Medicinal plants, traditional medicine, markets and management in far-west Nepal.

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Kunwar, Ripu M; Mahat, Laxmi; Acharya, Ram P; Bussmann, Rainer W

2013-04-12

Modern therapeutic medicine is historically based on indigenous therapies and ethnopharmacological uses, which have become recognized tools in the search for new sources of pharmaceuticals. Globalization of herbal medicine along with uncontrolled exploitative practices and lack of concerted conservation efforts, have pushed many of Nepal's medicinal plants to the verge of extinction. Sustainable utilization and management of medicinal plants, based on traditional knowledge, is therefore necessary. After establishing verbal informed consent with participating communities, five field surveys, roughly 20 days in duration, were carried out. In all, 176 schedules were surveyed, and 52 participants were consulted through focus group discussions and informal meetings. Altogether, 24 key informants were surveyed to verify and validate the data. A total of 252 individuals, representing non-timber forest product (NTFP) collectors, cultivators, traders, traditional healers (Baidhya), community members, etc. participated in study. Medicinal plants were free-listed and their vernacular names and folk uses were collected, recorded, and applied to assess agreement among respondents about traditional medicines, markets and management. Within the study area, medicinal herbs were the main ingredients of traditional therapies, and they were considered a main lifeline and frequently were the first choice. About 55% plants were ethnomedicinal, and about 37% of ethnomedicinal plants possessed the highest informant consensus value (0.86-1.00). Use of Cordyceps sinensis as an aphrodisiac, Berberis asiatica for eye problems, Bergenia ciliata for disintegration of calculi, Sapindus mukorossi for dandruff, and Zanthoxylum armatum for toothache were the most frequently mentioned. These species possess potential for pharmacology. Medicinal plants are inseparable from local livelihoods because they have long been collected, consumed, and managed through local customs and knowledge. Management

Diabetes Cultural Beliefs and Traditional Medicine Use Among Health Center Patients in Oaxaca, Mexico.

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Espinoza Giacinto, Rebeca; Castañeda, Sheila F; Perez, Ramona L; Nodora, Jesse N; Gonzalez, Patricia; Lopez, Emma Julián; Talavera, Gregory A

2016-12-01

Type II diabetes mellitus is currently the leading cause of death in Mexico. Oaxaca is one of the poorest states in Mexico with the largest concentration of indigenous people in the country. Despite the alarming increase of diabetes rates in this region, little is known about the indigenous populations' cultural understandings and related practices for this chronic disease. This study examined diabetes cultural beliefs and traditional medicine use among a sample of 158 adults with and without diabetes in Oaxaca, Mexico. Individuals with and without diabetes did not differ in their traditional culture beliefs regarding diabetes in this study. Younger age (OR = 1.04) and stronger beliefs in punitive and mystical retribution (OR = 5.42) regarding diabetes causality increased the likelihood of using traditional medicine (p diabetes prevention and management efforts in the region.

Traditional medicines and alternative practice in the management of prostate diseases in southern Ghana.

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Kyei, Mathew Y; Klufio, George O; Ayamba, Ali; Mohammed, Sherif

2017-09-01

This study was aimed at identifying Ghanaian traditional medicines used for the management of prostate diseases and their constituents. Reviews of studies conducted on them are also presented. This was a prospective study. Traditional Medicine samples from consecutive patients with either lower urinary symptoms (LUTS) presenting at the Urology Unit of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) in Accra from January 2015 to June 2016 and had a prior treatment with traditional medicines, had the samples retrieved. Additionally, all the 58 licensed pharmaceutical shops in Okaishie, a whole sale and retail depot for medicines in the main business district of Accra, were visited and traditional medicines for the management of prostate diseases acquired. The products constituent as labeled were documented and entered once on a proforma. This study was part of a study on the management of benign prostate hyperplasia at the KBTH approved by the Medical Directorate.The findings were analyzed and presented using descriptive statistics and presented as a table. Eleven products were identified with the main indigenous medicinal plant identified being the root extract of Croton membranaceus . This was the constituent in four products (Uro 500 ® , UR-Quick mixture ® , Prostacure® and prostat®60). Although studies on the basic pharmacology and animal studies have confirmed its effect on the prostate, only one clinical study was identified. Croton membranaceus was the indigenous traditional medicine identified for relieving LUTS due to prostate disease. There is the need for empirical evidence on its efficacy in treating Prostate cancer. Not declared.

Place of the indigenous and the western systems of medicine in the health services of India.

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Banerji, D

1979-01-01

The interrelationships of the indigenous (traditional and western (modern) systems of medicine are a function of the interplay of social, economic, and political forces in the community. In India, western medicine was used as a political weapon by the colonialists to strengthen the oppressing classes and to weaken the oppressed. Not only were the masses denied access to the western system of medicine, but this system contributed to the decay and degeneration of the preexisting indigenous systems. This western and privileged-class orientation of the health services has been actively perpetuated and promoted by the postcolonial leadership of India. The issue in formulating an alternative health care system for India is essentially that of rectifying the distortions which have been brought about by various forces. The basic premise for such an alternative will be to start with the people. Action in this field will lead to a more harmonious mix between the indigenous and western systems of medicine.

Determination of arsenic in some Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myint, U.; Than, W.; Htay, H.; Myint, K.O.

1994-01-01

Am(Be) neutron source was used for activation of samples and 76 As radioactivity measured by both β- and γ-counting techniques. The samples analyzed were raw materials traditionally used in formulating Myanmar indigenous medicines. The results were compared with those obtained by volumetric analysis and those reported in the literature. (author) 4 refs.; 5 tabs

Determination of arsenic in some Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Myint, U; Than, W; Htay, H; Myint, K O [Yangon Univ. (Myanmar). Dept. of Chemistry

1994-08-01

Am(Be) neutron source was used for activation of samples and [sup 76]As radioactivity measured by both [beta]- and [gamma]-counting techniques. The samples analyzed were raw materials traditionally used in formulating Myanmar indigenous medicines. The results were compared with those obtained by volumetric analysis and those reported in the literature. (author) 4 refs.; 5 tabs.

Using Indigenous Knowledge in Traditional Agricultural Systems for ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This article discusses the role of indigenous knowledge in traditional agriculture and its potential in contributing to food security, poverty and hunger eradication, and increased employment in South Africa. It is noted that indigenous knowledge can inform rural agricultural production, storage, processing, marketing, and food

Introduction of Medicinal Plants Species with the Most Traditional Usage in Alamut Region

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Ahvazi, Maryam; Khalighi-Sigaroodi, Farahnaz; Charkhchiyan, Mohammad Mahdi; Mojab, Faraz; Mozaffarian, Vali-Allah; Zakeri, Hamideh

2012-01-01

The ethnobotany of the medicinal plants of Alamut region is important in understanding the cultures and traditions of Alamut people. This study documents 16 medicinal plant species, most commonly used by the indigenous people of Alamut region (Ghazvin Province), northwest, Iran. The botanical name, family name, vernacular name, part used, and the application of the plants have been provided in this paper. Alamut region was divided into different villages with the aid of maps. We recorded traditional knowledge and use of medicinal plants from herbal practitioners and village seniors in Alamut. The plants were gathered from different sites. The fully dried specimens were then mounted on herbarium sheets. We found 16 medicinal plants belonging to 11 families which were traditionally used in Alamut. Finally, we describe traditional usages by the native people in the Alamut region. The obtained results were compared with data on the herb’s clinical effects. A set of voucher specimens were deposited to the Institute of Medicinal Plants Herbarium (IMPH). PMID:24250441

An Indigenous Academic Perspective to Preserving and Promoting Indigenous Knowledge and Traditions: A Fiji Case Study

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Ali, Wahab

2017-01-01

Indigenous knowledge is multidimensional encompassing the beliefs, practices, arts, spirituality and other forms of traditional and cultural experiences that belong to Indigenous communities globally. In order to protect, preserve and recognize the knowledge of the Indigenous people of Fiji, known as the iTaukei, the University of Fiji has…

Ethnopharmacological survey of medicinal plants used in traditional medicine by the communities of Mount Hermon, Lebanon.

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Baydoun, Safaa; Chalak, Lamis; Dalleh, Helena; Arnold, Nelly

2015-09-15

Medicinal plant species in Lebanon are experiencing severe threats because of various environmental conditions, human expansion footprints and recent growing global demand. Organized research and information on indigenous medicinal plants and knowledge have been very limited and little efforts have been invested to develop a complete inventory for native medicinal plants and associated traditional knowledge in the country. Recognized as a key biodiversity area of the Mediterranean Basin, Mount Hermon hosts important richness of medicinal plants that has been traditionally used in treatment of many illnesses since generations. Novel knowledge gathered by the present investigation is important in preserving indigenous knowledge of Mount Hermon community and revitalizing traditional herbal medicines. Ethnopharmacological information was collected by semi-structured interviews with 53 native informants (herbalists, traditional healers, midwives and local adult villagers) in 13 towns and villages surrounding Mount Hermon. The interviews were conducted through guided field visits and discussion groups whilst collecting plants specimens. Taxonomical identification of plant species was based on the determination keys of the "New Flora of Lebanon and Syria" and specimens were deposited at the herbarium of the Research Center for Environment and Development at Beirut Arab University. The results obtained indicate that 124 plant species of Mount flora are still used in traditional medicine by the local communities as an important source of primary health care and treatment of a wide range of different illnesses. These species belonged to 42 families and 102 genera. Compositae (19 species), Labiatae (18 species), Rosaceae (11) and Umbelliferae (11) formed the dominant families. Informants' Consensus Factor (FIC) analysis revealed that among the 14 illness categories used, respiratory (0.94), gastrointestinal and renal (0.93), genital systems (0.92) had the highest FIC values

Contributions of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in the area of Medicinal plants/Traditional medicine.

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Tandon, Neeraj; Yadav, Satyapal Singh

2017-02-02

Medicinal plants belong to the oldest known health care products that have been used by human beings all over the world and are major components of the formulations used in indigenous system of medicine practiced in many countries. Besides, finding place as health supplements, nutraceuticals, cosmetics, herbal tea etc. there has been a global insurgence of interest, including India, leading to enormous research/activities in the area of medicinal plants. The article is aimed to provide the effort and initiatives of ICMR towards research on medicinal plants and its contributions on consolidation of Indian research on medicinal plants that are very relevant and important in the national context. The various initiatives undertaken by ICMR on research on traditional medicines/medicinal plants in the past are reviewed and documented in this article. The multi-disciplinary, multicentric research initiatives of ICMR have resulted in validation of traditional treatment Kshaarasootra (medicated Ayurvedic thread) for anal fistula, Vijayasar (heart wood of Pterocarpus marsupium Roxb.) for diabetes mellitus, encouraging micro- and macrofilaricidal activity of Shakotak (stem bark of Streblus asper Lour.) in experimental studies an iridoid glycosides fraction isolated from root/rhizomes of Picrorhiza kurroa Royle ex Benth. (designated as Picroliv) for viral hepatitis. Other developmental and compilation of research works on Indian medicinal plants have resulted in publications of the thirteen volumes of quality standards, comprising of 449 Indian medicinal plants; three volumes of 90 phytochemical reference standards; fifteen volumes of review monographs on 4167 medicinal plant species; and one publication each on perspectives of Indian medicinal plants for management of liver disorders, lymphatic filariasis and diabetes mellitus (details available at http://www.icmr.nic.in/mpsite). The ICMR efforts assume special significance in the light of multifaceted use of medicinal plants

Traditional herbal medicine in Far-west Nepal: a pharmacological appraisal

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Shrestha Keshab P

2010-12-01

pharmacological findings, common Ayurvedic and earlier uses. Conclusions Although traditional herbal medicine is only a primary means of health care in far-west Nepal, the medicine has been pursued indigenously with complementing pharmacology and the Ayurveda. Therefore, further pharmacological evaluation of traditional herbal medicine deserves more attention.

Traditional uses of medicinal plants reported by the indigenous communities and local herbal practitioners of Bajaur Agency, Federally Administrated Tribal Areas, Pakistan.

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Aziz, Muhammad Abdul; Khan, Amir Hasan; Adnan, Muhammad; Izatullah, Izatullah

2017-02-23

In the study area, knowledge related to the traditional uses of medicinal plants is totally in the custody of elder community members and local herbalists. The younger generation is unaware of the traditional knowledge, however with only few exceptions. Therefore, this study was planned with objective to document the medicinal importance of plants, conserve this precious indigenous knowledge, and share it among other communities through published literature. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews from the community members and local herbalists. The reported plants were collected post interviews and later on pressed on herbarium vouchers for reference. Afterwards, the data was analyzed through Use value (UV) and Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC). In total, 79 medicinal plant species were used for the treatment of different ailments in the study region. Out of the total plant species, 28 species were not reported from any other mountainous communities across the country. In this study, the ethno-medicinal value of Opuntia littoralis (Engelm.) Cockerell and Viola indica W.Becker was reported for the first time, which have moderate confidential level in terms of their medicinal uses in the study area. Important medicinal plants of the region with high UV are Berberis lycium Royle (0.94), V. indica (0.90), Isodon rugosus (Wall. ex Benth.) Codd (0.88), Foeniculum vulgare Mill. (0.87), Peganum harmala L (0.86), Solanum virginianum L. (0.85), and Cassia fistula L. (0.79). Medicinal plants with higher RFC values are Calotropis procera (Aiton) Dryand. (0.86), Cannabis sativa L. (0.82), Mentha piperita L. (0.82), Mentha longifolia (L.) Huds. (0.76), Allium sativum L. (0.73), Coriandrum sativum L. (0.73), and F. vulgare (0.72). Traditional knowledge on folk medicines is directly linked to the local culture, faith and perception. This knowledge is gaining high threat of extinction because of its limitation to a small portion of the society in the region

Engagement with indigenous peoples and honoring traditional knowledge systems

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Maldonado, Julie; Bennett, Bull; Chief, Karletta; Cochran, Patricia; Cozetto, Karen; Gough, Bob; Hiza-Redsteer, Margaret M.; Lynn, Kathy; Maynard, Nancy; Voggesser, Garrit

2016-01-01

The organizers of the 2014 US National Climate Assessment (NCA) made a concerted effort to reach out to and collaborate with Indigenous peoples, resulting in the most comprehensive information to date on climate change impacts to Indigenous peoples in a US national assessment. Yet, there is still much room for improvement in assessment processes to ensure adequate recognition of Indigenous perspectives and Indigenous knowledge systems. This article discusses the process used in creating the Indigenous Peoples, Land, and Resources NCA chapter by a team comprised of tribal members, agencies, academics, and non-governmental organizations, who worked together to solicit, collect, and synthesize traditional knowledges and data from a diverse array of Indigenous communities across the US. It also discusses the synergy and discord between traditional knowledge systems and science and the emergence of cross-cutting issues and vulnerabilities for Indigenous peoples. The challenges of coalescing information about climate change and its impacts on Indigenous communities are outlined along with recommendations on the types of information to include in future assessment outputs. We recommend that future assessments – not only NCA, but other relevant local, regional, national, and international efforts aimed at the translation of climate information and assessments into meaningful actions – should support integration of Indigenous perspectives in a sustained way that builds respectful relationships and effectively engages Indigenous communities. Given the large number of tribes in the US and the current challenges and unique vulnerabilities of Indigenous communities, a special report focusing solely on climate change and Indigenous peoples is warranted.This article is part of a special issue on “The National Climate Assessment: Innovations in Science and Engagement” edited by Katharine Jacobs, Susanne Moser, and James Buizer.

Indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants used by Saperas community of Khetawas, Jhajjar District, Haryana, India

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Kumar Sunil

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Plants have traditionally been used as a source of medicine in India by indigenous people of different ethnic groups inhabiting various terrains for the control of various ailments afflicting human and their domestic animals. The indigenous community of snake charmers belongs to the 'Nath' community in India have played important role of healers in treating snake bite victims. Snake charmers also sell herbal remedies for common ailments. In the present paper an attempt has been made to document on ethno botanical survey and traditional medicines used by snake charmers of village Khetawas located in district Jhajjar of Haryana, India as the little work has been made in the past to document the knowledge from this community. Methods Ethno botanical data and traditional uses of plants information was obtained by semi structured oral interviews from experienced rural folk, traditional herbal medicine practitioners of the 'Nath' community. A total of 42 selected inhabitants were interviewed, 41 were male and only one woman. The age of the healers was between 25 years and 75 years. The plant specimens were identified according to different references concerning the medicinal plants of Haryana and adjoining areas and further confirmation from Forest Research Institute, Dehradun. Results The present study revealed that the people of the snake charmer community used 57 medicinal plants species that belonged to 51 genera and 35 families for the treatment of various diseases. The study has brought to light that the main diseases treated by this community was snakebite in which 19 different types of medicinal plants belongs to 13 families were used. Significantly higher number of medicinal plants was claimed by men as compared to women. The highest numbers of medicinal plants for traditional uses utilized by this community were belonging to family Fabaceae. Conclusion This community carries a vast knowledge of medicinal plants but as

Demystifying traditional herbal medicine with modern approach.

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Li, Fu-Shuang; Weng, Jing-Ke

2017-07-31

Plants have long been recognized for their therapeutic properties. For centuries, indigenous cultures around the world have used traditional herbal medicine to treat a myriad of maladies. By contrast, the rise of the modern pharmaceutical industry in the past century has been based on exploiting individual active compounds with precise modes of action. This surge has yielded highly effective drugs that are widely used in the clinic, including many plant natural products and analogues derived from these products, but has fallen short of delivering effective cures for complex human diseases with complicated causes, such as cancer, diabetes, autoimmune disorders and degenerative diseases. While the plant kingdom continues to serve as an important source for chemical entities supporting drug discovery, the rich traditions of herbal medicine developed by trial and error on human subjects over thousands of years contain invaluable biomedical information just waiting to be uncovered using modern scientific approaches. Here we provide an evolutionary and historical perspective on why plants are of particular significance as medicines for humans. We highlight several plant natural products that are either in the clinic or currently under active research and clinical development, with particular emphasis on their mechanisms of action. Recent efforts in developing modern multi-herb prescriptions through rigorous molecular-level investigations and standardized clinical trials are also discussed. Emerging technologies, such as genomics and synthetic biology, are enabling new ways for discovering and utilizing the medicinal properties of plants. We are entering an exciting era where the ancient wisdom distilled into the world's traditional herbal medicines can be reinterpreted and exploited through the lens of modern science.

Use of indigenous and indigenised medicines to enhance personal well-being: a South African case study.

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Cocks, Michelle; Møller, Valerie

2002-02-01

An estimated 27 million South Africans use indigenous medicines (Mander, 1997, Medicinal plant marketing and strategies for sustaining the plant supply in the Bushbuckridge area and Mpumalanga Province. Institute for Natural Resources, University of Natal. Pietermaritzburg, South Africa). Although herbal remedies are freely available in amayeza stores, or Xhosa chemists, for self-medication, little is known about the motivations of consumers. According to African belief systems, good health is holistic and extends to the person's social environment. The paper makes a distinction between traditional medicines which are used to enhance personal well-being generally and for cultural purposes, on the one hand, and medicines used to treat physical conditions only, on the other. Drawing on an eight-month study of Xhosa chemists in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, in 1996, the paper identifies 90 medicines in stock which are used to enhance personal well-being. Just under one-third of all purchases were of medicines to enhance well-being. Remedies particularly popular included medicines believed to ward off evil spirits and bring good luck. The protection of infants with medicines which repel evil spirits is a common practice. Consumer behaviours indicate that the range of medicines available is increased by indigenisation of manufactured traditional medicines and cross-cultural borrowing. Case studies confirm that self- and infant medication with indigenous remedies augmented by indigenised medicines plays an important role in primary health care by allaying the fears and anxieties of everyday life within the Xhosa belief system. thereby promoting personal well-being.

Traditional, complementary, and alternative medicine: Focusing on research into traditional Tibetan medicine in China.

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Song, Peipei; Xia, Jufeng; Rezeng, Caidan; Tong, Li; Tang, Wei

2016-07-19

As a form of traditional, complementary, and alternative medicine (TCAM), traditional Tibetan medicine has developed into a mainstay of medical care in Tibet and has spread from there to China and then to the rest of the world. Thus far, research on traditional Tibetan medicine has focused on the study of the plant and animal sources of traditional medicines, study of the histology of those plants and animals, chemical analysis of traditional medicines, pharmacological study of those medicines, and evaluation of the clinical efficacy of those medicines. A number of papers on traditional Tibetan medicines have been published, providing some evidence of the efficacy of traditional Tibetan medicine. However, many traditional Tibetan medicines have unknown active ingredients, hampering the establishment of drug quality standards, the development of new medicines, commercial production of medicines, and market availability of those medicines. Traditional Tibetan medicine must take several steps to modernize and spread to the rest of the world: the pharmacodynamics of traditional Tibetan medicines need to be determined, the clinical efficacy of those medicines needs to be verified, criteria to evaluate the efficacy of those medicines need to be established in order to guide their clinical use, and efficacious medicines need to be acknowledged by the pharmaceutical market. The components of traditional Tibetan medicine should be studied, traditional Tibetan medicines should be screened for their active ingredients, and techniques should be devised to prepare and manufacture those medicines.

African indigenous and traditional vegetables in Tanzania ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Indigenous and traditional African vegetables (AITVs) are important sources of ... and (iii) marketing: retail markup, price variation by season, year and region, ... size and cost, retailer storage, remainders, processing and less common AITVs.

Statutory Regulation of Traditional Medicine Practitioners and Practices: The Need for Distinct Policy Making Guidelines.

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Ijaz, Nadine; Boon, Heather

2018-04-01

The World Health Organization (WHO) has called for the increased statutory regulation of traditional and complementary medicine practitioners and practices, currently implemented in about half of nations surveyed. According to recent WHO data, however, the absence of policy guidelines in this area represents a significant barrier to implementation of such professional regulations. This commentary reviews several key challenges that distinguish the statutory regulation of traditional medicine practitioners and practices from biomedical professional regulation, providing a foundation for the development of policy making parameters in this area. Foremost in this regard are the ongoing impacts of the European colonial encounter, which reinforce biomedicine's disproportionate political dominance across the globe despite traditional medicine's ongoing widespread use (particularly in the global South). In this light, the authors discuss the conceptual and historical underpinnings of contemporary professional regulatory structures, the tensions between institutional and informal traditional medicine training pathways, and the policy challenges presented by the prospect of standardizing internally diverse indigenous healing approaches. Epistemic and evidentiary tensions, as well as the policy complexities surrounding the intersection of cultural and clinical considerations, present additional challenges to regulators. Conceptualizing professional regulation as an intellectual property claim under the law, the authors further consider what it means to protect traditional knowledge and prevent misappropriation in this context. Overall, the authors propose that innovative professional regulatory approaches are needed in this area to address safety, quality of care, and accessibility as key public interest concerns, while prioritizing the redress of historical inequities, protection of diverse indigenous knowledges, and delivery of care to underserved populations.

New categories for traditional medicine in the Economic Botany Data Collection Standard.

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Gruca, Marta; Cámara-Leret, Rodrigo; Macía, Manuel J; Balslev, Henrik

2014-09-11

The Economic Botany Data Collection Standard (EBDCS) has been successfully followed by ethnobotanists investigating plant uses in many parts of the world. However, we have encountered some cases in our study of traditional medicine where the standard seems incomplete and inaccurate when it is applied to plant uses of rural or indigenous societies in developing countries. We propose two categories to be added to the EBDCS: Cultural Diseases and Disorders, and Ritual/Magical Uses. Adding these categories, we believe will give a more accurate insight into traditional medicine and will contribute to developing an integrative ethnomedicinal data collection protocol, which will make ethnomedicinal studies more comparable. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Integrated Health Care Systems and Indigenous Medicine: Reflections from the Sub-Sahara African Region

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Beth Maina Ahlberg

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Indigenous or traditional medicine has, since the 1970s, been widely regarded as a resource likely to contribute to strengthening the health care systems in low income countries. This paper examines the state of traditional medicine using evidence from three case studies in Central Kenya. While the cases are too few to represent the broad diversity of cultures and related healing systems in the Sub-Sahara African Region, the way they seem to refute the main assumptions in the integration discourse is important, also because studies from other countries in the region report perspectives, similar to the case studies in Kenya. It is often argued that people continue to use traditional medicine because it is affordable, available, and culturally familiar. Its integration into the health care system would therefore promote cultural familiarity. The case studies however point to the loss of essential cultural elements central to traditional medicine in this particular area while users travel long distances to reach the healers. In addition, there are significant paradigm differences that may present obstacles to integration of the two systems. More problematic however is that integration is, as in many development interventions, a top-down policy that is rarely based on contextual realities and conditions. Instead, integration is often defined and dominated by biomedical professionals and health planners who may be unfamiliar or even hostile to some aspects of traditional medicine. Furthermore, integration efforts have tended to embrace selected components mostly herbal medicine. This has led to isolating herbal medicine from spiritualism, which may in turn affect the holistic perspective of traditional medicine. While familiarity and relevance may explain the continued use of traditional medicine, its services may not be as readily available, accessible, or even affordable as is often asserted. Globalization set in motion through colonization and

"It Felt Like Violence": Indigenous Knowledge Traditions and the Postcolonial Ethics of Academic Inquiry and Community Engagement.

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Gone, Joseph P

2017-12-01

In a 2014 presentation at an academic conference featuring an American Indian community audience, I critically engaged the assumptions and commitments of Indigenous Research Methodologies. These methodologies have been described as approaches and procedures for conducting research that stem from long-subjugated Indigenous epistemologies (or "ways of knowing"). In my presentation, I described a Crow Indian religious tradition known as a skull medicine as an example of an indigenous way of knowing, referring to a historical photograph of a skull medicine bundle depicted on an accompanying slide. This occasioned consternation among many in attendance, some of whom later asserted that it was unethical for me to have presented this information because of Indigenous cultural proscriptions against publicizing sacred knowledge and photographing sacred objects. This ethical challenge depends on enduring religious sensibilities in Northern Plains Indian communities, as embedded within a postcolonial political critique concerning the accession of sacred objects by Euro-American collectors during the early 20th century. I complicate these ethical claims by considering competing goods that are valued by community psychologists, ultimately acknowledging that the associated ethical challenge resists resolution in terms that would be acceptable to diverse constituencies. © Society for Community Research and Action 2017.

Traditional Medicine in Developing Countries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thorsen, Rikke Stamp

or spiritual healer and self-treatment with herbal medicine or medicinal plants. Reliance on traditional medicine varies between countries and rural and urban areas, but is reported to be as high as 80% in some developing countries. Increased realization of the continued importance of traditional medicine has......People use traditional medicine to meet their health care needs in developing countries and medical pluralism persists worldwide despite increased access to allopathic medicine. Traditional medicine includes a variety of treatment opportunities, among others, consultation with a traditional healer...... led to the formulation of policies on the integration of traditional medicine into public health care. Local level integration is already taking place as people use multiple treatments when experiencing illness. Research on local level use of traditional medicine for health care, in particular the use...

TRADITIONAL CHINESE HERBAL MEDICINE

NARCIS (Netherlands)

ZHU, YP; WOERDENBAG, HJ

1995-01-01

Herbal medicine, acupuncture and moxibustion, and massage and the three major constituent parts of traditional Chinese medicine. Although acupuncture is well known in many Western countries, Chinese herbal medicine, the mos important part of traditional Chinese medicine, is less well known in the

The Traditional Medicine and Modern Medicine from Natural Products

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Haidan Yuan

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Natural products and traditional medicines are of great importance. Such forms of medicine as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Kampo, traditional Korean medicine, and Unani have been practiced in some areas of the world and have blossomed into orderly-regulated systems of medicine. This study aims to review the literature on the relationship among natural products, traditional medicines, and modern medicine, and to explore the possible concepts and methodologies from natural products and traditional medicines to further develop drug discovery. The unique characteristics of theory, application, current role or status, and modern research of eight kinds of traditional medicine systems are summarized in this study. Although only a tiny fraction of the existing plant species have been scientifically researched for bioactivities since 1805, when the first pharmacologically-active compound morphine was isolated from opium, natural products and traditional medicines have already made fruitful contributions for modern medicine. When used to develop new drugs, natural products and traditional medicines have their incomparable advantages, such as abundant clinical experiences, and their unique diversity of chemical structures and biological activities.

The Traditional Medicine and Modern Medicine from Natural Products.

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Yuan, Haidan; Ma, Qianqian; Ye, Li; Piao, Guangchun

2016-04-29

Natural products and traditional medicines are of great importance. Such forms of medicine as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Kampo, traditional Korean medicine, and Unani have been practiced in some areas of the world and have blossomed into orderly-regulated systems of medicine. This study aims to review the literature on the relationship among natural products, traditional medicines, and modern medicine, and to explore the possible concepts and methodologies from natural products and traditional medicines to further develop drug discovery. The unique characteristics of theory, application, current role or status, and modern research of eight kinds of traditional medicine systems are summarized in this study. Although only a tiny fraction of the existing plant species have been scientifically researched for bioactivities since 1805, when the first pharmacologically-active compound morphine was isolated from opium, natural products and traditional medicines have already made fruitful contributions for modern medicine. When used to develop new drugs, natural products and traditional medicines have their incomparable advantages, such as abundant clinical experiences, and their unique diversity of chemical structures and biological activities.

An analysis of application of health informatics in Traditional Medicine: A review of four Traditional Medicine Systems.

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Raja Ikram, Raja Rina; Abd Ghani, Mohd Khanapi; Abdullah, Noraswaliza

2015-11-01

This paper shall first investigate the informatics areas and applications of the four Traditional Medicine systems - Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Ayurveda, Traditional Arabic and Islamic Medicine and Traditional Malay Medicine. Then, this paper shall examine the national informatics infrastructure initiatives in the four respective countries that support the Traditional Medicine systems. Challenges of implementing informatics in Traditional Medicine Systems shall also be discussed. The literature was sourced from four databases: Ebsco Host, IEEE Explore, Proquest and Google scholar. The search term used was "Traditional Medicine", "informatics", "informatics infrastructure", "traditional Chinese medicine", "Ayurveda", "traditional Arabic and Islamic medicine", and "traditional malay medicine". A combination of the search terms above was also executed to enhance the searching process. A search was also conducted in Google to identify miscellaneous books, publications, and organization websites using the same terms. Amongst major advancements in TCM and Ayurveda are bioinformatics, development of Traditional Medicine databases for decision system support, data mining and image processing. Traditional Chinese Medicine differentiates itself from other Traditional Medicine systems with documented ISO Standards to support the standardization of TCM. Informatics applications in Traditional Arabic and Islamic Medicine are mostly ehealth applications that focus more on spiritual healing, Islamic obligations and prophetic traditions. Literature regarding development of health informatics to support Traditional Malay Medicine is still insufficient. Major informatics infrastructure that is common in China and India are automated insurance payment systems for Traditional Medicine treatment. National informatics infrastructure in Middle East and Malaysia mainly cater for modern medicine. Other infrastructure such as telemedicine and hospital information systems focus its

Traditional Uses of Medicinal Plants from the Canadian Boreal Forest for the Management of Chronic Pain Syndromes.

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Uprety, Yadav; Lacasse, Anaïs; Asselin, Hugo

2016-04-01

Chronic pain is more prevalent in indigenous populations who often prefer traditional remedies over allopathic drugs. Our objective was to investigate the traditional uses of medicinal plants from the Canadian boreal forest for the management of chronic pain syndromes. We reviewed the most extensive database on medicinal plants used by aboriginal people of the Canadian boreal forest to investigate the plants used in the management of 3 of the most common chronic pain syndromes: arthritis/rheumatism; back pain; and headache/migraine. We also reviewed the pharmacology and phytochemistry literature to investigate concordance with indigenous knowledge. A total of 114 medicinal plant species were reported, of which 27 (23.5%) were used to treat more than 1 chronic pain syndrome. Pharmacological or phytochemical evidence to explain plant function as chronic pain remedy was available in the literature for only 38 species (33%), with several species reported to have anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties effective in treating chronic pain syndromes. Our study showed the potential of boreal plants as alternative and complementary medicines for the treatment of chronic pain syndromes that could be enhanced by further research on efficacy and safety issues. © 2015 World Institute of Pain.

Medicinal folk recipes used as traditional phyto therapies in district Dera Ismail Khan, KPK, Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marwat, S.K.; Rehman, F.; Khan, M.A.; Ahmad, M.

2011-01-01

This paper is based on the results of an ethno medicinal research work conducted in Dera Ismail Khan (D.I. Khan) District, Khyber Pakhtun Khwa (KPK), Pakistan, during May 2006 to March 2007. The study was focused for documentation of traditional knowledge of local people about the use of medicinal folk recipes of native plants. During field survey, questionnaires were used to interview the local inhabitants, older people including men and women both, who were familiar with traditional uses of indigenous plants. In total 40 new medicinal folk recipes of 26 plant species, belonging to 19 families were recorded. These folk recipes are used as traditional phyto therapies in the area. Plant specimens were identified, preserved and vouchers were deposited in the Department of Botany, Quaid-i-University Islamabad for future references. Results were systematically arranged by alphabetic order of botanical names followed by medicinal folk recipes. English name, local name, family name and voucher no., were listed. (author)

Personalized medicine: a confluence of traditional and contemporary medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Jafari, Samineh; Abdollahi, Mohammad; Saeidnia, Soodabeh

2014-01-01

Traditional systems of medicine have attained great popularity among patients in recent years. Success of this system in the treatment of disease warrants consideration, particularly in cases for which conventional medicine has been insufficient. This study investigates the similarities in principles and approaches of 3 traditional systems and explores whether conventional medicine is able to exploit the advantages of traditional systems. This study first identifies and explores the advantages of 3 well-known systems-traditional Iranian medicine (TIM), ayurveda, and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM)-that are similar in their basic principles and methods. Second, it clarifies whether and how conventional medicine could exploit the advantages of traditional systems as it modernizes, to become more personalized. Finally, this study investigates the possibility that conventional medicine could benefit from traditional typology to improve its personalization. The acknowledgment of the unity of humans and nature, applying rational methods, and personalized approaches is fundamentally similar in the 3 systems. Additionally, they all promote the holistic view that health is harmony and disease is disharmony of the body. Other similarities include their recognition of the unique nature of every person and their categorization of people into different body types. Although conventional medicine has mostly failed to incorporate the advantages of traditional medicine, its integration with traditional medicine is achievable. For instance, exploiting traditional typologies in genomic and other studies may facilitate personalization of conventional medicine. From its review, the research team concludes that prospects are bright for the integration of traditional and conventional medicines and, consequently, for a dramatic improvement in health systems.

Traditional medicine and genomics.

Science.gov (United States)

Joshi, Kalpana; Ghodke, Yogita; Shintre, Pooja

2010-01-01

'Omics' developments in the form of genomics, proteomics and metabolomics have increased the impetus of traditional medicine research. Studies exploring the genomic, proteomic and metabolomic basis of human constitutional types based on Ayurveda and other systems of oriental medicine are becoming popular. Such studies remain important to developing better understanding of human variations and individual differences. Countries like India, Korea, China and Japan are investing in research on evidence-based traditional medicines and scientific validation of fundamental principles. This review provides an account of studies addressing relationships between traditional medicine and genomics.

Ethnopharmacological implications of quantitative and network analysis for traditional knowledge regarding the medicinal use of animals by indigenous people in Wolchulsan National Park, Korea.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Geun; Kim, Hyun; Song, Mi-Jang

2018-03-01

The purpose of this study was to record, analyze, and identify ethnopharmacological implications for oral traditional knowledge regarding the medicinal use of animals by indigenous people living in Wolchulsan National Park, Korea. Data were collected through interviews, informal meetings, open and group discussions, and observations guided by semi-structured questionnaires. Data were analyzed via quantitative analysis of informant consensus factor and fidelity level, and network analysis, including centrality and clustering analysis. A total of 46 families, 59 genera, and 60 species of animals, as well as 373 methods of usage, were recorded. Fish comprised 31.7% of the total animal species recorded, followed by mammals at 20.0%, arthropods at 18.3%, and mollusks at 11.7%. Of these animals, 48.0% were utilized as food and 46.1% for medicinal use. Quantitative analysis showed that the category with the highest degree of consensus from informants was veterinary ailments (informant consensus factor value, 0.96). This was followed by poisonings (0.93), pains (0.92), genitourinary system disorders (0.91), cuts and wounds (0.89), and other medical conditions. The lowest degree of consensus was for skin diseases and disorders (0.57). There were 8 species of animals with a fidelity level of 100%, after eliminating from the animals analyzed that were mentioned only once. Finally, using network analysis, Gallus gallus domesticus and Gloydius brevicaudus were defined as species with meaningful medicinal use, while lack of vigor and lung diseases were defined as significant ailments in the study area. This study validates that local communities use animals not only for food but also for medicinal purposes as crucial therapeutic measures. Therefore, the conservation of fauna and preservation of traditional knowledge need to be seriously considered to maintain the health and well-being of the local communities. Network analysis clarified the series of ailments for which each

Treatment of malaria and related symptoms using traditional herbal medicine in Ethiopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Suleman, Sultan; Beyene Tufa, Takele; Kebebe, Dereje; Belew, Sileshi; Mekonnen, Yimer; Gashe, Fanta; Mussa, Seid; Wynendaele, Evelien; Duchateau, Luc; De Spiegeleer, Bart

2018-03-01

Medicinal plants have always been an integral part of different cultures in Ethiopia in the treatment of different illnesses including malaria and related symptoms. However, due to lack of proper documentation, urbanization, drought, acculturation and deforestation, there is an increased risk of losing this traditional knowledge. Hence, the use of the indigenous knowledge should be well documented and validated for potential future use. To gather and document information on medicinal plants which are used in the traditional treatment of malaria and related symptoms in Ethiopia. First, an ethnomedicinal survey of plants was conducted in 17 districts of Jimma zone, the Oromia national regional state of Ethiopia. Jimma zone is malarious and rich in natural flora. A total of 115 traditional healers were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire containing personal data of the respondents, and information on medicinal plants used to treat malaria and related symptoms. In addition, a literature search using Medline/PubMed, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect and HINARI was conducted on the indigenous use, in-vitro/in-vivo anti-malarial activity reports, and the chemical characterization of medicinal plants of Ethiopia used against malaria. From ethnomedicinal survey, a total of 28 species of plants used in the traditional treatment of malaria and related symptoms in Jimma Zone were collected, identified and documented. In addition, the literature search revealed that 124 medicinal plant species were reported to be traditionally used in the treatment of malaria in Ethiopia. From both ethnomedicinal survey and the literature search, Asteraceae and Fabaceae were the most represented families and Allium sativum L., Carica papaya L., Vernonia amygdalina Del., Lepidium sativum L. and Croton macrostachyus Del. were the most frequently reported plant species for their anti-malarial use. The dominant plant parts used in the preparation of remedies were leaves. About 54% of the

Traditional medicine and genomics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kalpana Joshi

2010-01-01

Full Text Available ′Omics′ developments in the form of genomics, proteomics and metabolomics have increased the impetus of traditional medicine research. Studies exploring the genomic, proteomic and metabolomic basis of human constitutional types based on Ayurveda and other systems of oriental medicine are becoming popular. Such studies remain important to developing better understanding of human variations and individual differences. Countries like India, Korea, China and Japan are investing in research on evidence-based traditional medicines and scientific validation of fundamental principles. This review provides an account of studies addressing relationships between traditional medicine and genomics.

Systematic review on traditional medicinal plants used for the treatment of malaria in Ethiopia: trends and perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Alebie, Getachew; Urga, Befikadu; Worku, Amha

2017-08-01

Ethiopia is endowed with abundant medicinal plant resources and traditional medicinal practices. However, available research evidence on indigenous anti-malarial plants is highly fragmented in the country. The present systematic review attempted to explore, synthesize and compile ethno-medicinal research evidence on anti-malarial medicinal plants in Ethiopia. A systematic web search analysis and review was conducted on research literature pertaining to medicinal plants used for traditional malaria treatment in Ethiopia. Data were collected from a total of 82 Ethiopian studies meeting specific inclusion criteria including published research articles and unpublished thesis reports. SPSS Version 16 was used to summarize relevant ethno-botanical/medicinal information using descriptive statistics, frequency, percentage, tables, and bar graphs. A total of 200 different plant species (from 71 families) used for traditional malaria treatment were identified in different parts of Ethiopia. Distribution and usage pattern of anti-malarial plants showed substantial variability across different geographic settings. A higher diversity of anti-malarial plants was reported from western and southwestern parts of the country. Analysis of ethno-medicinal recipes indicated that mainly fresh leaves were used for preparation of remedies. Decoction, concoction and eating/chewing were found to be the most frequently employed herbal remedy preparation methods. Notably, anti-malarial herbal remedies were administered by oral route. Information on potential side effects of anti-malarial herbal preparations was patchy. However, some anti-malarial plants were reported to have potentially serious side effects using different local antidotes and some specific contra-indications. The study highlighted a rich diversity of indigenous anti-malarial medicinal plants with equally divergent herbal remedy preparation and use pattern in Ethiopia. Baseline information gaps were observed in key geographic

Precision medicine and traditional chinese medicine of dialogue

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lou Xin

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The precision medicine is more precise individualized medicine, based on the patient’s genes or physiological to formulate the specific treatment plan, for the realization of individualized treatment of various diseases to provide valuable information.But with the progress of modern science and technology, modern medicine dependence on medical instruments are too serious, traditional ways are gradually forgotten.If the machine depends on the instrument test results too serious which don’t combined with the actual diagnosis, the cause of misdiagnosis, so we should pay attention to the overall analysis of diseases and systematic diagnosis and examination, use of the overall treatment concept traced back to find the cause of Traditional Chinese Medicine, finally decide to select a best treatment plan.We should use the dialectical attitude to look at the precise medical. Not blindly requirements according to the road of precision medicine of Traditional Chinese Medicine to go, to shine in himself field, form of self characteristic of Traditional Chinese Medicine.Can learn some of the advantages of accurate concept, the good and rejecting the bad, hope the Traditional Chinese Medicine in the modern environment more walk more far.

Utilization and Medicinal Value of Indigenous Leafy Vegetables ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Remember me ... A picture guide consisting of all foods available on the Nairobi markets was prepared, and used by the researchers to help the respondents to identify the ... Key words: Indigenous Leafy Vegetables, nutritional, medicinal ...

