天然药物和中药制剂 Natural medicine and chinese medicine Preparation

Natural medicine and chinese medicine Preparation Chapter 13

DEFINITION Also called herbalism a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts The type of environment (climate, bugs, soil quality) in which a plant grew will affect its components, as will how and when it was harvested and processed

Why do people use herbal medicines? Provide a sense of control a mental comfort from taking action e.g. cancer, AIDS Cultural religious beliefs Use differs by ethnic group, income, age educational level

Disclaimer Critical evaluation is extremely important here I am not making any endorsements nor should you use this information to treat yourself without the consultation of a doctor!

Medicinal plants 1. Approximately 25% of today's prescription drugs come from plant extracts 2. Only about 15% of the known plant species have been screened for medicinal purposes 3. Most medicinal plants come from the Tropics

Forest Loss is severe in the tropics g 口Asia■ Africa■ Latin america■ World The rapid destruction of our tropical rainforests threatens the development of potentially useful drugs

Medicinal Plants in the tropics Most medicinal plants have been identified by the indigenous people by trial and error 50% of the 250,000 plant species are from the Tr topICs At least 10,000 species in the Tropics have not yet been identified

Problems associated with use of Herbal medicines Lack of Qc& standardisation Adulteration with other plants, pharmaceutical drugs or heavy metals Inappropriate use/ misleading claims

HOW DO HERBS WORK? For most herbs the specific ingredient that causes a therapeutic effect is not known Whole herbs contain many ingredients, and it is likely that they work together to produce the desired medicinal effect

Ask me no questions -I'll tell you no lies (why patients may not volunteer information) Lack of awareness of the potential for adverse effects/interactions Don't consider product to be a medicine Fear of censure Belief that the doctor/pharmacist doesn 't know about alternative medicines