The Greeks used medicinal herbs around 400 B.C, while other ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians, Persians, and Chinese, have used herbal remedies for centuries. Herbalists use the leaves, flowers, stems, berries, and roots of plants to prevent, relieve, and treat illness. From a scientific perspective, many herbal treatments are considered experimental. The reality is, however, that herbal medicine has a long and respected history. Many familiar medications of the twentieth century were developed from ancient healing traditions that treated health problems with specific plants. Today, science has isolated the medicinal properties of a large number of botanicals, and their healing components have been extracted and analyzed. Many plant components are now synthesized in large laboratories for use in pharmaceutical preparations.

Herbal medicine has been an integral part of the development of modern civilization. Over time, it became defined into three basic schools: Traditional Chinese Herbalism, Ayurvedic Herbalism, and Western Herbal Medicine.

Through the use of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), herbal medicine has been a vital part of the Chinese culture for almost 5,000 years. TCM has its own unique methods of diagnosis and clinical practice, incorporating over 7,000 species of medicinal plants.

Ayurvedic Herbalism stems from Ayurveda, which originated in Greece and Rome before settling in India. Ayurvedic Herbalism is considered the art of mix and formulating herbs and oils for therapeutic work.

Like Ayurvedic Herbalism, Traditional Western Herbal Medicine has its roots in the wisdom of Greek physicians and Romans. Like other herbal medicine systems, medicinal plants are used for the treatment and prevention of disease, as well as for the maintenance of health.

The herbal medicine practiced by the North American Indians tends to fall under Traditional Western Herbal Medicine, although it is quite distinct in nature. In North America, Native Americans used herbs for food, medicine, and spiritual practices. Native American Medicine, also known in Canada as Aboriginal Medicine, is a general term for the systems of healing used by all Native American nations or tribes that have been practiced for thousands of years.

Herbal medicine has been performed in the United States since the country’s inception. When pharmaceutical drugs became popular during the 20th century, U.S. interest in herbal medicine waned. However, recent surveys estimate that one out of three Americans use herbal medicine and U.S. sales of herbal preparations top $4 billion annually.

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