This document provides an overview of herbal medicine. It defines herbal medicine as the study and use of plants for medicinal purposes. The document outlines the historical background of herbal medicine dating back over 5000 years. It notes that over 95% of people in developing countries and over 1/3 of Americans and Europeans use herbal medicine. The document discusses some common herbal medicines like aloe vera, garlic, ginger, and peppermint and their various uses and effectiveness. It also covers herbal supplements for mental health and exercise/diet.
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What is Herbal Medicine?
Herbal Medicine (also called Herbalism) is the study
of botany and use of plants of different parts e.g.
leaves, flowers or roots for medicinal purposes.
Traditional medicine or folk medicine practice
based on the use of plants and plant extracts.
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Historical Background:
The first written record of medicinal plants was created on
clay tablets over 5000 years ago by the Sumerians, in ancient
Mesopotamia (Iraq).
One mentioned in the modern texts is that of the herb
called “Ma huang” a species of Ephedra used medicinally in
China for over 5000 years .
Around 1500 BCE the Ancient Egyptians wrote the Ebers
Papyrus which listed over 850 herbal medicines.
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page 7
traditional Chinese medicinal herb derived from
Ephedra sinicaStapf and other Ephedra species,
used to treat asthma, nose and lung congestion,
and fever with anhidrosis. It contains 0.5–2.5% by weight of total alkaloids,
of which ephedrine accounts for 30 to 90%.
Recently, large amounts of ma-huang were used as a source of ephedrine in
many dietary supplements formulated for weight reduction, because
ephedrine has been found effective in inducing weight loss in diet-restricted
obese patients. However, indiscriminate consumption of ma-huang–
containing products has resulted in many cases of poisoning, some of which
were fatal.
Mahuang
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Popularity:
More than 95 % of the population in the least
developing countries use herbs for health and
other purposes.
More than one third of Americans and Europeans
use herbs for health purposes, spending over 7.0
billion annually.
More than 25 % of modern pharmaceutical drugs
have botanical origins.
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Why Herbal Medicine?
It is being used by about 80% of the world population
primarily in the developing countries for primary health care.
SAFETY,EFFICACY, CULTURAL ACCEPTABILITY AND
LESSER SIDE EFFECTS.
Ancient literature also mentions herbal medicines for age-
related diseases namely Memory Loss, Osteoporosis,
DiabeticWounds, Immune And Liver Disorders, etc. for
which no modern medicine or only palliative therapy is
available.
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Why do people use herbalism?
Because it is natural and everybody believe
that nature provides solution to good health.
Unlike synthetic pharmaceutical medicine
herbs are easily absorbed in body and blood
stream leaving minimal residual and side
effects.
In most cases it is based on the recommendation.
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Perception of Natural =Safe
“Natural" products are considered to be safe because they are
present in, or produced by, nature. However, that is not true in all
cases.
Herbal interactions with prescription medications or other
chemicals can:
interfere with how the drug may be broken down in the body
enhance side effects of prescription medications
block the intended therapeutic effect of a drug.
For example, Cranberry which help in preventing UTI may
increase the effect of blood anticoagulants like warfarin and lead
to bruising or bleeding.
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Perception of Natural =Safe
“This perception is used in developing
countries where cost of drugs is
prohibitive, poor accessibility to drugs
in rural areas, shortage of physicians
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HerbalismVS Modern Medicine:
Allopathic MedicineHerbal Medicine
Focus is on cure of disease
Body mind are treated as separate entities
Healing depends on outside agent to cure the
disease
Use chemical products
Concentrate on specific organ
Based on chemicals and medications
More side effects
More expensive
Patient passive participant
Treat urgent and emergency conditions
Scientific validation
focus on Health maintenance , disease
prevention life style changes
Mind body are one each one affect the other
The body has a nature ability to heal itself
Use natural products
Treat body as a whole unit
Based on the vital energy inside the body
Little or no side effects
Less expensive
Patient active participant
Treat chronic illness
Little scientific validation
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UsesOf HerbsCont..
Treatment of sickness and disease:
All herbal medicines can be prepared as a tea.
Drink a glass 3 times a day, use the dried
leaves of the plant, and usually use about half
an ounce of the herb.
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UsesOf HerbsCont..
E-Mental Supplements
There are several very popular mental supplements
designed to aid in memory, stress, depression, sleep,
and other mental related problems. Although there are
only a few of the herbal supplements they are widely
used and accepted by the public. There are many claims
regarding the effectiveness of these supplements, and
the only difficult problem is discovering which claims are
true and which are false.