Indigenous knowledge of folk medicines among tribal minorities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, northwestern Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Sher, Hassan; Aldosari, Ali; Ali, Ahmad; de Boer, Hugo J

2015-05-26

Mapping ethnomedicinal plants and associated indigenous knowledge of folk medicines can provide a comprehensive overview of individual herbs employed in health care. Reliance on medicinal plants in remote parts of northern Pakistan is high, especially among women, but no research has investigated specifically which plants are used. This study investigated indigenous knowledge of folk medicines among tribal minorities in selected sites in upper Swat, Buner and Chitral Districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Interviews were conducted with gender-specific focus groups using questionnaires and standardized data sheets, followed by forest walks in each of the visited areas. General medicinal herb use, preparations, storage, marketing and collection habits for each gender group were ascertained from the questionnaires. In total 168 women and 390 men were interviewed and provided information on 127 different shared medicinal species. Species use consensus among the informants ranged from 2.3% to 83.3%, with Cynodon dactylon, Avena sativa, Celtis australis, Datura stramonium, Solanum nigrum, Skimmia laureola, Spiraea nervosa, Ziziphus jujuba, Rumex hastatus, Plantago lanceolata, Lathyrus aphaca and Ficus palmata having the highest reported consensus. The survey also revealed that a number of medicinal species were exploited by the community for both marketing and personal use, and many of these species were reported as being rare, vulnerable or even endangered. The results revealed that women in all the three districts were important custodians of medicinal plant knowledge, but elder women in general and the women from Buner district in particular had a superior understanding of folk medicine. The forest walks revealed that women׳s traditional medicinal knowledge was based on a more limited diversity of plant species. People in tribal communities have an expressed interest in learning efficient techniques for medicinal plant collection, preparation, storage and

[Common household traditional Chinese medicines].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Shu-Yuan; Li, Mei; Fu, Dan; Liu, Yang; Wang, Hui; Tan, Wei

2016-02-01

With the enhancement in the awareness of self-diagnosis among residents, it's very common for each family to prepare common medicines for unexpected needs. Meanwhile, with the popularization of the traditional Chinese medicine knowledge, the proportion of common traditional Chinese medicines prepared at residents' families is increasingly higher than western medicines year by year. To make it clear, both pre-research and closed questionnaire research were adopted for residents in Chaoyang District, Beijing, excluding residents with a medical background. Based on the results of data, a analysis was made to define the role and influence on the quality of life of residents and give suggestions for relevant departments to improve the traditional Chinese medicine popularization and promote the traditional Chinese medicine market. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

use of traditional medicinal plants by people of 'boosat'

African Journals Online (AJOL)

JU

Ethnobotanical information of medicinal plants was obtained from informants by semi-structured interview, observations, group discussions, and guided field walks. RESULTS: Fifty-two medicinal ... Indigenous knowledge systems, can guide.

A study on the indigenous medicinal plants and healing practices in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A study on the indigenous medicinal plants and healing practices in Chittagong Hill tracts (Bangladesh) ... and folk cultural practices as community-based extension and dissemination media to highlight the importance of medicinal plants and ...

Menorrhagia Management in Iranian Traditional Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Tansaz, Mojgan; Memarzadehzavareh, Hajar; Qaraaty, Marzieh; Eftekhar, Tahereh; Tabarrai, Malihe; Kamalinejad, Mohammad

2016-01-01

Menorrhagia is a common problem. Medical management for menorrhagia includes hormonal and nonhormonal treatments. These treatments have different side effects, which reduce quality of life. Complementary and traditional medicines have been used to handle menorrhagia for centuries in many cultures. There is a lot of information and data in Iranian traditional documents or books about medicinal herbs that are used by Iranian traditional medicine scientists for the treatment of menorrhagia. The aim of this study was to review the approaches to menorrhagia in Iranian traditional medicine texts. In this study, some main Iranian traditional medicine manuscripts including Canon of Medicine and Al-Havi of Rhazes were studied to extract important information about menorrhagia management. Iranian traditional medicine physicians have relied on an organized system of etiological theories and treatments for menorrhagia. Their methods for menorrhagia management may be able to convince the desire of many women to preserve their uterus and avoid hormonal therapy. © The Author(s) 2015.

Indigenous and Medicinal Uses of Plants in Nech Sar National Park, Ethiopia.

OpenAIRE

Alemu, M.; Bhattacharyya, Subhes; Reeves, Andrew; Lemon, Mark

2017-01-01

Open Access Journal For many years humans have used different parts of plants for medicinal purposes, as source of food and feed. Hence the benefits of indigenous knowledge for the development of present day sophisticated medicinal inventions cannot be overlooked. Indigenous people living in and around protected areas are still making use of plants to cure human and animal related diseases. Guji, Kore and Gamo people of Nech Sar National Park are not indifferent to this fact. Primary data ...

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used by indigenous people in and around Dirre Sheikh Hussein heritage site of South-eastern Ethiopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Demie, Gadisa; Negash, Mesele; Awas, Tesfaye

2018-06-28

The uses of medicinal plants have a long history and become important sources of the health cares in Ethiopia. These medicinal plants and their associated indigenous knowledge are being seriously depleted due to rapid change in environment and socioeconomic conditions of the country. However, as to the knowledge of the present researchers, limited studies have been done to identify these medicinal plants and to preserve the communities' indigenous knowledge on these plants. This study aimed at assessing and documenting traditional medicinal plant species, mode of preparation and delivery, and parts used in and around Dirre Sheikh Hussein heritage site of South-eastern Ethiopia. The study was also meant to explore related indigenous knowledge of the communities on the utilization of medicinal plants. The data were collected using household survey, in-depth interviews of key informants, focus group discussion and field observation. The number of informants involved in the survey was 194 (one hundred ninety-four). A total of 87 medicinal plants belonging to 77 genera and 51 families were identified. These medicinal plants were comprised of shrubs (33%), trees (31%), herbs (29%) and climbers (7%). Of the total number of medicinal plants found out in the study, 43 were used to treat human diseases, 8 were used to cure animal diseases and 36 were used to treat both human and live stock ailments. Of the identified plant species, about 83% species were proved that they are commonly known and used elsewhere whereas, the uses of remainder ones are limited to the study area. Most of the medicinal plants (60%) were sourced from the forest and the rest were found from both the forest garden. The study also revealed that leaves were the most frequently mentioned (36%) plant part used in preparing remedies. Crushing (20%) and oral route of administration (59%) were commonly mentioned mode of preparation and administration, respectively The study also indicated that peoples

chemistry in indigenous african knowledge and traditional practices1

African Journals Online (AJOL)

unesco

chemistry in life, the role of the adult as teacher, educator, and facilitator of learning, reference book for ... Chemistry was not an abstract idea to me, rather a practice, knowledge about doing certain things ... classroom with a trained teacher. .... indigenous traditional knowledge as well as in modern scientific knowledge.

Comparison of Leiomyoma of Modern Medicine and Traditional Persian Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Tansaz, Mojgan; Tajadini, Haleh

2016-04-01

Leiomyoma is the most common benign tumor of the pelvic that is associated with reproductive problems such as infertility, frequent abortions, and undesirable prenatal outcomes. High prevalence of leiomyoma and its relation with important gynecological complications, especially during reproductive ages, on the one hand, and high medical expenses and significant complications of common treatments, on the other, made us search traditional Persian medicine texts for a similar disease. In traditional Persian medicine, a condition has been introduced similar to leiomyoma (Oram-e-rahem). In this article, by collecting materials from traditional medicine texts on leiomyoma, we aim to provide theories for further studies on this topic, as there is an obvious difference between traditional Persian medicine and modern medicine with regard to leiomyoma. When modern medicine has not found a suitable response to treatment, reviewing of traditional Persian medicine for finding better treatment strategies is wise. © The Author(s) 2015.

The role of civil society organizations in the institutionalization of indigenous medicine in Bolivia.

Science.gov (United States)

Babis, Deby

2014-12-01

December 2013 marked a significant shift in Bolivia with the enactment of a law for the inclusion of indigenous doctors in the National Health System. This article traces the constellation of forces that led to the institutionalization of indigenous medicine in Bolivia. It identifies three factors contributing to this health policy change. The first factor is the crystallization of a strong indigenous movement fighting for the recognition of cultural rights through the foundation of civil society organizations. Second is the rise to power of Evo Morales, the first Latin American president of indigenous origin, who has promoted multicultural policies, formally supported through the promulgation of a new constitution. Lastly is the influence of the global acceptance of alternative medicine. Indigenous doctor organizations in Bolivia have been highly involved throughout the entire process of institutionalization and have played a crucial role in it. An analysis of the relationship between these civil society organizations and the Bolivian government reveals a strong partnership. This dynamic can be described in terms of Interdependence Theory, as each party relied on the other in the promotion and practice of the law to achieve the integration of indigenous medicine as part of the Bolivian Health System. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Indigenous traditional medicine: in vitro anti-giardial activity of plants used in the treatment of diarrhea.

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Brandelli, Clara Lia Costa; Giordani, Raquel Brandt; De Carli, Geraldo Attilio; Tasca, Tiana

2009-06-01

The ethnopharmacology for treatment of parasitic infections facilitates and directs the search for new chemical entities. In this direction, this study evaluated the cytotoxicity in vitro, against trophozoites of Giardia lamblia, of aqueous extracts of leaves Achyrocline satureioides (Lam.) DC., barks of Eugenia uniflora L., aerial parts of Foeniculum vulgare Miller, and barks of Psidium guajava L. These plants are traditionally used for the treatment of diarrhea by the indigenous population Mbyá-Guarani, located at the Lomba do Pinheiro, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The in vitro susceptibility qualitative analysis of G. lamblia to aqueous extracts was performed in serial dilutions from 2.5 to 0.02 mg/mL. Results revealed the minimal inhibitory concentrations: 0.313 mg/mL for A. satureioides and E. uniflora, 0.02 mg/mL for P. guajava, and F. vulgare did not present any cytotoxic effect. Quantitative assays of viable trophozoites, showed that A. satureioides presented the highest cytotoxic effect (93.5%), followed by P. guajava (82.2%), and E. uniflora (67.3%). Indigenous Guarani use mainly A. satureioides for the treatment of diarrhea, revealing the conformity with results obtained in vitro. Bioguided assays are necessary to identify the compounds responsible for the activity of the aqueous extract of A. satureioides.

Ethnopharmacological studies of indigenous medicinal plants in the south of Kerman, Iran.

Science.gov (United States)

Sadat-Hosseini, Mohammad; Farajpour, Mostafa; Boroomand, Naser; Solaimani-Sardou, Farshad

2017-03-06

The aim of this study was to collect and document information concerning the medicinal plants used by indigenous people and traditional healers in the south of Kerman Province, Iran. Overall, 64 informants between the ages of 30 and 89 were interviewed about the modes of application and consumption of medicinal plants in the region. Quantitative analysis was conducted that included informant consensus factor (ICF), use value (UV), relative frequency of citation (RFC) and cultural importance index (CI). In the current study, a total of 115 medicinal plants in 41 families were reported in the south of the Kerman region. Apiaceae, Asteraceae and Lamiaceae (with 14 species each) were the families with the most medicinal plants. The most frequently used plant parts were leaves at 26.17% and aerial parts (23.49%). Decoction (53%), liniment (23%) and infusion (9%) were the most common preparation methods. The highest UVs were obtained from the following medicinal plants: Amygdalus eburnea Spach, Genista tinctoria L., Calotropis procera (Aiton) Dryand., Fortuynia garcinii (Burm.f.) Shuttlew. and Cerasus mahaleb (L.) Mill. The ICF results indicated that cold-flu and fever were the most common diseases (0.67) in the south of Kerman. Based on the current study, the south of Kerman has many potential medicinal plants, and these plants should be the focus of future research. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

[Traditional medicine under Japanese rule after 1930s].

Science.gov (United States)

Shin, Dong-won

2003-12-01

Japan, which occupied Korea from 1910 through the end of World War II, transformed traditional medicine. Japanese colonialists propagandized the "benefits of modern civilization such as western medicine" and rejected the advantages of traditional medicine. This bias against Korean traditional medicine mirrored the government's rejection of its own traditional medicine. So, Korean traditional medicine was marginalized in the national health care system: traditional doctors were excluded from public institutions and references to traditional medicine were purged from school textbooks and newspapers. The wars that Japan waged between 1931 and 1944 effected a favorable change toward traditional medicines, however. The wars created a severe shortage of drugs and medical personnel. Thus the colonial government was eager for Koreans to cultivate and gather herbal drugs; it also built a large research institute for herbalism at the Keijo Imperial University in 1938. The colonial government made pharmacopoeia for traditional herbal drugs including plant and animal drugs from 1937 to 1942, independently from Japan. Under these conditions, the prestige of traditional medicine was greatly improved. Influential newspapers and magazines covered the traditional medicine and public lectures on traditional medicine drew large audiences. The wartime government abandoned its opposition to traditional medicine, and appointed a traditional practitioner to the staff of the public hospital in 1934. Moreover, the government allowed the association of the traditional medical doctors in Seoul to train three hundred more practitioners between 1937 and 1942. Japanese colonial policy toward traditional medicine reflected the contradiction between modernizing ideology and the reality of poor colonial medical care. Japanese propaganda promised that the colonial regime would provide more advanced medicine to Korea, but the promise was an empty one. In this situation, traditional medical doctors

Celebrating indigenous communities compassionate traditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Prince, Holly

2018-01-01

Living in a compassionate community is not a new practice in First Nations communities; they have always recognized dying as a social experience. First Nations hold extensive traditional knowledge and have community-based practices to support the personal, familial, and community experiences surrounding end-of-life. However, western health systems were imposed and typically did not support these social and cultural practices at end of life. In fact, the different expectations of western medicine and the community related to end of life care has created stress and misunderstanding for both. One solution is for First Nations communities to develop palliative care programs so that people can receive care at home amongst their family, community and culture. Our research project "Improving End-of-Life Care in First Nations Communities" (EOLFN) was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research [2010-2015] and was conducted in partnership with four First Nations communities in Canada (see www.eolfn.lakeheadu.ca). Results included a community capacity development approach to support Indigenous models of care at end-of-life. The workshop will describe the community capacity development process used to develop palliative care programs in First Nations communities. It will highlight the foundation to this approach, namely, grounding the program in community values and principles, rooted in individual, family, community and culture. Two First Nations communities will share stories about their experiences developing their own palliative care programs, which celebrated cultural capacity in their communities while enhancing medical palliative care services in a way that respected and integrated with their community cultural practices. This workshop shares the experiences of two First Nations communities who developed palliative care programs by building upon community culture, values and principles. The underlying model guiding development is shared.

Moving toward holistic wellness, empowerment and self-determination for Indigenous peoples in Canada: Can traditional Indigenous health care practices increase ownership over health and health care decisions?

Science.gov (United States)

Auger, Monique; Howell, Teresa; Gomes, Tonya

2016-12-27

This study aimed to understand the role that traditional Indigenous health care practices can play in increasing individual-level self-determination over health care and improving health outcomes for urban Indigenous peoples in Canada. This project took place in Vancouver, British Columbia and included the creation and delivery of holistic workshops to engage community members (n = 35) in learning about aspects of traditional health care practices. Short-term and intermediate outcomes were discussed through two gatherings involving focus groups and surveys. Data were transcribed, reviewed, thematically analyzed, and presented to the working group for validation. When participants compared their experiences with traditional health care to western health care, they described barriers to care that they had experienced in accessing medical doctors (e.g., racism, mistrust), as well as the benefits of traditional healing (e.g., based on relationships, holistic approach). All participants also noted that they had increased ownership over their choices around, and access to, health care, inclusive of both western and traditional options. They stressed that increased access to traditional health care is crucial within urban settings. Self-determination within Indigenous urban communities, and on a smaller scale, ownership for individuals, is a key determinant of health for Indigenous individuals and communities; this was made clear through the analysis of the research findings and is also supported within the literature. This research also demonstrates that access to traditional healing can enhance ownership for community members. These findings emphasize that there is a continued and growing need for support to aid urban Indigenous peoples in accessing traditional health care supports.

Traditional botanical medicine: an introduction.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosenbloom, Richard A; Chaudhary, Jayesh; Castro-Eschenbach, Diane

2011-01-01

The role of traditional medicine in the well-being of mankind has certainly journeyed a long way. From an ancient era, in which knowledge was limited to a few traditional healers and dominated by the use of whole plants or crude drugs, the science has gradually evolved into a complete healthcare system with global recognition. Technologic advancements have facilitated traditional science to deliver numerous breakthrough botanicals with potency equivalent to those of conventional drugs. The renewed interest in traditional medicine is mainly attributed to its ability to prevent disease, promote health, and improve quality of life. Despite the support received from public bodies and research organizations, development of botanical medicines continues to be a challenging process. The present article gives a summarized description of the various difficulties encountered in the development and evaluation of botanical drugs, including isolation of active compounds and standardization of plant ingredients. It indicates a future direction of traditional medicine toward evidence-based evaluation of health claims through well-controlled safety and efficacy studies.

Indigenous Knowledge of Herbal Medicines among Adolescents in Amassoma, Bayelsa State, Nigeria

Science.gov (United States)

Alade, Gideon O.; Okpako, Ese; Ajibesin, Kola’ K.; Omobuwajo, Olanrewaju R.

2016-01-01

Background: The use of herbal medicines in Nigeria is on the increase. Documented Population based data on the use of herbal medicinal products and indigenous knowledge among the younger generations are lacking in Nigeria and Africa at large. Aim: The aim of this study is to investigate the extent of use and general knowledge of herbal medicines among adolescents in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria. Methods: The study covered a total of Two hundred and twenty-eight adolescents randomly selected in Senior Secondary Schools (SSS 1-3) in Amassoma using a semi structured questionnaire/Interview and informal conversation on the respondents. Findings: Nearly all (97%) the respondents have had contact with herbs. Less than 1% had contact with herbs through formal education (teachers/literatures). Stimulation of interest was majorly through parents (53%). Grandparents were the highest (46%) of custodian of indigenous knowledge. Parents were the next (39.7%). Only 39% of the respondents would prefer the use of herbal medicine to modern medicine. Fever was the main ailment mentioned followed by eye ailment and stomach ache. Vernonia amygdalina was the main plant for the treatment of fever. Conclusion: The study revealed that parents are the major custodians of knowledge being transferred to the younger generation and little or none is learnt from Schools. There is therefore the need to include the study of herbal medicines in School’s curricula especially at SS 2 and SS 3 since they are matured enough to appreciate the importance of Herbal medicine so as to prepare them for the promotion of herbal medicine in future and to preserve our indigenous knowledge. PMID:26234964

Approach to a State of the Art of Traditional and Popular Medicinal Practices in Hispano-American

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Omar Alberto Garzón Chirivi

2015-04-01

Full Text Available DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17227/01234870.41folios157.168 This article presents a state of the art of academic production concerning traditional and popular medicine in Latin America. It analyzes the relation between studies on chamanismo (the art of medicine men in indigenous communities in some Spanish-speaking countries (Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Mexico, Spain and studies on curanderismo (the art of healers in urban contexts and evidences recurring elements of a magical, religious and medical kind in their therapeutic practices. Likewise, it shows the changes in the understanding of these systems of treatment and assistance to health and sickness, their permanence and incidence on collective practices associated to spirituality, as well as the construction of alternatives of individual and social health and the interdisciplinary character of the existing research studies. This article, too, proposes the existence of an analytical vacuum regarding gender, class and ethnic group in the studies on traditional and popular medicine.

Protecting traditional knowledge from the grassroots up

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arugomedo, Alejandro [ANDES Association (Peru); Pant, Ruchi [Ecoserve (India); Vedavathy, S. [Herbal Folklore Reseach Centre (India); Munyi, Peter [International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Kenya); Mutta, Doris [Kenya Forestry Research Institute (Kenya); Herrera, Heracilo [Dobbo Yala Foundation (Panama); Song, Yinching; Li, Jingsong [Centre of Chinese Agricultural Policy (China); Swiderska, Krystyna

2009-06-15

For indigenous peoples round the world, traditional knowledge based on natural resources such as medicinal herbs forms the core of culture and identity. But this wealth of knowledge is under pressure. Indigenous communities are increasingly vulnerable to eviction, environmental degradation and outside interests eager to monopolise control over their traditional resources. Intellectual property rights such as patents, however, sit uneasily with traditional knowledge. Their commercial focus wars with fundamental indigenous principles such as resource access and sharing. Local customary law offers a better fit, and findings in China, India, Kenya, Panama and Peru show how this pairing can work in practice. The research has identified common elements, and key differences, in customary law that should be informing policy on traditional knowledge and genetic resources.

Vietnamese traditional medicine from a pharmacist's perspective.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Woerdenbag, H.J.; Nguyen, T.M.; Vu, D.V.; Tran, H.; Nguyen, D.T.; Tran, T.V.; Smet, P.A.G.M. de; Brouwers, J.R.B.J.

2012-01-01

Traditional medicine plays an important role in the healthcare system of Vietnam. Vietnamese traditional medicine (VTM) is underpinned by the oriental philosophy and theory of healing. VTM is largely influenced by traditional Chinese medicine, but differs to a certain extent. VTM is largely not

Vietnamese traditional medicine from a pharmacist's perspective

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Woerdenbag, H.J.; Nguyen, T.M.; Vu, D.V.; Tran, Hung; Nguyen, D.T.; Tran, T.V.; De Smet, P.A.; Brouwers, J.R.

Traditional medicine plays an important role in the healthcare system of Vietnam. Vietnamese traditional medicine (VTM) is underpinned by the oriental philosophy and theory of healing. VTM is largely influenced by traditional Chinese medicine, but differs to a certain extent. VTM is largely not

Traditional medicine for the rich and knowledgeable

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thorsen, Rikke Stamp; Pouliot, Mariéve

2016-01-01

Traditional medicine is commonly assumed to be a crucial health care option for poor households in developing countries. However, little research has been done in Asia to quantify the reliance on traditional medicine and its determinants. This research contributes to filling in this knowledge gap...... show that traditional medicine, and especially self-treatment with medicinal plants, prevail as treatment options in both rural and peri-urban populations. Contrarily to what is commonly assumed, high income is an important determinant of use of traditional medicine. Likewise, knowledge of medicinal...... plants, age, education, gender and illness chronicity were also significant determinants. The importance of self-treatment with medicinal plants should inform the development of health policy tailored to people’s treatment-seeking behaviour....

Comparison of Sasang Constitutional Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jong Yeol; Pham, Duong Duc; Koh, Byung Hee

2011-01-01

Sasang constitutional medicine (SCM), traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and Ayurveda are three different forms of Asian traditional medicine. Although these traditions share a lot in common as holistic medicines, the different philosophical foundations found in each confer distinguishing attributes and unique qualities. SCM is based on a constitution-based approach, and is in this way relatively more similar to the Ayurvedic tradition than to the TCM, although many of the basic SCM theories were originally derived from TCM, a syndrome-based medicine. SCM and TCM use the same botanical materials that are distributed mainly in the East Asian region, but the basic principles of usage and the underlying rationale are completely different from each other. Meanwhile, the principles of the Ayurvedic use of botanical resources are very similar to those seen in SCM, but the medicinal herbs used in Ayurveda generally originate from the West Asian region which displays a different spectrum of flora. PMID:21949669

Comparison of Sasang Constitutional Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda

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Jong Yeol Kim

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Sasang constitutional medicine (SCM, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM and Ayurveda are three different forms of Asian traditional medicine. Although these traditions share a lot in common as holistic medicines, the different philosophical foundations found in each confer distinguishing attributes and unique qualities. SCM is based on a constitution-based approach, and is in this way relatively more similar to the Ayurvedic tradition than to the TCM, although many of the basic SCM theories were originally derived from TCM, a syndrome-based medicine. SCM and TCM use the same botanical materials that are distributed mainly in the East Asian region, but the basic principles of usage and the underlying rationale are completely different from each other. Meanwhile, the principles of the Ayurvedic use of botanical resources are very similar to those seen in SCM, but the medicinal herbs used in Ayurveda generally originate from the West Asian region which displays a different spectrum of flora.

True ownership of traditional medicines in South Africa

OpenAIRE

Gabriel Louw; André Duvenhage

2017-01-01

Background Literature postulates that traditional medicines form an important part of modern-day South African healthcare. The belief is that the traditional healer and traditional medicine is a close-knit unit, with the traditional healer as the true owner and manufacturer of traditional medicines. Various studies also postulate that the growth and development of South African traditional medicines are restricted by the pharmaceutical industries and other role players...

Using traditional methods and indigenous technologies for coping with climate variability

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stigter, C.J.; Zheng Dawei,; Onyewotu, L.O.Z.; Mei Xurong,

2005-01-01

In agrometeorology and management of meteorology related natural resources, many traditional methods and indigenous technologies are still in use or being revived for managing low external inputs sustainable agriculture (LEISA) under conditions of climate variability. This paper starts with the

Ethnobotanical investigation of traditional medicinal plants commercialized in the markets of Mashhad, Iran

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Mohammad Sadegh Amiri

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Objective: An ethnobotanical survey on the medicinal plant species marketed in Mashhad city, northeastern Iran, was conducted in order to document traditional medicinal knowledge and application of medicinal plants. Materials and Methods: This study was undertaken between 2011 and 2012. The indigenous knowledge of traditional healers used for medicinal purposes were collected through questionnaire and personal interviews during field trips. Ethnobotanical data was arranged alphabetically by family name followed by botanical name, vernacular name, part used, folk use, and recipe. Correct identification was made with the help of the various Floras and different herbal literature at the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad Herbarium (FUMH. Results: The present investigation reported medicinal information for about 269 species, belonging to 87 vascular plant families and one fungus family. The most important family was Lamiaceae with 26 species, followed by Asteraceae with 23, Fabaceae with 20, and Apiaceae with 19. Herbal medicine uses reported by herbalists was classified into 132 different uses which show significant results to treat a wide spectrum of human ailments. Plants sold at the market were mostly used for digestive system disorders, respiratory problems, urological troubles, nervous system disorders, skin problems, and gynecological ailments. Conclusion: This survey showed that although people in study area have access to modern medical facilities,  a lot of them still continue to depend on medicinal plants for the treatment of healthcare problems. The present paper represents significant ethnobotanical information on medical plants which provides baseline data for future pharmacological and phytochemical studies.

[Design of traditional Chinese medicines with antihypertensive components based on medicinal property combination modes].

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Liao, Su-Fen; Yan, Su-Rong; Guo, Wei-Jia; Luo, Ji; Sun, Jing; Dong, Fang; Wang, Yun; Qiao, Yan-Jiang

2014-07-01

Multi-component traditional Chinese medicines are an innovative research mode for traditional Chinese medicines. Currently, there are many design methods for developing multi-component traditional Chinese medicines, but their common feature is the lack of effective connection of the traditional Chinese medicine theory. In this paper, the authors discussed the multi-component traditional Chinese medicine design methods based on medicinal property combination modes, provided the combination methods with the characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine for the prescription combinations, and proved its feasibly with hypertension cases.

Indigenous knowledge systems for the treatment of hypertension in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Indigenous knowledge systems for the treatment of hypertension in Lusaka, Zambia: ... are said to access traditional medicine (TM) for their disease management. ... Healers & Practitioners Association of Zambia (THPAZ) operating from within ...

Indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants of Chagharzai valley, district Buner, Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alam, N.; Shinwari, Z.K.; Ilyas, M.; Ullah, Z.

2011-01-01

Indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants was recorded during summer 2004, in 22 villages of Chagharzai valley, District Buner. The study revealed 141 plant species belonging to 120 genera and 26 families are being used as medicine. The local people know the prospect and nature of the plant utilization, through personal experiences and ancestral prescriptions. The study also revealed that old aged people particularly women posses strong folk love of medicinal plants in comparison to young people. It was concluded that some plants are used singly while many other are used in combination. Similarly few plant species are used for the treatment of a specific disease, while several other have multiple uses. The plants were mainly used as stomachic, anti-allergic, antineuralgia, vermifuge, narcotic, laxative, anti jaundice, emollient, hypnotic, diuretic, digestive, demulcent, carminative, astringent, aphrodisiac, anti-spasmodic, anti-emetic, anti-diabetic, anthelmentic, anodyne and alterative. The present investigation will help in the preservation of indigenous knowledge of the local people, which is depleting day by day. (author)

[Study on incompatibility of traditional Chinese medicines].

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Fan, Xin-sheng; Duan, Jin-ao; Hua, Hao-ming; Qian, Da-wei; Shang, Er-xin; Guo, Jian-ming

2015-04-01

The incompatibility of traditional Chinese medicines is related to the clinical medication safety, so has attracted wide attentions from the public. With the deepening of studies on the incompatibility of traditional Chinese medicines represented by 18 incompatible herbs, the incompatibility of theory traditional Chinese medicines has raised to new heights. From the origin of incompatibility theory of traditional Chinese medicines, relationship of herbs, harms of incompatible herbs and principle of prevention to toxic effects of specific incompatible medicines, the innovation and development of the traditional Chinese medicine incompatibility theory was explored. Structurally, the incompatibility of traditional Chinese medicines refers to the opposition of two herbs based on seven emotions and clinical experience. The combination of incompatible herbs may lead to human harms, especially latent harm and inefficacy of intervention medicines. The avoidance of the combination of incompatible herbs and the consideration of both symptoms and drug efficacy are the basic method to prevent adverse reactions. The recent studies have revealed five characteristics of incompatible herbs. Toxicity potentiation, toxication, efficacy reduction and inefficacy are the four manifestations of the incompatible relations. The material changes can reflect the effects of toxicity potentiation and toxication of opposite herbs. The accumulation of toxicity and metabolic changes are the basis for latent harms. The antagonistic effect of main efficacies and the coexistence of positive and negative effects are the distinctive part of the incompatibility. The connotation of incompatible herbs plays an important role in the innovation of the traditional Chinese medicine incompatibility theory.

Traditional medicine applied by the Saraguro yachakkuna: a preliminary approach to the use of sacred and psychoactive plant species in the southern region of Ecuador.

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Armijos, Chabaco; Cota, Iuliana; González, Silvia

2014-02-24

During the colonial period, the indigenous saraguros maintained their traditions, knowledge, and practices to restore and preserve the health of their members. Unfortunately, many of their practices and medicinal resources have not been documented. In this study, we sought to document the traditional healers' (yachakkuna saraguros) knowledge about medicinal and psychoactive plants used in the mesas and in magical-religious rituals. The study was conducted under a technical and scientific cooperation agreement between the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja (UTPL), the Dirección Provincial de Salud de Loja (DPSL), and the Saraguro Healers Council (Consejo de Sanadores de Saraguro). For the present study, the DPSL and Saraguro Healers Council selected the 10 yachakkuna most recognized for their knowledge and their use of sacred and psychoactive species. Ten interviews with the selected yachakkuna were conducted between 2010 and 2011 to ascertain how the Saraguro traditional healing system is structured and to obtain a record of the sacred and medicinal plant species used to treat supernatural diseases and for psychoactive purposes. The present study describes the traditional health system in the Saraguro indigenous community located in southern Ecuador. It also describes the main empirical methods used to diagnose diseases: direct physical examination of the patient, observation of the patient's urine, documentation of the patient's pulse, limpia, palpation and visionary methods, including supernatural diseases (susto, vaho de agua, mal aire, mal hecho, shuka) and reports of the use of sacred and medicinal psychoactive plants, such as the San Pedro cactus (Echinopsis pachanoi), wandug (Brugmansia spp.), and tobacco (Nicotiana spp.). This study also describes the rituals (limpia, soplada) employed by the Saraguro yachakkuna to treat supernatural diseases. Finally, we report on the main plants used during limpia in the Saraguro community. The current traditional

Traditional Indian medicine (TIM) and traditional Korean medicine (TKM): aconstitutional-based concept and comparison.

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Kang, Young Min; Komakech, Richard; Karigar, Chandrakant Shivappa; Saqib, Asma

2017-06-01

Traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) plays an integral role in providing health care worldwide. It is based on sound fundamental principles and centuries of practices. This study compared traditional Indian medicine (TIM) and traditional Korean medicine (TKM) basing on data obtained from peer reviewed articles, respective government institutional reports and World Health Organization reports. Despite the fact that TIM and TKM have individual qualities that are unique from each other including different histories of origin, they share a lot in common. Apart from Homeopathy in TIM, both systems are hinged on similar principle of body constitutional-based concept and similar disease diagnosis methods of mainly auscultation, palpation, visual inspection, and interrogation. Similarly, the treatment methods of TIM and TKM follow similar patterns involving use of medicinal herbs, moxibustion, acupuncture, cupping, and manual therapy. Both T&CM are majorly practiced in well-established hospitals by T&CM doctors who have undergone an average of 6-7 years of specialized trainings. However, unlike TIM which has less insurance coverage, the popularity of TKM is majorly due to its wide national insurance coverage. These two medical traditions occupy increasingly greater portion of the global market. However, TIM especially Ayurveda has gained more global recognition than TKM although the emergence of Sasang Constitutional Medicine in TKM is beginning to become more popular. This comparative analysis between TIM and TKM may provide vital and insightful contribution towards constitutional-based concept for further development and future studies in T&CM.

Indigenous African foods plants: vehicles of disease or sources of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This study determines the mycological quality of traditional leafy vegetables, commonly referred to as morogo, and investigates the folate content of such crops, as well as the antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic potential of indigenous rooibos tea and other traditional food and medicinal plants. Results showed that a ...

Herbal Medicines: from Traditional Medicine to Modern Experimental Approaches

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Bahram Rasoulian

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Academic writings indicate that the medicinal use of plants dates back to 4000 - 5000 B.C. (1. Utilization of medicinal herbs has indeed a long history not only in human's life, but also in animals and there are some interesting evidences about the animals' self-medication, in both the prevention and treatment of diseases (2-5. The World Health Organization (WHO has recognized the importance of traditional medicines and created strategies, guidelines and standards for botanical medicines (6, 7. A significant part of those traditional text dealing with medicine, which were appreciated by ancient scientific communities worldwide, such as The Canon of Medicine by Persian physician–philosopher Ibn Sina (or Avicenna, 980 to 1032 AD, is allocated to herbal medicines. The Canon explores nearly 500 medicinal plants and herbal drugs. It should be noted that this book was used as a medical textbook in Europe until the 17th century AD (8, 9. Although there are important evidences about using some kinds of experimental approaches in traditional medicine (8, the efficacy of such approaches is in doubt because it is generally agreed that they might have been part of physicians' personal experiences. Not only the demand for herbal drugs is growing in developing countries, but also there are some evidences that consumers in developed countries are becoming disillusioned with modern healthcare; hence, the demand for traditional alternatives including herbal medicines is increasing in developing countries (10. On the one hand, the increased interest in herbal medicines throughout the world (10, 11, on the other hand, the need for direct empirical evidence about the effectiveness of herbal medicines in the proper statistical society with the appropriate number and method, denote the significance of new studies about medicinal plants and publishing their results. Herbal Medicines Journal (eISSN: 2538-2144 reports valuable research results for researchers all

Medicinal Herbs Affecting Gray Hair in Iranian Traditional Medicine.

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Rameshk, Maryam; Khandani, Shahram Kalantari; Raeiszadeh, Mahboobeh

2016-05-01

The presence of hair plays an important role in people's overall physical appearance and self-perception. As a result of increased life expectancy, the desire to look youthful plays a bigger role than ever.The use of medicinal plants is as old as mankind and the market will face many new products containing natural oils and herbs in coming years. In traditional Iranian medicine, many plants and herbal formulations are reported for hair growth as well as the improvement in hair quality. The aim of this article is to introduce effective medicinal plants in traditional Iranian medicine to prevent gray hair and advocate them as the new products. The present investigation is an overview study and has been codified by library search in the main sources of traditional Iranian medicine. In traditional Iranian medicine, three types of formulations are proposed to prevent gray hair, namely (i) treatment compounds, (ii) preventive compounds, and (iii) hair dyes to color gray hairs. Our search showed that the main parts of a plant that is used in the treatment and preventive compounds are seeds and fruits. These are primarily in the form of topical oil or oral compound (electuary). The majority of plant parts used in hair dyes is from the fruit and/or leaves. Natural products are highly popular and the use of plant extracts in formulations is on the rise. This is because synthetic based product may cause health hazards with several side effects. Considering the increased popularity of herbal drugs in hair care, it is worthwhile to conduct systemic investigation on the production and efficacy of these drugs. We trust that our investigation would encourage the use of traditional Iranian medicine in future hair care products.

Traditional Mediterranean and European herbal medicines.

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Leonti, Marco; Verpoorte, Robert

2017-03-06

Written history allows tracing back Mediterranean and European medical traditions to Greek antiquity. The epidemiological shift triggered by the rise of modern medicine and industrialization is reflected in contemporary reliance and preferences for certain herbal medicines. We sketch the development and transmission of written herbal medicine through Mediterranean and European history and point out the opportunity to connect with modern traditions. An ethnopharmacological database linking past and modern medical traditions could serve as a tool for crosschecking contemporary ethnopharmacological field-data as well as a repository for data mining. Considering that the diachronic picture emerging from such a database has an epidemiological base this could lead to new hypotheses related to evolutionary medicine. The advent of systems pharmacology and network pharmacology opens new perspectives for studying past and current herbal medicine. Since a large part of modern drugs has its roots in ancient traditions one may expect new leads for drug development from novel systemic studies, as well as evidence for the activity of certain herbal preparations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Medicine--the art of humaneness: on ethics of traditional Chinese medicine.

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Qiu, R Z

1988-08-01

This essay discusses the ethics of traditional Chinese medicine. After a brief remark on the history of traditional Chinese medical ethics, the author outlines the Confucian ethics which formed the cultural context in which traditional Chinese medicine was evolving and constituted the core of its ethics. Then he argued that how Chinese physicians applied the principles of Confucian ethics in medicine and prescribed the attitude a physician should take to himself, to patients and to his colleagues. In the last part of the essay he discusses the characteristics of traditional Chinese medical ethics.

Traditional Indian medicine (TIM and traditional Korean medicine (TKM: aconstitutional-based concept and comparison

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Young Min Kang

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM plays an integral role in providing health care worldwide. It is based on sound fundamental principles and centuries of practices. This study compared traditional Indian medicine (TIM and traditional Korean medicine (TKM basing on data obtained from peer reviewed articles, respective government institutional reports and World Health Organization reports. Despite the fact that TIM and TKM have individual qualities that are unique from each other including different histories of origin, they share a lot in common. Apart from Homeopathy in TIM, both systems are hinged on similar principle of body constitutional-based concept and similar disease diagnosis methods of mainly auscultation, palpation, visual inspection, and interrogation. Similarly, the treatment methods of TIM and TKM follow similar patterns involving use of medicinal herbs, moxibustion, acupuncture, cupping, and manual therapy. Both T&CM are majorly practiced in well-established hospitals by T&CM doctors who have undergone an average of 6–7 years of specialized trainings. However, unlike TIM which has less insurance coverage, the popularity of TKM is majorly due to its wide national insurance coverage. These two medical traditions occupy increasingly greater portion of the global market. However, TIM especially Ayurveda has gained more global recognition than TKM although the emergence of Sasang Constitutional Medicine in TKM is beginning to become more popular. This comparative analysis between TIM and TKM may provide vital and insightful contribution towards constitutional-based concept for further development and future studies in T&CM.

Traditional medicines, HIV, and related infections: workshop 2C.

Science.gov (United States)

Patel, M; Bessong, P; Liu, H

2011-04-01

Traditional medicines are an integral part of health care worldwide, even though their efficacy has not been scientifically proven. HIV-infected individuals may use them singularly or in combination with conventional medicines. Many in vitro studies have proven the anti-HIV, anti-Candida, and anti-herpes simplex virus potential of traditional plants and identified some of the mechanisms of action. Very few in vivo studies are available that involve a small number of participants and show controversial results. In addition, knowledge is limited of the role of traditional medicines in the enhancement of the immune system. The use of traditional medicines with antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) has created a problem because drug interactions compromise the efficacy of ARVs. Several currently popular plants have been studied in the laboratory for their interaction with ARVs, with disadvantageous results. Unfortunately, no clinical trials are available. The science of traditional medicines is relatively new and is at present being modernized worldwide. However, there are still ethical issues regarding traditional medicines that need to be addressed-for example, regulations regarding quality control and standardization of medicines, regulation and education of healers who deliver these medicines, and unregulated clinical trials. The workshop addressed the following questions about traditional medicine and their use in HIV infection: What are the mechanisms of action of anti-HIV traditional medicines? Should traditional medicines be used in conjunction with ARV? Do traditional medicines enhance the immune system? Should medicinal plants be used for the control of oral infections associated with HIV? What are the ethical issues surrounding the use of traditional medicines for the treatment of HIV and associated infections?

Traditional use and management of medicinal and magical plants in the Sibundoy Valley, High Putumayo, and their relationship with local processes of environmental construction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodriguez Echeverry, John James

2010-01-01

This study generated ethno-botanical knowledge and community experience that contribute to local processes of environmental construction processes from the recognition, evaluation and strengthening of traditional forms of use and handling of medicinal and magical plants among Inga, kamentza and quillacinga ethnics that live in the Valle de Sibundoy, high Putumayo, Colombia. It was referenced the Environmental Building Model used by the three ethnic groups, from traditional use and management of medicinal and magical plants in the Chagra agro-ecosystem, model based on the traditional medical system and everyday practices involving environmental assessment, practices that facilitate the preservation and dynamics of flora and indigenous traditional knowledge. Finally, this important environmental information contributes to the quality of the actions of regional planning.

The commercialization of traditional medicine in modern Cambodia.

