Dr. Gary Null
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 Efficacy of Traditional herbal medicines in Combination with Acyclovir Against Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Infection in Vitro and in Vivo," Antiviral Research 27 (1995): 19-37.
Genistein inhibits the replication of herpes simplex virus type I.
Y. Yura et al., "Inhibition of Herpes Simplex Virus Replication by Genistein, an Inhibitor of Protein-Tyrosine Kinase," Archives of Virology 132 (1993): 451-61.
A poplar bud extract was found to inhibit herpes simplex virus type I in vitro.
M. Amoros et al. |
Schuyler W. Lininger, Jr. DC
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 The Complete Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to herbal medicines. Boston, MA: Integrative Medicine Communications, 1998, 160-61.
4. Wehlbling RH, Leonhardt K. Local therapy of herpes simplex with dried extract of Melissa officinalis. Phytomedicine 1994; 1(1): 25-31.
5. Leach EH, Lloyd JPF. Experimental ocular hypertension in animals. Trans Ophthalm Soc UK 1956; 76:453-60.
Licorice
1. Steinberg D, Sgan-Cohen HD, Stabholz A, et al. The anticariogenic activity of glycyrrhizin: Preliminary clinical trials. Isr J Dent Sci 1989; 2: 153-55.
2. Soma R, Ikeda M, Morise T, et al. |
Ruth Winter, M.S.
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 Promoted in herbal medicines as both relaxing and stimulating.
BLUEBERRY EXTRACT • Vaccinum myrtillus. See Bilberry Extract. BLUE NO. 1 • See FD & C Blue No. 1.
BLUE VIOLET • Ultramarine Blue. Ultramarine Violet. Used in ivory face powders. Originally made from lapis lazuli. See Ultramarine Blue. BLUSHER • Used to put color on cheeks and on other parts of the face. Powder blushers are similar to pressed powder in composition but include lake colors (see). Stick blushers are similar in composition to lipsticks (see). BODY-NOTE • The main and characteristic overall odor of a perfume. |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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 Integrative Medicine Communications, 2000). Herbal Medicines: A Guide for Health-Care Professionals by
Carol A. Newall, Linda A. Anderson, and J. D. Phillipson
(London: The Pharmaceutical Press, 1996). Herbal Prescriptions for Better Health by Donald J. Brown
(Roseville, Calif.: Prima Health, 2000). Medical Botany by Walter H. Lewis and P. F. Elvin-Lewis (New
York: John Wiley and Sons, 1977). Native American Ethnobotany by Daniel E. Moerman (Portland,
Ore.: Timber Press, 1998). The New Healing Herbs by Michael Castleman (Emmaus, Pa.:
Rodale Inc., 2001). |
| Commission E, which evaluates the safety and effectiveness of herbal medicines for the German government, says that hawthorn has no known risks or hazardous interactions with other drugs. Nevertheless, if you've been diagnosed with a cardiovascular condition, you should use hawthorn only with medical supervision. The commission suggests taking 160 to 900 milligrams a day of a standardized extract.
I like to think of hawthorn as a preventive "farmaceutical." When used as a treatment, it's not a quick fix. |
| As much as I value herbal medicines, I don't really recommend these herbal laxatives. Prevention is the way to go, as it were. So stick with a high-fiber diet. Get plenty of exercise. And if you need a little help, take psyllium, flax, or fenugreek. Blend them into your juices, and you'll never know the difference—but your colon will.
Incidentally, these preventive strategies do more than spare you the discomforts of irregularity. They also reduce your odds of developing a common age-related digestive condition called diverticulitis. (For more information on diverticulitis, see chapter 32. |
| Mother Nature has generously endowed a number of her herbal medicines with cancer-fighting properties. Here are some of my favorites. garlic {allium sativum}. Of all the research examining the relationship between garlic and cancer, this finding made the biggest impression on me: In China, people who ate no garlic were 1,000 times more likely to develop stomach cancer than those who regularly consumed large quantities of the odoriferous bulb.
