herb lore

Herb Lore

What are herbs? Many think of their spice cupboard when they hear this question and yes those are herbs. Not only do they add a zip to our cooking but they also have medicinal qualities. Herbs are plants..but they may also be trees or flowers. Not only are the leaves of many plants used for herbal remedies but so are the roots, stems, bark and flowers. Herbal remedies come in many forms pills, capsules, teas and tinctures. In whatever form you use the herb, one thing must be remembered, although herbal equals natural..it does not go to say that herbal equals safe. I'm not saying herbal remedies are not safe if used correctly I personally use many. Today there is a renewed interest in herbal remedies and this is great, but what scares me is the misconception that herbs need not be respected in the same way as pharmaceutical drugs. Many of today's common drugs are derived from their plant counterpart for example- aspirin comes from Willow Bark, a very common heart medication "digitalis" comes from the plant Foxglove and Vincritisine a successful cancer treatment is derived from the Rosy Perriwinkle Tree. If you were taking any of the afore mentioned you would follow directions carefully, do the same with herbals. Before starting any herbal remedy please consult with a qualified Homeopath or Naturopath. If you are on any prescribed medications please check for interactions.

Brief History

The history of herbs..well I guess you could say their history started with the creation of the earth itself. It is my belief that when this glorious planet was brought into existence all the necessary ingredients to keep the human race healthy were given to us. Early man knew the secret properties of many plants..I say secret because as the centuries have passed most of us have forgotten their purpose and turned away from the gifts mother nature has to share with us. As we race towards the new millennia humanity is valiantly trying to recapture its connection with the planet amidst an explosion of technology...can we do it? I don't know, but as a species we are if nothing else resilient and I hope we can find a synergy between nature and technology.

The first documented "Herbal guide" dates back to the Sumerians, some five thousand years ago. Even the ancient Egyptians wrote prescriptions in hieroglyphics on papyrus. The first Chinese herbal list dates back to between 1065 B.C and 711 B.C even the Bible goes on about herbs such as Myrrh and Frankincense .Little is known about the "Father of Medicine". Hippocrates was born some time around 400 B.C and died in 377 B.C on the Greek Island of Kos. He was known as a great teacher and physician during his life time and was the first to look for other reasons for illness besides "evil spirits". It was a radical theory that illness was caused by poor diet and the imbalance of bodily fluids. He believed most diseases of the time could be prevented or cured by a change in diet and the use of plant medicines. He listed close to 400 plant remedies in his writings. The Hippocratic oath is still taken today by physicians entering the profession. During the middle ages ancient herbal remedies were passed on from generation to generation. Any person in a village in need of medical care would visit the "wise woman". The church emphasized the art of faith healing over other types and as medicine "progressed", and the church grew stronger the village wise woman was in many cases labeled "witch". When the new world settlers arrived they shared their knowledge of herbal remedies with the Native Americans and visa versa. By the 1800's the use of chemical drugs was wide spread and only those who could not afford this new way continued with herbs. Now we see a growing interest in going back to the natural way, we are becoming immune to many of our drugs. What is even scarier is many of the viruses we encounter are also becoming immune they are mutating faster than we can invent new drugs.

There are hundreds of herbs used by many cultures. I will start by listing the most commonly used and expand this list as time goes on. It has occured to me that there are some natural remedies that don't actually fit into the category of a herb. For lack of a better name at this moment I will put them under Natural Remedies

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