Science.gov (United States)

Ros, Bandeth; Lê, Gillian; McPake, Barbara; Fustukian, Suzanne

2018-01-01

Globally, traditional medicine has long been used to address relatively common illness, mental ill health and during childbirth and post-natal care. However, traditional medicine is primarily provided by the private sector and it is unclear how far expenditures on traditional medicine contribute to household impoverishment. A life history method was used to understand the health seeking experience of 24 households over the last 60 years in Cambodia, a country with high out-of-pocket expenditures for health. The life histories suggest that traditional medicine in Cambodia has been undergoing a process of commercialization, with significant impacts on poor households. In the earlier lives of respondents, payments for traditional medicine were reported to have been flexible, voluntary or appropriate to patients' financial means. In contrast, contemporary practitioners appear to seek immediate cash payments that have frequently led to considerable debt and asset sales by traditional medicine users. Given traditional medicine's popularity as a source of treatment in Cambodia and its potential to contribute to household impoverishment, we suggest that it needs to be included in a national conversation about achieving Universal Health Coverage in the country. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press in association with The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Constipation due to Liver Disorder in Iranian Traditional Medicine`s Viewpoint

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R Choopani

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Constipation is one of the most common pediatric disorders.In many cases, there is no anatomic endocrineor metabolic cause in explanation of chronic constipation.More than 85% of them called functional or idiopathic.Constipation is one of the serious disease in Iranian Traditional Medicine. Besides the problem it causes, chronic constipation can be the origin of many disease. That is why, ithas been called Mother of disease.The purpose of this study is to investigate the Constipation in children and the role of other organs such as the liver by view of Iranian Traditional Medicine   Materials and Method: This study is a review through Iranian traditional medicine references. At first, all the main available traditional books were reviewed. All the data about therapies of vaginal discharge in ITM were collected then classified.   Results: In traditional medicine different reasons have been mentioned for constipation especially for childrenwhich most of them are similar to etiology in Modern Medicine.Constipation due to liver disorder is one of the causes of constipation.In Iranian Traditional medicine` viewpoint, one of the mechanism for excretion is existence of secreted bile in intestine.If by any reason,measure or quality of its which secreted in intestine through bile changes or if intestinal mucous secretion becomes barrier for absorbing the food,it will caused disorder in excretion and finally will lead to constipation.Well known Iranian Traditional Medicine scientists, has mentioned all reasons for liver disorders and changing quality& quantity of secreted bile .he has mentioned the solutions as well.   Conclusion: It is hoped that by paying attention to constipation and with advanced clinical research we will be able to explain idiopathic constipation and prepare new ways of treatments for constipation. New researches have approved the effectiveness of these foods and drugs for treating the constipation.   Keywords

Traditional Chinese and Thai medicine in a comparative perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Ke

2015-12-01

The work presented in this paper compares traditional Chinese medicine and traditional Thai medicine, expounding on origins, academic thinking, theoretical system, diagnostic method and modern development. Based on a secondary analysis of available literature, the paper concentrates on two crucial historical developments: (1) the response to, and consequences of, the impact of the Western medicine; and (2) the revival of traditional medicine in these two countries and its prospects. From a comparative perspective, the analysis has led to the conclusion that the rise and fall of traditional medicine is an issue closely related with social and political issues; and the development of traditional medicines requires national policy and financial support from governments, human resource development, the improvement of service quality, and the dissemination of traditional medicine knowledge to the public. In addition, this paper also suggests deepening exchanges and cooperation between China and Thailand, strengthening cooperation between traditional medicine and medical tourism. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Ethnobotanical Study of Plants Used by People in Hiang Indigenous Forest Kerinci, Jambi

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Evan Vria Andesmora

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Indonesia is a high-abundance tropical forests country. It plays a very important role for world life because of its species richness than others. One of the forest resources in Indonesia is indigenous forests. Indonesia is rich of local wisdom such as that possessed by indigenous peoples. Indigenous peoples have a potential of the biological resources conservation. As a sustainable management tradition, communities around indigenous forest also have the efforts to preserve the forest.  The data collection of community knowledge about plants was conducted by interviews and direct-field observation. Data were analyzed using index of cultural significance. The results showed that there are 48 species of plants utilized by communities in Hiang Indigenous Forest, 27 species are used as firewoods, 15 species as building materials, 7 species as medicinal plants, 6 species as traditional handicraft ingredients and 4 species as secondary foods and traditional ritual materials. Most of widely-used plants by the community are Altingia excels, and Styrax benzoin is used as incense in a traditional ritual.

Traditional use of medicinal plants by the Jaintia tribes in North Cachar Hills district of Assam, northeast India

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Gosai Kuldip

2006-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract The study of ethnobotany relating to any tribe is in itself a very intricate or convoluted process. This paper documents the traditional knowledge of medicinal plants that are in use by the indigenous Jaintia tribes residing in few isolated pockets of northeast India. The present study was done through structured questionnaires in consultations with the tribal practitioners and has resulted in the documentation of 39 medicinal plant species belonging to 27 families and 35 genera. For curing diverse form of ailments, the use of aboveground plant parts was higher (76.59% than the underground plant parts (23.41%. Of the aboveground plant parts, leaf was used in the majority of cases (23 species, followed by fruit (4. Different underground plant forms such as root, tuber, rhizome, bulb and pseudo-bulb were also found to be in use by the Jaintia tribe as a medicine. Altogether, 30 types of ailments have been reported to be cured by using these 39 medicinal plant species. The study thus underlines the potentials of the ethnobotanical research and the need for the documentation of traditional ecological knowledge pertaining to the medicinal plant utilization for the greater benefit of mankind.

Traditional Chinese Medicine: An Introduction

Science.gov (United States)

... Resources CME/CEU and Online Lectures Online Continuing Education Series Distinguished Lecture Series Integrated Medicine Research Lecture ... TCM, it is important to separate questions about traditional theories and ... of modern science-based medicine and health promotion practices. The ...

Recognition and respect for African traditional medicine | IDRC ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

2011-02-01

Feb 1, 2011 ... ... where he presented recommendations from traditional healers on how traditional medicine ... Recognizing that traditional medicine is “the most affordable and accessible system of health care for the .... Related articles ...

Medicinal Plants in Neurodegenerative Diseases: Perspective of Traditional Persian Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Farzaei, Mohammad Hosein; Shahpiri, Zahra; Mehri, Mohammad Reza; Bahramsoltani, Roodabeh; Rezaei, Mahdi; Raeesdana, Azade; Rahimi, Roja

2018-01-01

Neurodegenerative diseases are a progressive loss of structure and/or function of neurons. Weak therapeutic response and progressive nature of the diseases, as well as a wide range of side effects caused by conventional therapeutic approaches make patients seek for complementary and alternative medicine. The aim of the present paper is to discuss the neuropharmacological basis of medicinal plants and their principle phytochemicals which have been used in traditional Persian medicine for different types of neurodegenerative diseases. Medicinal plants introduced in traditional Persian medicine perform beneficial effects in neurodegenerative diseases via various cellular and molecular mechanisms including suppression of apoptosis mediated by an increase in the expression of anti-apoptotic agents (e.g. Bcl-2) as well as a decrease in the expression and activity of proapoptotic proteins (e.g. Bax, caspase 3 and 9). Alleviating inflammatory responses and suppressing the expression and function of pro-inflammatory cytokines like Tumor necrosis factor α and interleukins, as well as improvement in antioxidative performance mediated by superoxide dismutase and catalase, are among other neuroprotective mechanisms of traditional medicinal plants. Modulation of transcription, transduction, intracellular signaling pathways including ERK, p38, and MAPK, with upstream regulatory activity on inflammatory cascades, apoptosis and oxidative stress associated pathways, play an essential role in the preventive and therapeutic potential of the plants in neurodegenerative diseases. Medicinal plants used in traditional Persian medicine along with their related phytochemicals by affecting various neuropharmacological pathways can be considered as future drugs or adjuvant therapies with conventional pharmacotherapeutics; though, further clinical studies are necessary for the confirmation of their safety and efficacy. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at

Sex ratio at birth in India, its relation to birth order, sex of previous children and use of indigenous medicine.

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Samiksha Manchanda

Full Text Available OBJECTIVE: Sex-ratio at birth in families with previous girls is worse than those with a boy. Our aim was to prospectively study in a large maternal and child unit sex-ratio against previous birth sex and use of traditional medicines for sex selection. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Sex-ratio among mothers in families with a previous girl and in those with a previous boy, prevalence of indigenous medicine use and sex-ratio in those using medicines for sex selection. RESULTS: Overall there were 806 girls to 1000 boys. The sex-ratio was 720:1000 if there was one previous girl and 178:1000 if there were two previous girls. In second children of families with a previous boy 1017 girls were born per 1000 boys. Sex-ratio in those with one previous girl, who were taking traditional medicines for sex selection, was 928:1000. CONCLUSION: Evidence from the second children clearly shows the sex-ratio is being manipulated by human interventions. More mothers with previous girls tend to use traditional medicines for sex selection, in their subsequent pregnancies. Those taking such medication do not seem to be helped according to expectations. They seem to rely on this method and so are less likely use more definitive methods like sex selective abortions. This is the first such prospective investigation of sex ratio in second children looked at against the sex of previous children. More studies are needed to confirm the findings.

Traditional use of medicinal plants among Kalasha, Ismaeli and Sunni groups in Chitral District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan.

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Sher, Hassan; Bussmann, Rainer W; Hart, Robbie; de Boer, Hugo J

2016-07-21

The traditional use of medicinal plants for the treatment of human and livestock ailments is important to indigenous communities in the northern parts of Pakistan, and considered to be a valuable local biological and sociocultural heritage. The aim of this study was to obtain a detailed inventory of medicinal plant use and preparation among Kalasha, Ismaeli and Sunni groups. Semi-structured group and individual interviews were carried out with men and women of different age groups that identified themselves as being Kalasha, Ismaeli or Sunni. Interviews were followed up by field visits to collect herbarium vouchers and record in greater detail the exact methods of harvesting, preparation and use on medicinal plants. A total of 76 species were recorded for treatment of various diseases. The Kalasha, Ismaili and Sunni ethnic groups have similar medicinal floras, but show striking differences in plant use. Our comparative survey shows that out of all species reported in this study, only 13 species have been reported previously from Chitral District. Indigenous knowledge of folk medicine is intricately linked to local culture, religion and history. Any short study can only scratch the surface of this intricate system, but provide an insight into the critical importance of medicinal plants for local livelihoods and the important role these play in health care systems. There is a great need to assess and properly manage the production potential of medicinal plants to ensure sustainable supply of these species for local use and subsistence trade. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

From medical tradition to traditional medicine: A Tibetan formula in the European framework.

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Schwabl, Herbert; Vennos, Cécile

2015-06-05

The increasing prevalence of complex multi-factorial chronic diseases and multimorbidity reveals the need for an enlargement of the therapeutic options. Potent multicompound herbal formulations from traditional medicine systems such as Tibetan Medicine might meet the requirements. With its practice over the centuries Tibetan Medicine is one of the important medical heritages of the world. In the 20th century Tibetan formulas came to Switzerland, where the formula Gabur-25 was then registered as medicine in 1977 (Padma 28, Swissmedic No 35872). The new European directive 2004/24/EC opened the avenue for traditional herbal medicinal products and registrations followed in Austria (HERB-00037) and the UK (39568/0001). The aim of this review was to analyse not only the critical points and hazards but also chances that occur in the endeavour of bringing a ethnopharmacological based preparation to the market within a modern Western medical and regulatory framework and to discuss the necessary transformation steps from a traditional herbal formula towards a modern pharmaceutical product with the example of the Tibetan formula Gabur-25. The historic transformation process from the 19th to the 21st century is analysed, using the registration documents and other material from the library of Padma AG, Hinwil, Switzerland. The transformation of a traditional formula into a modern traditional herbal medicinal product according to the present EU regulations is a multi faceted process. The modern indication represents only a small part of the possible traditional indications. Quality and product labelling has to be adopted to modern standards. The formula, once registered, is a fixed combination of herbal and mineral ingredients. Contrary to this the concept of Asian medical tradition allows a certain flexibility in the composition of an herbal formula. The ingredients are constantly adapted to local conditions, availability of raw material and therapeutic situation. The example

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used against human ailments in Gubalafto District, Northern Ethiopia.

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Chekole, Getnet

2017-10-04

Traditional medicinal plant species documentation is very crucial in Ethiopia for biodiversity conservation, bioactive chemical extractions and indigenous knowledge retention. Having first observed the inhabitants of Gubalafto District (Northern Ethiopia), the author gathered, recorded, and documented the human traditional medicinal plant species and the associated indigenous knowledge. The study was conducted from February 2013 to January 2015 and used descriptive field survey design. Eighty-four informants were selected from seven study kebeles (sub-districts) in the District through purposive, snowball, and random sampling techniques. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews, guided field walks, demonstrations, and focus group discussions with the help of guided questions. Data were organized and analyzed by descriptive statistics with SPSS version 20 and Microsoft Office Excel 2007. A total of 135 medicinal plant species within 120 genera and 64 families were documented. Among the species, Ocimum lamiifolium and Rhamnus prinoides scored the highest informant citations and fidelity level value, respectively. In the study area, Asteraceae with 8.1% and herbs with 50.4% plant species were the most used sources for their medicinal uses. A total of 65 ailments were identified as being treated by traditional medicinal plants, among which stomachache (abdominal health problems) was frequently reported. Solanum incanum was reported for the treatment of many of the reported diseases. The leaf, fresh parts, and crushed forms of the medicinal plants were the most preferred in remedy preparations. Oral application was the highest reported administration for 110 preparations. A majority of medicinal plant species existed in the wild without any particular conservation effort. Few informants (about 5%) had only brief notes about the traditional medicinal plants. Ninety percent of the respondents have learned indigenous

An Assessment Of Traditional Uighur Medicine In Current Xinjiang ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Results: Data showed that, among the registered and studied traditional Uighur medicine, the main therapeutic areas of traditional Uighur medicine focused on skin disease, urogenital disease, rheumatism and digestive system disease. The representative traditional Uighur patent medicine included the following: ...

Determination of copper in some Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myint-U; Kyi Kyi San

1994-01-01

Copper was determined in two Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis using an Am(Be) radionuclide neutron source. The activity of 511 keV peak of the 64 Cu was measured. (author) 2 refs.; 2 tabs

[Research progress of Chinese herbal medicine and traditional Chinese medicine resulting in liver injury].

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Wang, Jingli; Zhou, Chaofan

2011-12-01

The adverse reactions caused by Chinese herbal medicine and traditional Chinese medicine are reported increased in recent years, among which the acute liver injury caused by Chinese herbal medicine accounts for 21.5% of total liver injuries. Despite the misuse of traditional Chinese medicine not in accordance with differentiation of symptoms and signs, the adverse reaction of Chinese herbal medicine itself can't be little to these adverse events. The paper summarizes the most common categories of traditional Chinese medicine resulting in liver injury, the mechanism, pathological characteristics, clinical symptom of liver injury, the reasons of the reaction and how to prevent. The research aims to enhance the clinical physician recognition of liver injury caused by Chinese herbal medicine, in order to ensure the safe and rational usage of traditional Chinese medicine.

Indigenous knowledge management to enhance community resilience to tsunami risk: lessons learned from Smong traditions in Simeulue island, Indonesia

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Rahman, A.; Sakurai, A.; Munadi, K.

2017-02-01

Knowledge accumulation and production embedded in communities through social interactions meant that the Smong tradition of indigenous knowledge of tsunami risk successfully alerted people to the 2004 tsunami, on the island of Simeulue, in Aceh, Indonesia. Based on this practical example, an indigenous management model was developed for Smong information. This knowledge management method involves the transformation of indigenous knowledge into applicable ways to increase community resilience, including making appropriate decisions and taking action in three disaster phases. First, in the pre-disaster stage, the community needs to be willing to mainstream and integrate indigenous knowledge of disaster risk reduction issues into related activities. Second, during disasters, the Smong tradition should make the community able to think clearly, act based on informed decisions, and protect themselves and others by using their indigenous knowledge. Last, in the post-disaster phase, the community needs to be strong enough to face challenges and support each other and “building back better” efforts, using local resources. The findings for the Smong tradition provide valuable knowledge about community resilience. Primary community resilience to disasters is strongly related to existing knowledge that triggers appropriate decisions and actions during pre-disaster, disaster, and post-disaster phases.

Insomnia in Iranian Traditional Medicine

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Feyzabadi, Zohre; Jafari, Farhad; Feizabadi, Parvin Sadat; Ashayeri, Hassan; Esfahani, Mohammad Mahdi; Badiee Aval, Shapour

2014-01-01

Context: Insomnia is one of the most prevalent sleep disorders characterized by sleep difficulty that impairs daily functioning and reduces quality of life. The burden of medical, psychiatric, interpersonal, and societal consequences of insomnia expresses the importance of diagnosing and treatment of insomnia. The aim of study was to investigate causes of insomnia from the viewpoint of Iranian traditional medicine. Evidence Acquisition: In this review study, we searched insomnia in a few of the most famous ancient textbooks of Iranian traditional medicine from different centuries. This books includeThe Canon of Medicine by Avicenna (the first version of Beirut), Zakhire Kharazmshahi by Jurjani (the scanned version of Bonyade Farhang-e Iran), Malfaregh by Razes (the first version of Iran University of Medical Sciences), and Aqili’s cure by Aqili (the first version of Iran University of Medical Sciences). Results: This study found that in Iranian traditional medicine manuscripts, insomnia was called sahar and even though many factors induce insomnia, most of them act through causing brain dystemperament. Conclusions: The brain dystemperament is considered one of the main causes of insomnia and insomnia can be well managed with an organized line of treatment, by correcting the brain dystemperament through elimination of causes. This study helps to find new solutions to treat insomnia. PMID:24829786

Determination of copper in some Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Myint-U,; San, Kyi Kyi [Yangon Univ. (Myanmar). Dept. of Chemistry

1994-09-15

Copper was determined in two Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis using an Am(Be) radionuclide neutron source. The activity of 511 keV peak of the [sup 64]Cu was measured. (author) 2 refs.; 2 tabs.

Application of nuclear irradiation to traditional chinese medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liang Jianping; Li Xuehu; Lu Xihong; Tao Lei; Wang Shuyang

2010-01-01

The application of nuclear irradiation in the field of traditional Chinese medicine has received much attention. In this paper we reviewed the application of nuclear radiation on the cultivation, breeding and disinfection of traditional Chinese medicine, and pointed out that the combination of radiation-induced mutagenesis and biological technology would promise broad prospects for increasing the cellular mutation rate and speeding up the genetic improvement of traditional Chinese medicine. (authors)

Use of Traditional Botanical Medicines During Pregnancy in Rural Rwanda.

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Beste, Jason; Asanti, Daniel; Nsabimana, Damien; Anastos, Kathryn; Mutimura, Eugene; Merkatz, Irwin; Sirotin, Nicole; Nathan, Lisa M

To evaluate the perceptions of healthcare and traditional medicine providers regarding the type, indications, side effects, and prevalence of traditional medicine use amongst pregnant women in a rural Rwandan population. Six focus groups with physicians, nurses, and community health workers and four individual in-depth interviews with traditional medicine providers were held. Qualitative data was gathered using a structured questionnaire querying perceptions of the type, indications, side effects, and prevalence of use of traditional medicines in pregnancy. The healthcare provider groups perceived a high prevalence of traditional botanical medicine use by pregnant women (50-80%). All three groups reported similar indications for use of the medicines and the socioeconomic status of the pregnant women who use them. The traditional medicine providers and the healthcare providers both perceived that the most commonly used medicine is a mixture of many plants, called Inkuri. The most serious side effect reported was abnormally bright green meconium with a poor neonatal respiratory drive. Thirty-five traditional medicines were identified that are used during pregnancy. Perceptions of high prevalence of use of traditional medicines during pregnancy with possible negative perinatal outcomes exist in areas of rural Rwanda.

Management of Breast Milk Oversupply in Traditional Persian Medicine.

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Kabiri, Marya; Kamalinejad, Mohammad; Sohrabvand, Farnaz; Bioos, Soodabeh; Babaeian, Mohammad

2017-10-01

Comprehensive explanation about milk oversupply is not available in the current literature because few studies have been done on this topic. In traditional Persian medicine, milk oversupply and its management have been described. The aim of this study was to investigate milk oversupply from the perspective of medieval Persian practitioners. In this study, some main medical resources of traditional Persian medicine such as Al-Havi and the Canon of Medicine were studied to extract valuable information about milk oversupply. Etiology of milk overproduction according to traditional Persian medicine is based on humors theory and cannot be easily compared with current medical concepts. Diet modifications and natural remedies have been applied for managing this condition but the majority of traditional Persian medicine interventions for reducing milk oversupply have not been scientifically investigated in modern medicine. The knowledge of milk oversupply in traditional Persian medicine may be helpful to conduct further related studies.

Physiopathology of dementia from the perspective of traditional Persian medicine.

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Seifaddini, Rostam; Tajadini, Haleh; Choopani, Rasool

2015-07-01

The most common cognitive disorder that is disabling is dementia. During the medieval period, traditional Persian medicine was an outstanding source of medicine that was used as standard references in medical schools of in the West and Middle East. In ancient manuscripts of traditional Persian medicine, a condition has been introduced similar to dementi (raoonat and homgh). In this article, by collecting materials of traditional medicine texts on dementia, we aim to provide theories for further studies on this topics, as there is an obvious difference between traditional Persian medicine and modern medicine with regard to dementia; however, since modern medicine has not found a suitable response to treatment for all diseases, reviewing traditional Persian medicine for finding better treatment strategies is wise. Use of all medical potentials approved by the World Health Organization beside classic medicine like traditional medicine and considering the availability and acceptability among people is recommended. © The Author(s) 2015.

Use of traditional medicine among type 2 diabetic Libyans.

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Ashur, Sana Taher; Shah, Shamsul Azhar; Bosseri, Soad; Shamsuddin, Khadijah

2017-07-16

The use of traditional medicines is common among patients with chronic illnesses and this practice might pose health risks. The use among Libyan patients with diabetes is unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to estimate the prevalence of traditional medicine use in the previous year among Libyans with type 2 diabetes and to examine the association between its use and sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of the patients. A cross-sectional study was conducted at a large diabetes centre in Tripoli. A self-reported questionnaire was used for data collection. Of the 523 respondents, 28.9% used traditional remedies. Sex was the only variable significantly associated with traditional medicine use; more women used traditional medicines (P = 0.01). A total of 77 traditional medicine items were reported to be used, of which herbs were the most common. The use of traditional medicine for diabetes is prevalent and some of the reported items could pose health risks. Health education programmes are suggested to raise the awareness of the health risks of this practice.

Safety of Traditional Arab Herbal Medicine

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Bashar Saad

2006-01-01

Full Text Available Herbal remedies are widely used for the treatment and prevention of various diseases and often contain highly active pharmacological compounds. Many medicinal herbs and pharmaceutical drugs are therapeutic at one dose and toxic at another. Toxicity related to traditional medicines is becoming more widely recognized as these remedies become popular in the Mediterranean region as well as worldwide. Most reports concerning the toxic effects of herbal medicines are associated with hepatotoxicity although reports of other toxic effects including kidney, nervous system, blood, cardiovascular and dermatologic effects, mutagenicity and carcinogenicity have also been published in the medical literature. This article presents a systematic review on safety of traditional Arab medicine and the contribution of Arab scholars to toxicology. Use of modern cell biological, biochemical, in vitro and in vivo techniques for the evaluation of medicinal plants safety is also discussed.

Application of isotopes in traditional Chinese medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ye Ling; Liu Ning; Yang Yuanyou; Mo Shangwu

2006-01-01

Modernization of traditional Chinese medicine necessitates many new or advanced methods. Among these methods, isotopes are considered to be a convenient, fast and feasible method. The recent advance of isotope's application to traditional Chinese medicine is reviewed. In addition, their present status, problems and prospect are discussed. (authors)

Heart Palpitation From Traditional and Modern Medicine Perspectives

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Ershadifar, Tabassom; Minaiee, Bagher; Gharooni, Manouchehr; Isfahani, Mohammad Mahdi; Nikbakht Nasrabadi, Alireza; Nazem, Esmaiel; Gousheguir, Ashraf Aldin; Kazemi Saleh, Davod

2014-01-01

Background: Palpitation is a sign of a disease and is very common in general population. For this purpose we decided to explain it in this study. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to describe the palpitation in both modern and traditional medicine aspect. It may help us to diagnose and cure better because the traditional medicine view is holistic and different from modern medicine. Materials and Methods: We addressed some descriptions to the articles of traditional medicine subjects which have published recently. Palpitation in modern medicine was extracted from medical books such as Braunwald, Harrison and Guyton physiology and some related articles obtained from authentic journals in PubMed and Ovid and Google scholar between1990 to 2013. Results: According to modern medicine, there are many causes for palpitation and in some cases it is cured symptomatically. In traditional medicine view, palpitation has been explained completely and many causes have been described. Its aspect is holistic and it cures causatively. The traditional medicine scientists evaluated the body based on Humors and temperament. Temperament can be changed to dis-temperament in diseases. Humors are divided in 4 items: sanguine, humid or phlegm, melancholy and bile. Palpitation is a disease, it is heart vibration and is caused by an abnormal substance in the heart itself or its membrane or other adjacent organs that would result in the heart suffering. Conclusions: Our data of this article suggests that causes of palpitation in the aspect of traditional medicine are completely different from modern medicine. It can help us to approach and treat this symptom better and with lower side effects than chemical drugs. According to this article we are able to detect a new approach in palpitation. PMID:24719741

Botanical drugs in Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine.

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Jaiswal, Yogini; Liang, Zhitao; Zhao, Zhongzhen

2016-12-24

China and India have a long history in the therapeutic application of botanical drugs in traditional medicine. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and Ayurveda are considered as two of the most ancient systems of medicine, with history of more than two millennia. Medicinal plants are the principal medicinal materials used in both these systems. This review discusses about the histories of Ayurveda and TCM, the common medicinal plants species, the drug processing strategies used, and the current statuses of these traditional systems of medicine (TSM). Through the views presented in this article, we aim to provide a new perspective to herbal drug researchers for expanding and improving the utilization of botanical drugs and their therapeutic applications. A bibliographic investigation of Chinese and Indian pharmacopoeias, monographs and official websites was performed. Furthermore, information was obtained from scientific databases on ethnobotany and ethno medicines. The review of Ayurveda and TCM ethno medicine indicates that both these systems have many medicinal materials in common. The studies carried out by the authors for comparison of plants from same genus from both these TSM's have been discussed to further bring focus to the utilization of "qualitatively" similar species which can be utilized and substituted for endangered or economically valued species. The overview of ancient literature and scientific findings for drugs in both these systems suggests that, the botanical drugs used in common and their processing methods can be explored further for extensive utilization in traditional medicine. This review describes the histories, common medicinal plant species, their processing methods and therapeutic applications in Ayurveda and TCM. The insights provided through this article may be used by herbal drug researchers and pharmacologists for further exploration of botanical drugs from these two traditional systems of medicine. Copyright © 2016. Published by

The Holistic Medicine Wheel: An Indigenous Model of Teaching and Learning.

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Pewewardy, Cornel

1999-01-01

Based on the Medicine Wheel, a culturally relevant model for holistic teaching and curriculum development in indigenous education is centered on the self, then expands to four domains (mental, spiritual, physical, emotional) operationalized via eight multiple intelligences. Outer circles portray societal values and a global view of the world. A…

A case of zootherapy with the tarantula Brachypelma vagans Ausserer, 1875 in traditional medicine of the Chol Mayan ethnic group in Mexico

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Rojo Roberto

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background In practically every human culture, the use of arthropods as medicinal resources has been reported. In Mexico, the Mayan people mainly use plants but occasionally also animals and minerals in their medicine. This article is the first to report the traditional use of the tarantula Brachypelma vagans by medicine men in the Chol community, an ancient indigenous group that inhabits the southeastern part of Mexico. We also describe the utility of such arachnids in traditional medicine. Methods This study was carried out in different Chol communities in the states of Chiapas and Campeche (southeastern Mexico from 2003 until 2007. We interviewed the local medicine men, patients and non-Chol people in each village visited to collect information about the rituals involved and the effectiveness of this traditional medicine and also their opinion of this traditional medicine. Results In all independent villages, the people who present an illness called 'aire de tarantula' or tarantula wind with symptoms including chest pain, coughing and asthma, were treated by the medicine man (called 'hierbatero' with a tarantula-based beverage. From village to village, the beverage has a similar base composition but some variations occur in additional ingredients depending on the individual medicine man. Like in all traditional Mayan medicine, the ritual of the ceremony consists of drinking the tarantula-based beverage and this is principally accompanied by chants and burning of incense. Conclusions The recipe of the tarantula-based beverage and the procedure of this ritual ceremony were fairly constant in all the villages visited. Our work shows that despite the tarantula's bad image in several cultures, in others positive use is made of these spiders, as in modern medicine.

[Research progress on potential liver toxic components in traditional Chinese medicine].

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Wu, Hao; Zhong, Rong-Ling; Xia, Zhi; Huang, Hou-Cai; Zhong, Qing-Xiang; Feng, Liang; Song, Jie; Jia, Xiao-Bin

2016-09-01

In recent years, the proportion of traditional Chinese medicine in scientific research and its clinical use increased gradually. The research result also becomes more and more valuable, but in the process of using traditional Chinese medicine, it also needs to pay more attention. With the gradual deepening of the toxicity of traditional Chinese medicine, some traditional Chinese medicines have also been found to have the potential toxicity, with the exception of some traditional toxicity Chinese medicine. Traditional Chinese medicine in the growth, processing, processing, transportation and other aspects of pollution or deterioration will also cause the side effects to the body. Clinical practice should be based on the theory of traditional Chinese medicine to guide rational drug use and follow the symptomatic medication, the principle of proper compatibility. The constitution of the patients are different, except for a few varieties of traditional Chinese medicines are natural herbs with hepatotoxicity, liver toxicity of most of the traditional Chinese medicine has idiosyncratic features. The liver plays an important role in drug metabolism. It is easy to be damaged by drugs. Therefore, the study of traditional Chinese medicine potential liver toxicity and its toxic components has become one of the basic areas of traditional Chinese medicine research. Based on the review of the literatures, this paper summarizes the clinical classification of liver toxicity, the pathogenesis of target cell injury, and systematically summarizes the mechanism of liver toxicity and toxic mechanism of traditional Chinese medicine. This paper provided ideas for the study of potential liver toxicity of traditional Chinese medicine and protection for clinical safety of traditional Chinese medicine. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Modern technology homogenizes enological traits of indigenous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains associated with Msalais, a traditional wine in China.

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Zhu, Lixia; Xue, Julan

2017-03-01

In this study, we performed a pilot-scale evaluation of the enological characteristics of indigenous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains associated with Msalais, a traditional Chinese wine produced by a unique technology of boiling grape juice prior to spontaneous fermentation. Technical and sensory characteristics of top ten indigenous strains previously identified by us by screening a collection of 436 indigenous S. cerevisiae strains (Zhu et al. 2016) were assayed in a traditional craft workshop (TCW) and a modern plant (MP). The use of these strains reduced the spontaneous fermentation (Spo F) period by 6-15 days, and resulted in higher sugar and lower alcohol content in TCW Msalais than in MP Msalais. Sensory scores of Msalais fermented by the ten strains were higher than those of wine produced with a commercial strain cy3079, varying in TCW fermentations and significantly different from Spo F, but homogenous for all MP fermentations. Four strains were extensively screened for use in industrial Msalais production. We conclude that modern technology homogenizes enological traits of indigenous strains while traditional craftsmanship maintains their enological diversity. Some strains domesticated in the course of both processes are suitable for industrial Msalais production.

Using Patents to Protect Traditional Knowledge on the Medicinal Uses of Plants in South Africa

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Emeka Polycarp Amechi

2015-06-01

Full Text Available The movement towards the protection of traditional knowledge particularly on the medicinal uses of plants (TKMUP in South Africa reflects a global albeit belated interest in the protection of traditional knowledge associated with biological resources. Hence, it was not surprising South Africa like most developing nation, sought in response to instances of the misappropriation of its TKMUP and other TK associated with its biological resources, to provide a measure of protection for such knowledge using the intellectual property (IP system. This is evident in the adoption of the Policy Framework for the Protection of Indigenous Knowledge through the Intellectual Property System in 2008 which identified patent as one of the major IP tools in the protection of the TK. The Policy Framework represents a paradigmatic shift from South Africa’s earlier sceptical and dialectical approach to, and experience with the IP system in context of TK. This paper therefore examines the benefits and challenges involved in using the patent system in the protection of TK particularly those relating to the medicinal uses of plants (TKMUP. Such examination became necessary as South Africa’s natural capital of biological diversity, together with its wealth of indigenous TK, has been recognised as an important resource base for promoting economic growth through biological innovations under the recently adopted Bio-economy Strategy. It finds that patents offer a great potential in not only protecting TKMUP from misappropriation, but also in promoting the commercialisation of innovative TKMUP or inventions based on or derived from TKMUP in South Africa. However, this can only be possible if the challenges identified in this paper can be successfully navigated.

Indigenous plant-derived medicine used by ordinary community ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines ... members other than traditional health practitioners for preventive health care in ... the chances of contracting disease thus promoting good health and well-being.

[Analysis on traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions treating cancer based on traditional Chinese medicine inheritance assistance system and discovery of new prescriptions].

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Yu, Ming; Cao, Qi-chen; Su, Yu-xi; Sui, Xin; Yang, Hong-jun; Huang, Lu-qi; Wang, Wen-ping

2015-08-01

Malignant tumor is one of the main causes for death in the world at present as well as a major disease seriously harming human health and life and restricting the social and economic development. There are many kinds of reports about traditional Chinese medicine patent prescriptions, empirical prescriptions and self-made prescriptions treating cancer, and prescription rules were often analyzed based on medication frequency. Such methods were applicable for discovering dominant experience but hard to have an innovative discovery and knowledge. In this paper, based on the traditional Chinese medicine inheritance assistance system, the software integration of mutual information improvement method, complex system entropy clustering and unsupervised entropy-level clustering data mining methods was adopted to analyze the rules of traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions for cancer. Totally 114 prescriptions were selected, the frequency of herbs in prescription was determined, and 85 core combinations and 13 new prescriptions were indentified. The traditional Chinese medicine inheritance assistance system, as a valuable traditional Chinese medicine research-supporting tool, can be used to record, manage, inquire and analyze prescription data.

'That is how the real mad people behave': Beliefs about and treatment of mental disorders by traditional medicine-men in Accra, Ghana.

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Kpobi, Lily; Swartz, Leslie

2018-06-01

Traditional healing methods are considered central to mental health care in low-income countries such as Ghana, because they are perceived to be more easily accessible, more affordable and generally ascribe similar causal beliefs to those of the patients. However, not much is known about the work of traditional healers largely because their methods are shrouded in mysticism and secrecy. There is a need to understand the ideology and beliefs of traditional healers surrounding mental disorders, including knowledge about their practices in mental health care. In this article, we discuss the causal beliefs and treatment methods of traditional medicine-men from Accra, Ghana. We also describe their diagnostic and treatment methods for mental disorders. Eight medicine-men, indigenous to the Greater Accra Region, were interviewed through individual semi-structured interviews. The data were analysed through thematic analysis. The medicine-men's beliefs about mental illness were dominated by supernatural ideas. Mental illness was also seen as a form of punishment or resulting from envy, and there was a strong reliance on spiritual direction from the gods for diagnosis and treatment. These themes are discussed with emphasis on their potential implications for patients, as well as for collaborative efforts.

Investigating Knowledge and Attitude of Nursing Students Towards Iranian Traditional Medicine

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Khorasgani, Sahar Rabani; Moghtadaie, Leila

2014-01-01

The present study aimed at Investigating the knowledge and attitude of Nursing Students towards Iranian Traditional Medicine in universities of Tehran in 2012-2013. 300 students of nursing studying at different universities in Tehran participated in this descriptive, cross-sectional study. The data was collected through a standard questionnaire with an acceptable validity and reliability. The questionnaire was made of five sections including demographic, general knowledge of the Iranian traditional medicine, general attitude towards it, resources of the Iranian traditional medicine and the barriers to it. The results revealed that general knowledge of the students about Iranian traditional medicine and complementary medicine is low. The attitude of the students towards including Iranian traditional medicine and complementary medicine in their curriculum is positive. General attitude of students towards Iranian traditional medicine is positive too. The majority of the participants had not passed any course on Iranian traditional medicine. There was no relationship between participants’ attitude towards Iranian traditional medicine and the number of semesters they had passed. Considering the participants’ positive attitude and their low level of knowledge, it seems necessary for the university policy makers to provide nursing students with different training courses on Iranian traditional medicine and complementary medicine in order to increase their knowledge. PMID:25363119

Medicinal plants sold at traditional markets in southern Ecuador.

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Tinitana, Fani; Rios, Montserrat; Romero-Benavides, Juan Carlos; de la Cruz Rot, Marcelino; Pardo-de-Santayana, Manuel

2016-07-05

The traditional markets in southern Ecuador and within the Andean region are especially important for plant resource trading among local people, even since before Spanish colonization; therefore, ethnobotanical studies are currently necessary and important. These strategic spaces persist for the traditional medicine cultural value reflected in the higher consumption of medicinal plants, which span all socioeconomic levels of rural and urban people. The purpose of this study includes the following: 1) to create a novel list of medicinal plants sold at 33 traditional markets; 2) to establish medicinal plant use agreement amongst vendors with the Factor of Informant Consensus (FIC); and 3) to determine the most sold medicinal plant species using the Fidelity Level (FL). This study focus on traditional markets ethnobotany utilizes the largest sample of medicinal plants market vendors up to date in Ecuador, interviewing them at 33 traditional markets, located within the Loja province. In order to determine the most sold medicinal plants and their ethnobotanical information, structured questionnaires and personal conversations were conducted with 196 medicinal plant vendors, and voucher specimens were created. Agreement among vendors about the therapeutic use of medicinal plants was measured using the FIC, and the most sold medicinal plant species were assessed with the FL. This research registered 160 medicinal plant species, grouped in 126 genera and 57 families that were sold in 33 traditional markets. The uses of medicinal plants in southern Ecuador are related to a long history of traditional medicine health practices that has persisted until today as well as high plant diversity. The 53 therapeutic uses recorded were grouped into 12 medical categories that were adapted from the World Health Organization. Three medical categories shared the highest value for FIC = 0.92, which showed a high level of agreement of market vendors for 57 medicinal plant species sold

[Investigation, collation and research of traditional Dai medicine of China].

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Zhang, Li-Xia; Zhang, Zhong-Lian; Li, Hai-Tao; Niu, Ying-Fen; Guan, Yan-Hong; Ma, Xiao-Jun

2016-08-01

In order to find out the composition, characteristics and traditional utilization characteristics of Dai medicine and promote the rational protection, inheritance and utilization of the resources and traditional knowledge of Dai medicine in China, the resources of traditional Dai medicine have been investigated systematically and the traditional knowledge of Dai medicine have been analyzed in the article. We found out that there were altogether 1 077 kinds of traditional Dai medicine in China and among which 272 were the first time recorded in the condition of Dai folk medical uses. There were 1 053 plant medicines which belong to 169 family and 694 genus. These plant medicines mainly distributed in the southern, west southern and east southern area of Yunnan province, the southern area of Guangxi, Guangdong, Guizhou, Sichuan, Fujian province and tropical, subtropical district as Taiwan, and more than 94.49% plant medicines could be found in Yunnan province. From the point of plant life form, they were major herbaceous or shrubby plants; When it is used as medicinal part, root and rhizome of plants account for the highest proportion, the next were whole plant and leaves. From nature, flavor and channel tropism points of view, the largest proportion of Dai medicines were cool, bitter-tasted and possesses water element. In terms of treatment of disease types, most of the drugs can treat gastrointestinal diseases, next were drugs that could be used to treat upper respiratory infection, traumatological and rheumatic diseases, urinary infection, gynecological diseases, hepatopathy, puerperium fever and diseases caused by poisonous insects and beast of prey bite. The study revealed that the resources of traditional Dai medicine and traditional knowledge of application were abundant in China, but the resources of traditional Dai medicine and traditional knowledge of application were faced with the risk of gradually reduce and loss. The article suggested that we should

Ethnomedicinal knowledge and relative importance of indigenous medicinal plants of Cholistan desert, Punjab Province, Pakistan.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmed, Nadeem; Mahmood, Adeel; Tahir, S S; Bano, Asghari; Malik, Riffat Naseem; Hassan, Seema; Ashraf, Aisha

2014-09-11

Ethnomedicinal studies are significant for the discovery of new crude drugs from indigenous reported medicinal plants. The current study aimed to report the indigenous medicinal knowledge of plants and herbal remedies used as folk medicines in Cholistan desert, Punjab Province, Pakistan. Rapid appraisal approach (RAA), semi-structured interviews, group meetings with herbalists, landowners and local people having awareness about the medicinal action of plants were employed to collect the data. This study reports 70 medicinal plants belonging to 27 families that were disseminated among 60 different genera and Poaceae was the predominant family over others with 13 reported medicinal plants. Among plant parts, leaves were the dominant over others with 26.4% used in herbal preparations followed by the stem (25.2%), fruit (21.5%), flower (16.3%), seed (6.5%), bark and pod (02%). Haloxylon recurvum exhibited the highest use vale (UV) 0.83 while least UV was exhibited by Mollugo cerviana that was 0.16. Important medicinal plants, reported in this study have been screened for phytochemical and pharmaceutical activities in different parts of the globe. It is recommended that reported medicinal plants having potent action for cancer and hepatitis must be screened for pharmacological activities. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Indian Traditional Ayurvedic System of Medicine and Nutritional Supplementation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. M. Pandey

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Food is the major source for serving the nutritional needs, but with growing modernization some traditional ways are being given up. Affluence of working population with changing lifestyles and reducing affordability of sick care, in terms of time and money involved, are some of the forces that are presently driving people towards thinking about their wellness. There has been increased global interest in traditional medicine. Efforts to monitor and regulate traditional herbal medicine are underway. Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicine, remains the most ancient yet living traditions. Although India has been successful in promoting its therapies with more research and science-based approach, it still needs more extensive research and evidence base. Increased side effects, lack of curative treatment for several chronic diseases, high cost of new drugs, microbial resistance and emerging, diseases are some reasons for renewed public interest in complementary and alternative medicines. Numerous nutraceutical combinations have entered the international market through exploration of ethnopharmacological claims made by different traditional practices. This review gives an overview of the Ayurvedic system of medicine and its role in translational medicine in order to overcome malnutrition and related disorders.

A systems approach to traditional oriental medicine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kim, Hyun Uk; Ryu, Jae Yong; Lee, Jong Ok

2015-01-01

Analyzing structural similarities between compounds derived from traditional oriental medicine and human metabolites is a systems-based approach that can help identify mechanisms of action and suggest approaches to reduce toxicity.......Analyzing structural similarities between compounds derived from traditional oriental medicine and human metabolites is a systems-based approach that can help identify mechanisms of action and suggest approaches to reduce toxicity....

[Study on pharmacologic action characteristics of traditional Chinese medicines distributed along liver meridian based on medicinal properties combinations].

