Many people have the mistaken notion that, being natural, all herbs and foods are safe; this is not so. Very often, herbs and food may interact with medications you normally take, result in serious reactions. During the latter part of this century the practice of herbalism has become mainstream throughout the world. This is due remove to the recognition of the value of traditional medical syste...

BACKGROUND In East Asia, numerous reports describe the utilization of traditional Chinese herbal decoctions to treat gout. However, the reported clinical effects vary. OBJECTIVES In this study, we reviewed and analyzed a large number of randomized controlled clinical trials to systematically assess the clinical efficacy and adverse reactions of Chinese herbal decoctions for treating gout. M...

Obesity is a very common global health problem, and it is known to be linked to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Western medical treatments for obesity have many drawbacks, including effects on monoamine neurotransmitters and the potential for drug abuse and dependency. The safety of these medications requires improvement. Herbal medicine has been used for treatment of disease for m...

T hroughout history, plants have been used for medicinal purposes and, during the last three decades, we have witnessed a most remarkable revival of herbal medicine. Germany is the country with the largest per head consumption of herbal medicines. In 2002, the 100 best selling products achieved a total turnover of 420 million Euros. This high level of popularity means, among other things, that ...

St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum L.) has been used as a medicinal plant in Europe and Asia for centuries. Although it is best known today for its use by patients with mild to moderately severe depression, St. John’s wort has also been used orally as a traditional treatment for excitability, neuralgia, fibrositis, sciatica, and anxiety and as a topical preparation for the treatment of wound...