Herbal medicine is also called botanical medicine or phytomedicine — refers to using a plant’s seeds, berries, roots, leaves, bark, or flowers for medicinal purposes. Herbalism has a long tradition of use outside of conventional medicine. It is becoming more mainstream as improvements in analysis and quality control along with advances in clinical research show the value of herbal medicine. History of herbal medicine: The use of plants as medicines predates written human history.
A 60 000-year-old Neanderthal burial site, “Shanidar IV”, in northern Iraq has yielded large amounts of pollen from 8 plant species, 7 of which are used now as herbal remedies. [17] In the written record, the study of herbs dates back over 5,000 years to the Sumerians, who described well-established medicinal uses for such plants aslaurel, caraway, and thyme. Ancient Egyptian medicine of 1000 BC are known to have used garlic, opium, castor oil, coriander, mint, indigo, and other herbs for medicine and the Old Testament also mentions herb use and cultivation, including mandrake, vetch, caraway, wheat, barley, and rye.
In India, Ayurveda medicine has used many herbs such as turmeric possibly as early as 1900 BC. [18] Many other herbs and minerals used in Ayurveda were later described by ancient Indian herbalists such as Charaka and Sushruta during the 1st millennium BC. The Sushruta Samhita attributed to Sushruta in the 6th century BC describes 700 medicinal plants, 64 preparations from mineral sources, and 57 preparations based on animal sources.
[19] The first Chinese herbal book, the Shennong Bencao Jing, compiled during the Han Dynasty but dating back to a much earlier date, possibly 2700 BC,[citation needed] lists 365 medicinal plants and their uses – including ma-Huang, the shrub that introduced the drug ephedrine to modern medicine. Succeeding generations augmented on the Shennong Bencao Jing, as in the Yaoxing Lun (Treatise on the Nature of Medicinal Herbs), a 7th century Tang Dynasty treatise on herbal medicine. The ancient Greeks and Romans made medicinal use of plants.
Greek and Roman medicinal practices, as preserved in the writings of Hippocrates and – especially – Galen, provided the pattern for later western medicine. Hippocrates advocated the use of a few simple herbal drugs – along with fresh air, rest, and proper diet. Galen, on the other hand, recommended large doses of drug mixtures – including plant, animal, and mineral ingredients. The Greek physician compiled the first European treatise on the properties and uses of medicinal plants, De Materia Medica.
In the first century AD, Dioscorides wrote a compendium of more than 500 plants that remained an authoritative reference into the 17th century. Similarly important for herbalists and botanists of later centuries was the Greek book that founded the science of botany, Theophrastus’ Historia Plantarum, written in the fourth century. Traditional medicinal systems: Traditional medicinal systems are four types: 1. Ayurvedic, 2. Unani, 3. Herbal, 4. Homeopathic. 1. Ayurvedic medicinal system: In this system generally we get medicine from various plants, animals or minerals.
The term Ayurvedic means the knowledge of life. This type of medicine is available in the Indian sub-continent from 3000 years ago and still it is very popular and widely used. In this system we get some requirements like —– (I) The drugs are mainly obtained from plants, animals or minerals, (II) The drugs may be solid, liquid or semi-solid (Ointment), (III) It may be given externally or internally, (IV) In this system the food pattern of patient is strictly restricted. 2. Unani medicinal system:
A system of medicine was popular in Greece which was then developed by Arabians, and the people of middle Asia, which was then, turned Unani medicinal system according name of “Unan” place of Greece. It is also known as Greece-Arab medicinal system. In this system — (I) Drugs are obtained from plats, animals and minerals, (II) Here drug are prepared by mixing with honey or sometimes by mixing with alcohols, (III) It is offered in liquid, solid, semi-solid dosage form. 3. Herbal medicinal system: Now a day’s herbal medicinal system is becoming more popular in all over the world and day by day its demand is increasing.