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Hong-Ling; Gu, Hao; Wang, Yun; Qiao, Yan-Jiang

2014-07-01

To establish a characterization system of traditional Chinese medicinal properties in line with modern scientific cognition regularity, in order to reveal properties of traditional Chinese medicines distributed along liver meridian and relations of effects of medicinal properties. By collecting data about traditional Chinese medicinal properties recorded in the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China (2005 Edition), literature and data about pharmacological effects of traditional Chinese medicines recorded in the Chinese Materia Medica, by using the method of association rules, the authors dug pharmacological effect rules corresponds to relevant medicinal property combinations, with the medicinal property combination of traditional Chinese medicines distributed along liver meridian as the target. It was found that either obvious different pharmacological effects or identical pharmacological characteristics existed in traditional Chinese medicines distributed along liver meridian. With the aim to explore the correlations between traditional Chinese medicine medicinal properties and pharmacological effects, the authors linked the traditional Chinese medicine theory with modern research achievements, in order to provide the ideas and methods for interpreting mechanisms of medicinal properties.

Spread of Traditional Medicines in India

Science.gov (United States)

Srinivasan, R.; Sugumar, V. Raji

2015-01-01

For the first time, we have a comprehensive database on usage of AYUSH (acronym for Ayurveda, naturopathy and Yoga, Unani, Siddha, and Homeopathy) in India at the household level. This article aims at exploring the spread of the traditional medical systems in India and the perceptions of people on the access and effectiveness of these medical systems using this database. The article uses the unit level data purchased from the National Sample Survey Organization, New Delhi. Household is the basic unit of survey and the data are the collective opinion of the household. This survey shows that less than 30% of Indian households use the traditional medical systems. There is also a regional pattern in the usage of particular type of traditional medicine, reflecting the regional aspects of the development of such medical systems. The strong faith in AYUSH is the main reason for its usage; lack of need for AYUSH and lack of awareness about AYUSH are the main reasons for not using it. With regard to source of medicines in the traditional medical systems, home is the main source in the Indian medical system and private sector is the main source in Homeopathy. This shows that there is need for creating awareness and improving access to traditional medical systems in India. By and large, the users of AYUSH are also convinced about the effectiveness of these traditional medicines. PMID:26438717

Functional Food in Traditional Persian Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Zare, Roghayeh; Hosseinkhani, Ayda

2016-05-01

During the last decades, there have been great advancements in the field of preventive medicine. Research has demonstrated that nutrition plays a crucial role in the prevention of chronic diseases. The concept of functional food was first introduced in Japan during the 1980s. It proposes to consider food not only vital to survive, but also a mean for mental and physical well-being, contributing to the prevention and reduction of risk factors for diseases. However, there is evidence that the concept was believed by ancient physicians as well. One of the traditional systems of medicines is traditional Persian medicine (TPM). Rhazes said; "as long as a disease could be treated with food, medicine should be avoided". We carried out a review of Avicenna's Canon of medicine and Rhazes books for the definition of food and drug and similar concepts of functional food. We listed the identified concepts along with their examples. The classification of food and their therapeutic use were explained in Canon of medicine. Rhazes has a book called 'Manafe al-Aghziyeh', in which he writes about the medicinal benefits of different nutrition. Five concepts (food, drug, medicinal food, nutritional medicine and antidote or poison) were noted in these books. There are many recommendations on food for the prevention and treatment of diseases in TPM books, which can be the basis for novel research studies.

Herbal Medicines for Leucorrhea According to Iranian Traditional Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Dehdari, Sahar; Hajimehdipoor, Homa

2016-05-01

Leucorrhea or vaginal discharge is a conventional complaint. It is generally whitish, yellowish, or greenish vaginal discharge in females that might be normal or a symptom of infection. It is almost mucus discharge, which exhibit exfoliation of vaginal epithelial cells due to estrogen influence on the vaginal mucosa. It is important to identify the differences between physiologic and pathologic discharges. Leucorrhea is a well-known disease in Iranian traditional medicine (ITM). In their manuscripts, the word "Sayalan-e rahem" was used by Avicenna and some other Iranian traditional practitioners to describe this condition. Ancient practitioners believed that excessive residue (kesrate fozool) and weakness of digestion (Za'afe hazm) were the main causes of leucorrhea, for which herbal therapy was the main proposed treatment. In the present study, medicinal plants used in ITM for leucorrhea are introduced. In this research, six Iranian traditional textbooks including Canon of Medicine (Avicena 980-1037 AD), A-Hawi (Razes 865-925 AD), Tuhfat ul-Momineen (Mo'men tonekaboni, 17th century), Makhzan-ul-Adwiah (Aghili 18th century), Ikhtiarat Badi'i (Ansari 1329-1404 AD), and al-jāmi li-mufradāt al-adwiyawa al-aghdhiy (Ibn al-Baitar 1197 AD) were studied and searched for anti-leucorrhea medicines. Then the herbal medicines were selected and scored depending on their frequency in the above-mentioned textbooks. Additional attention was paid to provide the most suitable scientific name for each plant. This study introduced many Materia Medica with anti-leucorrhea activity and among them seven herbs including Rubus fruticosus L., Rhus coriaria L., Phoenix dactylifera L., Pimpinella anisum L., Rumex acetosa L., Olea europaea L. and Quercus lusitanica Lam. showed the most repetition in ITM prescriptions. These herbs can be introduced as new anti-leucorrhea herbal medicines for clinical research.

Determination of gold in some Myanmar indigenous medicines by neutron activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Myint U.; Sein Sein Yi

1995-01-01

Gold has been determined in two Myanmar indigenous medicines TMF 14 (Devaauthada), TMF 15 (Shwe Thwe Say) by neutron activation analysis using an Am(Be) radionuclide neutron source. The activity of 411 keV of the 198 Au has been measured. (author). 2 refs., 1 fig., 1 tab

What has traditional Chinese medicine delivered for modern medicine?

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jigang; Wong, Yin-Kwan; Liao, Fulong

2018-05-11

The field of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) represents a vast and largely untapped resource for modern medicine. Exemplified by the success of the antimalarial artemisinin, the recent years have seen a rapid increase in the understanding and application of TCM-derived herbs and formulations for evidence-based therapy. In this review, we summarise and discuss the developmental history, clinical background and molecular basis of an action for several representative TCM-derived medicines, including artemisinin, arsenic trioxide, berberine and Salvia miltiorrhiza or Danshen. Through this, we highlight important examples of how TCM-derived medicines have already contributed to modern medicine, and discuss potential avenues for further research.

[Advances on pharmacokinetics of traditional Chinese medicine under disease states].

Science.gov (United States)

Gong, Zi-peng; Chen, Ying; Zhang, Rui-jie; Yang, Qing; Zhu, Xiao-xin

2015-01-01

In recent years, more and more research shows that the pharmacokinetic parameter of traditional Chinese medicine can be affected by the disease states. It's possible that drug metabolic enzymes, transporters, cell membrane permeability and the change of microbes group could be interfered with physiological and pathological changes, which enables the pharmacokinetics of traditional Chinese medicine in the body to be altered, including the process of absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion, and then the pharmacokinetic parameters of traditional chinese medicine are altered. It's found that investigating the pharmacokinetic of traditional Chinese medicine in the pathological state is more useful than that of in normal state because the great part of traditional Chinese medicine is mainly used to treat disease. This article reflects the latest research on the pharmacokinetic of traditional Chinese medicine in the disease state such as diabete, cerebral ischemia, liver injury, inflammatory disease, nervous system disorders and fever in order to provide certain reference for clinicians designing reasonable administration dose.

Eboh and Traditional Medicine in Pre-Colonial Apana Social Systems

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The paper extols the significance of traditional medicine in the social systems of pre-colonial Apana. Traditional medicine and its practitioners maintained their popularity in the socio-cultural development of Apana. The Apana word, eboh, which exists in the plural form, refers to the practitioners of traditional medicine.

EDITORIAL Traditional medicine: Reawakening a “pending agendum”.

African Journals Online (AJOL)

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that show the workforce represented by practitioners of traditional medicine ... sector to health, wellness and people-centered health care; and ... J. Health Dev. and supervised use of traditional medicine practitioners in strengthening and expanding primary health care services. Furthermore, both the Health Policy (13) and ...

Traditional Medicine Through the Filter of Modernity: A brief historical analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Rabarihoela Razafimandimby

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Traditional medicines still prevail in current Malagasy context. A careful historical analysis shows however that Malagasy traditional medicine has been screened through many filters before being accepted in a global context. Traditional medicine in its authentic form has been more or less rejected with the advent of  modern medicine – although not without reaction. This paper will retrace the historical encountering of the modern and traditional to determine the extent to which traditional medicine is acknowledged and used in the current prevailing modern, rational and scientific global context.

Traditional medicine and HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia: Herbal medicine and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Traditional, complimentary and alternative medicines (TCAMS) are increasingly being promoted by various Sub-Saharan African governments as a promising health resource in the control and amelioration of HIV/AIDS. The accessibility and cultural acceptability of both herbal medicines and faith healing and ...

Alzheimer Disease: Clues from traditional and complementary medicine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edwin L. Cooper

2017-10-01

Full Text Available Despite modern medicine's incredible innovation and resulting accumulation of valuable knowledge, many of the world's most problematic diseases such as Alzheimer Disease (AD still lack effective cures and treatments. Western medicine has revealed many genetic, cellular, and molecular processes that characterize AD such as protein aggregation and inflammation. As the need for novel and effective treatments increases, researchers have turned towards traditional medicine as a resource. Modern, evidence based research examining traditional and complementary remedies for AD has generated promising results within the last decade. Animal based products inhibiting cellular toxicity, anti-inflammatory nutraceuticals such as omega-3 fatty acids, and plant based compounds derived from herbal medicine demonstrate viability as neuroprotective treatments and possible application in developing pharmaceuticals. Analysis of antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective phytochemicals used in various traditional medicines around the world reveal potential to ameliorate and prevent the devastating neurodegeneration observed in AD.

[Review of traditional Chinese medicine external applications to treat chemistry phlebitis].

Science.gov (United States)

Sha, Sha; Liu, Weiqun; Cheng, Lushan; Ge, Jinjin

2011-09-01

This article reviewed the literatures in this area over the past 5 years according to three parts: simple traditional Chinese medicine external application, combination of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine, combination of traditional Chinese medicine and physical therapy, and came to several effective prescriptions.

Criteria for evidence-based practice in Iranian traditional medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Soltani Arabshahi, SeyyedKamran; Mohammadi Kenari, Hoorieh; Kordafshari, Gholamreza; Shams-Ardakani, MohammadReza; Bigdeli, Shoaleh

2015-07-01

The major difference between Iranian traditional medicine and allopathic medicine is in the application  of  evidence  and  documents.  In  this  study,  criteria  for  evidence-based  practice  in  Iranian traditional medicine and its rules of practice were studied. The experts' views were investigated through in- depth, semi-structured interviews and the results were categorized into four main categories including Designing clinical questions/clinical question-based search, critical appraisal, resource search criteria and clinical prescription appraisal. Although the application of evidence in Iranian traditional medicine follows Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) principles but it benefits from its own rules, regulations, and criteria that are compatible with EBM.

Functional Food in Traditional Persian Medicine

Science.gov (United States)

Zare, Roghayeh; Hosseinkhani, Ayda

2016-01-01

Background: During the last decades, there have been great advancements in the field of preventive medicine. Research has demonstrated that nutrition plays a crucial role in the prevention of chronic diseases. The concept of functional food was first introduced in Japan during the 1980s. It proposes to consider food not only vital to survive, but also a mean for mental and physical well-being, contributing to the prevention and reduction of risk factors for diseases. However, there is evidence that the concept was believed by ancient physicians as well. One of the traditional systems of medicines is traditional Persian medicine (TPM). Rhazes said; “as long as a disease could be treated with food, medicine should be avoided” Methods: We carried out a review of Avicenna’s Canon of medicine and Rhazes books for the definition of food and drug and similar concepts of functional food. We listed the identified concepts along with their examples. Results: The classification of food and their therapeutic use were explained in Canon of medicine. Rhazes has a book called ‘Manafe al-Aghziyeh’, in which he writes about the medicinal benefits of different nutrition. Five concepts (food, drug, medicinal food, nutritional medicine and antidote or poison) were noted in these books. Conclusion: There are many recommendations on food for the prevention and treatment of diseases in TPM books, which can be the basis for novel research studies. PMID:27840499

Protective influence of Hibiscus sabdariffa , an edible medicinal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The present study was undertaken to examine the protective influence of the alcoholic leaf extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa (Linn) Malvaceae (an indigenous edible medicinal plant used in Ayurvedic and traditional Medicine in India, China and Thailand) on oxidative stress during ammonium chloride induced ...

Green Urine in Traditional Persian Medicine

Science.gov (United States)

Kolouri, Sepideh; Daneshfard, Babak; Jaladat, Amir-Mohammad; Tafazoli, Vahid

2016-01-01

The color of urine is an important factor in urine examination, which can help physicians differentiate various diseases. Today, it is known that certain dyes, drug intoxications, and diseases can induce green urine discoloration. In the view of traditional Persian medicine, which is based on humoral medicine, green urine discoloration is generally referred to the dominance of coldness in the body. In fact, it is considered to be a result of a special kind of humoral imbalance and fluid depletion or retention in the human body. Persian scholars believed that green urine could be an indicator of intoxication or a predictor of an imminent spasm or convulsion in pediatric patients. Further investigations could result in finding new diagnostic scales of urine color based on the teachings of traditional Persian medicine. PMID:27103627

Safety of Traditional Arab Herbal Medicine

OpenAIRE

Saad, Bashar; Azaizeh, Hassan; Abu-Hijleh, Ghassan; Said, Omar

2006-01-01

Herbal remedies are widely used for the treatment and prevention of various diseases and often contain highly active pharmacological compounds. Many medicinal herbs and pharmaceutical drugs are therapeutic at one dose and toxic at another. Toxicity related to traditional medicines is becoming more widely recognized as these remedies become popular in the Mediterranean region as well as worldwide. Most reports concerning the toxic effects of herbal medicines are associated with hepatotoxici...

[Inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicinal authentication].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Zhong-zhen; Chen, Hu-biao; Xiao, Pei-gen; Guo, Ping; Liang, Zhi-tao; Hung, Fanny; Wong, Lai-lai; Brand, Eric; Liu, Jing

2015-09-01

Chinese medicinal authentication is fundamental for the standardization and globalization of Chinese medicine. The discipline of authentication addresses difficult issues that have remained unresolved for thousands of years, and is essential for preserving safety. Chinese medicinal authentication has both scientific and traditional cultural connotations; the use of scientific methods to elucidate traditional experience-based differentiation carries the legacy of Chinese medicine forward, and offers immediate practical significance and long-term scientific value. In this paper, a path of inheritance and innovation is explored through the scientific exposition of Chinese medicinal authentication, featuring a review of specialized publications, the establishment of a Chinese medicine specimen center and Chinese medicinal image databases, the expansion of authentication technologies, and the formation of a cultural project dedicated to the Compedium of Materia Medica.

A Review of Swertia chirayita (Gentianaceae) as a Traditional Medicinal Plant.

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Vijay; Van Staden, Johannes

2015-01-01

Swertia chirayita (Gentianaceae), a popular medicinal herb indigenous to the temperate Himalayas is used in traditional medicine to treat numerous ailments such as liver disorders, malaria, and diabetes and are reported to have a wide spectrum of pharmacological properties. Its medicinal usage is well-documented in Indian pharmaceutical codex, the British, and the American pharmacopeias and in different traditional medicine such as the Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and other conventional medical systems. This ethnomedicinal herb is known mostly for its bitter taste caused by the presence of different bioactive compounds that are directly associated with human health welfare. The increasing high usage of Swertia chirayita, mostly the underground tissues, as well as the illegal overharvesting combined with habitat destruction resulted in a drastic reduction of its populations and has brought this plant to the verge of extinction. The increasing national and international demand for Swertia chirayita has led to unscrupulous collection from the wild and adulteration of supplies. The aim of this review is to provide a synthesis of the current state of scientific knowledge on the medicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, safety evaluation as well as the potential role of plant biotechnology in the conservation of Swertia chirayita and to highlight its future prospects. Pharmacological data reported in literature suggest that Swertia chirayita shows a beneficial effect in the treatment of several ailments. However, there is lack of adequate information on the safety evaluation of the plant. The pharmacological usefulness of Swertia chirayita requires the need for conservation-friendly approaches in its utilization. Providing high-quality genetically uniform clones for sustainable use and thereby saving the genetic diversity of this species in nature is important. In this regard, plant biotechnological applications such as micropropagation, synthetic seed

A Review of Swertia chirayita (Gentianaceae) as a Traditional Medicinal Plant

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Vijay; Van Staden, Johannes

2016-01-01

Swertia chirayita (Gentianaceae), a popular medicinal herb indigenous to the temperate Himalayas is used in traditional medicine to treat numerous ailments such as liver disorders, malaria, and diabetes and are reported to have a wide spectrum of pharmacological properties. Its medicinal usage is well-documented in Indian pharmaceutical codex, the British, and the American pharmacopeias and in different traditional medicine such as the Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and other conventional medical systems. This ethnomedicinal herb is known mostly for its bitter taste caused by the presence of different bioactive compounds that are directly associated with human health welfare. The increasing high usage of Swertia chirayita, mostly the underground tissues, as well as the illegal overharvesting combined with habitat destruction resulted in a drastic reduction of its populations and has brought this plant to the verge of extinction. The increasing national and international demand for Swertia chirayita has led to unscrupulous collection from the wild and adulteration of supplies. The aim of this review is to provide a synthesis of the current state of scientific knowledge on the medicinal uses, phytochemistry, pharmacological activities, safety evaluation as well as the potential role of plant biotechnology in the conservation of Swertia chirayita and to highlight its future prospects. Pharmacological data reported in literature suggest that Swertia chirayita shows a beneficial effect in the treatment of several ailments. However, there is lack of adequate information on the safety evaluation of the plant. The pharmacological usefulness of Swertia chirayita requires the need for conservation-friendly approaches in its utilization. Providing high-quality genetically uniform clones for sustainable use and thereby saving the genetic diversity of this species in nature is important. In this regard, plant biotechnological applications such as micropropagation, synthetic seed

Causes of infertility in view of Iranian traditional medicine: A review

Science.gov (United States)

Kazemeini, Seyed Kazem; Emtiazy, Majid; Owlia, Fatemeh; Khani, Parisa

2017-01-01

Infertility is one of the most important reproductive health concerns in the conventional medicine. Iranian traditional medicine presents different viewpoints in this regard which they could be of benefit and a good guide for the society of medicine. This study sought to provide the comprehensive investigation on the causes of infertility according to Iranian traditional medicine for understanding of old sages' ideas and categorizing of the causes of infertility. In this narrative review, we searched causes of infertility in traditional medicine books and available articles in this field. Iranian traditional physicians have investigated the causes of infertility in couples and attributed them to male and female causes. They have divided the main causes of infertility in both sexes into structural and functional abnormalities, that both traditional medicine and conventional medicine have a lot of participations, but the traditional medicine believes holistic approach in the treatment of diseases and the involvement of all parts of the body particularly specialty board members (heart, liver, brain, ovary, and testicles) in the proper conduct activities in different parts of the body such as reproduction system. There is also special attention to temperament Mizaj disorders. Given the numerous commonalities existing between traditional and conventional medicine in categorizing the causes of infertility, Iranian traditional medicine methods can be applied as a complementary solution in infertility. It could be also subject to further research and investigation due to its opposition to modern medicine in some regards. PMID:28835934

Causes of infertility in view of Iranian traditional medicine: A review.

Science.gov (United States)

Kazemeini, Seyed Kazem; Emtiazy, Majid; Owlia, Fatemeh; Khani, Parisa

2017-04-01

Infertility is one of the most important reproductive health concerns in the conventional medicine. Iranian traditional medicine presents different viewpoints in this regard which they could be of benefit and a good guide for the society of medicine. This study sought to provide the comprehensive investigation on the causes of infertility according to Iranian traditional medicine for understanding of old sages' ideas and categorizing of the causes of infertility. In this narrative review, we searched causes of infertility in traditional medicine books and available articles in this field. Iranian traditional physicians have investigated the causes of infertility in couples and attributed them to male and female causes. They have divided the main causes of infertility in both sexes into structural and functional abnormalities, that both traditional medicine and conventional medicine have a lot of participations, but the traditional medicine believes holistic approach in the treatment of diseases and the involvement of all parts of the body particularly specialty board members (heart, liver, brain, ovary, and testicles) in the proper conduct activities in different parts of the body such as reproduction system. There is also special attention to temperament Mizaj disorders. Given the numerous commonalities existing between traditional and conventional medicine in categorizing the causes of infertility, Iranian traditional medicine methods can be applied as a complementary solution in infertility. It could be also subject to further research and investigation due to its opposition to modern medicine in some regards.

Causes of infertility in view of Iranian traditional medicine: A review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seyed Kazem Kazemeini

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Infertility is one of the most important reproductive health concerns in the conventional medicine. Iranian traditional medicine presents different viewpoints in this regard which they could be of benefit and a good guide for the society of medicine. This study sought to provide the comprehensive investigation on the causes of infertility according to Iranian traditional medicine for understanding of old sages' ideas and categorizing of the causes of infertility. In this narrative review, we searched causes of infertility in traditional medicine books and available articles in this field. Iranian traditional physicians have investigated the causes of infertility in couples and attributed them to male and female causes. They have divided the main causes of infertility in both sexes into structural and functional abnormalities, that both traditional medicine and conventional medicine have a lot of participations, but the traditional medicine believes holistic approach in the treatment of diseases and the involvement of all parts of the body particularly specialty board members (heart, liver, brain, ovary, and testicles in the proper conduct activities in different parts of the body such as reproduction system. There is also special attention to temperament Mizaj disorders. Given the numerous commonalities existing between traditional and conventional medicine in categorizing the causes of infertility, Iranian traditional medicine methods can be applied as a complementary solution in infertility. It could be also subject to further research and investigation due to its opposition to modern medicine in some regards.

Ethnopharmacological relevance of traditional medicinal flora from semi-tribal areas in khyber pakhtunkhwa, punjab, pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batool, A.; Shah, A.; Bahadur, A.

2017-01-01

Medicinal plants are locally used for the cure of many diseases. The present study aimed to document the medicinal knowledge as well as medicinal flora of indigenous plants of native communities and represents the first ever ethnomedicinal study from Darra Tang, LakkiMarwat and Kundal, Mianwali. The ethnomedicinal information was conducted via crucial informant conversation, group meetings with herbalists, semi-structure interviews and local people having awareness about the remedial exploit of plants. Current research work describes a brief overview of ethnomedicinal scheme in the study area, by highlighting the vital indigenous constituent of medicinal plants. The rest of the study is dedicated to an investigation and documentation based on the 94 reordered medicinal species belonging to 40 families. The leading family Poaceae was signified by the highest number of medicinal plant species (11). Indigenous people most frequently used leaves of the plants. The greatest amount of species was used to treat gastrointestinal, inflammational, renal, urological and dermatological ailments whereas for diabetes the ratio was the lowest. Dominated medicinal plants with most use values were Rhazyastrictahaving (UVi=0.98) and Phoenix dactylifera(UVi=0.96). There was a significant correlation between the age of informant and used plant known (y= 0.1307*+26.756, r = 0.012) and known plants (y= 0.4043*+16.995, r = 0.082) number by informant.The present study exposes that this vast treasure of medicinal plant played a key role in the health maintenance of local communities from Darra Tang, LakkiMarwat and Kundal, Mianwali. (author)

Similarities and Differences Between Yoruba Traditional Healers (YTH) and Native American and Canadian Healers (NACH).

Science.gov (United States)

Adekson, Mary Olufunmilayo

2016-10-01

Indigenous people of the world have used the services of medicine men and traditional healers from time immemorial. According to the World Health Organization, 80 % of the world's populations consult traditional healers. With an emerging globalization of health services in the world, there is a need for western mental health practitioners to learn and understand the practices of indigenous healers across the globe. This paper will not only highlight the similarities and differences between Yoruba traditional healers of Western Nigeria and Native American and First Nation Canadian traditional healers, but it will also allow practitioners to gain clearer perspectives of indigenous clients from Yoruba land and those from the United States of America and Canada. This ultimately will inform culturally sensitive clinical practice with these populations.

Identification of marine traditional Chinese medicine dried seahorses in the traditional Chinese medicine market using DNA barcoding.

Science.gov (United States)

Hou, Feixia; Wen, Longlian; Peng, Cheng; Guo, Jinlin

2018-01-01

Seahorse documented in Chinese pharmacopeia possess important medicinal efficacy and are used as an ingredient in traditional Chinese medicines. The growing international trade threatens the species. DNA barcoding holds a great application potentiality in wildlife conservation and might prevent the illegal trade of threatened species. The COI gene was used to identify seahorse, and nine Hippocampus species were found in the three large traditional Chinese medicines markets of China. All inter-specific genetic variations were larger than 2%. Mean genetic distances between species were 17-fold larger than those within the species. Phylogenetic tree showed that each species clustered in the appropriate branch. All results demonstrated that COI-based barcoding technique could be used to identify seahorse species and played a major role in monitoring the seahorse trade.

Perception of Alzheimer Disease in Iranian Traditional Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Saifadini, Rostam; Tajadini, Haleh; Choopani, Rasool; Mehrabani, Mitra; Kamalinegad, Mohamad; Haghdoost, Aliakbar

2016-03-01

Alzheimer disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia. In regards to the world's aging population, control and treatment of AD will be one of the major concerns of global public health in the next century. Alzheimer disease was not mentioned with the same phrase or its equivalent in traditional medical texts. The main of present paper was to investigate symptoms and causes of alzheimer disease from the view point of Iranian traditional medicine. In this qualitative study, we searched reliable sources of Iranian traditional medicine such as Canon of Medicide by Avicenna (Al-Quanon fi- tibb), Aghili cure by Aghili's (Molajat-E-aghili), Tib-E-Akbari, Exire -E-Aazam and Sharh-E-Asbab and some reliable resources of neurology were probed base on keywords to find a disease that had the most overlap in terms of symptoms with alzheimer disease. By taking from the relevant materials, the extracted texts were compared and analyzed. Findings showed that alzheimer disease has the most overlap with Nesyan (fisad-e-zekr, fisad-e-fekr and fisad-e-takhayol) symptoms in Iranian traditional medicine. Although this is not a perfect overlap and there are causes, including coldness and dryness of the brain or coldness and wetness that could also lead to alzheimer disease according to Iranian traditional medicine. According to Iranian traditional medicine, The brain dystemperement is considered the main causes of alzheimer disease. By correcting the brain dystemperement, alzheimer can be well managed. This study helps to suggest a better strategy for preventing and treating alzheimer in the future.

Medicinal plants used in traditional herbal medicine in the province ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Conclusion: The nettle was the medicinal plant employed for more different illness and the chamomile was the one with higher prevalence. We could confirm that the Native Ecuadorians have a vast variety of traditions and popular medicinal practices that have great value and are needed to be researched and studied ...

[Study on dosage form design for improving oral bioavailability of traditional Chinese medicines].

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Xia, Hai-Jian; Zhang, Zhen-Hai; Yao, Dong-Dong; Jia, Xiao-Bin

2013-09-01

Both chemical drugs and traditional Chinese medicines have the problem of low bioavailability. However, as traditional Chinese medicines are a multi-component complex, their dosage forms are required to be designed in line with their characteristics, in order to improve the bioavailability of traditional Chinese medicines. Traditional Chinese medicines are mostly prepared into pill, powder, paste, elixir and decoction, but with such drawbacks as high administration dose and poor efficacy. With the process of modernization of traditional Chinese medicines, new-type preparations have be developed and made outstanding achievements. However, they fail to make an organic integration between traditional Chinese medicine theories and modern preparation theories. Characteristics of traditional Chinese medicines are required to be taken into account during the development of traditional Chinese medicines. In the article, multi-component preparation technology was adopted to establish a multi-component drug release system of traditional Chinese medicines on the basis of multiple components of traditional Chinese medicines.

Traditional use and safety of herbal medicines

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Davyson de L. Moreira

Full Text Available In the European Union, traditional herbal medicines that are regarded as "acceptably safe, albeit not having a recognized level of efficacy" fit into a special category of drugs ("traditional herbal medicine products" for which requirements of non-clinical and clinical studies are less rigorous. A regulation proposal published by the Brazilian National Health Surveillance (Anvisa defines a similar drug category ("traditional phytotherapeutic products" for registration purposes. Regarding herbal medicines, both agencies seem to be lenient regarding proof of efficacy, and consider long-standing folk use as evidence of safety and a waiver of a thorough toxicological evaluation. Nonetheless, several herbal products and constituents with a long history of folk usage are suspected carcinogenic and/or hepatotoxic. Herbal products have also been shown to inhibit and/or induce drug-metabolizing enzymes. Since herbal medicines are often used in conjunction with conventional drugs, kinetic and clinical interactions are a cause for concern. A demonstration of the safety of herbal medicines for registration purposes should include at least in vitroand in vivogenotoxicity assays, long-term rodent carcinogenicity tests (for drugs intended to be continuously used for > 3 months or intermittently for > 6 months, reproductive and developmental toxicity studies (for drugs used by women of childbearing age, and investigation of the effects on drug-metabolizing enzymes.

Beyond medical pluralism: characterising health-care delivery of biomedicine and traditional medicine in rural Guatemala.

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Hoyler, Elizabeth; Martinez, Roxana; Mehta, Kurren; Nisonoff, Hunter; Boyd, David

2018-04-01

Although approximately one half of Guatemalans are indigenous, the Guatemalan Maya account for 72% of the extremely poor within the country. While some biomedical services are available in these communities, many Maya utilise traditional medicine as a significant, if not primary, source of health care. While existing medical anthropological research characterises these modes of medicine as medically dichotomous or pluralistic, our research in a Maya community of the Western Highlands, Concepción Huista, builds on previous studies and finds instead a syncretistic, imbricated local health system. We find significant overlap and interpenetration of the biomedical and traditional medical models that are described best as a framework where practitioners in both settings employ elements of the other in order to best meet community needs. By focusing on the practitioner's perspective, we demonstrate that in addition to patients' willingness to seek care across health systems, practitioners converse across seemingly distinct systems via incorporation of certain elements of the 'other'. Interventions to date have not accounted for this imbrication. Guatemalan governmental policies to support local healers have led to little practical change in the health-care landscape of the country. Therefore, understanding this complex imbrication is crucial for interventions and policy changes.

Recent Advances in Traditional Chinese Medicine for Kidney Disease.

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Zhong, Yifei; Menon, Madhav C; Deng, Yueyi; Chen, Yiping; He, John Cijiang

2015-09-01

Because current treatment options for chronic kidney disease (CKD) are limited, many patients seek out alternative therapies such as traditional Chinese medicine. However, there is a lack of evidence from large clinical trials to support the use of traditional medicines in patients with CKD. Many active components of traditional medicine formulas are undetermined and their toxicities are unknown. Therefore, there is a need for research to identify active compounds from traditional medicines and understand the mechanisms of action of these compounds, as well as their potential toxicity, and subsequently perform well-designed, randomized, controlled, clinical trials to study the efficacy and safety of their use in patients with CKD. Significant progress has been made in this field within the last several years. Many active compounds have been identified by applying sophisticated techniques such as mass spectrometry, and more mechanistic studies of these compounds have been performed using both in vitro and in vivo models. In addition, several well-designed, large, randomized, clinical trials have recently been published. We summarize these recent advances in the field of traditional medicines as they apply to CKD. In addition, current barriers for further research are also discussed. Due to the ongoing research in this field, we believe that stronger evidence to support the use of traditional medicines for CKD will emerge in the near future. Copyright © 2015 National Kidney Foundation, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Traditional medicine as an alternative form of health care system: A ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Traditional medicine as an alternative form of health care system: A preliminary case study of Nangabo sub-county, central Uganda. ... African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines ... The findings indicated that most (43%) respondents derive their livelihoods from traditional medicine practices.

Pruritus Treatment in Viewpoints of Traditional Persian Medicine.

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Jazani, Arezoo Moini; Azgomi, Ramin Nasimi Doost; Shirbeigi, Leila

2016-05-01

Pruritus is an unpleasant feeling that can cause the desire of scratching in a person and can be the symptoms of systemic, infectious, and neurological diseases. Pruritus is the most common clinical manifestation of skin diseases. Pruritus prevalence is 8-38% in the general population. Causes and treatments of pruritus have been described by traditional Persian medicine scientists. The aim of this study was to derive general principles of the proposed treatment to reduce or relieve pruritus. This descriptive study, review traditional medicine books including Al canon fil tibb, Al-Hawi, Makhzan ul-adviyyah, Al-Abniyah an-Haghyegh el-adviyah, Tuhfat ul-Momineen and Exir-e-Azam. The above-mentioned documents were derived and classified by keywords such as pruritus, hakka, jarab and sherry. In traditional Persian medicine, there are different causes for pruritus such as accumulation of vapors or acute humors in subcutaneous tissue or weakness of expulsive (Dafi'a) faculty and its treatment is based on removing the causes. Proper nutrition, bathing, and removing pathogenic humors are involved in the treatment. According to this study, some plants such as Cassia fistula, Purslane, Violets, Fumaria, Barley, Coriander, Rose and Terminalia chebula are anti-itching. Proper nutrition is the most important point in health and treatment of humors production with appropriate quality and quantity. Pruritus can be treated by lifestyle modification and using medicinal plants. It could be concluded that traditional Persian medicine therapies can be effective in the treatment of pruritus with mild side effects. By further investigation and research, we can reach more effective treatment methods in the field of traditional Persian medicine along with other new medical therapies.

Aspects of Sino-Japan Complementary and Alternative Medicine and Development on the Traditional Uighur Medicine

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Yusup, Abdiryim

2009-01-01

Two consecutive conferences on ‘Sino-Japan Complementary and Alternative Medicine and Development on the Traditional Uighur Medicine’ were held in Xinjiang Medical University on July 3 and Kanazawa Medical University on October 6, 2007. The Vice president Halmurat Upur presided over the meeting and gave congratulatory address on holding of the conference. In order to understand mutually and discuss the possibility of the Uighur Medicine as CAM and the situation of medicine in the global sense, specialist scholars of Traditional Uighur Medicine and postgraduates attended this conference. In the meeting of the CAM, the achievements on the research of Traditional Uighur Medicine were exchanged and warmly discussed. Presentations were made in the consecutive conference. PMID:19470524

Academic Medicine Meets Traditional African Healing

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Lindow, Megan

2008-01-01

Cyril Naidoo, who directs the department of family medicine at the University of KwaZulu-Natal's Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, conducts workshops to traditional healers on how to help patients with AIDS and HIV. In Dr. Naidoo's workshop, the group discusses how to counsel patients about HIV and AIDS, how to refer them for testing, and then…

[Enlightenment of adverse reaction monitoring on safety evaluation of traditional Chinese medicines].

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Song, Hai-bo; Du, Xiao-xi; Ren, Jing-tian; Yang, Le; Guo, Xiao-xin; Pang, Yu

2015-04-01

The adverse reaction monitoring is important in warning the risks of traditional Chinese medicines at an early stage, finding potential quality problems and ensuring the safe clinical medication. In the study, efforts were made to investigate the risk signal mining techniques in line with the characteristics of traditional Chinese medicines, particularly the complexity in component, processing, compatibility, preparation and clinical medication, find early risk signals of traditional Chinese medicines and establish a traditional Chinese medicine safety evaluation system based on adverse reaction risk signals, in order to improve the target studies on traditional Chinese medicine safety, effective and timely control risks and solve the existing frequent safety issue in traditional Chinese medicines.

Phytochemicals and Medicinal Properties of Indigenous Tropical Fruits with Potential for Commercial Development

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Hock Eng Khoo

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Hundreds of fruit-bearing trees are native to Southeast Asia, but many of them are considered as indigenous or underutilized. These species can be categorized as indigenous tropical fruits with potential for commercial development and those possible for commercial development. Many of these fruits are considered as underutilized unless the commercialization is being realized despite the fact that they have the developmental potential. This review discusses seven indigenous tropical fruits from 15 species that have been identified, in which their fruits are having potential for commercial development. As they are not as popular as the commercially available fruits, limited information is found. This paper is the first initiative to provide information on the phytochemicals and potential medicinal uses of these fruits. Phytochemicals detected in these fruits are mainly the phenolic compounds, carotenoids, and other terpenoids. Most of these phytochemicals are potent antioxidants and have corresponded to the free radical scavenging activities and other biological activities of the fruits. The scientific research that covered a broad range of in vitro to in vivo studies on the medicinal potentials of these fruits is also discussed in detail. The current review is an update for researchers to have a better understanding of the species, which simultaneously can provide awareness to enhance their commercial value and promote their utilization for better biodiversity conservation.

Determination of toxic heavy metals in indigenous medicinal plants used in Rawalpindi and Islamabad cities, Pakistan.

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Mahmood, Adeel; Rashid, Sadia; Malik, Riffat Naseem

2013-06-21

History of medicinal plants used in local healthcare systems dates back centuries as the user considers them safe from toxic effects. Present study was aimed to document the commonly used indigenous medicinal plants and to investigate the metal toxicity and impact of pollution load in most frequently used medicinal plants from study area. Semi-structured interviews and rapid appraisal approach were employed to record the ethnomedicinal information and toxic metals were analyzed through flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer. A total of 21 wild medicinal plants was reported, and 7 were screened for toxic metal analysis. Oral mode of application (93%) was the chief route of herbal remedy administration, and leaves were found to be used as major plant part against different diseases. Main sources of remedies were wild herb (68%) followed by wild trees (18%), wild spiny shrubs (09%) and wild shrubs (5%). Trend of metal concentration was found as Fe>Ni>Cr>Pb>Cu>Zn>Mn>Cd. Indigenous medicinal plants of both cities posed the toxicity risk for Ni, Cu, Fe and crossed the safety limits set by WHO. Medicinal plants of Rawalpindi were more toxic compared to the medicinal plants of Islamabad. Prolonged intake or over dose of these medicinal plants may lead to chronic accumulation of various elements that may cause severe hazardous effect upon human health. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Digesters in traditional Persian medicine

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Mahmoudpour, Zeinab; Shirafkan, Hoda; Mojahedi, Morteza; Gorji, Narjes; Mozaffarpur, Seyyed Ali

2018-01-01

Background: Functional gastrointestinal diseases are common in general populations and comprise more than 40% visits to gastroenterologists. Treatment options of gastrointestinal diseases have been limited. There are a few medications for functional gastrointestinal diseases and some of medications are not available in the market or in the place where the patient lives. Traditional Persian medicine (TPM) is a branch of alternative and traditional medicine based on individual viewpoint and humoral theory, focuses on lifestyle modification and uses natural products to manage the patients. Methods: In this study, a set of compound drugs known as digesters (jawarishes) and other applications are described based on main TPM text books. Results: Jawarishes have different formulations containing various medicinal herbs used for better food digestion and improved gastric functions and also used for other disorders including reinforcing the brain, heart, liver and some therapeutic approaches. Conclusions: By reviewing medieval Persian pharmaceutical manuscripts, we can conclude that many herbs are effective in different systems of the body and improve gastric functions. Zingiber officinalis and Piper nigrum are mixed together to get various formulations. The variety of jawarishes formulations and their different clinical applications can indicate continuity of their use. PMID:29387312

Traditional medicines and alternative practice in the management of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: This study was aimed at identifying Ghanaian traditional medicines used for the management of prostate diseases and their constituents. Reviews of studies conducted on them are also presented. Methodology: This was a prospective study. Traditional Medicine samples from consecutive patients with either ...

Publishing scientifically sound papers in Traditional and Complementary Medicine.

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Isidoro, Ciro; Huang, Chia-Chi; Sheen, Lee-Yan

2016-01-01

Non-conventional medical practices that make use of dietary supplements, herbal extracts, physical manipulations, and other practices typically associated with folk and Traditional Medicine are increasingly becoming popular in Western Countries. These practices are commonly referred to by the generic, all-inclusive term "Complementary and Alternative Medicine." Scientists, practitioners, and medical institutions bear the responsibility of testing and proving the effectiveness of these non-conventional medical practices in the interest of patients. In this context, the number of peer-reviewed journals and published articles on this topic has greatly increased in the recent decades. In this editorial article, we illustrate the policy of the Journal of Traditional and Complementary Medicine for publishing solid and scientifically sound papers in the field of Traditional and Complementary Medicine.

Nutritional Advice for Patients with Melasma in Iranian Traditional Medicine

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Mahdis Mojtabaee

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Background Melasma (called Kalaf in Iranian traditional medicine is a common acquired hypermelanosis that affects sun-exposed areas of skin. Several factors including exposure to sunlight, pregnancy, and endocrine diseases increase the risk for Melasma. In traditional medicine, antecedent philosophers and physicians have tried to understand the nature and mechanisms of different systems of the human body for the diagnosis and management of Melasma; they have offered different solutions for it. This study is important since Melasma is a disease causing mental side effects in patients, due to darkness and opacity of the skin; therefore, the treatment of Melasma in terms of its psychological complications is of particular importance. In addition, texts of Iranian traditional medicine contain a wealth of nutritional advice for patients with Melasma. These texts have, until now, not yet been reviewed. The present study has considered the most important references of Iranian traditional medicine texts. Objectives The objective of this study was to extract and categorize the nutritional advice of Iranian traditional medicine texts for the treatment of Melasma. Results Dietary recommendations, not only for treatment but also for prevention of diseases and staying healthy, are very efficient. Conclusions Based on the traditional medicine texts, it is helpful to avoid Soda-producing food as well as to identify appropriate food in order to eliminate the accumulation of Soda or black bile from the blood. This study offers a set of analytical and clinical research on food, which in traditional medicine is called Soda-producing as well as Soda reducing.

[Reduction of ADRs of essential traditional Chinese medicines].

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Nie, Qing; Liu, Yan; Chen, Jing

2016-01-01

The essential traditional Chinese medicines (ETCM) are the characteristics of our National Essential Medicine List (NEML) and we should give full play to its unique advantage. The essential medicines of ETCM are specific, but also have dual characters, namely efficacy and ADRs. Although ADRs cannot be avoided, we can make efforts to control some conditions to minimize the possibility of ADRs. It is significant to give suggestions to reduce ADRs of ETCM under the ETCM system by analyzing the possibility of ADRs during ETCM selection, production distribution and use. This research focuses on ETCM, and the conclusion is also applicable to common traditional Chinese medicines. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

An Investigation of the Use of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Stroke Patients.