Garlic contains diallyl sulfide, a compound that reduces the potency of nitrosamines, which are a major class of carcinogens. |
| But among herbal medicines, they provide the best dose control by far—much better than you'd get from herbs that may have spent 2 years at the bottom of a bin in a health food store.
Something else to keep in mind: While every variety of herb contains literally thousands of biologically active compounds, only one or two of these compounds are subject to standardization. Fortunately, they tend to be the most important, based on existing scientific research. |
Kenny Ausubel
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 Conventional cancer centers now often incorporate dietary and nutritional programs, attitudinal healing and counseling, and even herbal medicines. There are many caring doctors who would be more responsive to their patients' wishes if they did not fear for their professional standing, and if sound information were available to help support those choices.
Gar Hildenbrand, who deals on a daily basis with desperate, frightened cancer patients caught in the medical crossfire, suggests a tempered activism. |
Andrew Chevallier
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 In China, Mexico, Cuba, Egypt, Ghana, India, and Mongolia, to give a few examples, herbal medicines are being cultivated in greater quantities and are being used to some degree by conventional as well as traditional practitioners.
Likewise, different types of treatment have evolved to meet the variety of needs within a population. India offers an extraordinary example of the kind of choices now available in types of medical care. |
Ronald L. Hoffman, M.D.
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 In a patient with a mild Candida infection, herbal medicines usually cure it. These include:
• Grapefruit seed extract. Recommended dosage: 125 to 250 milligrams three times daily
• Pau d'arco. Recommended dosage: Three glasses of freshly brewed tea from tea bags three times daily
• Garlic. Recommended dosage: concentrated garlic capsules, 400 milligrams three times daily
• Caprylic acid. Recommended dosage: 500 to 750 milligrams three times daily
These treatments can be combined and sometimes work synergistically. |
Richard Leviton
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 In Europe, sales of herbal medicines are allocated according to these categories: cardiovascular, 27.2%; digestive, 14.4%; respiratory, 15.3%, tonics, 14.4%; sedative, 9.3%; and others. In Germany, for example, one-third of all nonprescription drugs are herbal and Ginkgo biloba (as a circulatory agent) leads the pack with annual sales of $280 million, followed by horse chestnut (for the blood) with $103 million. Herbal sales worldwide are expected to continue growing by 8% to 15% during the next five years, depending on the region. |
| In Germany, more than 70% of practitioners prescribe herbal medicines, drawing from 67,000 different commercially registered products. In most cases, herbal prescriptions (worth about $1.7 billion annually at retail prices) are paid for by public health insurance.
A prime means by which the conventional medicine establishment is keeping the U.S. lagging far behind Europe regarding the mainstreaming of alternative medicine is the political use of medical licensing. The licensing of individuals to practice medicine in any specialty is done at the state, not federal, level. |
Andrew Chevallier
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| The saying "You are what you eat" is by and large true, though herbalists prefer to qualify it, saying "You are what you absorb from what you eat." herbal medicines not only provide nutrients but when needed they also strengthen and support the action of the digestive system, speeding up the rate of processing food and improving the absorption of nutrients.
The body requires another kind of "nutrient" to function — oxygen.The lungs and respiratory system can be helped with herbs that relax the bronchial muscles and stimulate respiration. |
| The growing awareness of how our lives as human beings are interwoven with the fate of our planet also reinforces the value of herbal medicines. As long as care is taken to prevent overharvesting, herbal medicine is ecologically in tune with the environment.
Herbalism & Holism
The "germ theory of disease," which holds that illness springs from contact with an infectious organism, is still widely held in conventional medicine. Medical herbalists, however, believe that this is only part of the picture. |
| The Discovery of New Herbal Cures
Along with encouraging the safer use of herbal medicines, medical centers are researching their use in detail. The benefits of pygeum (Pygeum africanum, p. 257) have been conclusively established. This tree, which grows in Angola, Mozambique, Cameroon, and South Africa, was traditionally used in central and southern Africa to treat urinary problems. Today, it is regularly prescribed in conventional French and Italian medicine for prostate problems. |
Nicola Reavley
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 It is always wise to consult a herbal practitioner if you plan to take herbal medicines, particularly if you are pregnant or have a serious or chronic medical problem.
