Aug 12, 2021
The importance of herbs in medicine
Each of us has a source of health, vitality and well-being closer than we think, though we forget too often. It’s amazing to realize that even these dried culinary herbs like oregano, sage, peppermint and cinnamon have great potential for fighting free radicals. Like Chinese medicinal herbs and those most easily available, they have a very high concentration of antioxidants (1). Let’s look again at what traditional medicine has known for a long time and ensure that all these and other herbs have a permanent place in the daily diet.
Herbal medicine and its deserved place in medicine
Both complementary and alternative medicine makes good use of the herbal medicine tradition (2), and further research is being undertaken to discover even more properties of plants that will strengthen their position in the prevention and treatment of people around the world.
It matters – all the more considering that there are tens of thousands of plant species in the world. The healing wealth of natural products is a fact – they and their derivatives constitute more than 50% of all drugs in modern therapy (3). However, before we get to the core of the use of herbs in medicine – along with specific examples, it is worth recalling the basic information about them, which will provide the right background for understanding their importance for human health, as well as – how great, still untapped potential of herbs is a challenge for modern science.
Herbs in medicine – basic information
In popular science literature, you can find various definitions of hidden under the expression “herb”. For this article, we will cite two of them, namely:
ā¢ herbs as any part of plants used in the diet for their aroma,
ā¢ herbs as sources of various phytochemicals with antioxidant properties (4).
Already in prehistoric times, herbs were not only an addition to food but also the basis of almost all medicinal therapies, so it is no wonder that over the years, scientists have been committed to the importance of herbal intake in terms of antioxidants. One of them (5) dealt with this topic with particular commitment, where the total antioxidant content of several herbs was assessed. On this basis, it was shown that a very high level of antioxidants is distinguished by lemon balm, oregano, peppermint, garden thyme, sage and lemon balm.
The role of herbs in the treatment of specific diseases and age groups
Another interesting study (6) on the role of herbs in modern medicine was to show how their use relates to the severity of the disease and the patients’ age. It turned out that treating diseases with the help of herbal medicine is equally popular in all age groups. The importance of herbs in prophylactic treatments or mild cases of the disease is also mentioned more often, which allows us to understand better why the use of herbs in the dietary supplement industry is such a popular topic.
The power of herbs condensed in safe supplements
Recently, dietary supplements based on ingredients of natural origin have become more and more popular. Herbs, of course, take the lead in these high-quality, safe formulas. Let’s look at which of them can be found in dietary supplements the most often and how you can benefit from this supplementation.
Fat Burn is a dietary supplement supporting fat burning. As you know, taking care of the correct BMI is an important step in striving for the best health, fitness and well-being. In, this burner’s composition, you can find numerous elements referring to its natural character – including numerous herbsāfor example, fenugreek, garlic or elderberry – all with much good for the body. According to health claims – the first one lowers blood glucose levels, garlic contributes to the maintenance of normal cholesterol levels, carbohydrate metabolism and balances blood sugar levels, and elderberry helps to protect the body from oxidative stress.
Another interesting example of using the health power of herbs in supplements is another Body Union offer, namely Brain Power supporting the mind’s work. One of the most important ingredients in this supplement is ginseng, a herb with numerous proven health benefits.
Including, among other things, it is a herb that:
ā¢ improves concentration and coordination,
ā¢ helps maintain endurance and counteract fatigue,
ā¢ helps to promote vitality,
ā¢ contributes to optimal mental and cognitive activity,
ā¢ helps maintain physical and mental wellbeing in the event of weakness, exhaustion, fatigue, and concentration loss.
Curcumin is another supplement that derives everything good for the body straight from nature. In this case, the base is curcumin, which, according to health claims, supports liver health, contributes to the comfort of digestion, including the stimulation of the production of digestive fluids and helping to maintain a healthy appetite.
Summing up, wanting to improve your health – it is worth not only devoting more space in your kitchen to spice jars but also you can additionally direct your interest towards supplements with a formula based on herbs. The choice of both is huge, so it is more than certain that everyone can identify and find the herbs and supplements that their body demands the most at a given moment.
The prospects of using herbs in modern medicine
Looking at the future of herbs in modern medicine, it is first of all worth emphasizing that, in general, the development of new drugs takes a long time and generates high costs – that is why pharmaceutical companies are increasingly looking for new drugs and research methods that are based on what has already been known from early days of medicine This is why it is to be expected and so anticipated that medicine will increasingly focus on herbal medicine in the field of drug discovery, especially as a source of new compounds for drugs (7). It seems, therefore, that it is herbalism in the near and distant future that will become a global trend in the pharmaceutical industry, and thus the importance of herbs for human health will be increasing and attracting even more attention with the passage of years and subsequent research with it related.
- https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/133/5/1286/4558587
- https://bmccomplementmedtherapies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12906-018-2160-6
- https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2013/627375/
- Davidson, A (1999) The Oxford Companion to Food 1999 Oxford University Press Oxford, , UK
- https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/133/5/1286/4558587
- https://bmccomplementmedtherapies.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12906-018-2160-6
- A. Gurib-Fakim, āMedicinal plants: traditions of yesterday and drugs of tomorrow,ā Molecular Aspects of Medicine, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 1ā93, 2006.