Herbal system becomes popular because—– (I) They are natural materials, (II) They are applied in crude form, (III) There activity is less side effective, (IV) They are cheap in cost, (V) They are available from everywhere. 4. Homeopathic medicinal system: If large quantity of any medicine is applied to a healthy body than some diseases like characteristics appeared. In any diseases when appeared then making treatment of that diseases with that particular medicine is called Homeopathic method of treatment.
“Great Samual Hanimann” a popular allopathic doctor of Germany is the founder of the homeopathic medicinal system. In this system medicine is prepared as the drug dilution system. According to this system extracts of plants and herbs, animals, medicinal ingredients and various minerals are use in fraction to fraction system. This fraction of medicine is used by mixing with distilled water, globules etc. Doctor selects the medicine absorbing majority of symptoms. Power of medicine determined of the basic of “Lesser the quantity, greater the power” in homeopathic medicinal system.
Current and future status of herbal medicines: Nature always stands as a golden mark to exemplify the outstanding phenomena of symbiosis. Natural products from plant, animal and minerals have been the basis of the treatment of human disease. Today estimate that about 80 % of people in developing countries still relays on traditional medicine based largely on species of plants and animals for their primary health care. Herbal medicines are currently in demand and their popularity is increasing day by day.
About 500 plants with medicinal use are mentioned in ancient literature and around 800 plants have been used in indigenous systems of medicine. India is a vast repository of medicinal plants that are used in traditional medical treatments (Chopra et al. , 1956). The various indigenous systems such as Siddha, Ayurveda, Unani and Allopath use several plant species to treat different ailments (Rabe and Staden, 1997). The use of herbal medicine becoming popular due to toxicity and side effects of allopathic medicines. This led to sudden increase in the number of herbal drug manufactures (Agarwal, 2005).
Herbal medicines as the major remedy in traditional system of medicine have been used in medical practices since antiquity. The practices continue today because of its biomedical benefits as well as place in cultural beliefs in many parts of world and have made a great contr ibution towards maintaining human health (Sane, 2002). Market value of herbal medicines: The market for ayurvedic medicines is estimated to be expanding at 20% annually. Sales of medicinal plants have grown by nearly 25% in India in past ten years, the highest rate of growth in the world.
But the per capita expenditure in India on medicines per annum is amongst the lowest in the world. In other developing countries too, plants are the main source of medicine. Two of the largest users of medicinal plants are China and India. Traditional Chinese Medicine uses over 5000 plant species; India uses about 7000. According to Export Import t Bank, the international market for medicinal plant related trade having a growth rate of 7% per annum. China’s share in world herbal market is US$ 6 billion while India’s share is only US$1 billion.
The annual export of medicinal plants from India is valued at Rs. 1200 million. All the major herbal-based pharmaceutical companies are showing a constant growth of about 15 per cent. Traditional medicine has ser ved as a source of alternative medicine, new pharmaceuticals, and healthcare products. Medicinal plants are important for pharmacological research and drug development, not only when plant constituents are used directly as therapeutic agents, but also as starting materials for the synthesis of drugs or as models for pharmacologically active compounds.
A significant number of modern pharmaceutical drugs are derived from medicinal plants. The derivatives of medicinal plants are non-narcotic with little or no side effects Future prospects of herbal medicine market: It is estimated that nearly three fourths of the herbal drugs used worldwide were discovered following leads from local medicine. According to WHO about 25% of modern medicines are descended from plants first used traditionally. Many others are synthetic analogues built on prototype compounds isolated from plants. Almost, 70% modern medicines in India are derived from natural products.
The basic uses of plants in medicine will continue in the future, as a source of therapeutic agents, and as raw material base for the extraction of semi-synthetic chemical compounds such as cosmetics, perfumes and food industries. Popularity of healthcare plant-derived products has been traced to their increasing acceptance and use in the cosmetic industry as well as to increasing public costs in the daily maintenance of personal health and wellbeing. In the dual role as a source of healthcare and income, medicinal plants m a ke an impor tant contr ibution to the larger development process.
