David Winston, RH(AHG), and Steven Maimes
See book keywords and concepts |  Herbal Medicine in Europe
In Europe, especially in Germany, herbal medicines (known there as phytomedicines) are prescribed like other medications and enjoy widespread scientific and medical support. All German medical students must learn phytomedicine, and approximately 80 percent of German physicians regularly use plant medications in their practice. In England, herbalists are recognized health care providers. This is also true in Australia. | | Because the primary markets for phytomedicines are Germany, France, and Italy, most research papers on them are published in European journals in non-English languages. However, in recent years more research is being published in English.
Most plant extracts marketed as dietary supplements in the United States are sold as drugs in Europe and undergo a more rigorous regulatory review there. The European phytomedicine market is estimated at more than $8 billion in annual sales, 70 percent of which are made in Germany, a country with a rich tradition of herbal medicine. |
Phyllis A. Balch, CNC
See book keywords and concepts |  In Germany, for example, phytomedicines are considered "ethical drugs," and physicians prescribe them and pharmacists dispense them. In the United States, phytomedicines are sold as over-the-counter dietary supplements in health food stores and in some pharmacies. A few mainstream doctors, however, have begun prescribing herbal remedies along with standard drugs. Some health insurance companies cover the cost of herbal medicines when they are prescribed by health care professionals. |
Lester A. Mitscher and Victoria Toews
See book keywords and concepts |  Perhaps you've already heard about phytonutrients, or know them by another name, such as nutriceuticals, phytochemicals, phytomedicines, or functional food factors. Regardless of their label, they're all the same thing: naturally occurring compounds found in plants (phyto is the Greek word for plant) that protect against disease and promote good health.
Plants use these compounds for their own survival. Many act in the plant as hormones, enzymes, pigments, or growth regulators. Others provide color, odor, and taste. |
Thomson Healthcare, Inc.
See book keywords and concepts |  Efficacy and safety of phytomedicines with particular references to Cimicifuga racemosa. J Med Assoc Thai; Jan:S108. 1998
Liske E, Hanggi W, Henneicke-Von Zepelin HH et al. Physiological investigation of a unique extract of black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosae rhizome): A 6-month clinical study demonstrates no systemic estrogenic effect. J Womens Health Gen BasedMed; 11(2): 163-174. 2002
Minciullo PI, Saija A, Patafi M, et al. Muscle damage induced by black cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa). Phytomedicine; 13(1-2);! 15-8.2006.
Munoz GH & Pluchino S. | | Garlic: a review of its medicinal effects and indicated active compounds, in Lawson LD & Bauer R (eds): phytomedicines of Europe: Their Chemistry and Biological Activity. American Chemical Society, Washington, DC: 176-209. 1998
Lawson LD, Ransom DK & Hughes BG. Inhibition of whole blood platelet-aggregation by compounds in Garlic clove extracts and commercial Garlic products. Thromb Res; 65(2):141-156. 1992
Lawson LD, Wang ZJ. Pre-hepatic fate of the organosulfur compounds derived from Garlic (Allium sativum). Planta Med 59(7):A688. 1993
Lee TY, Lam TH. |
Amarjit S. Basra
See book keywords and concepts |  This example is relevant in the context of a handbook of medicinal plants since it points to the global relevance of our (often local) knowledge about phytomedicines and highlights the need for making information about plants available on a worldwide basis. Therefore, we need not only a concerted research effort on all aspects of medicinal plants but also to synthesize such information appropriately (as it is done in this book). | | Echinacea-species as potential immunostimulatory drugs. In phytomedicines of Europe: Chemistry and Biologic Activity, ed.; Farnsworth, N. R.; Wagner, H. Eds. Academic Press: New York, 1991.
43. Kabelik, J., [Antimicrobial properties of garlic]. Pharmazie 1970, 25, (4), 266-270; Didry, N.; Pinkas, M.; Dubreuil, L., [Antibacterial activity of species of the genus Allium]. Pharmazie 1987, 42, (10), 687-688.
44. Avato, P.; Tursil, E.; Vitali, C; Miccolis, V.; Candido, V., Allylsulfide constituents of garlic volatile oil as antimicrobial agents. Phytomedicine 2000, 7, (3), 239-243; Tsao, S. M. | | Bauer (eds.), phytomedicines of Europe, American Chemical Society, Symposium Series 691, 1998, pp. 62-73.) inflammatory activity.31 Because the lectins are very stable against heat and acids and 12 | | Phytomedicines: Back to the future, J. Nat. Prod., 62: 1589-1592.
5. Wagner, H., 1999, Phytomedicine research in Germany, Environmental Health Perspectives, 7: 779-781.
6. Ernst, E., Herbal medicine: A concise overview for professionals (Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann, 2000).
7. Schulz, V., Hansel, R., and Tyler, V., Rational phytotherapy (Fourth edition) (Berlin: Springer-Verlag, 2001).
8. Phillipson, J.D., 2001, Phytochemistry and medicinal plants, Phxto-chemistry, 56: 237-243.
9. Ernst, E., Pittler, M.H., Stevinson, C., White, A., and Eisenberg, D. (eds. | | At the endpoint 77 percent were free of all symptoms, and in 92 percent of the cases no parasites were detectable in the blood.
