Herbal Fundamentals
These commonly asked questions and their answers have been provided by the
American Herbalists Guild, a non-profit educational organization for the
furtherance of herbalism.
- Q: What is herbal medicine?
- A: Herbal medicine is the art and science of using herbs for promoting health
and preventing and treating illness. It has a written history more than 5000
years old. While the use of herbs in America has been overshadowed by dependence
on modern medications during the last 100 years, 75% of the world’s population
still rely primarily upon traditional healing practices, most of which is herbal
medicine.
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- Q: How are herbs different from pharmaceuticals?
- A: Most pharmaceutical drugs are single chemical entities that are highly
refined, purified and often synthesized. In 1987 about 85% of modern drugs were
originally derived from plants. Currently, only about 15% of drugs are derived
from plants. In contrast, herbal medicines are prepared from living or dried
plants and contain hundreds to thousands of interrelated compounds. The safety
and effectiveness of herbs is often related to the combined efforts and synergy
of these compounds.
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- Q: How is herbal medicine different from conventional medicine?
- A: The philosophical difference between herbalists and conventional
physicians has profound significance. The primary focus of the herbalist is to
treat people as whole organisms irrespective of the disease or condition they
have and to stimulate their innate healing power through the use of herbal,
dietary and lifestyle interventions. The primary focus of conventional
physicians is to attack diseases using strong chemicals that are difficult for
the body to process, or through the removal of organs. This more piecemeal
approach ignores the whole and unique makeup of the individual. Many patients
under conventional care suffer from side effects that are as bad as the
condition being treated.
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- Q: What is an herbalist?
- A: Herbalists work with medicinal plants. They may be holistic medical
doctors, researchers, native healers, scientists, naturopaths, writers, herbal
pharmacists, and herbal farmers. They include healers trained in any of the
various herbal traditions that have developed worldwide, including Ayurvedic
medicine, Chinese medicine, and naturopathic medicine. Persons specializing in
the therapeutic use of plants may be medical herbalists, acupuncturists,
midwives, physicians, or one’s own grandmother.
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- Q: How can herbs and herbal medicine help me?
- A: Herbs can be used in four essential ways in your health care program:
- to prevent disease
- to treat disease
- to maximize one’s health potential
- to relieve the symptoms of minor ailments
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- Q: How can I know if a particular herb will work for me?
- A: Knowing what will work best in each situation can only come with educated
self-experimentation and experience or by seeking the assistance of those who
are knowledgeable in clinical herbal medicine. The simpler the condition, the
easier it is to find a solution. The more complicated the condition, the greater
the need to seek expert advice.
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- Q: How safe are herbs?
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| A: It depends on the herbs. Most herbs sold as dietary supplements are very
safe. When used appropriately, the majority of herbs used by practitioners have
no adverse side effects. According to Norman Farnsworth of the University of
Illinois at Chicago College of Pharmacy, “Side effects or toxic reactions
associated with herbal medicines in any form are rare. In fact, of all classes
of substances reported to cause toxicities of sufficient magnitude to be
reported in the United States, plants are the least problematic.” |
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- Q: How do herbalists practice?
- A: Herbalists practice either as primary health care providers or adjunctive
health care consultants. Most visits to the herbalist begin with a consultation
about your past and current health history and your dietary and lifestyle
practices. The herbalist, with your involvement should develop an integrated
herbal program that addresses your specific health needs and concerns. The
herbalist approach boils down to this: You should be treated as a whole person,
not as a disease.
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- Q: What is the American Herbalists Guild (AHG)?
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| A: The American Herbalists Guild (AHG) was founded in 1989 as a non-profit,
educational organization to represent the goals and voices of herbalists. It is
the only peer-review organization in the United States for professional
herbalists specializing in the medicinal use of plants. Herbalists from any
tradition with sufficient education and at least four years of clinical
experience, who demonstrate advanced knowledge in the medicinal use of plants
and who pass the AHG credentialing process (a careful review by
multidiscipli8nary admissions board) receive professional status and the title,
Herbalist, AHG. The AHG has a developed code of ethics, continuing education
program and specific standards for professional members. The American Herbalists
Guild’s roster of professional members includes some of the most respected
herbal authorities in the United States and abroad. |
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The AHG is the sole authority and source for the compilation
of these Q & As. We are grateful for permission to adapt, excerpt and republish
here many of the questions and answers complied in their brochure, “Herbal
Medicine Fundamentals.” The complete brochure is available at Green Angels Herbs
and Healing Arts. Come in and pick up a copy. To order the brochure in quantity
and read more about the AHG and its primary goals, follow this link:
http://www.americanherbalist.com |
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