications, combined with an interest in
returning to natural or organic remedies, has led to an increase in
the use of herbal medicines. In countries such as Germany and
Switzerland, roughly 600 to 700 plant-based medicines are prescribed
by approximately 70% of physicians.

How do Herbs Work?

For most herbs, used in herbal medicine, the specific ingredient that
causes a therapeutic effect is not known. Whole herbs contain many
ingredients, and it is likely that they work synergistically to
produce the therapeutic effects. Many factors affect how effective an
herb will be. For example, the type of environment (climate, bugs,
soil quality, altitude, etc.) in which a plant grew will affect its
constituents. In addition, how and when it was harvested and processed
will also influence the quality of the resulting herbal extract.

How are herbs used? For the reasons described in the previous section,
herbalists prefer using plant extracts from the whole herb or various
parts such as roots, flowers, seeds, etc., rather than extracting
single active ingredients from them. Herbal extracts have many
components and are usually too complex to manufacture synthetically by
the pharmaceutical industry.

These components contained in medicinal herbs work together to produce
therapeutic effects, while at the same time moderating potential
side-effects often associated with pharmaceutic preparations. Several
herbs are often used together to enhance effectiveness and synergistic
actions and to reduce toxicity.

Are Herbal Medicines Safe?

In a study by the World Health Organization on the use of herbal
medicine, about 80% of the world's population still rely on herbal
medicine to treat certain ailments and about 74% of the pharmaceutical
drugs we use today contain at least one botanical element.

For instance, Chinese Herbal Medicine's uses Ephedra, which containes
ephedrine in the treatment of some respiratory conditions. Ephedrine
remains an active ingredient in many pharmaceutical drugs being
prescribed to relieve asthma symptoms.

Herbal medicine is defined by three schools of thought: Ayurvedic
Herbalism, Traditional Chinese Herbalism and Western Herbal Medicine.
While both Ayurvedic and Chinese herbal medicine have moved on to
advanced forms, western herbal medicine remains a part of folk
treatments. Herbal medicine is, first and foremost, holistic. It aims
to address not just a particular symptom, but also to help the whole
body rejuventate strengthen itself.

Research

Reseach into herbal medicine is growing and evidence of efficacy is
growing at a rapid rate. Universities such as the University of
Meryland Medical Centre, are publishing good quality, researched
information on herbal medicine, herbs and other aspects of alternative
medicine.

Warning

Always keep in mind that herbal medicines are medicines and,
therefore, need to be regarded with as much care as pharmaceutical
drugs. Some people have the misconception that because herbal
medicines are natural, they are 100% safe. This is not so. Allways
consult a fully qualified, experienced medical herbalist to have your
health problems assessed and treated.

_By: *Steve Maszlagi*_

*About the Author:*

Steven Maszlagi has been promoting the benefits of herbal and
alternative treatments through such websites as HerbalWorks [1] for
many years. He is a passionate believer in the power of herbal
remedies [2] over chemical based unnatural solutions.

Links:
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[1] http://www.herbalworks.com.au
[2] http://www.herbalworks.com.au