New phytomedicines for Europe and North America?
Recently ethnobotanical or ethnopharmaceutical approaches have come under serious criticism as being exploitive and not respecting indigenous traditions. As the previous example has shown, one of the main goals of ethnopharmaceutical research is the study of such indigenous preparations in order to contribute to a better understanding and ultimately to an improved use of such local resources. |
Phyllis A. Balch, CNC
See book keywords and concepts | | Phytomedicines are standardized, however—that is, they
The medicinal benefits of herbs have been known for centuries. Records of Native American, Roman, Egyptian, Persian, and Hebrew medical practices show that herbs were used extensively to treat practically every known illness.
Many herbs contain powerful ingredients that, if used correctly, can help heal the body. The pharmaceutical industry was originally based upon the ability to isolate these ingredients and make them available in a purer form. | | In the United States, phytomedicines are sold as over-the-counter dietary supplements in health food stores and in some pharmacies. A few mainstream doctors, however, have begun prescribing herbal remedies along with standard drugs. Some health insurance companies cover the cost of herbal medicines when they are prescribed by health care professionals. The Office of Alternative Medicine, part of the National Institutes of Health, is funding research on herbal remedies. According to an article published in USA Today, nearly 50 million Americans regularly use herbal supplements. |
Amarjit S. Basra
See book keywords and concepts | | Evidence to support the occurrence of synergy within phytomedicines is accumulating and was reviewed recently by Williamson.36 Previous results in classical pharmacology, using mixtures of bioactive compounds, have shown that a differentiation between additive and synergistic overadditive or potentiating effects is necessary. If two bioactive substances of a mixture have the same pharmacological target, an additive effect can be expected. |
Mark Blumenthal
See book keywords and concepts |  However, in many modern European nations, the employment of herbs and phytomedicines in conventional medical practice is not considered alternative medicine but "rational phytotherapy," as these preparations are generally considered nonprescription medications and are regulated as such as far as their quality, safety, and efficacy are concerned.
According to the late Varro E. Tyler, the former Dean and Distinguished Professor of Pharmacognosy Emeritus at the School of Pharmacy and Pharmacal Sciences at Purdue University:
Rational herbal medicine is conventional medicine. |
Heather Boon, BScPhm, PhD and Michael Smith, BPharm, MRPharmS, ND
See book keywords and concepts |  It has been suggested that the inclusion of the relatively inexpensive nettle root with more expensive phytomedicines used in the treatment of BPH may form a very cost effective method of treatment.20
MUSCULOSKELETAL CONDITIONS
Oral preparations made from nettle leaf have long been used in the management of various arthritic conditions, including rheumatism and gout.16 It has been suggested that the nettle leaf could have a diuretic effect, resulting in an increased elimination of 'toxins' such as uric acid. | | It can be taken alone, but is more commonly administered with other phytomedicines used in the management of BPH such as Serenoa repens (Bartr.) Small, Arecaceae/Palmae (Saw Palmetto) and Prunus africana (Hook. F.) Kalkman, Rosaceae (African Pygeum).15'16 The European Scientific Cooperative on Phytotherapy (ESCOP) lists the symptomatic treatment of micturition disorders (nocturia, pollakisuria, dysuria, urine retention) in benign prostatic hyperplasia as one of the indications for stinging nettle root. | | The clinical relevance of this with regard to calendula in particular is slight since the compound product used contained other phytomedicines with known vulnerary properties.5
The product Unguentum lymphaticum®, regarded as being useful in the management of lymphedema, was evaluated for efficacy in rats with induced acute lymphedema. Moderate relief was noted only in edema occurring in the animal's legs.23 Again since this is a combination herbal product, clinical relevance to the specific action of calendula is unknown. |
Schuyler W. Lininger, Jr. DC
See book keywords and concepts |  Tyler's Herbs of Choice: The Therapeutic Use of phytomedicines. New York: Haworth Press, 1999, 74-75.
3. Robbers JE, Tyler VE. Tyler's Herbs of Choice: The Therapeutic Use of phytomedicines. New York: Haworth Press, 1999, 74-75.
4. Newall CA, Anderson LA, Phillipson JD. Herbal Medicines: A Guide for Health-Care Professionals. London: The Pharmaceutical Press, 1996: 46-47.
5. Newall CA, Anderson LA, Phillipson JD. Herbal Medicines: A Guide for Health-Care Professionals. London: The Pharmaceutical Press, 1996: 46-47.
6. Newall CA, Anderson LA, Phillipson JD. |
Mark Blumenthal
See book keywords and concepts | | In: Lawson LD, Bauer R, editors. phytomedicines of Europe: Chemistry and Biological Activity, ACS Symposium Series 691. Proceedings of the 212th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society; 1996 Aug; Orlando (FL). Washington (DC): American Chemical Society, 1998. p. 299-308.