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Yeh, Mei-Ling; Chiu, Wei-Ling; Wang, Yu-Jen; Lo, Chyi

This study aimed to investigate the use of traditional Chinese medicine and complementary and alternative medicine in stroke patients in Taiwan. Chinese herbal medicine, massage, acupuncture, natural products, and exercise were widely used among stroke patients. Integrating safe and effective traditional Chinese medicine and complementary and alternative medicine into conventional therapies is suggested.

Prescriptions of traditional Chinese medicine, western medicine, and integrated Chinese-Western medicine for allergic rhinitis under the National Health Insurance in Taiwan.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Sheng-Kang; Ho, Yu-Ling; Chang, Yuan-Shiun

2015-09-15

Allergic rhinitis has long been a worldwide health problem with a global growth trend. The use of traditional Chinese medicines alone or integrated Chinese-Western medicines for its treatment is quite common in Taiwan. Respiratory diseases account for the majority of outpatient traditional Chinese medicine treatment, while allergic rhinitis accounts for the majority of respiratory diseases. We hereby conduct a comparative analysis between traditional Chinese medicine treatments and western medicine treatments for allergic rhinitis in Taiwan. The results of the analysis on the prescription difference of traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine treatments would be helpful to clinical guide and health policy decision making of ethnopharmacological therapy. Patients diagnosed as allergic rhinitis with diagnostic code 470-478 (ICD-9-CM) were selected as subjects from 2009-2010 National Health Insurance Research Database based on the claim data from the nationwide National Health Insurance in Taiwan. This retrospective study used Chi-Square test to test the effects of gender and age on visit of traditional Chinese medicine, western medicine, and integrated Chinese-Western medicine treatments. A total of 45,804 patients diagnosed as allergic rhinitis with ICD-9-CM 470-478 were identified from 2009-2010 NHIRD. There were 36,874 subjects for western medicine treatment alone, 5829 subjects for traditional Chinese medicine treatment alone, and 3101 subjects for integrated Chinese-Western medicine treatment. Female patients were more than male in three treatments. 0-9 years children had the highest visit frequency in western medicine and integrated Chinese-Western medicine groups, while 10-19 years young-age rank the highest in traditional Chinese medicine group. The Chi-square test of independence showed that the effects of gender and age on visit of three treatments were significant. The prescription drugs of western medicine treatment alone were almost for

Researches on Transcriptome Sequencing in the Study of Traditional Chinese Medicine

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Xin, Jie; Zhang, Rong-chao; Wang, Lei

2017-01-01

Due to its incomparable advantages, the application of transcriptome sequencing in the study of traditional Chinese medicine attracts more and more attention of researchers, which greatly promote the development of traditional Chinese medicine. In this paper, the applications of transcriptome sequencing in traditional Chinese medicine were summarized by reviewing recent related papers. PMID:28900463

Determination of Arsenic Content of Available Traditional Medicines ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Tropical Journal of Pharmaceutical Research December 2013; 12 (6): 1053- ... Medicines in Malaysia using Hydride Generation Atomic ... Keywords: Traditional medicine, Arsenic, Hydride Generation –Atomic Absorption Spectrometer HG-.

Multivariate statistical treatment of PIXE analysis of some traditional Chinese medicines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiaofeng Zhang; Jianguo Ma; Junfa Qin; Lun Xiao

1991-01-01

Elements in two kinds of 30 traditional Chinese medicines were analyzed by PIXE method, and the data were treated by multivariate statistical methods. The results show that these two kinds of traditional Chinese medicines are almost separable according to their elemental contents. The results are congruous with the traditional Chinese medicine practice. (author) 7 refs.; 2 figs.; 2 tabs

Knowledge-based-ness and synthesis of indigenous knowledge with climate in traditional architecture: Evidence from Naeen city

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Ali Zangi Abadi

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Application of indigenous knowledge is an example of knowledge-based-ness considered as the main agenda in most current urban and climate planning as well as geographical studies. It is one of the interesting topics in research on the role of climate on human dwelling and immediate environment. Indeed, building ecology emphasizes the ability to combine climate and environmental factors and rendering them to spatial qualities and structural comfort. This paper investigates the application of indigenous knowledge and the correspondence between traditional texture of Naeen city and its climate. In this regard, the climatic conditions in Naeen were studied in terms of temperature, humidity, wind and tourist comfort index (TCI of climatourism. The data was collected from Isfahan Meteorology Website over the period 1985-2005. Subsequently, the traditional texture of Naeen, construction materials and building styles were studied through considering the special architectural conditions and compatible materials. Eventually, the correspondence between architectural styles and climatic conditions was studied. The results show that traditional architecture based on indigenous knowledge was consistent with climatic conditions. In this regard, using such materials as mud bricks and thatch with suitable heat capacity as well as using wind catchers, high walls around houses, dome construction, southward direction of houses were consistent with east-west wind direction. In addition, concentration of the traditional texture of the city, wall thickness, corridors, long hallways, courtyard ponds and roofed alleys are evidence of the effect of climatic conditions on urban texture in order to provide comfort in different seasons.

Traditional medicine among people of Pakistani descent in the capital region of Copenhagen.

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Ramzan, Sara; Soelberg, Jens; Jäger, Anna K; Cantarero-Arévalo, Lourdes

2017-01-20

Studies show that ethnic minorities continue to use their cultural traditional medicines also after migration to the West. Research in this field is necessary, given that little is known about traditional medicines' impact on health-related problems. This study sheds light on the issue through a qualitative study among ethnic Pakistanis residing in Denmark. The study addresses perception, knowledge and attitudes regarding the use of medicinal plants among Pakistanis living in Copenhagen. We furthermore document and identify the medicinal plants used in households. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with sixteen ethnic Pakistanis aged 30-80 years. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed through Emerson's two-phased analysis method. Medicinal plant products in the interviewees' households were collected, photographed, identified and deposited at Museum of Natural Medicine at University of Copenhagen. A total number of 121 Pakistani traditional medicines were identified, and found to represent both medicinal plants and foods. The average number of quoted Pakistani Traditional Medicines was 18 (N=16). Interviewees independently reported the same traditions for preparation and consumption of Pakistani traditional medicines. Factors that play a role in choosing to use Pakistani traditional medicines are frequent visits to Pakistan, belief in the healing power of totkas (homemade medicinal preparation), religious knowledge and the occurrence of recent illness within the family. Further, the upkeep of traditional use depends on the availability of Pakistani traditional medicines. The study enhanced understanding of ethnic Pakistanis' perception and continued use of traditional medicines within the household after migration to the West. In the context of Western biomedicine, little is known of the potential toxicity and side-effects of many of the Pakistani traditional medicines found to be used in households in Copenhagen. Copyright

[Relationship between efficacy exertion of diuretic traditional Chinese medicines and aquaporin].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Peng-cheng; Zhao, Shan; Wang, Qiu-hong; Kuang, Hai-xue

2015-06-01

In recent years, the discovery and studies on aquaporin have made us have a more in-depth understanding about the physiological and pathological processes of water metabolism. Over years, however, there has been no quantitative study on the target sites of diuretic traditional Chinese medicines at the molecular level. In that case, aquaporin was found to been a new target molecule to explain the efficacy exertion of diuretic traditional Chinese medicines. By studying aquaporin, researchers can understand the implicit meaning of the diuretic effect of traditional Chinese medicines and conduct quantitative studies on the diuretic effect. So far, many scholars have conducted a series of studies in the traditional Chinese medicine field by using the findings on aquaporin and made certain advances. This article provides a summary about the efficacy exertion of diuretic traditional Chinese medicines through target molecule aquaporin.

[Status of traditional Chinese medicine materials seed and seedling breeding bases].

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Li, Ying; Huang, Lu-Qi; Zhang, Xiao-Bo; Wang, Hui; Cheng, Meng; Zhang, Tian; Yang, Guang

2017-11-01

Seeds and seedlings are the material basis of traditional Chinese medicine materials production, and the construction of traditional Chinese medicine materials seed and seedling breeding bases is beneficial to the production of high-quality traditional Chinese medicine materials. The construction of traditional Chinese medicine materials seed and seedling breeding bases is one of the major topics of Chinese medica resources census pilot. Targets, tasks of traditional Chinese medicine materials seed and seedling breeding bases based on Chinese medica resources census pilot were expounded.Construction progress including hardware construction, germplasm conservation and breeding, procedures and standardsestablishment, social servicesare presented. Development counter measures were proposed for the next step: perfect the standard and system, maintain and strengthen the breeding function, strengthen the cultivation of multi-level talents, explore market development model, joint efforts to deepen services and development. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

'These people who dig roots in the forests cannot treat HIV': Women and men in Durban, South Africa, reflect on traditional medicine and antiretroviral drugs.

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Weintraub, Amy; Mantell, Joanne E; Holt, Kelsey; Street, Renée A; Wilkey, Catriona; Dawad, Suraya; Masvawure, Tsitsi B; Hoffman, Susie

2018-01-01

Relatively few empirical investigations of the intersection of HIV biomedical and traditional medicine have been undertaken. As part of preliminary work for a longitudinal study investigating health-seeking behaviours among newly diagnosed individuals living with HIV, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 24 urban South Africans presenting for HIV testing or newly enrolled in HIV care; here we explored participants' views on African traditional medicine (TM) and biomedical HIV treatment. Notions of acceptance/non-acceptance were more nuanced than dichotomous, with participants expressing views ranging from favourable to reproachful, often referring to stories they had heard from others rather than drawing from personal experience. Respect for antiretrovirals and biomedicine was evident, but indigenous beliefs, particularly about the role of ancestors in healing, were common. Many endorsed the use of herbal remedies, which often were not considered TM. Given people's diverse health-seeking practices, biomedical providers need to recognise the cultural importance of traditional health practices and routinely initiate respectful discussion of TM use with patients.

[Standardization of names in prescriptions of traditional Chinese medicines].

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Li, Chao-Feng; Zhang, Yu-Jun; Fan, Dong-He; Zhang, Meng-Jie; Bai, Xue; Yang, Wen-Hua; Qi, Shu-Ya; Zhang, Zhi-Jie; Xue, Chun-Miao; Mao, Liu-Ying; Cao, Jun-Ling

2017-01-01

Chinese medicine prescriptions are a type of medical documents written by doctors after they understand the patients' conditions for syndrome differentiation. Chinese medicine prescriptions are also the basis for pharmacy personnel to dispense medicines and guide patients to use drugs. It has the legal, technical and economic significances. Chinese medicine prescriptions contain such information of names, quantity and usage. Whether the names of drugs in Chinese medicine prescriptions are standardized or not is directly related to the safety and efficacy of the drugs. At present, nonstandard clinical prescriptions are frequently seen. With "Chinese medicine prescription", "names of drug in Chinese medicine prescription" and "standards of Chinese medicine prescription" as key words, the author searched CNKI, Wanfang and other databases, and consulted nearly 100 literatures, so as to summarize current names of drugs in traditional Chinese medicine prescription, analyze the reasons, and give suggestions, in the expectation of standardizing the names of drugs used in traditional Chinese medicine prescriptions. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Radiopasteurization of traditional herbal medicine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hilmy, N; Suryasaputra, C [National Atomic Energy Agency, Jakarta (Indonesia). Pasar Djumat Research Centre

1981-04-01

Investigation on the effects of irradiation using pasteurization dose of 500 krad (5kGy) on microbes contaminating traditional herbal medicine, produced by 3 large manufacturers in Indonesia, was carried out. Storage effects on microbial count moisture content of traditional herbal medicine packed in microbe tight packages, were also observed. The results showed that initial bacterial counts varied between 10/sup 4/ and 10/sup 8/ per gram, and mould and yeast counts varied between 0 and 10/sup 5/ per gram. These numbers decreased as much as 2 to 5 log cycles after irradiation with 500 krad. After 6 month storage, bacterial counts of irradiated samples decreased as much as 0 to 10/sup 3/ per gram. Initial moisture content varied from 5 to 12% and after 6 month storage the moisture content of most samples increased as much as 0 to 5%. Irradiated samples were found to be mould free, and most of the surviving microbes consisted of spore forming aerobic bacteria and yeast.

Radiopasteurization of traditional herbal medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hilmy, Nazly; Suryasaputra, C.

1981-01-01

Investigation on the effects of irradiation using pasteurization dose of 500 krad (5kGy) on microbes contaminating traditional herbal medicine, produced by 3 large manufacturers in Indonesia, was carried out. Storage effects on microbial count moisture content of traditional herbal medicine packed in microbe tight packages, were also observed. The results showed that initial bacterial counts varied between 10 4 and 10 8 per gram, and mould and yeast counts varied between 0 and 10 5 per gram. These numbers decreased as much as 2 to 5 log cycles after irradiation with 500 krad. After 6 month storage, bacterial counts of irradiated samples decreased as much as 0 to 10 3 per gram. Initial moisture content varied from 5 to 12% and after 6 month storage the moisture content of most samples increased as much as 0 to 5%. Irradiated samples were found to be mould free, and most of the surviving microbes consisted of spore forming aerobic bacteria and yeast. (author)

Trends and Challenges of Traditional Medicine in Africa | Abdullahi ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Prior to the introduction of cosmopolitan medicine, traditional medicine used to be the dominant medical system available to millions of people in Africa in both rural and urban communities. However, the arrival of the Europeans marked a significant turning point in the history of this age-long tradition and culture. This paper ...

Maytenus heterophylla and Maytenus senegalensis, two traditional herbal medicines

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da Silva, G.; Serrano, R.; Silva, O.

2011-01-01

Maytenus heterophylla (Eckl. and Zeyh.) N.K.B. Robson and Maytenus senegalensis (Lam.) Exell are two African shrubs or trees that go under the common name of spike thorn, which belong to the Celastraceae family. Different plant parts of this species are largely used in traditional medicine for infectious and inflammatory diseases treatment. Several studies have been reported for both these species, but there are no recent review articles focusing microscopic, phytochemistry and pharmacological studies. The aim of this review is to summarize the information about these two African traditional medicines. Such kind of data can be applied in future experimental work and may guide future studies, namely in the field of validation of traditional medicine. PMID:22470236

Maytenus heterophylla and Maytenus senegalensis, two traditional herbal medicines.

Science.gov (United States)

da Silva, G; Serrano, R; Silva, O

2011-01-01

Maytenus heterophylla (Eckl. and Zeyh.) N.K.B. Robson and Maytenus senegalensis (Lam.) Exell are two African shrubs or trees that go under the common name of spike thorn, which belong to the Celastraceae family. Different plant parts of this species are largely used in traditional medicine for infectious and inflammatory diseases treatment. Several studies have been reported for both these species, but there are no recent review articles focusing microscopic, phytochemistry and pharmacological studies. The aim of this review is to summarize the information about these two African traditional medicines. Such kind of data can be applied in future experimental work and may guide future studies, namely in the field of validation of traditional medicine.

[Developing traditional Chinese medicine injection is the need for curing sickness to save patients].

Science.gov (United States)

He, Ping; Li, Feng-Jie; Li, Lian-da; Li, Yi-Kui

2017-03-01

Safety issues of traditional Chinese medicine injections has been heated debate. There are two diametrically opposed views: it should be used reasonable and developed healthily or be forbidden to use. Some people have many misunderstandings and prejudices about the safety of traditional Chinese medicine injections. Compared with western medicine,traditional Chinese medicine has its own particularity. Traditional Chinese medicine has complex components. Its research and clinical application is different from western medicine. Adverse reactions of traditional Chinese medicine injections are related to many factors,such as a large number of irrational use,blind use of traditional Chinese medicine injections and western medicine injections,counterfeit and substandard drugs,incorrect methods of intravenous infusion,toxicity of supplementary materials,drug ingredients. Developing traditional Chinese medicine injection is the need for curing sickness to save patients. The purposeful, targeted, organized and planned systematic research of traditional Chinese medicine injections should be strengthened,especially the safety of traditional Chinese medicine. Strengthen supervision and control of rational drug use.Strengthen the examination and approval,supervision and management of all aspects to ensure the safety of patients. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Traditional medicine and HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia: Herbal medicine and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

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The accessibility and cultural acceptability of both herbal medicines and faith healing and the scarcity of ..... public healthcare system. ... Policy Framework and Integration of Traditional ..... discussion within partnerships and HIV prevention and.

Dementia Etiologies and Remedies in Traditional Persian Medicine; A Review of Medicinal Plants and Phytochemistry.

Science.gov (United States)

Shirbeigi, Laila; Dalfardi, Behnam; Abolhassanzadeh, Zohreh; Nejatbakhsh, Fatemeh

2018-01-01

Dementia is a chronic neurodegenerative disease causing progressive and gradual impairment of different brain's cognitive functions. The prevalence of dementia is about 3 to 7% in different parts of the world. The aim of this study was to determine the etiologies of dementia according to the Traditional Persian Medicine scientists' viewpoint and introduce their recommended herbal remedies for this disease. The authors explored six main Traditional Persian Medicine textbooks for the disease of dementia, its etiologies and related recommended herbal treatments. Two main keywords of "Lisarghes" and" Nesyan" were searched for this purpose. Medical databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and Science Direct were searched for related articles published between 1966 and 2016 to review the pharmacological components and active ingredients of suggested herbal medicines. According to the Traditional Persian Medicine, dementia is resulted from brain dystemperament, a condition caused by cold and moist or cold and dry tempers. To treat this disease, Traditional Persian scientists recommended various herbal remedies. Current studies have demonstrated that some of these medicinal plants have beneficial effects for the aforementioned disease, including acetyl cholinesterase inhibitory function, neuroprotective effects, and memory enhancing role. The Traditional Persian Medicine literature suggested different herbal remedies for treating dementia. Modern studies support the usefulness of some of these medicines. However, the effect of a large number of these remedies has remained unexamined, a matter which needs to be investigated in future researches. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Traditional medicine among people of Pakistani descent in the capital region of Copenhagen

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ramzan, Sara; Soelberg, Jens; Jäger, Anna K

2017-01-01

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE: Studies show that ethnic minorities continue to use their cultural traditional medicines also after migration to the West. Research in this field is necessary, given that little is known about traditional medicines' impact on health-related problems. This study sheds...... light on the issue through a qualitative study among ethnic Pakistanis residing in Denmark. AIM OF THE STUDY: The study addresses perception, knowledge and attitudes regarding the use of medicinal plants among Pakistanis living in Copenhagen. We furthermore document and identify the medicinal plants...... Traditional Medicines was 18 (N=16). Interviewees independently reported the same traditions for preparation and consumption of Pakistani traditional medicines. Factors that play a role in choosing to use Pakistani traditional medicines are frequent visits to Pakistan, belief in the healing power of totkas...

Medical Mucilage Used in Traditional Persian Medicine Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Heydarirad, Ghazaleh; Choopani, Rasool; Mehdi, Pasalar; Jafari, Jamileh Mahdavi

2016-01-01

Background: Mucilage compounds are pharmaceutically important polysaccharides that have an extensive range of applications, including binding agents, thickeners, water retention agents, emulsion stabilizers, suspending agents, disintegrates, film formers, and gelling agents. A historical approach to medical science written by Iranian scholars could help in identifying excellent ideas and provide valuable information in this field for proper application. The aim of the current study was to introduce some mucilage uses derived from traditional Persian medicine (TPM). Methods: In this literature review, we assessed a few main traditional manuscripts of Iranian medicine, including the books Al Havi, Canon of Medicine, Qarabadine-kabir, Zakhireh-ye Khwarazm shahi, Tuhfat ul-Momineen and Makhzan-ul-Adwiah. The word “loab” in the aforementioned books were searched and all data about mucilage compounds were collected. Results: The use of medicinal plants containing mucilage in Iran dates back to ancient times. In traditional Persian manuscripts, mucilage is one of the most cited applications of medicinal plants for therapeutic objectives. There are various mucilage-producing plants in TPM such as Malva silvestris, Linum usitissimum, Althaea officinalis, Plantago psyllium, Descureania sophia and Ziziphus vulgaris. They have been used traditionally via oral or topical routes for respiratory, gastrointestinal, urinary, musculoskeletal, and genital systems as well as skin disorders. Certain applications are unique and promising for today’s chronic ailments. Conclusion: A scientific assessment of these valuable manuscripts would provide a better insight into the thoughts of the past sages and applicable for clinical use of the mucilage compounds. This may lead to research opportunities in the future. PMID:27840507

Traditional Chinese medicine information digitalization discussion.

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Qi; Cui, Meng; Wu, Zhen-Dou; Zhao, Hong

2010-11-01

With the rapid development of information science, the ancient Traditional Chinese Medicine is combining with it rapidly, and forming a new discipline: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Informatics. TCM information digitalization is the process of digital processing, which uses modern information technology to obtain, process, store, and analyze TCM-related data, information, and knowledge. It gathers research, application development, and service in an integrated whole. This article systematically analyzes the key research issues of TCM informatics (e.g., on data resources, data standard, data system construction). Also, the methodology and technology of TCM information digitalization research are thoroughly discussed. The starting point of the research on traditional Chinese medical information digitalization was in question. The research from the current study research was drawn from collected information that was stored, transferred, and utilized. This process helped to place an emphasis on the topic, as well as extending its research areas. In addition, an innovative TCM information virtual study center was set up to support a great deal of fundamental work.

[Opportunity and challenge of post-marketing evaluation of traditional Chinese medicine].

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Xiao-Xi; Song, Hai-Bo; Ren, Jing-Tian; Yang, Le; Guo, Xiao-Xin; Pang, Yu

2014-09-01

Post-marketing evaluation is a process which evaluate the risks and benefits of drug clinical application comprehensively and systematically, scientific and systematic results of post-marketing evaluation not only can provide data support for clinical application of traditional Chinese medicine, but also can be a reliable basis for the supervision department to develop risk control measures. With the increasing demands for treatment and prevention of disease, traditional Chinese medicine has been widely used, and security issues are also exposed. How to find risk signal of traditional Chinese medicine in the early stages, carry out targeted evaluation work and control risk timely have become challenges in the development of traditional Chinese medicine industry.

Medicinal Herbs in Iranian Traditional Medicine for Learning and Memory

OpenAIRE

Shojaii, Asie; Ghods, Roshanak; Fard, Mehri Abdollahi

2016-01-01

Background: A few factors such as age, stress, and emotions may lead to impaired learning, memory loss, amnesia, and dementia or threats like schizophrenia and Alzheimer?s disease (AD). Iranian traditional medicine (ITM) recommends some herbs and herbal preparations for the treatment or prevention of CNS problems. Methods: In this study, scientific evidence related to the effectiveness of ITM herbal medicine on memory, learning and AD is reviewed. The scientific evidence of plant efficacy was...

[Application of network biology on study of traditional Chinese medicine].

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Sai-Sai; Yang, Jian; Zhao, Jing; Zhang, Wei-Dong

2018-01-01

With the completion of the human genome project, people have gradually recognized that the functions of the biological system are fulfilled through network-type interaction between genes, proteins and small molecules, while complex diseases are caused by the imbalance of biological processes due to a number of gene expression disorders. These have contributed to the rise of the concept of the "multi-target" drug discovery. Treatment and diagnosis of traditional Chinese medicine are based on holism and syndrome differentiation. At the molecular level, traditional Chinese medicine is characterized by multi-component and multi-target prescriptions, which is expected to provide a reference for the development of multi-target drugs. This paper reviews the application of network biology in traditional Chinese medicine in six aspects, in expectation to provide a reference to the modernized study of traditional Chinese medicine. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Medicinal plants of the Mapuche.

Science.gov (United States)

Houghton, P J; Manby, J

1985-03-01

A list of 136 plants used for medicinal purposes by the Mapuche Amerindians of Chile has been compiled. This is the first such list in English and is important due to the disappearance of Mapuche culture with increasing urbanisation. Some introduced plants have been incorporated into the traditional medicine of the Mapuche since the advent of European settlers but there is also a wealth of information about the uses of many indigenous species.

[Enlightenment of drug application and evaluation procedures of medicines registered (listed) in Australia on studies of new traditional Chinese medicines].

Science.gov (United States)

Ren, Jian-Xun; Liu, Jian-Xun

2014-11-01

Modern and international studies on new traditional Chinese medicines are the main trend of the development of traditional Chinese medicines at present. In Australia, new traditional Chinese medicines refer to complementary medicines, which are mainly registered and launched as listed medicines. The application documents of registered (listed) medicines in Australia mainly cover detailed description of active pharmaceutical ingredients, pharmacological and toxicological studies, dosage form and adverse effects. Each part has detailed specifications and instructions, which helps ensure that applicants could accurately understand the requirements in application for registering (listing) medicines, and provides very important reference to the studies and development of new traditional Chinese medicines in China.

[Present situation and prospects of special fertilizer for traditional Chinese medicine herbs].

Science.gov (United States)

Yan, Zhang; Liu, Yong; Wang, Ji-Yong; Wang, Wen-Quan

2004-08-01

To find out the present situation and the development trend special fertilizer of the traditional Chinese medicina plants. By consulting a great deal of literatures on special fertilizer and fertilization on traditional Chinese medicine herbs, and based on the scientific research and manufacture experience of the author, and the theoretic actuality of the researches on the fertilization of traditional Chinese medicine herbs, the present study of the special fertilizer inside and outside of our country was analyzed. The view points of developing special fertilizer for Chinese traditional medicine were put forward, and the development trend of special fertilizer for traditional Chinese medicine herbs was forecasted.

[Review on community herbal monographs for traditional herbal medicinal products].

Science.gov (United States)

Zou, Wenjun; Qu, Liping; Ye, Zuguang; Ji, Jianxin; Li, Bogang

2011-12-01

This article discusses the characteristics of cmmunity herbal monographs for traditional herbal medicinal products and its establishment procedure. It also reviews the new development of cmmunity traditional herbal monographs. The purpose is to clarify the relationship between cmmunity herbal monographs and simplified registration for traditional herbal medicinal product in European Union and provide reference to the registration of taditional Chinese mdicinal products in Europe.

Regulation of proprietary traditional Chinese medicines in Australia.

Science.gov (United States)

Graham, David T

2017-01-01

This review article describes the regulation of proprietary Chinese medicines for the Australian market, which may permit many medicines used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to have a simplified process of market access provided that certain criteria for acceptable public safety are met. Copyright © 2017 China Pharmaceutical University. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Ethnobotanical study on medicinal plants used by Maonan people in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Liya; Guo, Zhiyong; Huang, Kunhui; Wei, Shanjun; Liu, Bo; Meng, Shaowu; Long, Chunlin

2015-04-30

This paper is based on an ethnobotanical investigation that focused on the traditional medicinal plants used by local Maonan people to treat human diseases in Maonan concentration regions. The Maonan people have relied on traditional medicine since ancient times, especially medicinal plants. The aim of this study is to document medicinal plants used by the Maonans and to report the status of medicinal plants and associated traditional knowledge. Ethnobotanical data were collected from June 2012 to September 2014 in Huanjiang Maonan Autonomous County, northern Guangxi, southwest China. In total, 118 knowledgeable informants were interviewed. Following statistically sampling method, eighteen villages from 5 townships were selected to conduct field investigations. Information was collected through the approache of participatory observation, semi-structured interviews, ranking exercises, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and participatory rural appraisals. A total of 368 medicinal plant species were investigated and documented together with their medicinal uses by the Maonans, most of which were obtained from the wild ecosystems. The plants were used to treat 95 human diseases. Grinding was a widely used method to prepare traditional herbal medicines. There were significant relationships between gender and age, and between gender and informants' knowledge of medicinal plant use. Deforestation for agricultural purposes was identified as the most destructive factor of medicinal plants, followed by drought and over-harvest. The species diversity of medicinal plants used by the Maonans in the study area was very rich. Medicinal plants played a significant role in healing various human disorders in the Maonan communities. However, the conflicts between traditional inheriting system and recent socio-economic changes (and other factors) resulted in the reduction or loss of both medicinal plants and associated indigenous knowledge. Thus, conservation efforts

[Individualized clinical treatment from the prospective of hepatotoxicity of non-toxic traditional Chinese medicine].

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Nan; Chen, Juan; Hou, Xue-Feng; Song, Jie; Feng, Liang; Jia, Xiao-Bin

2017-04-01

Traditional Chinese medicine has a long history in clinical application, and been proved to be safe and effective. In recent years, the toxicity and side-effects caused by the western medicine have been attracted much attention. As a result, increasing people have shifted their attention to traditional Chinese medicine. Nonetheless, due to the natural origin of traditional Chinese medicine and the lack of basic knowledge about them, many people mistakenly consider the absolute safety of traditional Chinese medicine, except for well-known toxic ones, such as arsenic. However, according to the clinical practices and recent studies, great importance shall be attached to the toxicity of non-toxic traditional Chinese medicine, in particular the hepatotoxicity. Relevant studies indicated that the toxicity of non-toxic traditional Chinese medicine is closely correlated with individual gene polymorphism and constitution. By discussing the causes and mechanisms of the hepatotoxicity induced by non-toxic traditional Chinese medicine in clinical practices, we wrote this article with the aim to provide new ideas for individualized clinical therapy of traditional Chinese medicine and give guidance for rational and safe use of traditional Chinese medicine. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Expert system for skin problem consultation in Thai traditional medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Nopparatkiat, Pornchai; na Nagara, Byaporn; Chansa-ngavej, Chuvej

2014-01-01

This paper aimed to demonstrate the research and development of a rule-based expert system for skin problem consulting in the areas of acne, melasma, freckle, wrinkle, and uneven skin tone, with recommended treatments from Thai traditional medicine knowledge. The tool selected for developing the expert system is a software program written in the PHP language. MySQL database is used to work together with PHP for building database of the expert system. The system is web-based and can be reached from anywhere with Internet access. The developed expert system gave recommendations on the skin problem treatment with Thai herbal recipes and Thai herbal cosmetics based on 416 rules derived from primary and secondary sources. The system had been tested by 50 users consisting of dermatologists, Thai traditional medicine doctors, and general users. The developed system was considered good for learning and consultation. The present work showed how such a scattered body of traditional knowledge as Thai traditional medicine and herbal recipes could be collected, organised and made accessible to users and interested parties. The expert system developed herein should contribute in a meaningful way towards preserving the knowledge and helping promote the use of Thai traditional medicine as a practical alternative medicine for the treatment of illnesses.

Current Status of Standardization of Traditional Chinese Medicine in China

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juan Wang

2016-01-01

Full Text Available As an important component of traditional medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM is widely spread and applied in more than 100 countries across the world. The standardization of TCM is very important for the international application of Chinese medicine. In this paper, we have explained and analyzed the standardization situations of TCM in China with the purpose of providing reference for standardization and international development of TCM.

Current Status of Standardization of Traditional Chinese Medicine in China

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, Yi; Li, Gui Lan

2016-01-01

As an important component of traditional medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is widely spread and applied in more than 100 countries across the world. The standardization of TCM is very important for the international application of Chinese medicine. In this paper, we have explained and analyzed the standardization situations of TCM in China with the purpose of providing reference for standardization and international development of TCM. PMID:27110268

Lythrum salicaria L.-Underestimated medicinal plant from European traditional medicine. A review.

Science.gov (United States)

Piwowarski, Jakub P; Granica, Sebastian; Kiss, Anna K

2015-07-21

Purple loosestrife-Lythrum salicaria L. is a herbaceous perennial plant belonging to the Lythraceae family. It has been used for centuries in European traditional medicine. Despite Lythri herba being a pharmacopoeial plant material (Ph. Eur.), L. salicaria popularity as a medicinal plant has recently declined. The aim of the paper is to recall a traditional and historical use of L. salicaria and juxtapose it with comprehensive view on the current knowledge about its chemical composition and documented biological activities in order to bring back the interest into this valuable plant and indicate reasonable directions of future research and possible applications. Systematic survey of historical and ethnopharmacological literature was carried out using sources of European and American libraries. Pharmacological and phytochemical literature research was performed using Scopus, PubMed, Web of Science and Reaxys databases. The review of historical sources from ancient times till 20th century revealed an outstanding position of L. salicaria in traditional medicine. The main applications indicated were gastrointestinal tract ailments (mainly dysentery and diarrhea) as well as different skin and mucosa affections. The current phytochemical studies have shown that polyphenols (C-glucosidic ellagitannins and C-glucosidic flavonoids) as well as heteropolysaccharides are dominating constituents, which probably determine the observed pharmacological effects. The extracts and some isolated compounds were shown to possess antidiarrheal, antimicrobial, anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic activities. The intrinsic literature overview conclusively demonstrates that L. salicaria L. used to be considered as an exceptionally effective remedy in European traditional medicine. Despite its unquestionable important position from unknown reasons its popularity has been weakened during the past few decades. Unfortunately the contemporary pharmacological research is still

[Systematic economic assessment and quality evaluation for traditional Chinese medicines].

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Xiao; Guo, Li-ping; Shang, Hong-cai; Ren, Ming; Lei, Xiang

2015-05-01

To learn about the economic studies on traditional Chinese medicines in domestic literatures, in order to analyze the current economic assessment of traditional Chinese medicines and explore the existing problems. Efforts were made to search CNKI, VIP, Wanfang database and CBM by computer and include all literatures about economic assessment of traditional Chinese medicines published on professional domestic journals in the systematic assessment and quality evaluation. Finally, 50 articles were included in the study, and the systematic assessment and quality evaluation were made for them in terms of titles, year, authors' identity, expense source, disease type, study perspective, study design type, study target, study target source, time limit, cost calculation, effect indicator, analytical technique and sensitivity analysis. The finally quality score was 0.74, which is very low. The results of the study showed insufficient studies on economics of traditional Chinese medicines, short study duration and simple evaluation methods, which will be solved through unremitting efforts in the future.

[General survey and protection of intangible cultural heritage in traditional medicine in Zhejiang Province].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, D M

2017-07-28

From January 2003 to October 2008, the Zhejiang Provincial Department of Culture, together with the Intangible Cultural Heritage Management Department of 11 cities and counties, including Hangzhou, Ningbo, Wenzhou, Huzhou, Jiaxing, Shaoxing, Jinhua, Quzhou, Zhoushan, Taizhou, Lishui, surveyed the Province's intangible cultural heritage in traditional medicine, with a total of 7849 items, including 7 kinds of traditional medicine in 8 major categories: living Chinese medicine culture, ethnic medicine, acu-moxibustion, osteopathic therapy, unique therapies, and Chinese crude drugs, herbal medicine and traditional Chinese medicine preparation, TCM processing.Among them, 9 items have been included in the Representative Project List of National Traditional Medicine Intangible Cultural Heritage, 18 items were listed in Representative Project Directory of Zhejiang Traditional Medicine Intangible Cultural Heritage.Theprotection and inheritance of traditional of the intangible heritage of traditional medicine in Zhejiang province are mainly through the 4 batches of master guidance apprentices.In addition, protection is carried out through organizational support, literature systematization and other measures.

Review of indigenous knowledge in Uganda: implications for its promotion

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

John R.S. Tabuti

2012-02-01

Full Text Available Indigenous knowledge (IK has a role to play for households and community well-being in Uganda. However, IK is undergoing significant change and is on the decline in Uganda because of factors such as acculturation or the loss of IK through exposure to external cultures. In this paper we review some of the roles of, and threats to, IK with particular reference to the local community of Kaliro District. We make some recommendations on how to conserve IK in Kaliro and elsewhere in Uganda. Key words: traditional knowledge, conservation, traditional medicine, ethnobotany

[Establishment of modern multi-component sustained-release preparations of oral traditional Chinese medicines].

Science.gov (United States)

Xia, Hai-Jian; Zhang, Zhen-Hai; Liu, Dan; Yu, Dan-Hong; Jia, Xiao-Bin

2013-10-01

Traditional Chinese medicines have a long history, with a large quantity of efficient traditional Chinese medicines and prescriptions. However, the vast majority of pharmaceutical dose forms remain common preparations, with very few efficient, long-lasting and low-dose preparations. The sustain-release preparation allows sustained drug release in a longer period of time, maintains blood drug concentration, reduces the toxic effect and medication frequency, and improves medication compliance. Unlike monomer drugs, the material base of traditional Chinese medicine and compounds is multi-component, instead of single or several active monomers. Therefore, under the guidance of the Chinese medicine theories, modern multi-component sustained-release preparations were developed for oral traditional Chinese medicines, with the aim of finally improving the clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicines.

Traditional medicine trade in vulture parts in northern Nigeria | Saidu ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

We report findings on the vulture trade in northern Nigeria, where it is commonly practised especially to supply the traditional medicine industry. We administered an open-ended questionnaire to 113 traditional, predominantly Hausa medicinal traders in 39 markets within eight states in northern Nigeria. Of the interviewed ...

Metaphysical and value underpinnings of traditional medicine in West Africa.

Science.gov (United States)

Omonzejele, Peter F; Maduka, Chukwugozie

2011-02-01

This study investigated the extent to which recourse to traditional healers depended on biometric variables; ways of knowing in good time what ailments were more likely to be better handled by traditional healers; rationale behind traditional healing methodologies. On the whole, four research questions were engaged. The sample for the study included residents in urban (Benin City) and rural (Ehime Mbano) communities in Nigeria. The instruments comprised of two questionnaires. The traditional healers were also interviewed in addition. The findings of the research included the following: in both rural and urban areas, women and more elderly persons had more recourse than other groups to traditional medicine; Christians, less educated persons, self-employed persons and women affirmed most strongly to the efficacy of traditional medicine over Western medicine with respect to certain ailments; ways for averting spiritual illnesses included obeying instructions from ancestors and offering regular sacrifices to the gods; methods used by traditional healers to determine whether an ailment was "spiritual" or as a result of home problems included diagnosis linked to divination, interpretation of dreams particularly those involving visits by ancestors, interpretation of nightmares and omens such as the appearance of owls; methods for curing patients included use of herbs particularly those believed to have magical powers, offering of sacrifices, use of incantations and wearing of protective medicine.

The prevalence, types and effects of traditional eye medicine use ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: The use of Traditional Medicines (TM) is common practice world over. Traditional Eye Medicine (TEM) use may be associated with various ocular complications including blindness. A study on the prevalence of TEM use was carried out at Sekuru Kaguvi Hospital Eye Unit (SKHEU) in Harare, with emphasis on ...

Artemisinin, a miracle of traditional Chinese medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Ling Yi; Tan, Ren Xiang

2015-12-19

The 2015 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, shared by Professor Youyou Tu, focused worldwide attention on artemisinin, a natural product antimalarial drug inspired by traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). This is the first Nobel Prize in natural sciences presented to a Chinese scientist for her impactful research work in China in collaboration with other Chinese scientists. We are delighted to provide the background and implications of the discovery of artemisinin, along with our personal viewpoints toward the affordability of modern medicines from natural products.

[Research on medical speciality of traditional Chinese medicines using dot-immunoblotting method based on polyclonal antibody prepared from traditional Chinese medicines with hot/cold nature].

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Houwei; Dou, Yanling; Tian, Jingzhen; Li, Feng; Wang, Shijun; Wang, Zhenguo

2009-02-01

To research on the substantial foundation of the medical speciality of Chinese traditional medicines from immunogenicity. Control antigen with hot nature was prepared from the mixture of the aqueous extracts of three Chinese traditional medicines with three typical hot nature of Alpinia officinarum, Cinnamomum cassia and Curculigo orchioides, while that with cold nature prepared with Rheum palmatum, Anemarrhena asphodeloides, Coptis chinensis, and polyclonal antibody was prepared by immunizing rabbit with control antigen. Dot blotting was performed between the polyclonal antibody of control antigen and the aqueous extracts of nine Chinese traditional medicines on a piece of PVDF membrane, and the blotting signals were analyzed by the software of Quantity One. Blotting signals with hot control antigen of nine Chinese traditional medicines in descending were Zingiber officinale, Aconitum carmichaeli, Eucommia ulmoides, Fraxinus rhynchophylla, Lonicera japonica, Anemarrhena asphodeloides, Coptis chinensis, Rheum palmatum and Phellodendron chinense, which degree of similarity to control antigen in peak value were 57.33%, 43.56 %, 34.16%, 30.2%, 28.81%, 26.53%, 21.68%, 17.62% and 14.85%, respectively. Blotting signals with cold control antigen were Rheum palmatum, Anemarrhena asphodeloides, Coptis chinensis, Phellodendron chinense, Zingiber officinale, Lonicera japonica, Fraxinus rhynchophylla, Eucommia ulmoides and Aconitum carmichaeli in descending, of which degree of similarity to cold control antigen in peak value were 55.22%, 54.23%, 46.72%, 34.08%, 30.3%, 24.48%, 24.33%, 20.35% and 15.17%, respectively. Results of cluster analysis with Wistar's method showed that nine medicines were classified into two groups, one group included Phellodendron chinense, Anemarrhena asphodeloides, Coptis chinensis, Rheum palmatum, another was Zingiber officinale, Aconitum carmichaeli, Eucommia ulmoides, Fraxinus rhynchophylla, Lonicera japonica. Blotting signals of nine medicines

Herbal mixtures in the traditional medicine of Eastern Cuba

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hernández, J.; Volpato, G.

2004-01-01

Herbal mixtures in the traditional medicine of Eastern Cuba. Traditional herbal mixtures in Eastern Cuba are investigated through interviews with 130 knowledgeable people and traditional healers of the provinces of Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. One hundred seventy plant species and other products

Traditional medicines and alternative practice in the management of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

main business district of Accra, were visited and traditional medicines for the management of prostate diseases ac- ... This was the constituent in four products (Uro 500®, UR-Quick mixture®, Prostacure® ... Herbal medicine, botanical medicine or phytomedicine ... along with quality clinical research supporting the value.

[Comparative analysis between origin of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder and modern formula granules].

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Rui; Zhai, Hua-Qiang; Tian, Wei-Lan; Hou, Ji-Ru; Jin, Shi-Yuan; Wang, Yong-Yan

2016-03-01

In this study, the origin and causes of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder were reviewed, and a comprehensive analysis was made for the time background of modern traditional Chinese medicine formula granules and the future development trend, in order to provide reference for application and promotion of traditional Chinese medicine formula granules. By reference to ancient medical books of previous dynasties, a system review was conducted for infancy, formation, maturity and transition of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder, and a comprehensive analysis was made for the six factors of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder's maturity in the Song Dynasty. Efforts were made to collect domestic and foreign research literatures of modern formula granules, understand the detailed development, and conduct an objective analysis of the current clinical application of modern formula granules. According to the comparative analysis for the application characteristics of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder and modern formula granules, ①the popularity of cooked traditional Chinese medicine powder in the Song Dynasty has six factors: soaring numbers of medical students and medical practitioners, high medical expenses due to huge army, rapid population growth, frequent epidemics and increasing diseases, and insufficient finances of central and local governments. ②On the basis of clinical application characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine formula granules, traditional Chinese medicine formula granules contain extracted and concentrated effective components, which guarantee the curative effect, meet modern people's demands for "quick, simple and convenience" traditional Chinese medicine decoctions, show a relatively high cost performance; however, formula granules are restricted by their varieties and lack unified quality control standards, and single-extract formula granules have not synergy and attenuation effects of combined traditional

Health and indigenous people: intercultural health as a new paradigm toward the reduction of cultural and social marginalization?

