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Herbal Medicines are prepared from a variety of plant materials
leaves, stems, roots, bark and so on. They usually contain many
biologically active ingredients and are used primarily for treating
mild or chronic ailments. (At least a quarter of all conventional
pharmaceuticals include some of the same ingredients, although generally
in purified form.)
Herbs can be prepared at home in
many ways, using either fresh or dried ingredients. Herbal teas
and infusions can be steeped to varying strengths. Roots, bark or
other plant parts can be boiled into strong solutions called decoctions.
Honey or sugar can be added to infusions
and decoctions to make syrups. In stores, herbal remedies can also
be purchased in the form of pills, capsules or powders, or in more
concentrated liquid forms called extracts and tinctures. They can
be applied topically as in creams or ointments, soaked into cloths
and used as compresses, or applied directly to the skin as poultices.
Herbal remedies are not regulated and come in unpredictable strengths;
the amount of the active ingredients varies greatly, depending on
whether more than one species of the herb is used, and how and when
the herb is gathered and prepared. Because some herbs can be toxic
or carcinogenic, all herbs should be used under the guidance of
a health care practitioner familiar with herbal medicine.
Across the spectrum of alternative
medicine, the use of herbs is varied: Naturopathy medicine, traditional
Chinese medicine, and Ayurvedic medicine all differ in how diseases
are diagnosed and which herbal remedies are prescribed.
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