Herbs

Herbal medicine is the oldest form of healthcare known to mankind. Herbs have been used by all cultures throughout history. Herbal medicine was an integral part of the development of modern civilization. Primitive man observed and appreciated the great diversity of plants available to him. The plants provided food, clothing, shelter, and medicine. Much of the medicinal use of plants seems to have been developed through observations of wild animals, and by trial and error. As time went on, each tribe added the medicinal power of herbs in their area to its knowledgebase. They methodically collected information on herbs and developed well-defined herbal pharmacopoeias. Indeed, well into the 20th century much of the pharmacopoeia of scientific medicine was derived from the herbal lore of native people.

Many drugs commonly used today are of herbal origin. Indeed, about 25 percent of the prescription drugs dispensed in the United States contain at least one active ingredient derived from plant material. Some are made from plant extracts; others are synthesized to mimic a natural plant compound.

Herbs work on vibrations and bring harmony to disharmonic conditions by balancing out vibrations and reestablishing the delicate mineral household of the very cells.

The classic definition of an herb is a non-woody plant that dies down to its roots each year.  However, an herb quite simply is a medicinal plant that can come from any climate, any region, and in the form of leaves, barks, flowers, and roots.  It can be home-grown or wild, a weed, a spice, or a plant used for healing and beautifying.

So powerful are the health-enhancing properties of herbs that a vast number of common prescription drugs have been derived from a mere 90 species of plants.  For a time, healing plants were replaced by single-molecule, drug-based medicine that caused more negative side effects than healing.  Herbs are here to stay.  They have come out of folklore; they have validated our grandparents remedies; and they have, now again, exploded into the mainstream.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 4 billion people, 80 percent of the world's population, presently use herbal medicine for some aspect of primary health care. Herbal medicine is a major component in all indigenous peoples’ traditional medicine and a common element in Ayurvedic, homeopathic, naturopathic, traditional oriental, and Native American Indian medicine. WHO notes that of 119 plant-derived pharmaceutical medicines, about 74 percent are used in modern medicine in ways that correlated directly with their traditional uses as plant medicines by native cultures. Major pharmaceutical companies are currently conducting extensive research on plant materials gathered from the rain forests and other places for their potential medicinal value.

Substances derived from the plants remain the basis for a large proportion of the commercial medications used today for the treatment of heart disease, high blood pressure, pain, asthma, and other problems. For example, ephedra is a herb used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for more than two thousand years to treat asthma and other respiratory problems. Ephedrine, the active ingredient in ephedra, is used in the commercial pharmaceutical preparations for the relief of asthma symptoms and other respiratory problems. It helps the patient to breathe more easily.  Another example of the use of a herbal preparation in modern medicine is the foxglove plant.  This herb had been in use since 1775.  At present, the powdered leaf of this plant is known as the cardiac stimulant digitalis to the millions of heart patients it keeps alive worldwide.

Herbal Medicine can be broadly classified into various basic systems: Traditional Chinese Herbalism, which is part of Traditional Oriental Medicine, Ayurvedic Herbalism, which is derived from Ayurveda, and Western Herbalism, which originally came from Greece and Rome to Europe and then spread to North and South America.  Chinese and Ayurvedic Herbalism have developed into highly sophisticated systems of diagnosis and treatment over the centuries. Western Herbalism is today primarily a system of folk medicine.  Interest in the United States had been growing in the recent years from the reported success stories from the use of herbs. For example, St. John's Wort is widely used in the treatment of mild depression without the need for Prozac. St. John's Wort does not have the side effects such as that of Prozac. There are some Ayurvedic herbs that are very useful for reducing cholesterol, diabetes etc. Similarly the popularity of Ginseng and Ginkgo biloba (ginkgo) is rising due to its beneficial effects.

Herbs are characterized by temperature, taste, and direction.  The impact of each aspect must be weighed when determining the proper herbal remedy for a specific disharmony.

Temperature.  An herb may be hot, cold, warm, cool, or neutral.  If a disease is considered hot, then a cool or cold herb is needed.  If the disharmony is cold, then a warming herb is required.

Taste.  An herb may be characterized as acrid, sweet, bitter, sour, or salty.  Substances with none of these qualities are labeled bland (they sure are!).  Each of these qualities has its own unique therapeutic impact on Essential Substances. 
Acrid herbs disburse and move.
Sweet ones tonify and harmonize.
Bitter herbs drain and dry.
Sour herbs are astringent and prevent or reverse the normal leakage of fluids and energy.
Salty herbs purge.
Bland herbs take out dampness and promote urination.

Direction.  The therapeutic impact of an herb can also be measured in terms of the direction that it moves Essential Substances.  Some herbs cause the Qi to rise and float (move upward and outward), some cause it to fall and sink (move downward and inward).

Bactericidal Herbs
Licorice 33%
Thyme 21%
Oregano 8.8%
Rosemary 4%
Coriander 2.2%
Fennel 1.5%

Contact us at embellir@embellir.us.com and request our free phamphlet on HERBAL SAFETY.  We have many herbs in stock.

Many herbs should not be use if you are pregnant, nursing, have high blood pressure, or suffer from epilepsy.