Science.gov (United States)

Torri, Maria Costanza

2010-01-01

The precarious socio-economic and health conditions of indigenous populations legitimize claims of marginalization and attest to the inherent inequality that indigenous groups suffer. In the last few years, advocates have urged the use of traditional indigenous health practices as more culturally fitting for most indigenous populations. An intercultural health program can reduce the conditions of social and cultural marginalization in an indigenous population. However, accepting and integrating indigenous medicine into a westernized health system presents a major challenge to intercultural healthcare in Latin America. The objective of this paper is to analyze the case of Makewe hospital, one of the first and few examples of intercultural health initiatives in Chile. The paper will examine the implementation of this initiative and the main challenges in creating an effective intercultural health program.

Persian Medicine in the World of Research; Review of Articles on Iranian Traditional Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Moeini, Reihaneh; Gorji, Narjes

2016-05-01

Due to negligence, Persian (Iranian) traditional medicine has had a weak presence in the world of research for a long time. However, in recent years, a variety of activates by research and faculty centers have created awareness and a platform to introduce and promote Persian medicine to the world. The aim of this study is to present and analyze scientific achievements of Persian medicine in the world of research. Articles were collected from PubMed database using keywords such as "Persian medicine", "Persian traditional medicine", "Iranian medicine", and "Iranian traditional medicine". All data were classified based on the type of research (review, intervention, case reports, etc.), the field of study (neurology, cardiovascular, metabolic, historical studies, etc.), publication year, and journal type. A total of 501 articles were identified until the end of 2015, comprising of 222 reviews and 219 interventional (108 animal, 57 clinical and 54 cellular). Most studies were on neurology (20.1%), gastroenterology (14.5%), and cardiovascular diseases (10.4%). The publications in 2015 and 2014 had the highest hit rate with 139 and 132 articles, respectively, with 1:2 publication ratio between foreign and Iranian journals. The most published articles, both foreign and Iranian, were in "Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine" and "Iranian Red Crescent Medicine" journals. The contribution of foreign authors was 5%. The primary focus of the articles was on "Basic concepts of Persian medicine", "Healthy lifestyle according to Persian medicine", and "Historical aspects", by 3.1%, 2.9%, and 6.7%, respectively. During the last 2 years, the number of articles published in Persian (Iranian) medicine, particularly clinical studies had significant growth in comparison with the years before. The tendency of foreign researchers to use the keywords "Iranian" or "Persian" medicine is notable. This research was only based on the designated keyword and other keywords were

智慧創作專用權之性質與使用倫理─給原創條例的幾點建議 The Legal Character and Culturally Appropriate Practices of Traditional Indigenous Intellectual Creations—Suggestions for the Protection Act for the Traditional Intellectual Creations of Indigenous Peoples

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林孟玲 Meng-Ling Lin

2015-06-01

Full Text Available 原住民族智慧創作保護條例的制定，對於保護原住民族的傳統智慧創作、文化成果之表達有顯著的貢獻。原創條例雖然立法意旨甚佳，是專門為保護原住民族傳統智慧創作所量身定作之立法，也注意到了原住民族智慧創作有別於著作權之概念，而做出調整。但是條例所用的權利保護概念，卻仍沿用著作權之規定，是美中不足之處。例如：「智慧創作專用權」的內涵仍沿用著作權的權利概念「智慧創作財產權」與「智慧創作人格權」；如果對於智慧創作專用權造成侵害，智慧創作專用權人的救濟管道與著作權受侵害的救濟方式並無二致，包括：排除侵害請求權、請求防止侵害請求權、損害賠償請求權、請求銷毀侵害智慧創作之物。此外，原創條例並未提及使用原住民族之傳統智慧創作時，不能違反原住民族傳統價值等觀念，有如進行關於原住民族的學術研究時，有特別應遵守的研究倫理。本文從智慧創作專用權性質之討論出發，繼而探討智慧創作財產權與智慧創作人格權之內涵。舉例說明基於部落習慣法而來的，智慧創作之使用所應注意之使用倫理後，最後亦根據部落習慣法，闡述現行智慧創作專用權之權利救濟管道妥適性。本文之建議期使原創條例能真正落實其立法目的：保護原住民族傳統智慧創作以及促進原住民族文化發展。 The enactment of the Protection Act for the Traditional Intellectual Creations of Indigenous Peoples makes great contributions to the development and protection of indigenous traditional intellectual creations by adopting indigenous legal concepts suitable to tribal culture. For example, it recognizes collective rights to indigenous creations. Also, it recognizes that the period for legal protection of indigenous traditional intellectual creations as an

The effect of traditional herbal medicines on pregnancy outcome

African Journals Online (AJOL)

developing countries.Hi This interest arises from the fact that traditional medicines not only have important cultural roles but may have beneficial medicinal effects and be more cost-effective than modern pharmaceutical agents. Furthermore the ingestion of herbal medicines during pregnancy is reported to be high in African ...

Understanding the relationship between indigenous (traditional ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

With the advancement of modern scientific methods and technology, most of these indigenous biological resources are being developed into commercial products, largely without benefiting the very communities that have sustainably managed them over many generations. This paper examines current regulatory ...

Porosity and Health: Perspective of Traditional Persian Medicine

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Tafazoli, Vahid; Nimrouzi, Majid; Daneshfard, Babak

2016-01-01

Background: The authors of this manuscript aimed to show the importance of porosity and condensation in health according to traditional Persian medicine (TPM) with consideration of new evidence in conventional medicine. Methods: Cardinal traditional medical and pharmacological texts were searched for the traditional terms of takhalkhol (porosity) and takassof (condensity) focused on preventive methods. The findings were classified and compared with new medical findings. Results: According to traditional Persian medicine, porosity and condensity are the two crucial items that contribute to human health. Somatotype is a taxonomy based on embryonic development, which may be considered in parallel with porosity and condensation. However, these terms are not completely the same. There are many causes for acquired porosity comprising hot weather, too much intercourse, rage, starvation, and heavy exercises. In general, porosity increases the risk of diseases as it makes the body organs vulnerable to external hot and cold weather. On the other hand, the porose organs are more susceptible to accumulation of morbid matters because the cellular wastes cannot be evacuated in the normal way. There are some common points between traditional and conventional medicine in the context of porosity and condensity. The relation between diet and somatotype is an example. Conclusion: Condensity and porosity are the two basic items cited in the TPM resources and contribute to health maintenance and disease prevention of body organs. Creating a balance between these two states in different body organs, strongly contributes to disease prevention, treatment and diminishing chronic diseases period. Choosing proper modality including diet, drug therapy, and manual therapy depends on the amount porosity and stiffness of the considered organ and the preferred porosity of the affected organ keeping in a normal healthy state. PMID:27840513

Non-European traditional herbal medicines in Europe: a community herbal monograph perspective.

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Qu, Liping; Zou, Wenjun; Zhou, Zhenxiang; Zhang, Tingmo; Greef, JanVander; Wang, Mei

2014-10-28

The European Directive 2004/24/EC introducing a simplified registration procedure for traditional herbal medicinal products, plays an important role in harmonising the current legislation framework for all herbal medicinal products in the European Union (EU). Although substantial achievements have been made under the new scheme, only a limited number of herbal medicinal products from non-European traditions commonly used in Europe have been registered. Therefore, identification of the obstacles, and determination of appropriate means to overcome the major challenges in the registration of non-European traditional herbal medicinal products are of critical importance for the EU herbal medicinal product market. The primary aims of this study were to understand the key issues and obstacles to registration of non-European traditional herbal medicinal products within the EU. The findings may identify the need for more attention on the Community herbal monographs elaborated by the Herbal Medicinal Products Committee (HMPC), as well as further evidence based scientific research on non-European herbal substances/preparations by the scientific community. A systematic evaluation of the herbal substances and preparations included in Community herbal monographs and public statements has been carried out. The focus was herbal substances and preparations derived from non-European traditions. Of the 109 adopted Community herbal monographs, 10 are herbal substances used in Chinese traditional medicine. Where the HMPC issued a public statement because it was unable to elaborate a monograph more than half-involved herbal substances/preparations from non-European traditions. The main reasons herbal substances/preparations from non-European traditions were not accepted for inclusion in the Community herbal monographs have been identified as due to unfulfilled requirements of Directive 2004/24/EC. The most common reasons were the lack of evidence to demonstrate a 15-year minimum

[Treatment of Bell's palsy with combination of traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine].

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Wang, Xiao-hong; Zhang, Li-ming; Han, Mei; Zhang, Ke-qing; Jiang, Jiao-jiao

2004-06-01

To evaluation the clinical effect of combination of traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine on Bell's palsy. 83 patients with Bell's palsy were randomly divided into two groups (trail group 54 cases and control group 29 cases). Patients in two groups were treated with medicine, acupuncture, physiotherapy, while patients in the trail group were treated with massage and functional exercise as the same time. The results of both groups were evaluated according to Portmann's Simple Scale. The score before treatment of trail group was 2.907 +/- 1.794, while control group was 2.931 +/- 2.034. And the score after treatment of trail group was 18.593 +/- 1.743, while control group was 9.862 +/- 3.091. Score of the function of facial muscles obtained from trail group was distinctly higher than that was from the control group (P Bell's palsy with combination of traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine. The improvement of facial muscles' motive function pre- and post-treatment and quantitative evaluation of curative effect can be objectively obtained by evaluation of facial muscles' function.

Indigenous practices among Palestinians for healing eye diseases and inflammations.

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Abu-Rabia, Aref

2005-01-01

This paper briefly describes the state health services in general, and eye care in particular for Palestinian Arabs under the British Mandate (1917-1948). The paper will also discuss the environmental and cultural origins of the prevalence of eye diseases among Palestinian Arabs. The second part of the research describes in detail indigenous practices of traditional medicine for healing trachoma and other eye diseases, inflammation that were prevalent in Mandatory Palestine.

CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS LITERATURE: FORMS AND CONTENTS IN THE POETRY AND PROSE OF THE II LITERARY PARTY OF INDIGENOUS POETICS.

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Deborah Goldemberg

2010-06-01

Full Text Available By analyzing the forms and contents of the presentations made by indigenous performers and writers at the I Literary Party of Indigenous Poetics, this article exposes the challenges faced by traditional genre theories in tackling indigenous narratives and analyses how this “crisis” contributes to widening hierarchical and Western biased conceptions. On a stage open to contemporary indigenous expression, as is the literary party, the concepts of performance and storytelling, with the social function of maintaining tradition, continuous learning and transformation, better define this indigenous expression.

Role of Nutrition in Children Growth in View of Traditional Medicine.

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Farsani, Gholamreza Mohammadi; Movahhed, Mina

2016-05-01

Growth and development are the basic science in pediatric medicine. Growth disorder in children is one of the important health problems in the world, especially in developing countries. Regardless of the underlying disease, as the main cause of growth disorders, assessment and correction of nutritional status of these children are very important. Given the fundamental importance of this issue and ascending tendency to use complementary medicine in the world, this article discusses the traditional Iranian philosopher's views on the role of nutrition in child development. This study reviews textbooks of traditional medicine, particularly in the field of pediatric medicine with a focus on Canon of Medicine of Avicenna. Temperament is the physiological concept of the human body in traditional medicine and has an important role in health, diagnosis, and treatment of disease. Generally, children are born with warm and wet temperament that provides the best condition for growth. However, the personal temperament of each child determines growth, the need for a variety of food groups, and even physical activity. Different appetite and food preferences in children show temperamental variation. Therefore, children need special management regarding special temperament. In Iranian traditional medicine, special lifestyle orders are discussed in detail according to these differentiations and nutritional management is the most important factor considered. In spite of advances in classical medicine in the prevention and treatment of many diseases, there are still a lot of therapeutic challenges in many health problems. Temperamental approach to the human body in traditional medicine provides a different perspective on the medicine. Reflecting on temperamental view in child development may lead to a better understanding of the diagnosis and treatment of diseases. On the other hand, further research studies based on the reform of nutrition with respect to temperament should be

Medicinal Plants Traditionally Used In Mali for Dysmenorrhea ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Dysmenorrhea is painful menstrual cramps, which negatively impacts the quality of life of a large percentage of the world's female population in reproductive age. The paper reviews the plants used in the Malian traditional medicine for the treatment of dysmenorrhea. Some medicinal plants were effective for treatments of ...

Anorexia: Highlights in Traditional Persian medicine and conventional medicine

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Nimrouzi, Majid; Zarshenas, Mohammad Mehdi

2018-01-01

Objective: Anorexia and impaired appetite (Dysorexia) are common symptoms with varying causes, and often need no serious medical intervention. Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a chronic psychiatric disease with a high mortality rate. In Traditional Persian Medicine (TPM), anorexia is a condition in which anorexic patients lose appetite due to dystemperament. This review aims to discuss the common points of traditional and conventional approaches rather than introducing Persian medical recommendations suitable for nowadays use. Materials and Methods: For this purpose, Avicenna's Canon of Medicine, main TPM resources and important databases were reviewed using the related keywords. Results: Despite complex hormonal explanation, etiology of AN in conventional approach is not completely understood. In TPM approach, the etiology and recommended interventions are thoroughly defined based on humoral pathophysiology. In TPM approach, disease states are regarded as the result of imbalances in organs’ temperament and humors. In anorexia with simple dystemperament, the physician should attempt to balance the temperament using foods and medicaments which have opposite quality of temperament. Lifestyle, spiritual diseases (neuro – psychological) and gastrointestinal worms are the other causes for reducing appetite. Also, medicines and foods with warm temperaments (such as Pea soup and Mustard) are useful for these patients (cold temperament). Conclusion: Although the pathophysiology of AN in TPM is different in comparison with conventional views, TPM criteria for treatment this disorder is similar to those of current medicine. Recommending to have spiritual support and a healthy lifestyle are common in both views. Simple safe interventions recommended by TPM may be considered as alternative medical modalities after being confirmed by well-designed clinical trials. PMID:29387569

Reptiles sold as traditional medicine in Xipamanine and Xiquelene Markets (Maputo, Mozambique

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Vivienne L. Williams

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Zootherapy plays a role in healing practices in Mozambican society. Although several studies have focused on ethnobotany and traditional medicine in the country, little research has been conducted on the use of reptiles in zootherapy. The aim of this study was therefore to fill this gap by assessing the reptile species traded for traditional medicine in the Xipamanine and Xiquelene Markets in Maputo, Mozambique. We found that few reptile species are traded domestically for traditional medicine and that their use appears to be in decline in Mozambique. Our findings also suggest that the domestic trade of reptiles for traditional medicines in Maputo markets is unlikely to have a significant impact on the conservation of reptiles in Mozambique. However, we suggest that international trade with South Africa is likely having a larger impact, given observations of Mozambican nationals selling a diverse range of fauna in urban traditional medicine markets in Johannesburg and Durban.

The treatment of jaundice with medicinal plants in indigenous communities of the Sub-Himalayan region of Uttarakhand, India.

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Sharma, Jyotsana; Gairola, Sumeet; Gaur, R D; Painuli, R M

2012-08-30

Inspite of tremendous advances made in allopathic medical practices, herbs still play an important role in the management of various liver diseases. A large number of plants and formulations have been claimed to have hepatoprotective activity. Jaundice is a symptom, indicative of the malfunctioning of the liver. This paper provides ethnomedicinal information on the plants used to treat jaundice by three important indigenous communities, i.e., nomadic Gujjars, Tharu and Bhoxa of Sub-Himalayan region, Uttarakhand, India. To record herbal preparations used by the studied indigenous communities in treatment of jaundice and discuss hepatoprotective properties of the recorded plants. The traditional knowledge of the studied indigenous communities on herbal preparations used for treating jaundice was collected through structured questionnaire and personal interviews. The interviews were conducted with 91 traditional healers (29 Bhoxa, 35 Tharu and 27 nomadic Gujjars) in Sub-Himalayan region of Uttarakhand, India. More than 250 research papers reporting ethnomedicinal information on the hepatoprotective plants used by various communities from different parts of India were extensively reviewed. A total of 40 medicinal plants belonging to 31 families and 38 genera were recorded to be used by the studied communities in 45 formulations as a remedy of jaundice. Bhoxa, nomadic Gujjars and Tharu communities used 15, 23 and 9 plants, respectively. To our knowledge eight plants reported in the present survey viz., Amaranthus spinosus L., Cissampelos pareira L., Ehretia laevis Roxb., Holarrhena pubescens Wall., Ocimum americanum L., Physalis divaricata D. Don, Solanum incanum L. and Trichosanthes cucumerina L. have not been reported earlier as remedy of jaundice in India. Literature review revealed that a total of 214 (belonging to 181 genus and 78 families), 19 (belonging to 18 genus and 12 families) and 14 (belonging to 14 genus and 11 families) plant species are used as internal

DisArticle: a web server for SVM-based discrimination of articles on traditional medicine.

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Kim, Sang-Kyun; Nam, SeJin; Kim, SangHyun

2017-01-28

Much research has been done in Northeast Asia to show the efficacy of traditional medicine. While MEDLINE contains many biomedical articles including those on traditional medicine, it does not categorize those articles by specific research area. The aim of this study was to provide a method that searches for articles only on traditional medicine in Northeast Asia, including traditional Chinese medicine, from among the articles in MEDLINE. This research established an SVM-based classifier model to identify articles on traditional medicine. The TAK + HM classifier, trained with the features of title, abstract, keywords, herbal data, and MeSH, has a precision of 0.954 and a recall of 0.902. In particular, the feature of herbal data significantly increased the performance of the classifier. By using the TAK + HM classifier, a total of about 108,000 articles were discriminated as articles on traditional medicine from among all articles in MEDLINE. We also built a web server called DisArticle ( http://informatics.kiom.re.kr/disarticle ), in which users can search for the articles and obtain statistical data. Because much evidence-based research on traditional medicine has been published in recent years, it has become necessary to search for articles on traditional medicine exclusively in literature databases. DisArticle can help users to search for and analyze the research trends in traditional medicine.

Quantitative Ethnobotany of Medicinal Plants Used by Indigenous Communities in the Bandarban District of Bangladesh.

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Faruque, Mohammad O; Uddin, Shaikh B; Barlow, James W; Hu, Sheng; Dong, Shuang; Cai, Qian; Li, Xiaohua; Hu, Xuebo

2018-01-01

This study documents information on significant ethnomedicinal plants, which was collected from the traditional healers of three indigenous communities of Bangladesh. The documented data were quantitatively analyzed for the first time in this area. The information was obtained through open-ended, semi-structured questionnaires. The benefits, importance and coverage of ethnomedicine were expressed through several quantitative indices including Informant Consensus Factor (ICF), Use Value (UV), Frequency of Citation (FC), Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC) and Relative Importance Index (RI). The agreement of homogeneity between the present and previous studies and among the indigenous communities was evaluated using the Jaccard Index (JI). A total of 159 ethnomedicinal plant species, which were distributed in 132 genera under 62 families, were documented from 174 informants. Of these, 128 plants were native and 31 were exotic. Of a majority of documented species, herbs and leaves were the most utilized plant parts for the preparation of ethnomedicines (45.28%) whereas pastes (63.03%) were the most popular formulations. Among the documented species, the dominant families were the Asteraceae (14 species) and the Lamiaceae (12 species). The highest ICF value was 0.77 for digestive system disorders. Based on UVs, the five most commonly used ethnomedicinal plant species in the study area were Duabanga grandiflora (0.43), Zingiber officinale (0.41), Congea tomentosa (0.40), Matricaria chamomilla (0.33) and Engelhardtia spicata (0.28). The highest RFC was recorded for Rauvolfia serpentina (0.25). The highest RI value was calculated for both Scoparia dulcis and Leucas aspera (0.83). Importantly, 16 species were reported with new therapeutic uses and to our knowledge, 7 species described herein have never been ethnobotanically and pharmacologically studied, viz: Agastache urticifolia, Asarum cordifolium, C. tomentosa, E. spicata, Hypserpa nitida, Merremia vitifolia and

Quantitative Ethnobotany of Medicinal Plants Used by Indigenous Communities in the Bandarban District of Bangladesh

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Mohammad O. Faruque

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This study documents information on significant ethnomedicinal plants, which was collected from the traditional healers of three indigenous communities of Bangladesh. The documented data were quantitatively analyzed for the first time in this area. The information was obtained through open-ended, semi-structured questionnaires. The benefits, importance and coverage of ethnomedicine were expressed through several quantitative indices including Informant Consensus Factor (ICF, Use Value (UV, Frequency of Citation (FC, Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC and Relative Importance Index (RI. The agreement of homogeneity between the present and previous studies and among the indigenous communities was evaluated using the Jaccard Index (JI. A total of 159 ethnomedicinal plant species, which were distributed in 132 genera under 62 families, were documented from 174 informants. Of these, 128 plants were native and 31 were exotic. Of a majority of documented species, herbs and leaves were the most utilized plant parts for the preparation of ethnomedicines (45.28% whereas pastes (63.03% were the most popular formulations. Among the documented species, the dominant families were the Asteraceae (14 species and the Lamiaceae (12 species. The highest ICF value was 0.77 for digestive system disorders. Based on UVs, the five most commonly used ethnomedicinal plant species in the study area were Duabanga grandiflora (0.43, Zingiber officinale (0.41, Congea tomentosa (0.40, Matricaria chamomilla (0.33 and Engelhardtia spicata (0.28. The highest RFC was recorded for Rauvolfia serpentina (0.25. The highest RI value was calculated for both Scoparia dulcis and Leucas aspera (0.83. Importantly, 16 species were reported with new therapeutic uses and to our knowledge, 7 species described herein have never been ethnobotanically and pharmacologically studied, viz: Agastache urticifolia, Asarum cordifolium, C. tomentosa, E. spicata, Hypserpa nitida, Merremia vitifolia and

Quantitative Ethnobotany of Medicinal Plants Used by Indigenous Communities in the Bandarban District of Bangladesh

Science.gov (United States)

Faruque, Mohammad O.; Uddin, Shaikh B.; Barlow, James W.; Hu, Sheng; Dong, Shuang; Cai, Qian; Li, Xiaohua; Hu, Xuebo

2018-01-01

This study documents information on significant ethnomedicinal plants, which was collected from the traditional healers of three indigenous communities of Bangladesh. The documented data were quantitatively analyzed for the first time in this area. The information was obtained through open-ended, semi-structured questionnaires. The benefits, importance and coverage of ethnomedicine were expressed through several quantitative indices including Informant Consensus Factor (ICF), Use Value (UV), Frequency of Citation (FC), Relative Frequency of Citation (RFC) and Relative Importance Index (RI). The agreement of homogeneity between the present and previous studies and among the indigenous communities was evaluated using the Jaccard Index (JI). A total of 159 ethnomedicinal plant species, which were distributed in 132 genera under 62 families, were documented from 174 informants. Of these, 128 plants were native and 31 were exotic. Of a majority of documented species, herbs and leaves were the most utilized plant parts for the preparation of ethnomedicines (45.28%) whereas pastes (63.03%) were the most popular formulations. Among the documented species, the dominant families were the Asteraceae (14 species) and the Lamiaceae (12 species). The highest ICF value was 0.77 for digestive system disorders. Based on UVs, the five most commonly used ethnomedicinal plant species in the study area were Duabanga grandiflora (0.43), Zingiber officinale (0.41), Congea tomentosa (0.40), Matricaria chamomilla (0.33) and Engelhardtia spicata (0.28). The highest RFC was recorded for Rauvolfia serpentina (0.25). The highest RI value was calculated for both Scoparia dulcis and Leucas aspera (0.83). Importantly, 16 species were reported with new therapeutic uses and to our knowledge, 7 species described herein have never been ethnobotanically and pharmacologically studied, viz: Agastache urticifolia, Asarum cordifolium, C. tomentosa, E. spicata, Hypserpa nitida, Merremia vitifolia and

Functional dyspepsia: A new approach from traditional Persian medicine

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Pasalar, Mehdi; Nimrouzi, Majid; Choopani, Rasool; Mosaddegh, Mahmoud; Kamalinejad, Mohammad; Mohagheghzadeh, Abdolali; Bagheri Lankarani, Kamran

2016-01-01

Objective: One of the most common global disorders is related to gastrointestinal system. Functional dyspepsia (FD) defined as upper abdominal pain and discomfort in the absence of organic ailments is a prevalent disease without any confirmed medication. The purpose of this study was to find gastric disorders which might be coincidental to FD based on traditional Persian medicine (TPM). Materials and Methods: We searched the main textbooks of TPM including Al-Havi (by Rhazes), Canon of medicine (by Avicenna), ZakhireKhawrazmshahi (by Ismail Jorjani), Moalijat-e Aghili and Makhzan Al-adviya (by Mohammad Hosein AghiliShirazi), and ExirAzam (by Hakim Azam Khan). Also, we searched Pubmed, Scopus, Science Direct, Medline, scientific information database (SID), Iranmedex and Google Scholar from 1980 to 1 August 2014 for dyspepsia, gastrointestinal disease, traditional Persian medicine, and gastric dystemperaments. Results: There is no equivalent term for FD in traditional Persian medicine although similar signs and symptoms are visible in terms like simple cold dystemperament of stomach, indigestion, and digestion debility in TPM sources. Some treatments mentioned in TPM have shown promising results in the current experimental tests. Conclusion: Finding these similarities in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) textbooks may lead to discovering new remedies for this widespread disease. PMID:27222829

Functional dyspepsia: A new approach from traditional Persian medicine

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Mehdi Pasalar

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Objective: One of the most common global disorders is related to gastrointestinal system. Functional dyspepsia (FD defined as upper abdominal pain and discomfort in the absence of organic ailments is a prevalent disease without any confirmed medication. The purpose of this study was to find gastric disorders which might be coincidental to FD based on traditional Persian medicine (TPM. Materials and Methods: We searched the main textbooks of TPM including Al-Havi (by Rhazes, Canon of medicine (by Avicenna, ZakhireKhawrazmshahi (by Ismail Jorjani, Moalijat-e Aghili and Makhzan Al-adviya (by Mohammad Hosein AghiliShirazi, and ExirAzam (by Hakim Azam Khan. Also, we searched Pubmed, Scopus, Science Direct, Medline, scientific information database (SID, Iranmedex and Google Scholar from 1980 to 1 August 2014 for dyspepsia, gastrointestinal disease, traditional Persian medicine, and gastric dystemperaments. Results: There is no equivalent term for FD in traditional Persian medicine although similar signs and symptoms are visible in terms like simple cold dystemperament of stomach, indigestion, and digestion debility in TPM sources. Some treatments mentioned in TPM have shown promising results in the current experimental tests. Conclusion: Finding these similarities in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM textbooks may lead to discovering new remedies for this widespread disease.

A novel classification method for aid decision of traditional Chinese patent medicines for stroke treatment.

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Zhao, Yufeng; Liu, Bo; He, Liyun; Bai, Wenjing; Yu, Xueyun; Cao, Xinyu; Luo, Lin; Rong, Peijing; Zhao, Yuxue; Li, Guozheng; Liu, Baoyan

2017-09-01

Traditional Chinese patent medicines are widely used to treat stroke because it has good efficacy in the clinical environment. However, because of the lack of knowledge on traditional Chinese patent medicines, many Western physicians, who are accountable for the majority of clinical prescriptions for such medicine, are confused with the use of traditional Chinese patent medicines. Therefore, the aid-decision method is critical and necessary to help Western physicians rationally use traditional Chinese patent medicines. In this paper, Manifold Ranking is employed to develop the aid-decision model of traditional Chinese patent medicines for stroke treatment. First, 115 stroke patients from three hospitals are recruited in the cross-sectional survey. Simultaneously, traditional Chinese physicians determine the traditional Chinese patent medicines appropriate for each patient. Second, particular indicators are explored to characterize the population feature of traditional Chinese patent medicines for stroke treatment. Moreover, these particular indicators can be easily obtained byWestern physicians and are feasible for widespread clinical application in the future. Third, the aid-decision model of traditional Chinese patent medicines for stroke treatment is constructed based on Manifold Ranking. Experimental results reveal that traditional Chinese patent medicines can be differentiated. Moreover, the proposed model can obtain high accuracy of aid decision.

Massage Therapy in Iranian Traditional Medicine

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Amir-Mohammad Jaladat

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Background and Aim: Massage training and how the body is influenced by massage are common issues which are seriously under study and discussion in Iranian traditional medicine. Iranian physicians considered motion and massage as major principles of health maintenance.In this study, we examined the available literature of traditional medicine to evaluate location, purpose and use of massage therapy in Iranian medicine in comparison with other popular conventional styles.The aim of Iranian massage is to regulate the core body temperature and aid to eliminate the waste products from the body. This type of massage is divided into five categories including solid, soft, moderate, great and aggressive, based on the intensity, speed, duration and techniques of massage.Iranian physicians proposed general body massage or massage of a particular area based on subjective complaints. They recommended specific massages in particular groups including children, pregnant women, the elderly and athletes. In some cases, the effects of these recommendations have been studied in clinical trials.Conclusion: It seems that the major difference between Iranian massage and other styles of massage is special attention of Iranian massage to the individual circumstances, and the cause of the problem rather than technique of the massage.

Herbal Remedies for Functional Dyspepsia and Traditional Iranian Medicine Perspective

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Babaeian, Mahmoud; Naseri, Mohsen; Kamalinejad, Mohammad; Ghaffari, Farzaneh; Emadi, Fatemeh; Feizi, Awat; Hosseini Yekta, Nafiseh; Adibi, Peyman

2015-01-01

Context: Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a functional gastro-intestinal disorder with high prevalence. Among various treatment options, treatment by complementary and alternative medicines especially herbal remedies also practiced. Traditional Iranian medicine (TIM), a valuable resource of valid applied studies of ancient Iranian scholars, recommends numerous medicinal plants to treat dyspepsia symptoms. In this study, through investigation of TIM references, we aimed to identify medicinal plants for treatment of digestion insufficiency. Evidence Acquisition: In this qualitative study, dyspepsia symptoms including fullness, early satiety, bloating, nausea, and belching were checked under reliable sources of traditional medicine. Then medicinal plants recommended for the treatment of the symptoms were extracted from the books. Likewise, for investigating the pharmacological properties of medicinal plants used for the relieving of dyspepsia symptoms, electronic databases such as PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar and some Iranian databases like SID and IranMedex were employed. Results: The study yielded 105 plants from 37 families which could treat various dyspepsia symptoms; fifty-seven plants, mainly from Apiaceae, Lamiaceae, Amaryllidaceae and Zingiberaceae had digestive effects. In this research, based on the information in TIM reference texts, we obtained 58 plants effective for bloating, 40 for nausea, 37 for appetite loss and 7 for belching. In human clinical trials conducted on medicinal plants effective for FD symptoms, 7 single plants were used. Conclusions: Finding the medicinal plants effective on digestion insufficiency based on TIM could suggest a better strategy for the relieving of dyspepsia symptoms. Traditional Iranian medicine prescribes medicinal plants based on each patient’s personal characteristics and practices multiple target therapies. PMID:26734483

Traditional Knowledge of Western Herbal Medicine and Complex Systems Science.

Science.gov (United States)

Niemeyer, Kathryn; Bell, Iris R; Koithan, Mary

2013-09-01

Traditional knowledge of Western herbal medicine (WHM) supports experiential approaches to healing that have evolved over time. This is evident in the use of polyherb formulations comprised of crude plant parts, individually tailored to treat the cause of dysfunction and imbalance by addressing the whole person holistically. The challenge for WHM is to integrate science with traditional knowledge that is a foundation of the practice of WHM. The purpose of this paper is to provide a plausible theoretical hypothesis by applying complex systems science to WHM, illustrating how medicinal plants are complex, adaptive, environmentally interactive systems exhibiting synergy and nonlinear healing causality. This paper explores the conceptual congruence between medicinal plants and humans as complex systems coherently coupled through recurrent interaction. Complex systems science provides the theoretical tenets that explain traditional knowledge of medicinal plants while supporting clinical practice and expanding research and documentation of WHM.

traditional medicinal uses of small mammal products

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Dr. Nelson Boniface

hunted small mammals mainly by dogs for cultural and ornamental reasons. Products of African ... (WHO) defines traditional medicine as ''health practices ... particularly in Asian countries. ..... Ntiamoa- Baidu Y 1992 Local Perceptions and.

Traditional medicine development for medical and dental primary ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The gradual extinction of the forests and the inevitable disappearance of the aged Traditional Medical Practitioner should pose an impending deadline for us to learn, acquire and document our medical cultural endowment for the benefit of all Africans and indeed the entire mankind. Key Words: Traditional African Medicine ...

[Advantages and problems of traditional Chinese medicine in treatment of acute pharyngitis].

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xia; Xie, Yan-Ming; Li, Guang-Xi; Gao, Yang; Zhao, Yuan-Chen; Tang, Jing-Jing; Yao, Xiao-Yan; Li, Meng

2017-10-01

This paper systematically studies relevant literatures at home and abroad in recent years. China National Knowledge Internet (CNKI) was used to collect the literatures for acute pharyngitis treated with traditional Chinese medicine from January 1, 2006, to December 31, 2016, and the bibliometric method was employed for statistical analysis. A total of 493 papers were preliminarily selected. According to the inclusion criteria and exclusion criteria, 182 eligible articles were selected. According to the evaluation and analysis of the literatures, the Guidelines for Clinical Research of New Drugs is currently used as the common standards for the diagnosis and treatment of acute pharyngitis; Chinese patent medicines are the main traditional Chinese medicine for treating this disease; Decoctions for treatment of this disease include Lonicerae Japonicae Flos, Scutellariae Radix, Platycodonis Radix, Forsythiae Fructus, Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma, Scrophdlariae Radix, Isatidis Radix, and Ophiopogonis Radix; The bloodletting puncture is the common external therapy. Traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine have their own characteristics in the treatment of this disease. Western medicine for the treatment of acute pharyngitis are mainly antiviral, antibiotic and glucocorticoid drugs, whose disadvantages are toxicity, side effects, drug resistance and double infections. Traditional Chinese medicine doctors have rich experiences in the treatment of the disease, which is characterized by treatment determination based on syndrome differentiation, safe and reliable medication, significant curative effect, low drug resistance, and wide varieties of traditional Chinese medicine forms, convenient portability and taking, low price, and low toxic and side effects. It is an arduous and significant task to explore traditional Chinese medicine, and study and develop new-type effective drugs. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Medicinal use of secretions (“the frog vaccine”) from the kambô frog (Phyllomedusa bicolor) by non-indigenous peoples in Rondônia, Brazil

OpenAIRE

Paulo Sérgio Bernarde; Rosimeyri Aparecida Santos

2009-01-01

Amphibians have pharmaceutically active skin secretions that protect against infections and predation. Some indigenous people in southwestern Amazonia use these secretions from P. bicolor for medicinal purposes. While the use of these secretions by indigenous people is relatively well-known, the use by non-indigenous peoples is very poorly studied. Here we describe the use of the “frog vaccine” by non-indigenous populations in the Brazilian state of Rondônia. Thirty-one people who had receive...

PIXE determination of essential trace elements in some traditional Chinese medicines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiao, L.; Qin, J.F.

1990-01-01

The essential trace elements in 30 traditional Chinese medicines, (24 tonics and 6 nontonics) were determined by proton-induced X-ray emission. The authors' previous suggestion that traditional Chinese medicines may be classified by the order of magnitude of their essential trace elements, thus indicating their pharmacological effects, is not justified. The pharmacological effect of a trace element or its essentiality may be dependent on some ligand that can be chelated with it. A nonlinear mapping algorithm, however, shows that the 30 traditional Chinese medicines are nearly separated into two groups, indicating their tonic or nontonic pharmacological effects

Traditional Medicines and Kidney Disease in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Opportunities and Challenges.

Science.gov (United States)

Stanifer, John W; Kilonzo, Kajiru; Wang, Daphne; Su, Guobin; Mao, Wei; Zhang, Lei; Zhang, La; Nayak-Rao, Shobhana; Miranda, J Jaime

2017-05-01

Traditional medicines are a principal form of health care for many populations, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, and they have gained attention as an important means of health care coverage globally. In the context of kidney diseases, the challenges and opportunities presented by traditional medicine practices are among the most important considerations for developing effective and sustainable public health strategies. However, little is known about the practices of traditional medicines in relation to kidney diseases, especially concerning benefits and harms. Kidney diseases may be caused, treated, prevented, improved, or worsened by traditional medicines depending on the setting, the person, and the types, modes, and frequencies of traditional medicine use. Given the profound knowledge gaps, nephrology practitioners and researchers may be uniquely positioned to facilitate more optimal public health strategies through recognition and careful investigation of traditional medicine practices. Effective implementation of such strategies also will require local partnerships, including engaging practitioners and users of traditional medicines. As such, practitioners and researchers investigating kidney diseases may be uniquely positioned to bridge the cultural, social, historical, and biologic differences between biomedicine and traditional medicine, and they have opportunities to lead efforts in developing public health strategies that are sensitive to these differences. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

ATTENTION OF CHILDBIRTH, RURAL-URBAN MIGRATION AND PUBLIC POLITICS OF REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH IN INDIGENOUS POPULATION OF CHIAPAS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Austreberta Nazar Beutelspacher, Benito Salvatierra Izaba y Emma Zapata Martelo

2007-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper it’s analyze the tendencies of childbirth attention of urban indigenous women excluded in Chiapas, from rural settlement in Los Altos de Chiapas. It’s an exploratory essay which contributes to clear up the relation that establishes immigrant indigenous population with institutional health services for childbirth attention and modifications in traditional medicine. Are discussed the scopes of these changes in the operation of the institutional program of reproductive health and the risk of mother death.

[Effect and regulation of drying on quality of traditional Chinese medicine pills].

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Ya-Ru; Li, Yuan-Hui; Han, Li; Wu, Zhen-Feng; Yue, Peng-Fei; Wang, Xue-Cheng; Xiong, Yao-Kun; Yang, Ming

2017-06-01

The dry quality of traditional Chinese medicine pills is the hot spot of pills research, because their quality has a crucial effect on the efficacy and development of dosage forms. Through literature research and statistical analysis, we would review the current problems on the drying of traditional Chinese medicine pills in this paper, and surrounding the evaluation system for traditional Chinese medicine pills, analyze the characteristics of common drying equipment and processes as well as their effect on quality of pills, discuss the problems in drying equipment and process as well as quality, and put forward the corresponding strategies, hoping to provide new ideas and new methods for the quality improvement of traditional Chinese medicine pills and quality standards. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Nasal Drug Delivery in Traditional Persian Medicine

Science.gov (United States)

Zarshenas, Mohammad Mehdi; Zargaran, Arman; Müller, Johannes; Mohagheghzadeh, Abdolali

2013-01-01

Background Over one hundred different pharmaceutical dosage forms have been recorded in literatures of Traditional Persian Medicine among which nasal forms are considerable. Objectives This study designed to derive the most often applied nasal dosage forms together with those brief clinical administrations. Materials and Methods In the current study remaining pharmaceutical manuscripts of Persia during 9th to 18th century AD have been studied and different dosage forms related to nasal application of herbal medicines and their therapeutic effects were derived. Results By searching through pharmaceutical manuscripts of medieval Persia, different nasal dosage forms involving eleven types related to three main groups are found. These types could be derived from powder, solution or liquid and gaseous forms. Gaseous form were classified into fumigation (Bakhoor), vapor bath (Enkebab), inhalation (Lakhlakheh), aroma agents (Ghalieh) and olfaction or smell (Shomoom). Nasal solutions were as drops (Ghatoor), nasal snuffing drops (Saoot) and liquid snuff formulations (Noshoogh). Powders were as nasal insufflation or snorting agents (Nofookh) and errhine or sternutator medicine (Otoos). Nasal forms were not applied only for local purposes. Rather systemic disorders and specially CNS complications were said to be a target for these dosage forms. Discussion While this novel type of drug delivery is known as a suitable substitute for oral and parenteral administration, it was well accepted and extensively mentioned in Persian medical and pharmaceutical manuscripts and other traditional systems of medicine as well. Accordingly, medieval pharmaceutical standpoints on nasal dosage forms could still be an interesting subject of study. Therefore, the current work can briefly show the pharmaceutical knowledge on nasal formulations in medieval Persia and clarify a part of history of traditional Persian pharmacy. PMID:24624204

The effect of consumers’ perception to the satisfaction of use of traditional medicines in Medan

Science.gov (United States)

Siregar, R. S.; Supriana, T.; Haryanti, S.

2018-02-01

Consumption of chemical medicines fluctuated in 2009-2014, whereas the consumption of solid traditional medicine increased in 2009-2014. The purpose of this study is to analyse the influence of consumers’s perception on the consumption of traditional medicinal plants. The data was analysed by using a binomial logit regression analysis. It is found that the consumers’s perceptions affect customer satisfaction simultaneously are the health benefits variable, quality of traditional medicine variable, price of traditional medicine and available product; the health benefits variable and quality of traditional medicine variable partially have significant effects to customers’s satisfaction simultaneously satisfaction partially; the health benefit variable and quality of traditional medicine is found to have a marginal effect of 7% and 4%, respectively.

Medicinal Properties of Adiantum capillus-veneris Linn. in Traditional Medicine and Modern Phytotherapy: A Review Article.

Science.gov (United States)

Dehdari, Sahar; Hajimehdipoor, Homa

2018-02-01

Adiantum capillus-veneris Linn (Maidenhair fern) is an herb belonging to the family Pteridaceae. It is named as " Pare-siavashan " in medical and pharmaceutical textbooks of Iranian Traditional Medicine. The fronds of Maidenhair fern were mainly administrated by ancient physicians as single medicine or in combination with other plants in multi-herbal formulations for curing different diseases. Because of different chemical compositions, the herb fronds were also assessed for its numerous pharmacological effects. Therefore, the current study was done to review the traditional usage and modern pharmacological and toxicological effects of Maidenhair fern. Scientific databases and publications including Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Science direct, Cochrane Library, SID (for Persian papers) and medical and pharmaceutical textbooks of traditional medicine as well were searched for " Adiantum capillus-veneris ", " Maidenhair fern " and " Pare-siavashan " without limitation up to 2016. Maidenhair fern exhibited to possess anti-diabetic, anticonvulsant, analgesic, hypocholesterolemic, goitrogenic, anti-thyroidal, antibacterial, antifungal, wound healing, antiobesity, anti hair loss, anti-asthmatic, anti-inflammatory, antidiarrheal and antispasmodic, antioxidant as well as diuretic, anti-urolithiatic and detoxifying effects in modern medicine. Ancient physicians declared some of the confirmed pharmacological effects. Maidenhair fern frond can be a good candidate for clinical purpose. Therefore, future researches on the other mentioned effects in traditional medicine are recommended.

