* HISTORY OF MEDICINAL HERBS
Medicinal plants, herbs, spices and herbal remedies are known to Ayurveda in India since long times. The value of medicinal plants, herbs and spices as herbal remedies is being lost due to lack of awareness, and deforestation. The result is many valuable medicinal herbs are becoming rare and precious information is lost. Less pollution we make, more ecological balance we maintain, will add to happiness of humankind. Preserve the knowledge of medicinal plants, herbs, spices and herbal remedies, which humankind has received from the past generations, for posterity.
History of herbal remedies is very old. Since old times before modern medicine, people became ill and suffered from various ailments. In absent of modern medicinal remedies people relied on herbal remedies derived from herbs and spices. There are many medicinal herbs and spices, which find place in day-to-day uses, many of these, are used as herbal remedies. Many cooked foods contain spices. Some minor ailments like common cold, cough, etc. may be cured by herbal remedies with use of medicinal properties of spices. Herbal remedies can be taken in many forms. Infusions are steeping herbs or spices, with parts like leaves and flowers with boiling water for some time. Filtered or unfiltered use this water extracts of spices as herbal remedies. Decoction is boiling roots, bark and hard parts of herbs and spices with water for along time. Infusion and decoction both are known as herbal teas. Some times essential oil of herbs and spices are also used as herbal remedies. Action of herbal remedies may vary from human to human and care should be observed in using it. Always inform your healthcare professional while taking any of the herbal remedies or consuming large quantity of medicinal herbs or spices as medicinal product.
Compared with the precision of modern diagnosis and prescription medicine, herbal remedies can seem out of place today. But herbal preparations were once the only medications available. Modern physicians argue that synthetic medicines are superior because they are free of impurities, are of known strength and effects, and are more stable.
Herbal practitioners believe that when used appropriately, herbal remedies have an important role today. In many countries, herbal remedies remain the only readily available treatment. And, of course, many of today’s medicines are derived from naturally occurring plants.
In most cultures around the world, the earliest forms of healing were based on herbs. People built up a wealth of knowledge based on experimentation within their environments, and they handed that knowledge on to the next generation. The arrival of written language provided us with records of the use of herbs as medicine as early as 3000 BC in Egypt, Babylon, China and India.
Examples abound of the importance herbs played in the health and well-being of ancient peoples. In 300 BC, a medical school was set up in Alexandria, where research was conducted into the uses of herbs in treating illnesses. This led to the creation of a document listing more than 600 herbs, with a prescription for how to prepare each as a treatment for specific diseases. This book was considered the most important source of information on herbal medicine for the next 1,500 years.
Native Americans used many different herbal medicines. From willow bark they extracted a pain-relieving ingredient used in today’s aspirin. Iris roots ground with suet, lard and beeswax made an ointment for cuts and grazes. Coca leaves were used as a local anesthetic. Juice of lady’s slipper roots eased pain, soothed hysterics and relieved cold and flu symptoms.
Traditional Chinese medicine attaches a great deal of importance to the harmony of the human body and the relationship of the body with nature. Chinese people have been using natural herbs to treat a wide variety of diseases for over 3,000 years.
While much has been added to the basic philosophy of this ancient healing system, very little has been taken out. Herbal medicines comprise roots, bark, flowers, seeds, fruits, leaves and branches. In China today, there are up to 5,000 different herbs in use in traditional medicine. It is wise to use only Chinese herbs that have been prescribed by a professional.