Wuttke W, Gorkow C, Jarry H. Dopaminergic compounds in Vitex agnus castus. [in German]. In: Loew D, Rietbrock N (eds.). Phytopharmaka in Forschung und klin-ischer Anwendung. Darmstadt: Sterinkopff Verlag; 1995.
Corpus Luteum Irregularities/Hyperprolactinemia
Author/Year Subject
Merz et ai. | | The level of credibility in herbs and phytomedicines increased in the past decade among members of the conventional medical community in the U.S. after the publication of several papers in mainstream medical journals that support the safe and effective use of some of the more well-researched herbs. These papers include (in chronological order) the meta-analysis of clincal trials on St. | | Importance of European Phytomedicinals in the American Market: An Overview. In: phytomedicines of Europe, Chemistry and Biological Activity. Lawson L, Bauer R (eds.). Washington DC: American Chemical Society; 1998;6.
United States Congress. 1994. Public Law 103-417: Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of1994. Washington, DC: 103rd Congress of the United States.
USC. See: United States Congress.
United States Pharmacopeia (USP 25th Revision) - The National Formulary (NF 20th Edition). Rockville, MD: United States Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc. 2002.
Upton, R. (ed.). |
Dr. Michael Heinrich, Joanne Barnes, Simon Gibbons and Elizabeth M. Williamson
See book keywords and concepts |  The use of phytomedicines has been described as the 'herbal shotgun' approach, as opposed to the 'silver bullet' method of conventional medicine. This approach would not only encompass synergy in a herb, but include routine practices such as adding a laxative to a formula for haemorrhoids.
MEASURING SYNERGY
The general understanding of synergy is that it is an effect seen by a combination of substances that is greater than would have been expected from a consideration of individual contributions. | | TYPES OF DRUGS DERIVED FROM PLANTS
Herbal drugs, derived from specific parts of a medicinal plant
These are known as herbal medicinal products (HMPs), herbal remedies or phytomedicines and include, for example:
• The herb of St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum), used in the treatment of mild to moderate depression.
• The leaves of Ginkgo blloba, used for cognitive deficiencies (often in the elderly), including impairment of memory and affective symptoms such as anxiety. |
Heather Boon, BScPhm, PhD and Michael Smith, BPharm, MRPharmS, ND
See book keywords and concepts | | The impact of passionflower on this outcome is unknown since Euphytose® contains a number of centrally acting phytomedicines, including valerian (Valeriana officinalis L. (Valerianaceae)).
Finally, a randomized, double-blind controlled study compared the effects of clonidine (0.8 mg daily) plus passionflower (60 drops of Passiflora® extract daily) with clonidine plus placebo in the outpatient detoxification of 65 opiates addicts over a 2-week period. |
Dr. Michael Heinrich, Joanne Barnes, Simon Gibbons and Elizabeth M. Williamson
See book keywords and concepts | | The swelling factors of the phytomedicines detailed below are shown in Table 13.1. Preparations of bulk-forming laxatives are always taken with plenty of water. They can, paradoxically, be used to treat diarrhoea
Table 13.1 Swelling factors of various bulk-forming laxatives
Common name
Botanical source
Swelling factor (Eur. Ph.)
Notes
Ispaghula seed
Plantago ovata a9 (seed) a40 (testa of the seed)
Psyllium seed
Plantago psyllium and P. arenaria
Linseed
Linum usitatissimum z4 (entire seed)
Also rich in fatty acids a4. |
Heather Boon, BScPhm, PhD and Michael Smith, BPharm, MRPharmS, ND
See book keywords and concepts | | It may also be used in combination with phytomedicines with a reported anti-microbial action such as Hydrastis canadensis L., Ranunculaceae (Goldenseal). |
Dr. Michael Heinrich, Joanne Barnes, Simon Gibbons and Elizabeth M. Williamson
See book keywords and concepts | | Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford, p 34-42
Williamson EM 2001 Synergy and other interactions in phytomedicines. Phytomedicine 8(5):401-409
SECTION 5
Medicinal plants in selected healthcare systems
11
Traditional systems of herbal medicine
INTRODUCTION
All modern medicine is derived originally from ancient herba] traditions. These have evolved to produce the conventional medicine known in the West, which uses both synthetic drugs and isolated natural compounds. | | DRUG PREPARATION AND EXTRACTION
A number of diverse overall approaches and specific techniques are available for processing crude plant (or rarely animal) material. For phytomedicines, the general framework is relatively well circumscribed, based on European and national legislation.
Preparation and extraction is the core process of the industrial production of phytopharmaceuticals, and require a detailed analysis of the best conditions for each plant-derived drug. |
Mark Blumenthal
See book keywords and concepts | | That is, phytomedicines are made from raw materials and extracts that meet national or the European pharmacopeia standards for identity and purity, they are required to be manufactured by proper good manufacturing practices (GMPs: the body of federal requirements governing how food or drug manufacturers must operate their production facilities in order to ensure safe, properly labeled consumer foods and drugs), they are evaluated and approved by national governments for indications as nonprescription drugs and for safety parameters (e.g. |
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