[Applications of mathematical statistics methods on compatibility researches of traditional Chinese medicines formulae].

Science.gov (United States)

Mai, Lan-Yin; Li, Yi-Xuan; Chen, Yong; Xie, Zhen; Li, Jie; Zhong, Ming-Yu

2014-05-01

The compatibility of traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) formulae containing enormous information, is a complex component system. Applications of mathematical statistics methods on the compatibility researches of traditional Chinese medicines formulae have great significance for promoting the modernization of traditional Chinese medicines and improving clinical efficacies and optimizations of formulae. As a tool for quantitative analysis, data inference and exploring inherent rules of substances, the mathematical statistics method can be used to reveal the working mechanisms of the compatibility of traditional Chinese medicines formulae in qualitatively and quantitatively. By reviewing studies based on the applications of mathematical statistics methods, this paper were summarized from perspective of dosages optimization, efficacies and changes of chemical components as well as the rules of incompatibility and contraindication of formulae, will provide the references for further studying and revealing the working mechanisms and the connotations of traditional Chinese medicines.

Traditional knowledge on medicinal plant of the Karen in northern Thailand: a comparative study.

Science.gov (United States)

Tangjitman, Kornkanok; Wongsawad, Chalobol; Winijchaiyanan, Piyawan; Sukkho, Treetip; Kamwong, Kaweesin; Pongamornkul, Wittaya; Trisonthi, Chusie

2013-10-28

We studied traditional medicinal plant knowledge among the Karen in northern Thailand. To compare traditional medicinal knowledge in 14 Karen villages in northern Thailand and determine culturally important medicinal plant species in each Karen village. We interviewed 14 key informants and 438 non-specialist informants about their traditional knowledge of medicinal plants. We tested normality of the data and correlations with distance to the nearest city using Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. Cluster analysis and cultural importance index (CI) were calculated for the similarity of medicinal plant used and culturally importance medicinal plant species among Karen villages respectively. In total 379 medicinal plant species were used. Number of medicinal plants used positively correlate with distance to the nearest city. Relatively low similarities of medicinal plant species and different CI values for species among the different areas were found. Traditional medicinal plants still play an important role in medicinal practice of the Karen. Local environments, availability of medicinal plant and distance between Karen villages and the nearest city affect the amount of traditional medicinal knowledge in each Karen village. The medicinal plants in this study with high CI values might give some useful leads for further biomedical research. © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Prevention and Treatment of Flatulence From a Traditional Persian Medicine Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Larijani, Bagher; Esfahani, Mohammad Medhi; Moghimi, Maryam; Shams Ardakani, Mohammad Reza; Keshavarz, Mansoor; Kordafshari, Gholamreza; Nazem, Esmaiel; Hasani Ranjbar, Shirin; Mohammadi Kenari, Hoorieh; Zargaran, Arman

2016-04-01

The feeling of abdominal fullness, bloating, and movement of gas in the abdomen is a very uncomfortable sensation termed flatulence. Since flatulence is one of the most common gastrointestinal symptoms that is bothersome to patients, it is important to identify effective methods to resolve this issue. In modern medicine, management of flatulence is often not satisfactory. On the other hand, traditional systems of medicine can be considered good potential sources to find new approaches for preventing and treating flatulence. The aim of this study is to review flatulence treatments from a traditional Persian medicine (TPM) viewpoint. In this study, the reasons for flatulence and methods for its prevention and treatment are reviewed in traditional Persian medicine (TPM) texts and then related with evidence from modern medicine by searching in databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and IranMedex. From a traditional Persian scholar viewpoint, one of the most important causes of flatulence is an incorrect manner of eating; valuable advice to correct bad eating habits will be illustrated. In addition, traditional practitioners describe some herbs and vegetables as well as herbal compounds that are effective food additives to relieve flatulence. The anti-flatulent effect of most of these herbs has been experimentally verified using modern medicine. Attention to TPM can lead to the identification of new preventive and curative approaches to avoid and treat flatulence. In addition, Persian viewpoints from the medieval era regarding flatulence are historically important.

[Interaction of effective ingredients from traditional Chinese medicines with intestinal microbiota].

Science.gov (United States)

Zu, Xian-Peng; Lin, Zhang; Xie, Hai-Sheng; Yang, Niao; Liu, Xin-Ru; Zhang, Wei-Dong

2016-05-01

A large number and wide varieties of microorganisms colonize in the human gastrointestinal tract. They construct an intestinal microecological system in the intestinal environment. The intestinal symbiotic flora regulates a series of life actions, including digestion and absorption of nutrient, immune response, biological antagonism, and is closely associated with the occurrence and development of many diseases. Therefore, it is greatly essential for the host's health status to maintain the equilibrium of intestinal microecological environment. After effective compositions of traditional Chinese medicines are metabolized or biotransformed by human intestinal bacteria, their metabolites can be absorbed more easily, and can even decrease or increase toxicity and then exhibit significant different biological effects. Meanwhile, traditional Chinese medicines can also regulate the composition of the intestinal flora and protect the function of intestinal mucosal barrier to restore the homeostasis of intestinal microecology. The relevant literatures in recent 15 years about the interactive relationship between traditional Chinese medicines and gut microbiota have been collected in this review, in order to study the classification of gut microflora, the relationship between intestinal dysbacteriosis and diseases, the important roles of gut microflora in intestinal bacterial metabolism in effective ingredients of traditional Chinese medicines and bioactivities, as well as the modulation effects of Chinese medicine on intestinal dysbacteriosis. In addition, it also makes a future prospect for the research strategies to study the mechanism of action of traditional Chinese medicines based on multi-omics techniques. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Prevention and Treatment of Flatulence From a Traditional Persian Medicine Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Larijani, Bagher; Esfahani, Mohammad Medhi; Moghimi, Maryam; Shams Ardakani, Mohammad Reza; Keshavarz, Mansoor; Kordafshari, Gholamreza; Nazem, Esmaiel; Hasani Ranjbar, Shirin; Mohammadi Kenari, Hoorieh; Zargaran, Arman

2016-01-01

Context The feeling of abdominal fullness, bloating, and movement of gas in the abdomen is a very uncomfortable sensation termed flatulence. Since flatulence is one of the most common gastrointestinal symptoms that is bothersome to patients, it is important to identify effective methods to resolve this issue. In modern medicine, management of flatulence is often not satisfactory. On the other hand, traditional systems of medicine can be considered good potential sources to find new approaches for preventing and treating flatulence. The aim of this study is to review flatulence treatments from a traditional Persian medicine (TPM) viewpoint. Evidence Acquisition In this study, the reasons for flatulence and methods for its prevention and treatment are reviewed in traditional Persian medicine (TPM) texts and then related with evidence from modern medicine by searching in databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and IranMedex. Results From a traditional Persian scholar viewpoint, one of the most important causes of flatulence is an incorrect manner of eating; valuable advice to correct bad eating habits will be illustrated. In addition, traditional practitioners describe some herbs and vegetables as well as herbal compounds that are effective food additives to relieve flatulence. The anti-flatulent effect of most of these herbs has been experimentally verified using modern medicine. Conclusions Attention to TPM can lead to the identification of new preventive and curative approaches to avoid and treat flatulence. In addition, Persian viewpoints from the medieval era regarding flatulence are historically important. PMID:27275398

Bioactivity of indigenous medicinal plants against the cotton whitefly, Bemisia tabaci.

Science.gov (United States)

Hammad, E Abou-Fakhr; Zeaiter, A; Saliba, N; Talhouk, S

2014-01-01

Forty-one methanol extracts of 28 indigenous medicinal plant species were tested for their insecticidal bioactivity against cotton whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), adults and second nymphal instars under controlled conditions. This study is within a bioprospection context, in the form of utilizing local plant species as an alternative in sustainable agriculture development. Eighteen and nine plant extracts caused a significant decrease in number of live adult and nymphal whiteflies, respectively, compared to the control. This is the first report for the potential effect on survival of insects for 22 out of 28 tested medicinal plant species. Whole plant extracts of Ranunculus myosuroudes Boiss. and Kotschy (Ranunculaceae), Achillea damascena L. (Asteraceae), and Anthemis hebronica Boiss. and Kotschy (Asteraceae) and leaf extracts of Verbascum leptostychum DC. (Scrophulariaceae) and Heliotropium rotundifolium Boiss. (Borangiaceae) caused both repellent and toxic effects against the adult and second nymphal instars, respectively. Extracts of leaves and stems of Anthemis scariosa Boiss. (Asteraceae) and Calendula palestina Pers. (Asteraceae) were found to be more bioactive against the adult and nymphal instars, respectively, than extracts of other plant parts, such as flowers. Thus, the bioactive extracts of these medicinal plants have the potential to lower whitefly populations in a comprehensive pest management program in local communities, pending cultivation of these medicinal plant species.

DNA Barcoding for the Identification and Authentication of Animal Species in Traditional Medicine

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Fan Yang

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Animal-based traditional medicine not only plays a significant role in therapeutic practices worldwide but also provides a potential compound library for drug discovery. However, persistent hunting and illegal trade markedly threaten numerous medicinal animal species, and increasing demand further provokes the emergence of various adulterants. As the conventional methods are difficult and time-consuming to detect processed products or identify animal species with similar morphology, developing novel authentication methods for animal-based traditional medicine represents an urgent need. During the last decade, DNA barcoding offers an accurate and efficient strategy that can identify existing species and discover unknown species via analysis of sequence variation in a standardized region of DNA. Recent studies have shown that DNA barcoding as well as minibarcoding and metabarcoding is capable of identifying animal species and discriminating the authentics from the adulterants in various types of traditional medicines, including raw materials, processed products, and complex preparations. These techniques can also be used to detect the unlabelled and threatened animal species in traditional medicine. Here, we review the recent progress of DNA barcoding for the identification and authentication of animal species used in traditional medicine, which provides a reference for quality control and trade supervision of animal-based traditional medicine.

DNA Barcoding for the Identification and Authentication of Animal Species in Traditional Medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Fan; Ding, Fei; Chen, Hong; He, Mingqi; Zhu, Shixin; Ma, Xin; Jiang, Li; Li, Haifeng

2018-01-01

Animal-based traditional medicine not only plays a significant role in therapeutic practices worldwide but also provides a potential compound library for drug discovery. However, persistent hunting and illegal trade markedly threaten numerous medicinal animal species, and increasing demand further provokes the emergence of various adulterants. As the conventional methods are difficult and time-consuming to detect processed products or identify animal species with similar morphology, developing novel authentication methods for animal-based traditional medicine represents an urgent need. During the last decade, DNA barcoding offers an accurate and efficient strategy that can identify existing species and discover unknown species via analysis of sequence variation in a standardized region of DNA. Recent studies have shown that DNA barcoding as well as minibarcoding and metabarcoding is capable of identifying animal species and discriminating the authentics from the adulterants in various types of traditional medicines, including raw materials, processed products, and complex preparations. These techniques can also be used to detect the unlabelled and threatened animal species in traditional medicine. Here, we review the recent progress of DNA barcoding for the identification and authentication of animal species used in traditional medicine, which provides a reference for quality control and trade supervision of animal-based traditional medicine.

Sustainable Traditional Medicine: Taking the Inspirations from Ancient Veterinary Science

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sanjeev Rastogi

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Rapid reduction in natural resources as a consequence to the expanded urbanization, global warming and reduced natural habitat posed a considerable threat to the sustainability of traditional medicine. Being completely dependent upon natural resources like herbs, minerals and animal products, traditional medicine would possibly rank first in order of extinction of heritage if an alternative way is not considered well in time. In reference to the use of animal products, Ayurveda presents some unique examples where animals are used without causing harm to them and so without posing a threat to their existence. In the current context, when natural resources are facing a threat to their existence, a revisit to these ideas may give us a new insight to refine our look at natural resources used in traditional medicine.

Medicinal Plants Used by Traditional Healers in Jordan, the Tafila Region.

Science.gov (United States)

Abdelhalim, Abeer; Aburjai, Talal; Hanrahan, Jane; Abdel-Halim, Heba

2017-01-01

The reporting of the medicinal plants and their traditional uses is important in order to prevent this knowledge from being lost. The aims of this study were to collect information concerning the traditional use of medicinal plants in the region of Tafila; identify the most important medicinal plants; determine the relative importance of the species surveyed; and calculate the informant consensus factor ( F ic ) in relation to medicinal plant use. Data on the traditional medicinal uses of local plants were collected using qualitative tools. The informant consensus factor ( F ic ) for the category of aliments and the use value (UV) of the plant species were calculated. The survey revealed that 41 plant species are still in use in Tafila for the treatments of various diseases. Problems of the digestive system had the highest F ic values, while Allium cepa L. and Matricaria aurea (Loefl.) Sch. Bip. scored the highest UV. The medicinal plants used by local people of the Tafila area of Jordan their traditional uses were investigated. forty one plant species are still in use in Tafila for the traditional treatment of various diseases. The preservation of this knowledge is important not only for maintaining cultural and traditional resources but also as a resource for the future identification of leads for drug development. The use of Fic and the UV to identify plant species that are consistently used in the treatment of specific ailments assists in narrowing down the search for new effective plant-derived medicines and in validating the use of traditional medicines. Data on the traditional medicinal uses of local plants was collected using qualitative tools. The informant consensus factor (Fic) for category of aliments and the use value (UV) of the plant species were calculated. in the Tafila region, the Fic values are relatively low, indicating a low level of shared knowledge and that a number of different species are used to treat similar disorders. This may be a

Integrating Indigenous Traditional, Local and Scientific Knowledge for Improved Management, Policy and Decision-Making in Reindeer Husbandry in the Russian Arctic

Science.gov (United States)

Maynard, Nancy G.; Yurchak, Boris; Turi, Johan Mathis; Mathiesen, Svein D.; Aissi-Wespi, Rita L.

2004-01-01

As scientists and policy-makers from both indigenous and non-indigenous communities begin to build closer partnerships to address common sustainability issues such as the health impacts of climate change and anthropogenic activities, it becomes increasingly important to create shared information management systems which integrate all relevant factors for optimal information sharing and decision-making. This paper describes a new GIs-based system being designed to bring local and indigenous traditional knowledge together with scientific data and information, remote sensing, and information technologies to address health-related environment, weather, climate, pollution and land use change issues for improved decision/policy-making for reindeer husbandry. The system is building an easily-accessible archive of relevant current and historical, traditional, local and remotely-sensed and other data and observations for shared analysis, measuring, and monitoring parameters of interest. Protection of indigenous culturally sensitive information will be respected through appropriate data protocols. A mechanism which enables easy information sharing among all participants, which is real time and geo-referenced and which allows interconnectivity with remote sites is also being designed into the system for maximum communication among partners. A preliminary version of our system will be described for a Russian reindeer test site, which will include a combination of indigenous knowledge about local conditions and issues, remote sensing and ground-based data on such parameters as the vegetation state and distribution, snow cover, temperature, ice condition, and infrastructure.

Treating gynaecological disorders with traditional Chinese medicine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has significant advantages in treating gynaecological disorders. The paper has provided a brief introduction on the current progress of treating some gynaecological disorders including endometriosis, infertility, dysmenorrhea, abnormal uterine bleeding, premenstrual syndrome, ...

Política sanitaria y legislación en materia de medicina indígena tradicional en México Health policy and legislation concerning traditional indigenous medicine in Mexico

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jaime Tomás P. Page

1995-06-01

Full Text Available Diferentes instancias de gobierno, tanto estatales como federales, están tratando de establecer el control y la medicalización de las medicinas tradicionales, y a través de su reconocimiento fortalecerla como instancia de primer contacto, generando, de esta manera, que la comunidad absorba los costos iniciales de la atención médica, lo que coadyuva a disminuir el volumen de enfermos atendidos por las instancias oficiales; obteniéndose así el abaratamiento de los costos de la atención de salud institucional dirigida a estos grupos. Los médicos indígenas tradicionales y sus organizaciones ven a esta ley cómo una navaja de doble filo, vislumbrando, por una parte, la posibilidad de contar con instrumentos legales que les protejan ante la sociedad global y, por otra, el peligro de ver su cultura y sus prácticas destruidas, por lo que han optado por buscar asesoría, capacitación, así como por participar activamente en el proceso de construcción de estas leyes. El resultado de dicho proyecto es que han aprendido sobre Derecho Positivo Mexicano; sobre esta base, han podido discutir y concluir que es lo que quieren por ley, para lo que han elaborado una propuesta, incluida en este documento.Various Mexican federal and state government agencies dealing with indigenous affairs are trying to establish control over traditional medicine and by recognizing it achieve cost decreases for health care directed towards Indian groups, bolstering it as a first-care level. The result is that the community absorbs the costs of medical care, leading to a reduction in the number of patients seeking government-run health care services. Traditional indigenous healers and their organizations consider the law a two-edged sword. On the one hand it provides them with legal measures for their protection, but on the other, they perceive it as a dangerous threat to their culture and practices. This has led them to seek legal advice, training, and active

Sasang Constitutional Medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine: A Comparative Overview

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Junghee Yoo

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Sasang constitutional medicine (SCM is a holistic typological constitution medicine which balances psychological, social, and physical aspects of an individual to achieve wellness and increase longevity. SCM has the qualities of preventative medicine, as it emphasizes daily health management based on constitutionally differentiated regimens and self-cultivation of the mind and body. This review's goal is to establish a fundamental understanding of SCM and to provide a foundation for further study. It compares the similarities and differences of philosophical origins, perspectives on the mind (heart, typological systems, pathology, and therapeutics between SCM and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM. TCM is based on the Taoist view of the universe and humanity. The health and longevity of an individual depends on a harmonious relationship with the universe. On the other hand, SCM is based on the Confucian view of the universe and humanity. SCM focuses on the influence of human affairs on the psyche, physiology, and pathology.

On standardization of basic datasets of electronic medical records in traditional Chinese medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Hong; Ni, Wandong; Li, Jing; Jiang, Youlin; Liu, Kunjing; Ma, Zhaohui

2017-12-24

Standardization of electronic medical record, so as to enable resource-sharing and information exchange among medical institutions has become inevitable in view of the ever increasing medical information. The current research is an effort towards the standardization of basic dataset of electronic medical records in traditional Chinese medicine. In this work, an outpatient clinical information model and an inpatient clinical information model are created to adequately depict the diagnosis processes and treatment procedures of traditional Chinese medicine. To be backward compatible with the existing dataset standard created for western medicine, the new standard shall be a superset of the existing standard. Thus, the two models are checked against the existing standard in conjunction with 170,000 medical record cases. If a case cannot be covered by the existing standard due to the particularity of Chinese medicine, then either an existing data element is expanded with some Chinese medicine contents or a new data element is created. Some dataset subsets are also created to group and record Chinese medicine special diagnoses and treatments such as acupuncture. The outcome of this research is a proposal of standardized traditional Chinese medicine medical records datasets. The proposal has been verified successfully in three medical institutions with hundreds of thousands of medical records. A new dataset standard for traditional Chinese medicine is proposed in this paper. The proposed standard, covering traditional Chinese medicine as well as western medicine, is expected to be soon approved by the authority. A widespread adoption of this proposal will enable traditional Chinese medicine hospitals and institutions to easily exchange information and share resources. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

[Application of digital earth technology in research of traditional Chinese medicine resources].

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Jinxin; Liu, Xinxin; Gao, Lu; Wei, Yingqin; Meng, Fanyun; Wang, Yongyan

2011-02-01

This paper describes the digital earth technology and its core technology-"3S" integration technology. The advance and promotion of the "3S" technology provide more favorable means and technical support for Chinese medicine resources survey, evaluation and appropriate zoning. Grid is a mature and popular technology that can connect all kinds of information resources. The author sums up the application of digital earth technology in the research of traditional Chinese medicine resources in recent years, and proposes the new method and technical route of investigation in traditional Chinese medicine resources, traditional Chinese medicine zoning and suitability assessment by combining the digital earth technology and grid.

21st century natural product research and drug development and traditional medicines.

Science.gov (United States)

Ngo, Linh T; Okogun, Joseph I; Folk, William R

2013-04-01

Natural products and related structures are essential sources of new pharmaceuticals, because of the immense variety of functionally relevant secondary metabolites of microbial and plant species. Furthermore, the development of powerful analytical tools based upon genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, bioinformatics and other 21st century technologies are greatly expediting identification and characterization of these natural products. Here we discuss the synergistic and reciprocal benefits of linking these 'omics technologies with robust ethnobotanical and ethnomedical studies of traditional medicines, to provide critically needed improved medicines and treatments that are inexpensive, accessible, safe and reliable. However, careless application of modern technologies can challenge traditional knowledge and biodiversity that are the foundation of traditional medicines. To address such challenges while fulfilling the need for improved (and new) medicines, we encourage the development of Regional Centres of 'omics Technologies functionally linked with Regional Centres of Genetic Resources, especially in regions of the world where use of traditional medicines is prevalent and essential for health.

Major achievements of evidence-based traditional Chinese medicine in treating major diseases.

Science.gov (United States)

Chao, Jung; Dai, Yuntao; Verpoorte, Robert; Lam, Wing; Cheng, Yung-Chi; Pao, Li-Heng; Zhang, Wei; Chen, Shilin

2017-09-01

A long history of use and extensive documentation of the clinical practices of traditional Chinese medicine resulted in a considerable number of classical preparations, which are still widely used. This heritage of our ancestors provides a unique resource for drug discovery. Already, a number of important drugs have been developed from traditional medicines, which in fact form the core of Western pharmacotherapy. Therefore, this article discusses the differences in drug development between traditional medicine and Western medicine. Moreover, the article uses the discovery of artemisinin as an example that illustrates the "bedside-bench-bedside" approach to drug discovery to explain that the middle way for drug development is to take advantage of the best features of these two distinct systems and compensate for certain weaknesses in each. This article also summarizes evidence-based traditional medicines and discusses quality control and quality assessment, the crucial steps in botanical drug development. Herbgenomics may provide effective tools to clarify the molecular mechanism of traditional medicines in the botanical drug development. The totality-of-the-evidence approach used by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for botanical products provides the directions on how to perform quality control from the field throughout the entire production process. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Innovating Chinese Herbal Medicine: From Traditional Health Practice to Scientific Drug Discovery

OpenAIRE

Gu, Shuo; Pei, Jianfeng

2017-01-01

As one of the major contemporary alternative medicines, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) continues its influence in Chinese communities and has begun to attract the academic attention in the world of western medicine. This paper aims to examine Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), the essential branch of TCM, from both narrative and scientific perspectives. CHM is a traditional health practice originated from Chinese philosophy and religion, holding the belief of holism and balance in the body. W...

Ethnomedicinal review of folklore medicinal plants belonging to family Apiaceae of Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikram, A.; Zahra, N.B.

2015-01-01

The use of herbs for therapeutic purpose is as old as human history. In Pakistan a major part of population is dependent on the traditional medicine derived from plants for primary health care system. The interest in the use of traditional system of medicine has gained popularity globally. The developed countries are shifting their focus to further research based on the indigenous knowledge collected from aboriginal people. The present study reviews the ethno-medicinal uses of family Apiaceae reported from Pakistan. Out of 167 species reported from Pakistan, 66 are found to be used medicinally. Most commonly treated disorders by use of Apiaceae herbal flora are gastrointestinal tract and liver disorders (28%) followed by cough, cold and respiratory tract problems (11%). The plant parts frequently used are roots (22%) followed by whole plant material (19%), leaf material (18%), fruit (13%), seed (12%), stem, flower, aerial parts (5%) and sap (1%). It is suggested to carry out similar studies for other families to explore the indigenous knowledge for the development of commercial products and to collectively document the scattered existing knowledge. (author)

Insomnia in Iranian Traditional Medicine

OpenAIRE

Feyzabadi, Zohre; Jafari, Farhad; Feizabadi, Parvin Sadat; Ashayeri, Hassan; Esfahani, Mohammad Mahdi; Badiee Aval, Shapour

2014-01-01

Context: Insomnia is one of the most prevalent sleep disorders characterized by sleep difficulty that impairs daily functioning and reduces quality of life. The burden of medical, psychiatric, interpersonal, and societal consequences of insomnia expresses the importance of diagnosing and treatment of insomnia. The aim of study was to investigate causes of insomnia from the viewpoint of Iranian traditional medicine. Evidence Acquisition: In this review study, we searched insomnia in a few of t...

[Preliminary study on main impacting factors on brand equity of listed traditional Chinese medicine companies].

Science.gov (United States)

Tan, Wei; Geng, Dong-Mei; Rong, Xue; Li, Zi; Liu, Wei; Yang, Li; Xu, Si-Qun; Jie, Xiao-Qian

2013-05-01

The brand equity is valuable intangible assets of traditional Chinese medicine companies, who are excellent representatives of traditional Chinese medicine enterprises and the most promising ones to good international medicine brands. However, there is still no systematic study on how to correctly evaluate the brand equity of listed traditional Chinese medicine companies at present. To make it clear, the main impacting factors on brand equity of listed traditional Chinese medicine companies, both structured open outline pre-research and closed questionnaire research were adopted for the field survey, and some suggestions for how to protect and enhance the brand equity were also presented on the basis of survey and analysis, in the hope of improving the brand management level of listed traditional Chinese medicine companies, and making a beneficial exploration for the development of brand theory of the traditional Chinese medicine industry.

Medicinal Properties of Adiantum capillus-veneris Linn. in Traditional Medicine and Modern Phytotherapy: A Review Article

Science.gov (United States)

DEHDARI, Sahar; HAJIMEHDIPOOR, Homa

2018-01-01

Background: Adiantum capillus-veneris Linn (Maidenhair fern) is an herb belonging to the family Pteridaceae. It is named as “Pare-siavashan” in medical and pharmaceutical textbooks of Iranian Traditional Medicine. The fronds of Maidenhair fern were mainly administrated by ancient physicians as single medicine or in combination with other plants in multi-herbal formulations for curing different diseases. Because of different chemical compositions, the herb fronds were also assessed for its numerous pharmacological effects. Therefore, the current study was done to review the traditional usage and modern pharmacological and toxicological effects of Maidenhair fern. Methods: Scientific databases and publications including Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Science direct, Cochrane Library, SID (for Persian papers) and medical and pharmaceutical textbooks of traditional medicine as well were searched for “Adiantum capillus-veneris”, “Maidenhair fern” and “Pare-siavashan” without limitation up to 2016. Results: Maidenhair fern exhibited to possess anti-diabetic, anticonvulsant, analgesic, hypocholesterolemic, goitrogenic, anti-thyroidal, antibacterial, antifungal, wound healing, antiobesity, anti hair loss, anti-asthmatic, anti-inflammatory, antidiarrheal and antispasmodic, antioxidant as well as diuretic, anti-urolithiatic and detoxifying effects in modern medicine. Ancient physicians declared some of the confirmed pharmacological effects. Conclusion: Maidenhair fern frond can be a good candidate for clinical purpose. Therefore, future researches on the other mentioned effects in traditional medicine are recommended. PMID:29445628

Jamu : Indonesian traditional herbal medicine towards rational phytopharmacological use

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Elfahmi, [No Value; Woerdenbag, Herman J.; Kayser, Oliver

Jamu is the Indonesian traditional herbal medicine that has been practised for many centuries in the Indonesian community to maintain good health and to treat diseases. Although modern (conventional) medicine is becoming increasingly important in Indonesia, jamu is still very popular in rural as

Radiation sterilization of traditional medicine drugs in Vietnam

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hang, N.D.; Canh, T.T.; Thuy, T.T.

1995-01-01

With the application of Gamma Co-60 radiation sterilization in pharmaceutical industry, attention should be paid to the possibilities of sterilizing traditional medicine drugs produced in Vietnam. In this paper the opinion which traditional medicine drugs can be satisfactorily sterilized by irradiation is based on the changes of physical and chemical properties of the products and microbiological examinations. The sterilizing radiation dose were calculated and the results are the following (in Mrad) Rheumatine-2.2, Hasinh-3.3, snake extract-1.8, Samcotgiao-2.2. The changes of physical and chemical properties of the products and their toxicity after irradiation have been shown to be not over the levels of allowance. (Author)

Radiation sterilization of traditional medicine drugs in Vietnam

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hang, N.D.; Canh, T.T.; Thuy, T.T. [Nuclear Research Inst., Da Lat (Viet Nam)

1995-10-01

With the application of Gamma Co-60 radiation sterilization in pharmaceutical industry, attention should be paid to the possibilities of sterilizing traditional medicine drugs produced in Vietnam. In this paper the opinion which traditional medicine drugs can be satisfactorily sterilized by irradiation is based on the changes of physical and chemical properties of the products and microbiological examinations. The sterilizing radiation dose were calculated and the results are the following (in Mrad) Rheumatine-2.2, Hasinh-3.3, snake extract-1.8, Samcotgiao-2.2. The changes of physical and chemical properties of the products and their toxicity after irradiation have been shown to be not over the levels of allowance. (Author).

Acute toxicity and genotoxicity of fermented traditional medicine oyaksungi-san

OpenAIRE

Hwayong Park; Youn-Hwan Hwang; Jin Yeul Ma

2017-01-01

Background: The traditional medicine oyaksungi-san (OY) has been prescribed in East Asia for hundreds of years for the treatment of stroke, paralysis, and ataxia. OY also has therapeutic effects on arthralgia, myalgia, and rheumatoid arthritis, and recent studies have shown its protective effects against apoptosis of hippocampal cells and its anti-inflammatory effects on the peripheral blood cells of patient with cerebral infarction. Many studies have explored the use of traditional medicine ...

Moduratory effect of Thai traditional medicine (Yahom Tultavai) on ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Recently, several herbs and traditional medicines have been reported to demonstrate herbal-drug interaction with conventional medicines. This study aims to investigate the effect of Yahom Tultavai extracts on hepatic cytochrome P450 enzymes and pentobarbital-induced sleeping in mice. Three extracts of Yahom Tultavai, ...

Using AGREE II to Evaluate the Quality of Traditional Medicine Clinical Practice Guidelines in China.

Science.gov (United States)

Deng, Wei; Li, Le; Wang, Zixia; Chang, Xiaonan; Li, Rui; Fang, Ziye; Wei, Dang; Yao, Liang; Wang, Xiaoqin; Wang, Qi; An, Guanghui

2016-03-15

To evaluate/assess the quality of the Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) of traditional medicine in China. We systematically searched the literature databases WanFang Data, VIP, CNKI and CBM for studies published between 1978 and 2012 to identify and select CPGs of traditional medicine. We used the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II (AGREE II) instrument to evaluate these guidelines. A total of 75 guidelines were included, of which 46 guidelines (62%) were on Traditional Chinese Medicine, 19 (25%) on Chinese Integrated Medicine, and 10 (13%) on Uyghur Medicine. Most traditional medicine CPGs published in domestic journals scored medicine. In each domain of AGREE II, traditional Medicine CPGs performed clearly better than international CPGs. The same trend was seen in guidelines of Modern Medicine. An increasing amount of CPGs are being published, but their quality is low. Referring to the key points of international guidelines development, supervision through AGREE II, cooperating with international groups and exploring the strategy of guideline development could improve the quality of CPGs on traditional medicine. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

[Progress of sulfur fumigation and modern processing technology of Chinese traditional medicines].

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Tu-Lin; Shan, Xin; Li, Lin; Mao, Chun-Qin; Ji, De; Yin, Fang-Zhou; Lang, Yong-Ying

2014-08-01

Infestation, moldy and other phenomenon in the processing and storage of Chinese herbal medicines is a problem that faced in the production of Chinese traditional medicine. The low productivity of traditional processing methods can not guarantee the quality of Chinese herbal medicines. Sulfur fumigation is the first choice of grassroots to process the Chinese herbal medicine with its low cost and easy operation. Sulfur fumigation can solve some problems in the processing and storage of Chinese herbal medicines, but modern pharmacological studies show that long-term use of Chinese traditional medicine which is fumigated by sulfur can cause some serious harm to human liver, kidney and other organs. This paper conducts a review about the application history of sulfur fumigation, its influence to the quality of Chinese herbal medicines as well as domestic and foreign limits to sulfur quantity, and a brief introduction of the status of modern processing technologies in the processing of food and some Chinese herbal medicines, the problems ex- isting in the Chinese herbal medicines processing, which can provide a reference basis for the further research, development and application of investigating alternative technologies of sulfur fumigation.

A review on the elemental contents of Pakistani medicinal plants: Implications for folk medicines.

Science.gov (United States)

Aziz, Muhammad Abdul; Adnan, Muhammad; Begum, Shaheen; Azizullah, Azizullah; Nazir, Ruqia; Iram, Shazia

2016-07-21

Substantially, plants produce chemicals such as primary and secondary metabolites, which have significant applications in modern therapy. Indigenous people mostly rely on traditional medicines derived from medicinal plants. These plants have the capacity to absorb a variety of toxic elements. The ingestion of such plants for medicinal purpose can have imperative side effects. Hence, with regard to the toxicological consideration of medicinal plants, an effort has been made to review the elemental contents of ethno medicinally important plants of Pakistan and to highlight the existing gaps in knowledge of the safety and efficacy of traditional herbal medications. Literature related to the elemental contents of ethno medicinal plants was acquired by utilizing electronic databases. We reviewed only macro-elemental and trace elemental contents of 69 medicinal plant taxa, which are traditionally used in Pakistan for the treatment of sundry ailments, including anemia, jaundice, cancer, piles, diarrhea, dysentery, headache, diabetes, asthma, blood purification, sedative and ulcer. A majority of plants showed elemental contents above the permissible levels as recommended by the World health organization (WHO). As an example, the concentrations of Cadmium (Cd) and Lead (Pb) were reportedly found higher than the WHO permissible levels in 43 and 42 medicinal plants, respectively. More specifically, the concentrations of Pb (54ppm: Silybum marianum) and Cd (5.25ppm: Artemisia herba-alba) were found highest in the Asteraceae family. The reported medicinal plants contain a higher amount of trace and toxic elements. Intake of these plants as traditional medicines may trigger the accumulation of trace and toxic elements in human bodies, which can cause different types of diseases. Thus, a clear understanding about the nature of toxic substances and factors affecting their concentrations in traditional medicines are essential prerequisites for efficacious herbal therapeutics with

A historical overview of traditional medicine practices and policy in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Background: Although traditional medicine plays an important role in Ethiopian society, knowledge about the extent and characteristics of traditional healing practices and practitioners is limited and has frequently been ignored in the national health system. Objective: To review history of practices and policies on traditional ...

Perception of the knowledge of traditional and herbal medicine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The practice of traditional medicine in Nigeria is widely acceptable and contributes significantly to healthcare delivery, yet, integration and/or corecognition with orthodox medicine is still faced with a lot of challenges. One of the most recommended ways of addressing these challenges include enlightenment on the practice ...

Traditional medicinal plants in Ben En National Park, Vietnam

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van Sam, Hoang; Baas, P.; Keßler, P.J.A.

2008-01-01

This paper surveys the medicinal plants and their traditional use by local people in Ben En National Park, Vietnam. A total of 230 medicinal plant species (belonging to 200 genera and 84 families) is used by local people for treatment of 68 different diseases. These include species that are

Ethnopharmacologic survey of medicinal plants used to treat human diseases by traditional medical practitioners in Dega Damot district, Amhara, Northwestern Ethiopia.

Science.gov (United States)

Wubetu, Muluken; Abula, Tefera; Dejenu, Getye

2017-04-18

One of the services that plants provide for human beings is their wider medicinal application. Although it is not fully assessed, the practice and wider use of traditional medicine is frequent in Ethiopia. Studies conducted previously are confined to the perceptions of modern and traditional health practitioners about traditional medicine. A total of 45 informants were selected purposefully from the study area. For collecting the data, semi-structured interviewees, observation and field walks were employed from August 10 to September 30/2014. To summarize the information, descriptive statistical methods were applied. Sixty species of medicinal plants distributed in 42 families were collected and identified applied locally for the treatment of 55 human disorders. The most commonly treated ones were evil eye, malaria, wound, peptic ulcer disease and rabies. According to this study, leaves were the commonly used plant parts (36.5%) and 39% of the preparations were decoctions. Oral route, 43 (44%) was the commonly used route of application whereas most (54.8%) remedies were administered only once. Fourteen percent of preparations caused vomiting in addition most (40.4%) of the formulations was contraindicated for pregnant patients. Only seventeen percent of the formulations possessed drug food interactions. Most preparations were stored within clothes, 31 (29.8%). There exists a high (ICF = 0.8) evenness of plant use among healers for treating respiratory problems. Alliumsativum (FI = 0.75) for evil eye, Phytolacca dodecandra (FI = 0.8) for rabies and Croton macrostachyus (FI = 0.78) for treating malaria were medicinal plants with highest fidelity levels showing consistency of knowledge on species best treating power. This study also documented that drought, overgrazing and firewood collection are major threats. Dega Damot district is loaded in its medicinal plant diversity and indigenous knowledge though plants are highly affected by drought, overgrazing and

Traditional medicine in late pregnancy and labour: perceptions of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In South Africa most black women use antenatal care services and deliver in clinics, and a considerable number complement this use of formal health services with traditional medicine. This study reported here examined the knowledge, beliefs and practical experiences of pregnant women, traditional healers and midwives ...

Influence of the areas of specialization of Traditional Medicine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Traditional Medicine Practitioners (TMPs) make use of plants in alleviation of many illnesses including memory loss. Their specialization categories could include traditional healers, herbalists, herb sellers, etc. Most of them learnt the trade as apprentices from their trainers or their parents. This study was designed to ...

Bio-politics and the promotion of traditional herbal medicine in Vietnam

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wahlberg, Ayo

2006-01-01

traditional herbal medicine came to be recruited as an important component of national efforts to promote the public health of urban and rural populations in Vietnam. Importantly, this has entailed a rejection of a colonial biopolitics that sought to marginalize ‘quackery’ in favour of a postcolonial bio......-politics that aims to promote the ‘appropriate’ use of traditional herbal medicines. While the Vietnamese case bears many parallels to other countries in this respect, notably China, Vietnam's ancient history of medicine, postcolonial isolation and extensive health delivery network have resulted in a unique strategy......It is often suggested that, in the past 50 years, Vietnam has experienced a traditional medicine ‘revival’ that can be traced back to late President Ho Chi Minh's 1955 appeal ‘to study means of uniting the effects of oriental remedies with those of Europe’. In this article, I demonstrate how...

The Dosage Form of Aragh in Treatment, from the Iranian Traditional Medicine Perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Adl, Mehdi; Emtiazi, Majid

2016-05-01

The Iranian traditional medicine is one of the branches of complementary medicine and it is based on using the dosage forms of plants. One of the most common forms of pharmaceutical plants is Aragh. Due to ease-of-use, distillate is a more acceptable form among the public. In this article, it is attempted to study the usage forms and effects of Aragh according to the valid traditional medicine resources. This article is a review of Iranian traditional medicine textbooks such as Makhzan-ul-dawiah, Gharabadin Kabir, Cannon of Medicine, and other recent texts on medical plants. According to the traditional medicine, the process of getting Aragh is a kind of distillation, which is performed by using Ghar and Alembic (the equipment that are used in distillation). Distillation is the process of extracting and refining the fluid of a plant. Aragh of the plants is much more effective on the body than the plant itself. Traditional medicine regards Aragh as a new kind of drug (medicine) that is rarely mentioned in older texts (except for golab). However, the modern medicine regards it as a dosage form of essence, which is dissolved in water. The more the essence, the better the distillate gets. According to the traditional medicine sources, since the time of Hakim Aghil Khorasani, Aragh was used more and more every day. About 100 kinds of Araghs are mentioned in ancient texts, which are extracted from simple plants. Considering the distillation process and the way it performs, and by knowing that Aragh is a plant's softest and the most influential entity, it seems that it has a huge effect on Arvah and Ghova, the main parts like heart and brain and nervous parts.

A review of the role of African traditional medicine in the ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

A review of the role of African traditional medicine in the management of oral diseases. ... traditional healers include herbalism, psychotherapy, simple surgical procedures, ... Some practices of traditional healers included tooth extractions with ...

Food therapy and medical diet therapy of Traditional Chinese Medicine

OpenAIRE

Qunli Wu; Xiaochun Liang

2018-01-01

Food therapy of traditional Chinese medicine aims to maintain balanced nutrition through diet. Medical diet therapy, however, is to achieve the balance of Yin and Yang through the combination of nutrition and medicine. Either “food therapy” or “medical diet therapy” aims to keep health, prevent disease, remove illness and slow aging. In recent years, both food therapy and medical diet therapy have been increasingly applied in clinical nutrition therapy. In terms of traditional Chinese food th...

Bioactivity of indigenous medicinal plants against the cotton whitefly, Bemisia tabaci

Science.gov (United States)

Hammad, E. Abou-Fakhr; Zeaiter, A.; Saliba, N.; Talhouk, S.

2014-01-01

Abstract Forty-one methanol extracts of 28 indigenous medicinal plant species were tested for their insecticidal bioactivity against cotton whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), adults and second nymphal instars under controlled conditions. This study is within a bioprospection context, in the form of utilizing local plant species as an alternative in sustainable agriculture development. Eighteen and nine plant extracts caused a significant decrease in number of live adult and nymphal whiteflies, respectively, compared to the control. This is the first report for the potential effect on survival of insects for 22 out of 28 tested medicinal plant species. Whole plant extracts of Ranunculus myosuroudes Boiss. and Kotschy (Ranunculaceae), Achillea damascena L. (Asteraceae), and Anthemis hebronica Boiss. and Kotschy (Asteraceae) and leaf extracts of Verbascum leptostychum DC. (Scrophulariaceae) and Heliotropium rotundifolium Boiss. (Borangiaceae) caused both repellent and toxic effects against the adult and second nymphal instars, respectively. Extracts of leaves and stems of Anthemis scariosa Boiss. (Asteraceae) and Calendula palestina Pers. (Asteraceae) were found to be more bioactive against the adult and nymphal instars, respectively, than extracts of other plant parts, such as flowers. Thus, the bioactive extracts of these medicinal plants have the potential to lower whitefly populations in a comprehensive pest management program in local communities, pending cultivation of these medicinal plant species. PMID:25204756

[Sample size calculation in clinical post-marketing evaluation of traditional Chinese medicine].

