History of Herbal Medicine

Herbal medicine is the use of botanicals (plants) either singularly or in combination to prevent and treat certain ailments and illnesses.

People native to different geographical locations have long used plants and plant extracts to cure specific maladies. Sometimes referred to as “folk” medicine, it is generally recognized that there are three schools of research one can follow with regard to the history of these treatments.

There is the study of medicines based on Greek, Roman and medieval sources which is largely used by Western schools of thought, Ayurvedic which comes from India and the Eastern tradition of Chinese Herbal Medicine. Rather than being completely unique, these different schools of thought provide more commonality than division.

It stands to reason that most ancient peoples used plants that were native to their geographical location, which provides sound reasoning as to why different schools of thought exist.

All three of these modalities at one time included both philosophical and spiritual aspects along with the scientific knowledge that existed within a specific time frame. While I am not here to render opinion, one fact does remain. The same study that determined one third of Americans use alternative therapies, also showed a dramatic increase in positive results to more than 60% when “prayer” was included in the mix.

Ayurvedic loosely translates to “knowledge of life.” Dating back to more than 6,000 years ago, Ayurvedic Medicine practiced not just herbal medicine, but some of the earliest surgical procedures as well as inoculation. Over the years, Ayurvedic Medicine became increasingly more symptomatic as opposed to treating the root cause of disease which originally was steeped in strengthening the immune system.

With all our so-called advancements in the medical field, it’s interesting that physicians are still treating the “effect” rather than “cause.” The old adage that, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” could not be more true. This is especially true when it comes to natural remedies.

Most natural remedies are botanical. Singularly or in combination, the numbers of herbs available is astounding. I will barely scratch the surface in this online guide and I encourage further research and study.

While this is a presentation on “herbs,” I have included other natural, organic contents. Many of the combinations include both herbs and other sources such as tree bark, alfalfa and rhubarb.

Because there are so many botanicals and combinations, I am using the most common and should not be construed as the ONLY use for a specific herb.

Additionally, please note that I use the “common names” throughout, as opposed to the more confusing, latin words.

Let’s get right to it, shall we?

> Home > Herbal Remedies Main Page