Medicinal Herbs

What is herbal medicine?

The art or practice of using herbs and herbal preparations to maintain health and to prevent, alleviate, or cure disease. It has persisted as the world’s primary form of medicine since the beginning of time, with a written history more than 5000 years old. While the use of herbs in America has been overshadowed by dependence on modern medications the last 100 years, 75% of the world’s population still rely primarily upon traditional healing practices, most of which is herbal medicine.

What is the history of herbal medicine?

One of the oldest herbs in history is the popular Ginkgo biloba. Fossil records show that Ginkgo has been on earth at least since the Paleozoic period. The beginnings of the medicinal plants’ use were instinctive, as is the case with animals. In view of the fact that at the time there was not sufficient information either concerning the reasons for the illnesses or concerning which plant and how it could be utilized as a cure, everything was based on experience. In time, the reasons for the usage of specific medicinal plants for treatment of certain diseases were being discovered; thus, the medicinal plants’ usage gradually abandoned the empiric framework and became founded on explicatory facts. Until the advent of iatrochemistry in 16th century, plants had been the source of treatment and prophylaxis. Nonetheless, the decreasing efficacy of synthetic drugs and the increasing contraindications of their usage make the usage of natural drugs topical again.

What are the benefits of herbal medicine?

Herbal medicines are very cheap in comparison to the conventional form of medication. It’s something which every pocket can afford, unlike other forms of medication which can create a big hole in your wallet.

Herbal medicines tend to be more effective for long-standing health complaints that don’t respond well to traditional medicine. One example is the herbs and alternative remedies used to treat arthritis. Vioxx, a well-known prescription drug used to treat arthritis, was recalled due to increased risk of cardiovascular complications. Alternative treatments for arthritis, on the other hand, have few side effects. Such treatments include dietary changes like adding simple herbs, eliminating vegetables from the nightshade family and reducing white sugar consumption.

Many of the herbal medicines that are recommended and are known to have medicinal values are very easy to prepare. Bayabas and lagundi, for example, have uses that merely require the direct application of the leaves to the affected area. Also, decoctions usually require mere boiling of the plants’ leaves and roots. These processes evidently show that we do not really have to be dependent on commercially-manufactured medicines, because preparing herbal treatments really do not take much trouble

Herbal remedies are also more readily available than other treatments because they do not require a prescription and can be found in a variety of forms including teas, creams, oils, and pills. Herbs can be used on individuals who are allergic to other drugs, and they aid in the natural detoxification process of the body. In certain instances, herbal remedies are considered more effective than pharmaceutical drugs.