Commercial herbal preparations are available in a variety of forms including teas, tinctures, fluid extracts, powders, capsules and tablets. Improvements in extraction and concentration processes in recent years have led to the availability of good quality, effective herbal products. The following are some of the most popular and readily available herbs. The term herb refers to any plant used for medicinal purposes. |
Andrew Chevallier
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| At rest, the flow of blood is mainly toward the center of the body; when active, the muscles in the limbs make huge demands. herbal medicines work to encourage the circulation in particular ways. Some, for example, encourage blood to flow to the surface of the body; others stimulate the heart to pump more efficiently, and others relax the muscles of the arteries, lowering blood pressure.
Clearing Toxicity & Soothing Skin
After the circulation has carried nutrients to the cells, waste matter must be removed. |
Gary Null
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 As well as fresh herbs and dried herbs, there are several other forms in which herbal medicines can be taken. Often the form in which an herbal remedy is prepared is as important in therapeutic terms as which herb is used. Infusions and decoctions, two of the simpler forms, are both made with boiling water. Infusions are made by pouring boiling water over dried or fresh herbs, while roots and barks are boiled in water and left to steep as they cool. Distilled or spring water is preferable; the traditional proportion is about one ounce of dried herb to a pint of water. |
Schuyler W. Lininger, Jr. DC
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| The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to herbal medicines. Austin: American Botanical
Council and Boston: Integrative Medicine Communications, 1998, 90.
48. Weiss RF. Herbal Medicine. Gothenburg, Sweden: Ab Arcanum and Beaconsfield, UK: Beaconsfield Publishers Ltd, 1988, 315.
Pregnancy and Postpartum Support
1. Barnes B, Bradley SG. Planning for a Healthy Baby. London: Ebury Press, 1990.
2. Price WA. Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, 50th anniv. Ed. New Canaan, CT: Keats Pulishing, Inc., 1989.
3. Gold S, Sherry L. |
| The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to herbal medicines. Austin: American Botanical Council and Boston: Integrative Medicine Communications, 1998, 425-26.
25. Schulz V, Hansel R, Tyler VE. Rational Phytotherapy: A Physician's Guide to Herbal Medicine. 3rd ed, Berlin: Springer, 1998, 168-73.
26. Tewari JP, Srivastava MC, Bajpai JL. Pharmacologic studies of Achillea millefolium Linn. Indian J Med Sci 1994; 28(8): 331-36.
27. Leung AY, Foster S. Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Food, Drugs, and Cosmetics, 2d ed. |
| The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to herbal medicines. Austin: American Botanical Council and Boston: Integrative Medicine Communications, 1998, 147, 160-61.
18. Buchbauer G, Jirovetz L, Jager W, et al. Aromatherapy: Evidence for sedative effects of the essential oil of lavender after inhalation. Z Naturforsch [C] 1991; 46: 1067-72.
19. Hardy M, Kirk-Smith MD, Stretch DD. Replacement of drug therapy for insomnia by ambient odour. Lancet 1995; 346: 701 [letter].
20. Blumenthal M, Busse WR, Goldberg A, et al. (eds). |
| The Complete German Commission E Monographs: Therapeutic Guide to herbal medicines. Austin: American Botanical Council and Boston: Integrative Medicine Communications, 1998, 428.
Lactose Intolerance
1. Gudmand-Hoyer E. The clinical significance of disaccharide maldigestion. Am J Clin Nutr 1994; 59(3): 735S-41S.
2. Ledochowski M, Sperner-Unterweger S, Fuchs D. Lactose malabsorption is associated with early signs of mental depression in females: A preliminary report. Digest Dis Sci 1998; 43: 2513-17.