Though the efficacy of herbal requires development of quality consciousness in respect of the evaluation related evidences, supplying the demand for botanicals and herbals is a booming business. Recently even developed countries, are using medicinal systems that involve the use of herbal drugs and remedies. Undoubtedly the demand for plant- derived products has increased worldwide. The demand is estimated to grow in the years to come fuelled by the growth of sales of herbal supplements and remedies. This means that scientists, doctors and pharmaceutical companies will be looking at countries like China, India, etc.
for their requirements, as they have the most number of medicinal plant species and are the top exporters of medicinal plants. Current Regulations for Standardization of Crude Drugs: In recent years there is a spurt in the interest regarding survival of Ayurvedic forms of medication. In the global perspective, there is a shift towards the use of medicine of herbal origin, as the dangers and the shortcoming of modern medicine have started getting more apparent, majority of Ay u r vedic formulation are prepared from herbs.
It is the cardinal responsibility of the regulatory authorities to ensure that the consumers get the medication, which guarantee with purity, safety, potency and efficacy. The quality control of crude drugs and herbal formulations is of paramount importance in justifying their acceptability in modern system of medicine. But one of the major problems faced by the herbal drug industry is no availability of rigid quality control profile for herbal material and their formulations.
Patent proprietary Ayurvedic medicines are sold over the counter in pharmacies. These products appear to represent a major share of branded traditional medicine in India. Nevertheless systems like Ayurveda still need to gain an empirical support of modern medical sciences to make them credible and acceptable for all. An innovative research effort t to define the advantage of traditional system of medicine with respect to their safety and efficacy could result in a better utilization of these complementary systems of medicine.
Internationally several pharmacopoeias have provided monographs stating parameter and standard of many herbs and some product made out of these herbs. Several pharmacopoeias like : Pharmacopoeia Committee ·Chinese Herbal Pharmacopoeia ·United States Herbal Pharmacopoeia ·British Herbal Pharmacopoeia ·British Herbal Compendium ·Japanese Standards for Herbal Medicine ·The Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India (API) These Pharmacopeias lay down monograph for herbs and herbal products to maintain their quality in their respective nations.
Government of India too has brought out Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia India, which recommends basic quality parameters for eighty common Ayurvedic herbal drugs. Future investigation of tribal medicines: Tribal healers in most of the countries, where ethno medical treatment is frequently used to treat cut wounds, skin infection, swelling, aging, mental illness, cancer, asthma, diabetes, jaundice, scabies, eczema, venereal diseases, snakebite and gastric ulcer, provide instructions to local people as how to prepare medicine from herbal .
They keep no records and the information is mainly passed on verbally from generation to generation. World Health Organization (WHO) has shown great interest in documenting the use of medicinal plants used by tribal from different parts of the world. Many developing countries have intensified their efforts in documenting the ethno medical data on medicinal plants. Research to find out scientific evidence for claims by tribal healers on Indian herbs has been intensified.
Once these local ethno medical preparations are scientifically evaluated and disseminated properly, people will be better informed regarding efficacious drug treatment and improved health status . Conclusion:Medicinal herbs as potential source of therapeutics aids has attained a significant role in health system all over the world for both humans and animals not only in the diseased condition but also as potential material for maintaining proper health.
A major factor impeding the development of the medicinal plant based industries in developing countries has been the lack of information on the social and economic benefits that could be derived from the industrial utilization of medicinal plants. Except for the use of these plants for local health care needs, not much information has been available on their mar ket potential and trading possibilities. As a result, the gover nments or entrepreneurs have not exploited the real potential of these plants.
Determining the biological (activity) properties of plants used in traditional medicine is helpful to the rural communities and informal settlements. Several authors are currently being undertaken to isolate the active compounds by bioassay-guided fractionation from the species that showed high biological activity during screening. Therefore, these scientific investigations may be utilized to develop drugs for these diseases.
Further research is deserved to isolate the compounds responsible for the observed biological activity. http://ebookbrowse. com/he/herbal-book? pdf=on.