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E-MentalSupplements
Ginkgo Biloba
How it works:
Ginkgo balboa extract increases blood flow to the brain
by inhibiting blood platelet aggregation and by
regulating blood vessel elasticity. It has also been shown
to improve blood flow through major blood vessels and
capillaries.
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E-MentalSupplements
St. John’s Wort
Does it work?
Has been proven to be mildly helpful in very
mild to moderate cases of depression. The
more serious the case, the less that St. John’s
Wort helps. In the worst cases of depression, it
can actually hurt the situation.
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E-MentalSupplements
Sleep Aids
Does they really work?
Herbal sleep aids do work, and actually with little to
no side effects. They are successful at calming and
relaxing the body and assisting in the reduction of
insomnia and other various sleep disorders.
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Exercise and DietSupplements
Ginseng
o A perennial herb of northern China, Korea,
Japan, and Russia
o Must be grown for 5 years before harvested
o The root is the most widely used part
o Harvested in the fall just before defoliation
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Exercise and DietSupplements
Ginseng
Does it work?
In a 9-week, double blind, placebo- controlled trial of 30
highly trained athletes, treatment with ginseng
produced significant improvements in aerobic capacity.
But…
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Exercise and DietSupplements
Ginseng
There were negative results in an 8 week, double
blind trial that followed 31 healthy men in their
twenties and another 8 week trial which showed
that ginseng improved aerobic capacity in people who
did not exercise, but gave no additional benefit to
those who did.
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Bee Pollen
What's Bee Pollen?
It is the male seed of a flower blossom which has been
gathered by the bees and to which special elements from
the bees has been added.The honeybee collects pollen
and mixes it with its own digestive enzymes. One pollen
granule contains from one hundred thousand to five
million pollen spores, each capable of reproducing its
entire species.
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Bee Pollen
Bee pollen contains vitamins, minerals,
carbohydrates, lipids, and protein.
Bee pollen rejuvenates your body, stimulates organs
and glands, enhances vitality, and brings about a
longer life span. Bee pollen's ability to consistently
and noticeably increase energy levels makes it a
favorite substance among many world class athletes
and those interested in sustaining and enhancing
quality performance.
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Bee Pollen
Bee Pollen and Exercise!
1-Produces an accelerated rate
of recovery-normal heart rate
and breathing
2-It provides energy, stamina, and strength, and
enhances performance levels.
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Ephedra
How does it work?
o Ephedrine alkaloids-naturally occurring compounds
which act as a mild stimulant
o Enhances energy
o Similar to caffeine
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Ephedra
How does it work?
o Stimulates fat metabolism:
Burns fat and sugar more effectively
o Reduces appetite:
Mobilizes stored fat and carbohydrate reserves
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Health Risks with Herbs
o Although herbs seem harmless, some can be
potentially dangerous, especially to anyone
taking medication for a heart problem.
o Serious, even fatal, interactions have been
reported between cardiac medicines and some
supplements.
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Health Risks with Herbs
Health Risks May Include:
o Delay in effective treatment for serious
condition. Interference with vital treatment
o Overloading patient with multiple medications
o Unexpected rare but serious liver toxicity
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Health Risks with Herbs
Health Risks May Include:
o Toxic plants used.
o Interactions with other medicines.
o Contamination during manufacturing process.
Confusion over standards.
o Weak missing information.
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Health Risks with Herbs
BEWARE!!
Avoid using herbs in infants, children, pregnant
women, nursing mothers, allergies, patients on
multiple medications.
Herbs should be prescribed only when they are
necessary, and in all cases the benefit of giving herbs
should be considered in relation to the risk involved.
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Ardell AV (2002) Medieval herbal remedies: the old English herbarium and Anglo-Saxon medicine. Psychology Press,
NewYork, pp 70–71.
Castleman M (2001)The new healing herbs: the classic guide to nature’s best medicines featuring the top 100 time-
tested herbs. Rodale, Emmaus, PA, p 15.
Nunn, John (2002). Ancient Egyptian Medicine. University of Oklahoma Press. p. 151.
https://www.slideshare.net/siddharthanand5/herbal-medicine-29034823?from_m_app=android
https://www.slideshare.net/aldebaran4/herbal-medicine?from_m_app=android
References