(Systemic Lupus Erythematosus [SLE])
1. Kardestuncer T, Frumkin H. |
| Anti- Helicobacter pylori activity of herbal medicines. Biol Pharm Bull 1998; 21(9): 990-92.
35. Beil W, Birkholz W, Sewing KF. Effects of flavonoids on parietal cell acid secretion, gastric mucosal prostaglandin production and Helicobacter pylori growth. Arzneim Forsch 1995; 45: 697-700.
36. Rekka EA, Kourounakis AP, Kourounakis PN. Investigation of the effect of chamazulene on lipid peroxidation and free radical processes. Res Commun Mol Pathol Pharmacol 1996; 92(3): 361-64.
37. Blumenthal M, Busse WR, Goldberg A, et al. (eds). |
Thomas Bartram
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 During the years the association has secured important advantages for its membership, particularly continuity of sale of herbal medicines in health food shops. It continues to maintain vigilance in matters British and European as they affect manufacturing, wholesaling, retailing, prescribing and dispensing.
See: BRITISH HERBAL PHARMACOPOEIA and BRITISH HERBAL COMPENDIUM.
BRITISH HERBAL MEDICINE ASSOCIATION, SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE, 1995.
Peter R. Bradley MSc CChem FRSC (Chairman). Whitehall Laboratories.
Sheila E. Drew BPharm PhD MRPharms. |
Andrew Chevallier
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| Herbal Treatments
The strategies that herbal practitioners adopt to prevent illness or restore health in their patients are different in the many and varied herbal traditions across the planet, but the effects that herbal medicines have within the body to improve health do not vary. There are many thousands of medicinal plants in use throughout the world, with a tremendous range of actions and degrees of potency. Most have a specific action on particular body systems and are known to be suitable for treating certain types of ailments. See p. 13 for specific actions. |
Textbook of Natural Medicine 2nd Edition Volume 1Michael T. Murray, ND
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| Another potentially significant source may be contaminated or adulterated Chinese and Ayurvedic herbal medicines. One disturbing study of imported traditional Chinese herbal balls used for fever, rheumatism, apoplexy, and cataracts showed a mercury content ranging from 7.8 to 621.3 mg. The recommended dose of two herbal balls daily could theoretically provide more than 1,200 mg of mercury. Chronic mercury sulfide poisoning from ethnic Ayurvedic remedies has also been documented.28
There is intriguing evidence correlating increased hair mercury levels with certain disease conditions. |
Michael Castleman
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 However, pregnant women should consult their physicians before using any medicinal herbs (or pharmaceuticals). Most herbal medicines should not be given to children under age 2. Children under 16 and anyone over 65 should dilute herbal preparations to reduce the dose. And those with chronic medical conditions should consult their physicians before supplementing medical therapies with herbs.
How Herbs Are Sold
Medicinal herbs are available at health food stores, herb shops, supplement outlets, some pharmacies and supermarkets and through mailorder catalogs (see Resources). |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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| Even Commission E, the expert panel that evaluates the safety and effectiveness of herbal medicines for the German government, endorses asparagus for the prevention and treatment of urinary tract infections and kidney stones.
I tend to agree with Commission E, because I've been so impressed by my own experience with asparagus. I think the as-paragine and sterols in the plant must have some health benefit. pain these infections cause. (Though don't confuse cystitis with cholecystitis, an inflammation of the gallbladder. |
Rebecca Wood
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 If a problem persists, intervention is accelerated, starting with the least invasive such as herbal medicines and progressing, as necessary, up to more invasive treatments like acupuncture.
The use of foods and herbs as medicine is based upon a science of functional relationships, which, using the principles of yin and yang, considers the thermal properties of a food and the Five Elements. Yin foods, for example, are cooling; their flavor is salty, bitter, or sour; they build blood and fluids; and their energy descends in the body. |
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