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Yingkun; Xie, Yanming

2011-10-01

In recent years, as the Chinese government and people pay more attention on the post-marketing research of Chinese Medicine, part of traditional Chinese medicine breed has or is about to begin after the listing of post-marketing evaluation study. In the post-marketing evaluation design, sample size calculation plays a decisive role. It not only ensures the accuracy and reliability of post-marketing evaluation. but also assures that the intended trials will have a desired power for correctly detecting a clinically meaningful difference of different medicine under study if such a difference truly exists. Up to now, there is no systemic method of sample size calculation in view of the traditional Chinese medicine. In this paper, according to the basic method of sample size calculation and the characteristic of the traditional Chinese medicine clinical evaluation, the sample size calculation methods of the Chinese medicine efficacy and safety are discussed respectively. We hope the paper would be beneficial to medical researchers, and pharmaceutical scientists who are engaged in the areas of Chinese medicine research.

Ethnomedicinal plants traditionally used in health care practices by inhabitants of Western Himalaya.

Science.gov (United States)

Malik, Zubair A; Bhat, Jahangeer A; Ballabha, Radha; Bussmann, Rainer W; Bhatt, A B

2015-08-22

Inspite of tremendous advances made in allopathic medicine, herbal practice still plays an important role in management and curing various ailments in remote and rural areas of India. However, traditional knowledge on the use of medicinal plants is eroding day by day and there is a need to document such knowledge, before it is lost forever. The aim of the present study was to document the indigenous and traditional knowledge of medicinal plants used by local inhabitants in and around Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary of Indian Himalaya for the advancement of biomedical research and development. The intensive field survey was carried out at three different altitudes of Kedarnath Wildlife Sanctuary (KWLS) and its adjoining areas. The inhabitants were interviewed about the local name of plants having ethno-medicinal values, plant parts used, mode of processing/application and preparation and dosage through discussions and semi structured questionnaires. A total of 97 medicinal plant species belonging to 52 families and 83 genera were reported for curing various ailments like fever, cough, cold, digestive disorders, constipation, menstrual disorders etc. Out of 97 plant species reported, 21 are rare or threatened. Literature review revealed that 11 out of the 97 plant species are reported with new therapeutic uses. The most frequently utilized plant part was the root/rhizome (33%) followed by leaf (27%). In some cases whole plant was utilized. A few medicinal plants had some veterinary uses also. The study provides comprehensive information about the eroding indigenous and traditional knowledge of medicinal plants used by local inhabitants in a part of Western Himalaya, India. The identification of the active ingredients of the plants used by the local people may provide some useful leads for the development of new drugs and such new approaches of traditional knowledge regarding medicinal plants and laboratory analysis might help pharmaceutical industry in new chapters for

Back to the Roots: Prediction of Biologically Active Natural Products from Ayurveda Traditional Medicine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Polur, Honey; Joshi, Tejal; Workman, Christopher

2011-01-01

Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicine is one of the most ancient, yet living medicinal traditions. In the present work, we developed an in silico library of natural products from Ayurveda medicine, coupled with structural information, plant origin and traditional therapeutic use. Following this....... We hereby present a number of examples where the traditional medicinal use of the plant matches with the medicinal use of the drug that is structurally similar to a plant component. With this approach, we have brought to light a number of obscure compounds of natural origin (e.g. kanugin......, we compared their structures with those of drugs from DrugBank and we constructed a structural similarity network. Information on the traditional therapeutic use of the plants was integrated in the network in order to provide further evidence for the predicted biologically active natural compounds...

The modern hippocratic tradition. Some messages for contemporary medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Marketos, S G; Skiadas, P K

1999-06-01

Hippocrates (5th century B.C.), the most prominent physician of antiquity, was born in the small Greek island of Kos, which is near the coast of Asia Minor. Before his era, medicine was practiced as an empirical art and had a religious nature. Hippocratic medicine represents the landmark for the evolution of Western medicine. This "father" of rational medicine assimilated the accumulated knowledge of the past and formed a diagnostic system based on clinical observation and logical reasoning. The great physician attributed diseases to natural causes, believed in the healing power of nature, and gave special emphasis to the prevention and prognosis of illnesses. He treated patients as psychosomatic entities (a holistic medical approach) in relation to their natural environment. In his treatises, Hippocrates defined the ethical principles guiding medical practice. His entire work was inspired by humanistic ideals and an undeviating dedication to the patient. Modern medicine can derive valuable lessons from the Hippocratic tradition. For the coming 21st century, medicine more than ever senses the need to combine the concepts of humanistic values and the Hippocratic messages with the technologic "imperative" (power). This bond is necessary to the improvement of medicine in the future because, currently, the enormous biomedical technology so far has contributed little to the traditionally human fields of psychosomatic and functional disturbances, posing new dilemmas and threatening scientific problems.

Therapeutic effects of rosehip fruit types in traditional and modern medicine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Background and objectives: The genus Rosa is one of the most widespread members of Rosaceae family with more than 100 species. Rosa fruit (rosehip has a long history of traditional uses in Islamic traditional medicine. It has been used for the treatment of several illnesses including ear, nose and throat problems, nausea and vomiting, headache and brain spasms. Beside the traditional uses, it has exhibited various pharmacological properties. To extend our view towards future indication of this fruit for medicinal and clinical purposes, this study was an attempt to review traditional applications, clinical properties, and pharmacological potentials of rosehip in various ethnomedical systems. Methods: Major ITM books were explored to find the main clinical uses of rosehip. Also to find pharmacological activities of rosehip, we searched some electronic databases such as PubMed and Scopus. Results: Several in vitro and in vivo pharmacological studies and clinical trials have confirmed the traditional uses of rosehip including neuroprotective activities. These studies have also suggested new properties such as anti-cancer, anti-rheumatoid arthritis, anti-diabetic, antihyperlipidemic activities and gastroprotective effects. Conclusion: Systems of traditional medicine plays an important role in discovering new drugs.

Traditional Chinese medicine as adjunctive therapy improves the long-term survival of lung cancer patients.

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Liao, Yueh-Hsiang; Li, Chia-Ing; Lin, Cheng-Chieh; Lin, Jaung-Geng; Chiang, Jen-Huai; Li, Tsai-Chung

2017-12-01

Traditional Chinese medicine is one of the popular alternative treatments for cancer, mainly enhancing host immune response and reducing adverse effect of chemotherapy. This study first explored traditional Chinese medicine treatment effect on long-term survival of lung cancer patients. This study evaluated whether traditional Chinese medicine combined with conventional cancer treatment improved overall survival of lung cancer patients. We had conducted a retrospective cohort study on 111,564 newly diagnosed lung cancer patients in 2000-2009 from National Health Insurance Program database. A total of 23,803 (21.31%) patients used traditional Chinese medicine for lung cancer care. Eligible participants were followed up until 2011 with a mean follow-up period of 1.96 years (standard deviation 2.55) for non-TCM users and 3.04 years (2.85) for traditional Chinese medicine users. Patients with traditional Chinese medicine utilization were significantly more likely to have a 32% decreased risk of death [hazard ratio = 0.62; 95% confidence interval = 0.61-0.63], compared with patients without traditional Chinese medicine utilization after multivariate adjustment. We also observed a similar significant reduction risk across various subgroups of chronic lung diseases. Qing Zao Jiu Fei Tang was the most effective traditional Chinese medicine agent for mortality reduction both in the entire lung cancer (0.81; 0.72-0.91) and matched populations (0.86; 0.78-0.95). This study demonstrated adjunctive therapy with traditional Chinese medicine may improve overall survival of lung cancer patients. This study also suggested traditional Chinese medicine may be used as an adjunctive therapy for cancer treatment. These observational findings need being validated by future randomized controlled trials to rule out the possibility of effect due to holistic care.

Ethnobotanical study of medicinal flora utilised by traditional healers in the management of sexually transmitted infections in Sesheke District, Western Province, Zambia

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K.C. Chinsembu

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Since many rural-poor Lozi people of Sesheke District (Western Province, Zambia that suffer from sexually transmitted infections do not usually access public health facilities; they turn to traditional healers who administer remedies extracted from medicinal plants. However, the medicinal plants used for sexually transmitted infections and data on the usage of plants in Sesheke District in particular and Western Province in general have not been documented. In this study, an ethnobotanical survey was conducted to document the indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants that alleviate symptoms of sexually transmitted infections in Sesheke District, Western Province, Zambia. Using semi-structured interviews and questionnaires, ethnobotanical data were collected from twenty traditional healers that manage patients presenting with sexually transmitted infections. The results showed that 52 plant species in 25 families and 43 genera were used to treat gonorrhoea, syphilis, chancroid, chlamydia, genital herpes, and ano-genital warts. Sexually transmitted infections were frequently managed using the following plants: Terminalia sericea, Strychnos cocculoides, Ximenia caffra, Cassia abbreviata, Cassia occidentalis, Combretum hereroense, Combretum imberbe, Dichrostachys cinerea, Boscia albitrunca, Momordica balsamina and Peltophorum africanum. Many of these plants have putative antimicrobial activities which may justify their roles as natural remedies for sexually transmitted infections. Further studies are needed to determine the dosages, minimum inhibitory concentrations, biological activities and toxicities, and characterise the plants' chemical compounds.

Medicinal Plants Traditionally Used in Mali for Dysmenorrhea

OpenAIRE

Sanogo, Rokia

2011-01-01

Dysmenorrhea is painful menstrual cramps, which negatively impacts the quality of life of a large percentage of the world's female population in reproductive age. The paper reviews the plants used in the Malian traditional medicine for the treatment of dysmenorrhea. Some medicinal plants were effective for treatments of dysmenorrhea with minimal side effects. Conventional therapy for dysmenorrhea, which usually includes non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), provides symptomatic reli...

[A critical examination of public policies related to indigenous health, traditional medicine, and interculturality in Mexico (1990-2016)].

Science.gov (United States)

Navarro, Roberto Campos; Sánchez, Edith Yesenia Peña; Maya, Alfredo Paulo

2017-01-01

Over the last 26 years, the Mexican government has developed a number of activities and discourses around what has been called "intercultural health," directed especially at indigenous peoples in Mexico (some 62, according to linguistic criteria). In this way, the government has built health care institutions (rural centers, clinics, and hospitals) in states like Puebla, Nayarit, Oaxaca, Chiapas, Queretaro, and Jalisco, proposing the implementation of cultural pertinence indicators (which are minimal and inadequate). Nevertheless, the health conditions among indigenous populations and the quality of health care provided by public institutions continue to be precarious in terms of human and material resources (health personnel, drugs, etc.) and discriminatory with respect to the form and content of the provided services. This paper describes some of the governmental interventions that purport to be institutional improvements in the field of interculturality, but that actually represent the continuity of arbitrary and exclusive policies.

Drug Policy and Indigenous Peoples.

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Burger, Julian; Kapron, Mary

2017-06-01

This paper identifies the principal concerns of indigenous peoples with regard to current international treaties on certain psychoactive substances and policies to control and eradicate their production, trafficking, and sale. Indigenous peoples have a specific interest in the issue since their traditional lands have become integrated over time into the large-scale production of coca, opium poppy, and cannabis crops, in response to high demand from the American and European markets, among others. As a consequence, indigenous peoples are persecuted because of their traditional use of these and other plant-based narcotics and hallucinogens. They are also victims of the drug producers who remove them from their lands or forcibly recruit them into the production process. As indigenous peoples are caught in the violent world of illicit drug production, law enforcement often targets them first, resulting in disproportionate rates of criminalization and incarceration.

In Vitro Testing of African Traditional Medicines for Cytotoxic ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

African Traditional Medicines (ATMs) serve as a major source of primary healthcare for African people. The reasons for their use range from easy access, affordability, beliefs in traditional systems and long term safety. ATMs have been used to treat individuals infected with HIV and therefore need scientific validation; a view ...

European medicinal polypores--a modern view on traditional uses.

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Grienke, Ulrike; Zöll, Margit; Peintner, Ursula; Rollinger, Judith M

2014-07-03

In particular five polypore species, i.e. Laetiporus sulphureus, Fomes fomentarius, Fomitopsis pinicola, Piptoporus betulinus, and Laricifomes officinalis, have been widely used in central European folk medicines for the treatment of various diseases, e.g. dysmenorrhoea, haemorrhoids, bladder disorders, pyretic diseases, treatment of coughs, cancer, and rheumatism. Prehistoric artefacts going back to over 5000 years underline the long tradition of using polypores for various applications ranging from food or tinder material to medicinal-spiritual uses as witnessed by two polypore species found among items of Ötzi, the Iceman. The present paper reviews the traditional uses, phytochemistry, and biological activity of the five mentioned polypores. All available information on the selected polypore taxa used in traditional folk medicine was collected through evaluation of literature in libraries and searches in online databases using SciFinder and Web of Knowledge. Mycochemical studies report the presence of many primary (e.g. polysaccharides) and secondary metabolites (e.g. triterpenes). Crude extracts and isolated compounds show a wide spectrum of biological properties, such as anti-inflammatory, cytotoxic, and antimicrobial activities. The investigated polypores possess a longstanding ethnomycological tradition in Europe. Here, we compile biological results which highlight their therapeutic value. Moreover, this work provides a solid base for further investigations on a molecular level, both compound- and target-wise. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

How four different political systems have shaped the modernization of traditional Korean medicine between 1900 and 1960.

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Dongwon, Shin

2008-03-01

In this paper, I examine the modern formation of traditional Korean medicine and discuss the characteristics of the modernization, or modernity, of the medicine. I probe for answers to three questions: first, prior to the twentieth century, what were the main factors that traditional Korean medicine needed to be transformed into a new one? Second, how did four states, the Taehan Empire, colonial Korea, North Korea, and South Korea, treat traditional medicine differently, and why? Third, what are the main characteristics of the modernization of traditional Korean medicine? In examining these questions, I found the following four factors to be important in shaping the modern formation of traditional Korean medicine during the twentieth century: first, the influences of Western science and institutions; second, the rise of nationalism; third, the economics of the state; and fourth, the effectiveness of traditional medicine. Among them, the introduction of Western science and institutions was the most important factor. All the different states in modern Korea realized that Western science and institutions were indispensable for the country to be a powerful nation and to enhance people's welfare. The degree of confidentiality in scientific Western medicine determined the number of traditional medical practitioners and their professional status. The modernization also was greatly affected by modern nationalism, which clashed with Westernization. Many Koreans and the Korean governments regarded the traditional medicine as something culturally valuable to protect from Western culture. Especially, the majority of Koreans who had experienced the cruelty of the Japanese rule under colonization tended to believe that Japan, a foreign ruler, had suppressed traditional Korean medicine as a liquidation policy of Korean culture during the colonial period. This belief contributed greatly to the recovery of the traditional doctors' prestige in South Korea and North Korea after

Traditional Chinese medicine treatment of liver diseases

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WANG Rongbing

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM treatment of liver diseases is derived from the regulation of liver function including storing blood and governing the free flow of qi, in which functional systems such as modern digestion, endocrine, and the gut-liver axis are involved, and is established on modern hepatic physiology, pathology, and etiology. To objectively reveal the characteristics and advantages of modern TCM treatment of liver diseases, we analyzed the clinical and research situation of TCM therapy for liver diseases in the last decade and collected major achievements that have been applied in clinical treatment of diseases, published in core journals, and confirmed by major scientific research programs. The results showed TCM combined with antiviral therapy can improve the clinical outcomes of chronic hepatitis B. TCM can help HBV carriers prevent disease progression. Integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine therapy for acute-on-chronic liver failure can block the deterioration induced by endotoxin. TCM has been widely applied in protecting the liver through nonspecific anti-inflammation, alleviating hepatic fibrosis, and preventing non-alcoholic fatty liver. TCM plays an important role in treating some currently untreatable liver diseases. Therefore, it is our common responsibility to inherit and develop effective principle-method-recipe-medicines and create a better medical care system.

Skin Aging Remedies in Traditional Persian Medicine

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Shirbeigi

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Context Traditional persian medicine (TPM is an ancient temperamental medicine with a rich literature about aging mechanism. Temperament has an important function in maintaining the ideal healthy status of human body. Aging process and skin aging could be postponed by applying herbal medicine and some specific traditional rules. Evidence Acquisition The aim of this review study was gathering and discussing the mechanism of whole body aging and skin aging from perspective of TPM and introducing remedies to prevent it. Skin aging is caused by external and internal factors. According to TPM, loss of fat and water content in different skin layers is the main cause of skin aging and it could be avoided by considering simple essential commands. Results Skin aging begins with whole body aging process and entire body gets cold and dry in elderly. Wrinkle formation is highly associated with loss of “skin natural moisture”. In the management, specific food supplements, simple massage therapy as well as herbal drugs were suggested. The current investigation was performed to show the knowledge of ancient Iranian scientists on aging process and related interventions. Conclusions Reported herbal drugs might be beneficial for further studies for the management of skin aging and aging process.

Traditional Herbal Medicine Use Associated with Liver Fibrosis in Rural Rakai, Uganda

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2012-11-27

Traditional Herbal Medicine Use Associated with Liver Fibrosis in Rural Rakai, Uganda Brandon J. Auerbach1,2*, Steven J. Reynolds3,4, Mohammed...Background: Traditional herbal medicines are commonly used in sub-Saharan Africa and some herbs are known to be hepatotoxic. However little is known...about the effect of herbal medicines on liver disease in sub-Saharan Africa. Methods: 500 HIV-infected participants in a rural HIV care program in Rakai

Metabolomics and Integrative Omics for the Development of Thai Traditional Medicine

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Khoomrung, Sakda; Wanichthanarak, Kwanjeera; Nookaew, Intawat; Thamsermsang, Onusa; Seubnooch, Patcharamon; Laohapand, Tawee; Akarasereenont, Pravit

2017-01-01

In recent years, interest in studies of traditional medicine in Asian and African countries has gradually increased due to its potential to complement modern medicine. In this review, we provide an overview of Thai traditional medicine (TTM) current development, and ongoing research activities of TTM related to metabolomics. This review will also focus on three important elements of systems biology analysis of TTM including analytical techniques, statistical approaches and bioinformatics tools for handling and analyzing untargeted metabolomics data. The main objective of this data analysis is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the system wide effects that TTM has on individuals. Furthermore, potential applications of metabolomics and systems medicine in TTM will also be discussed. PMID:28769804

Camels Milk: Nutrition and Health Perspectives Iranian Traditional Medicine

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Seyyd Musa al-Reza Hosseini

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Background: Camel milk is the closest to human mother’s milk. In the references on Iranian traditional medicine, camel’s milk has been represented as the one having numerous nutritious and medical properties.Objectives: In this article, the nutritive and therapeutic effects of camel’s milk have been examined from the view point of Iranian traditional medicine.Materials and Methods: The present study is a qualitative one, which was carried out, based on certain criteria, through purposeful search of certain keywords in the written references of Iranian traditional medicine.Results: Numerous pharmacological functions and therapeutic effects of camel’s milk on patients suffering from liver, kidney, bladder, spleen, stomach and intestines, uterus, skin, lungs, and brain diseases have been mentioned. Camel’s milk seems to be an appropriate alternative/supplement to nourish infants and children.Conclusions: Animal resources, such as camel’s milk and its various products, have comprehensively been dealt with regarding their nutritive and therapeutic effects. Its compatibility with and similarity to mother’s milk have led to its application in pediatrics; thus, offering valid information to pediatricians on camel’s milk can further enhance the consumption of this natural product.

The local knowledge of medicinal plants trader and diversity of medicinal plants in the Kabanjahe traditional market, North Sumatra, Indonesia.

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Silalahi, Marina; Nisyawati; Walujo, Eko Baroto; Supriatna, Jatna; Mangunwardoyo, Wibowo

2015-12-04

Market is the main place for transactions of medicinal plants and traditional ingredients by local community in the Karo regency, North Sumatra, Indonesia. This is the first study to document the local knowledge of traders on and the diversity of the medicinal plants. The investigation was carried out in the Kabanjahe traditional market, in the Karo regency. The research goal was to reveal the local knowledge, diversity and utilization of medicinal plants, which have been traded in the Kabanjahe traditional market, as a basis for conservation efforts. The study was conducted through ethnobotanical approach using market surveys. All traders of medicinal plants were surveyed applying in-depth interviews and participative observations. Data were analyzed qualitatively using descriptive statistics. The diversity of medicinal plants was expressed in term of the Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H'), whereas the similarity among traders was indicated by Jaccard index (Ji). Traders of medicinal plants stored the simplicia of medicinal plants in chest of drawers, plastic baskets, plastic bags, and in the air by suspending them from the the stall ceilings. We recorded 344 species, 217 genera and 90 families of medicinal plants. Those that were sold mostly belong to Zingeberaceae (20 species), Poaceae (19 species), and Asclepiadaceae (17 species), and the species received high consumers demand, mostly belong to Zingiberaceae, Rutaceae, and Asclepidiaceae. Asclepidiaceae was used to treat diseases like cancer and heart problems. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index of medicinal plants at the Kabanjahe traditional market was high (H'= 5.637). The high Jaccard similarity index (Ji>0.56) suggested that the traders were trading similar species of medicinal plants. Kabanjahe traditional market is the center for the sale of of medicinal plants as traditional ingredients. Several species are well known for their pharmacological properties but others, [such as: Dischidia imbricata (Blume

Innovating Chinese Herbal Medicine: From Traditional Health Practice to Scientific Drug Discovery

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Shuo Gu

2017-06-01

Full Text Available As one of the major contemporary alternative medicines, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM continues its influence in Chinese communities and has begun to attract the academic attention in the world of western medicine. This paper aims to examine Chinese herbal medicine (CHM, the essential branch of TCM, from both narrative and scientific perspectives. CHM is a traditional health practice originated from Chinese philosophy and religion, holding the belief of holism and balance in the body. With the development of orthodox medicine and science during the last centuries, CHM also seized the opportunity to change from traditional health practice to scientific drug discovery illustrated in the famous story of the herb-derived drug artemisinin. However, hindered by its culture and founding principles, CHM faces the questions of the research paradigm posed by the convention of science. To address these questions, we discussed two essential questions concerning the relationship of CHM and science, and then upheld the paradigm of methodological reductionism in scientific research. Finally, the contemporary narrative of CHM in the 21st century was discussed in the hope to preserve this medical tradition in tandem with scientific research.

Innovating Chinese Herbal Medicine: From Traditional Health Practice to Scientific Drug Discovery.

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Gu, Shuo; Pei, Jianfeng

2017-01-01

As one of the major contemporary alternative medicines, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) continues its influence in Chinese communities and has begun to attract the academic attention in the world of western medicine. This paper aims to examine Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), the essential branch of TCM, from both narrative and scientific perspectives. CHM is a traditional health practice originated from Chinese philosophy and religion, holding the belief of holism and balance in the body. With the development of orthodox medicine and science during the last centuries, CHM also seized the opportunity to change from traditional health practice to scientific drug discovery illustrated in the famous story of the herb-derived drug artemisinin. However, hindered by its culture and founding principles, CHM faces the questions of the research paradigm posed by the convention of science. To address these questions, we discussed two essential questions concerning the relationship of CHM and science, and then upheld the paradigm of methodological reductionism in scientific research. Finally, the contemporary narrative of CHM in the 21st century was discussed in the hope to preserve this medical tradition in tandem with scientific research.

Reliability studies of diagnostic methods in Indian traditional Ayurveda medicine

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kurande, Vrinda Hitendra; Waagepetersen, Rasmus; Toft, Egon

2013-01-01

as prakriti classification), method development (pulse diagnosis), quality assurance for diagnosis and treatment and in the conduct of clinical studies. Several reliability studies are conducted in western medicine. The investigation of the reliability of traditional Chinese, Japanese and Sasang medicine...

IMPACT OF TRADITIONAL PRACTICES ON MEDICINAL PLANT TRADE IN THE RAINFOREST OF NIGERIA

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Gbadebo Osemeobo

2010-01-01

Full Text Available A cross-sectional survey was used to assess the impact of traditional practices on trade in traditional plants within the rainforest of Nigeria. A questionnaire survey and market-based observations were used to derive data from 110 stakeholders including: plant collectors, sellers, middlemen and traditional healers. Results of data analyses indicate that: (i plants not suitable for cultural practices were not usually used for traditional medicine. (ii Traditional management of the forests based on open access, restricted access and closed access rights could no longer protect habitats of medicinal plants. (iii Breakdown of management practices in the forests was common because of a twin factor: violators of regulations were not being punished; and there were increasing disputes over land boundaries among communities. (iv Medicinal plants on regular trade were in decline. Stakeholder participation in species rehabilitation in the forests and establishment of ex situ gardens may sustain the medicinal plant trade.

Traditional Medicine in Madagascar - Current Situation and the Institutional Context of Promotion

OpenAIRE

C. Pierlovisi; L. Pourchez

2014-01-01

Following WHO recommandations and in order to improve medical coverage, Madagascar officially recognized in 2007 its traditional medicine as a legitimate practice.UNESCO, to sustain traditional healers in the Indian Ocean, wanted to use anthropological tools to explore the current situation in Madagascar.Despit a plurality of practices, data collected for three months in the Southeast of the Island, allowed us to identify some fundamental aspects of Malagasy traditional medicine, such as the ...

Non-codified traditional medicine practices from Belgaum Region in Southern India: present scenario

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Background Traditional medicine in India can be classified into codified (Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy) and non-codified (folk medicine) systems. Both the systems contributing equally to the primary healthcare in India. The present study is aimed to understand the current scenario of medicinal practices of non-codified system of traditional medicine in Belgaum region, India. Methods The study has been conducted as a basic survey of identified non-codified traditional practitioners by convenience sampling with semi structured, open ended interviews and discussions. The learning process, disease diagnosis, treatment, remuneration, sharing of knowledge and socio-demographic data was collected, analysed and discussed. Results One hundred and forty traditional practitioners were identified and interviewed for the present study. These practitioners are locally known as “Vaidya”. The study revealed that the non-codified healthcare tradition is practiced mainly by elderly persons in the age group of 61 years and above (40%). 73% of the practitioners learnt the tradition from their forefathers, and 19% of practitioners developed their own practices through experimentation, reading and learning. 20% of the practitioners follow distinctive “Nadi Pariksha” (pulse examination) for disease diagnosis, while others follow bodily symptoms and complaints. 29% of the traditional practitioners do not charge anything, while 59% practitioners receive money as remuneration. Plant and animal materials are used as sources of medicines, with a variety of preparation methods. The preference ranking test revealed higher education and migration from villages are the main reasons for decreasing interest amongst the younger generation, while deforestation emerged as the main cause of medicinal plants depletion. Conclusion Patrilineal transfer of the knowledge to younger generation was observed in Belgaum region. The observed resemblance in disease diagnosis, plant collection and

Ethnomedicinal, Phytochemical and Ethnopharmacological Aspects of Four Medicinal Plants of Malvaceae Used in Indian Traditional Medicines: A Review.

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Abat, Jasmeet Kaur; Kumar, Sanjay; Mohanty, Aparajita

2017-10-18

The ethnomedicinal values of plants form the basis of the herbal drug industry. India has contributed its knowledge of traditional system medicines (Ayurveda and Siddha) to develop herbal medicines with negligible side effects. The World Health Organization has also recognized the benefits of drugs developed from natural products. Abutilon indicum, Hibiscus sabdariffa, Sida acuta and Sida rhombifolia are ethnomedicinal plants of Malvaceae, commonly used in Indian traditional system of medicines. Traditionally these plants were used in the form of extracts/powder/paste by tribal populations of India for treating common ailments like cough and cold, fever, stomach, kidney and liver disorders, pains, inflammations, wounds, etc. The present review is an overview of phytochemistry and ethnopharmacological studies that support many of the traditional ethnomedicinal uses of these plants. Many phytoconstituents have been isolated from the four ethnomedicinal plants and some of them have shown pharmacological activities that have been demonstrated by in vivo and/or in vitro experiments. Ethnomedicinal uses, supported by scientific evidences is essential for ensuring safe and effective utilization of herbal medicines.

Ethnomedicinal, Phytochemical and Ethnopharmacological Aspects of Four Medicinal Plants of Malvaceae Used in Indian Traditional Medicines: A Review

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Jasmeet Kaur Abat

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The ethnomedicinal values of plants form the basis of the herbal drug industry. India has contributed its knowledge of traditional system medicines (Ayurveda and Siddha to develop herbal medicines with negligible side effects. The World Health Organization has also recognized the benefits of drugs developed from natural products. Abutilon indicum, Hibiscus sabdariffa, Sida acuta and Sida rhombifolia are ethnomedicinal plants of Malvaceae, commonly used in Indian traditional system of medicines. Traditionally these plants were used in the form of extracts/powder/paste by tribal populations of India for treating common ailments like cough and cold, fever, stomach, kidney and liver disorders, pains, inflammations, wounds, etc. The present review is an overview of phytochemistry and ethnopharmacological studies that support many of the traditional ethnomedicinal uses of these plants. Many phytoconstituents have been isolated from the four ethnomedicinal plants and some of them have shown pharmacological activities that have been demonstrated by in vivo and/or in vitro experiments. Ethnomedicinal uses, supported by scientific evidences is essential for ensuring safe and effective utilization of herbal medicines.

Ethnomedicinal, Phytochemical and Ethnopharmacological Aspects of Four Medicinal Plants of Malvaceae Used in Indian Traditional Medicines: A Review

Science.gov (United States)

Abat, Jasmeet Kaur; Kumar, Sanjay; Mohanty, Aparajita

2017-01-01

The ethnomedicinal values of plants form the basis of the herbal drug industry. India has contributed its knowledge of traditional system medicines (Ayurveda and Siddha) to develop herbal medicines with negligible side effects. The World Health Organization has also recognized the benefits of drugs developed from natural products. Abutilon indicum, Hibiscus sabdariffa, Sida acuta and Sida rhombifolia are ethnomedicinal plants of Malvaceae, commonly used in Indian traditional system of medicines. Traditionally these plants were used in the form of extracts/powder/paste by tribal populations of India for treating common ailments like cough and cold, fever, stomach, kidney and liver disorders, pains, inflammations, wounds, etc. The present review is an overview of phytochemistry and ethnopharmacological studies that support many of the traditional ethnomedicinal uses of these plants. Many phytoconstituents have been isolated from the four ethnomedicinal plants and some of them have shown pharmacological activities that have been demonstrated by in vivo and/or in vitro experiments. Ethnomedicinal uses, supported by scientific evidences is essential for ensuring safe and effective utilization of herbal medicines. PMID:29057840

Oral traditional knowledge on medicinal plants in jeopardy among Gaddi shepherds in hills of northwestern Himalaya, J&K, India.

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Dutt, Harish Chander; Bhagat, Nisha; Pandita, Shevita

2015-06-20

The Gaddi community has been known for its shepherd profession from time immemorial. At least one family member or 4-5 people from a village adopt a nomadic lifestyle with their sheep flocks in between the hills of north western Himalaya. In Jammu and Kashmir, India, law enforcement has banned the collection of the medicinal plants from the wild except for the Gaddi, Gujjar and Bakerwal tribes who are permitted to collect the species for their personal use only. As a consequence, knowledge of medicinal plants lies with these tribes only. This study has been undertaken to assess the status of Oral Traditional Knowledge (OTK) on medicinal plant usage in one of these tribes, known as the Gaddi. The study has focused specifically on the Gaddi Shepherds as their nomadic lifestyle means that they are closely associated with nature and dependent on natural resources for their livelihood including treatment of various ailments. Data on indigenous knowledge has been collected through direct interviews of 53 shepherds of the Gaddi tribe and analyzed for quantitative parameters such as use-value and factor informant consensus. A total of 190 plant species belonging to 70 families, growing along the migratory route of the Gaddi Shepherds are used to treat more than 80 different ailments and disorders. Leaves are the most common plant parts used by the Gaddi Shepherds. The older shepherds are much more aware about the traditional knowledge on medicinal plant usage than the younger ones. 56 plant species are used to treat a range of gastrointestinal and liver disorders, however, diabetic conditions and stings/bites by snakes/scorpions are treated using only two plant species each. Mentha longifolia with UV = 0.26 is the species most commonly used by the informants for medicinal purposes. The low UV (below 1) and low Fic (near 0) is a common observation in the present study. The UV and Fic, analysis reveals that OTK on the medicinal plants is dwindling among the Gaddi Shepherds

Relative Importance and Knowledge Distribution of Medicinal Plants in a Kichwa Community in the Ecuadorian Amazon

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Brian Joseph Doyle

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Traditional knowledge, such as knowledge of the use of plants as medicine, influences how indigenous people manage forest resources. Gender and age-associated differences in traditional knowledge may impact forest resource management because of the traditional division of labor. We interviewed 18 men and 18 women between 9 and 74 years old in San José de Payamino, an indigenous community of the Kichwa ethnicity in the Ecuadorian Amazon, to determine if there are gender or age-associated differences in medicinal plant knowledge among the Payamino people and to identify the most important species from a sample of medicinal plants. Individuals were interviewed using a tablet that displayed images of 34 plants, which had been cited by traditional healers in the community. Quantitative analysis provided insight into the relative importance of plants in the sample as well as the distribution of medicinal plant knowledge among members of the community. The most important plants were Tradescantia zanonia and Monolena primuliflora. These plants should be considered candidates for further investigation. There was a positive correlation between age and knowledge of medicinal plants, but no significant difference between genders. Our results suggest that an interview method that relies on digital images can reveal differences in the importance of medicinal plants as well as provide insight into the distribution of traditional medical knowledge. While men and women are likely to manage forest resources similarly, younger members of the community may not have the same regard for forest resources as their elder counterparts.

Research traditions and evolutionary explanations in medicine.

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Méthot, Pierre-Olivier

2011-02-01

In this article, I argue that distinguishing 'evolutionary' from 'Darwinian' medicine will help us assess the variety of roles that evolutionary explanations can play in a number of medical contexts. Because the boundaries of evolutionary and Darwinian medicine overlap to some extent, however, they are best described as distinct 'research traditions' rather than as competing paradigms. But while evolutionary medicine does not stand out as a new scientific field of its own, Darwinian medicine is united by a number of distinctive theoretical and methodological claims. For example, evolutionary medicine and Darwinian medicine can be distinguished with respect to the styles of evolutionary explanations they employ. While the former primarily involves 'forward looking' explanations, the latter depends mostly on 'backward looking' explanations. A forward looking explanation tries to predict the effects of ongoing evolutionary processes on human health and disease in contemporary environments (e.g., hospitals). In contrast, a backward looking explanation typically applies evolutionary principles from the vantage point of humans' distant biological past in order to assess present states of health and disease. Both approaches, however, are concerned with the prevention and control of human diseases. In conclusion, I raise some concerns about the claim that 'nothing in medicine makes sense except in the light of evolution'.

Green Medicine: Traditional Mexican-American Herbal Remedies.

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Torres, Eliseo

Traditional Mexican American herbal potions and remedies and their history are explained in an introductory book for the general reader. The importance of curanderismo, or green medicine, in Mexican and Mexican American cultures is explored. A brief history traces the herbal aspects of curanderismo through Mayan and Aztec cultures, the Spanish…

How often do patients in primary care use the methods of traditional medicine

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Petrov-Kiurski Miloranka

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Traditional medicine is a comprehensive system of theory and practice, implemented in the prevention, diagnostics and treatment of diseases, which utilizes preparations of vegetable, animal and mineral origin, as well as methods of spiritual therapy Objective: 1. To estimate how many patients in primary care use traditional medicine for diagnostics, treatment and prevention of diseases, and to establish possible differences regarding gender, age and urban or rural location. 2. What methods of traditional medicine are the most often used, and for which diseases and conditions? 3. Why did the subjects opted for this type of treatment, and what was the effect of the therapy? Method: Multicentric research based on interviewing patients in five outpatient health centers in Serbia. As a survey instrument was used a questionnaire with 10 questions. Results: The study included 1157 subjects, 683 women and 474 men, mean age 60.22±14.54, The traditional medicine was used by 83.66% (79.96% males and 86.245% females. Information about the methods of traditional medicine subjects usually received from their friends and acquaintances (54.9% and the media (39.3%. There is no significant difference in the way of obtaining information in relation to gender. Information on the internet was obtained more often in subjects younger than 65 (p=0.000 and in urban population (p=0.000. The same is true for information obtained from doctor or pharmacist (p=0.003. They opted for this method because in their opinion it is less harmful and have less adverse effects (72.8%. This type of treatment patients used for treatment of muscles, bone and joint diseases - 28.5%, diseases of the heart and blood vessels -21,1 %, and for the treatment of pain 19.7%. Patients from rural areas more often used traditional medicine for treatment of cardiovascular diseases (p=0.000. Outcome of treatment was good or satisfactory in 45.3%, moderate in 32%, and in 15.8% effect was

Emancipatory Indigenous Knowledge Systems: implications for ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Erna Kinsey

Faculty of Education, University of South Africa, P.O. Box 392, Unisa, 0003 South Africa ... Indigenous Knowledge also termed Traditional, Endogenous or Classical .... its civilisation, carries both its indigenous and modern knowledge systems.

[Analysis on medication rules of modern traditional Chinese medicines in treating palpitations based on traditional Chinese medicine inheritance support system].

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Zhi-Xin; Zhang, Pan-Pan; Gao, Wu-Lin; Dai, Guo-Hua

2017-01-01

To analyze the prescription and medication rules of Chinese medicines in the treatment of palpitations in the Chinese journal full text database(CNKI) by using traditional Chinese medicine inheritance system, and provide a reference for further research and development of modern traditional Chinese medicines(TCMs) in treatment of palpitations. In order to give better guidance for clinical mediation, prescriptions used for treatment of palpitations in CNKI were collected, and then were input to the TCM inheritance support system for establishing a Chinese medicine prescription database for palpitations. The software's revised mutual information, complex system entropy clustering and other data mining methods were adopted to analyze the prescriptions according to the frequencies of herbs, "four natures", "five flavors" and "meridians" of the high-frequency medicines in the database, identify the core herbs and application characteristics, and analyze the prescription rules and medication experience. Totally, 545 prescriptions used for palpitation were included in this study and involved 247 Chinese herbs. The analysis results showed that the herbs in prescriptions for palpitation mostly had the warm property, and the herbs in heart and spleen meridian accounted for a larger proportion, indicating that the treatment was mainly to nourish heart and strengthen spleen. The top 11 herbs in usage frequency were consistent with the high-frequency medicines in medication patterns of common herbal pairs; therefore, we considered that these 11 herbs were the core herbs; the core herbal combination included Cassia Twig, Licorice, fossil fragments, Ostreae decoction, and evolved into 9 new prescriptions for treating palpitation. Our results objectively presented the prescription and medication rules for treating palpitation and provided extremely effective guidance for the clinical therapy. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

A case of chronic fatigue syndrome improved by traditional Korean medicine

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Chang-Gue Son

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The etiology of chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS is unknown and no conventional medicine therapies are available. This report presents a clinical case of a patient suffering from CFS who was cured by traditional Korean medicine. A 33-year-old female patient had to take time off work because of terrible fatigue symptoms that did not respond to conventional treatments. Her disorder was significantly reduced by herbal medicine, acupuncture, and moxibustion. Changes in fatigue severity were evaluated using a visual analog scale (VAS and a numerical rating scale (NRS. NRS and VAS scores decreased from 70 and 8.1 to 37 and 3.7, respectively, during 3 months. This case reveals the therapeutic potential of traditional Korean medicine for CFS and fatigue-associated disorders.

Assessment of effectiveness of traditional herbal medicine in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To assess efficacy of a South African traditional herbal medicine in ... Participants: Seven men and 26 women aged between 22 and 43 years took part ... (70%) and urogenital lesions (100%), resumption of workplace duties (60%), ...

[Study on spatial distribution characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine resource species richness based on national census of Chinese medicine resources (pilot)].

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Zhang, Xiao-Bo; Wang, Hui; Jing, Zhi-Xian; Li, Meng; Guo, Lan-Ping; Huang, Lu-Qi

2017-11-01

Based on the data collected by the census team in the national census information management system, the spatial autocorrelation analysis method was used to analyze the similarity of the richness of Chinese herbal medicine resources in the investigated counties. The results showed that the species richness in the investigated counties appeared a tendency to focus on the distribution of the characteristics. Among them, the areas with sparse resources are concentrated in most areas of the north of the Yangtze River, northwest and most areas of Tibet. The areas with abundant resources are concentrated in the areas south of the Yangtze River. The results showed that there were significant differences in the abundance of traditional Chinese medicine resources between regions. The results showed that there were significant differences in the abundance of traditional Chinese medicine resources between regions. Due to the large differences in the land area between the county and the richness of the types of traditional Chinese medicine resources, it is proposed to increase the land area of the traditional Chinese medicine resource census when allocating the fourth national census of Chinese medicine resources by the "factor method", and the richness of traditional Chinese medicine and other indicators, in order to give full play to the efficiency of transfer payment system. Based on the county area and the rich variety of traditional Chinese medicine resources, combined with the national drug resources census pilot work carried out, it is recommended to focus on attention and support in the national medicine resources census work, personnel team, funding, summary of results on the western and southern provinces. Copyright© by the Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.

Knowledge and uses of African pangolins as a source of traditional medicine in Ghana.

Science.gov (United States)

Boakye, Maxwell Kwame; Pietersen, Darren William; Kotzé, Antoinette; Dalton, Desiré-Lee; Jansen, Raymond

2015-01-01

Traditional medicine has been practised in Ghana for centuries with the majority of Ghanaians still patronising the services of traditional healers. Throughout Africa a large number of people use pangolins as a source of traditional medicine, however, there is a dearth of information on the use of animals in folk medicine in Ghana, in particular the use of pangolins. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalent use of pangolins and the level of knowledge of pangolin use among traditional healers in Ghana for the treatment of human ailments. Data was gathered from 48 traditional healers using semi-structured interviews on the traditional medicinal use of pangolin body parts in the Kumasi metropolis of Ghana. The cultural importance index, relative frequency of citation, informant agreement ratio and use agreement values were calculated to ascertain the most culturally important pangolin body part as well as the level of knowledge dissemination among traditional healers with regards pangolin body parts. Our study revealed that 13 body parts of pangolins are used to treat various medicinal ailments. Pangolin scales and bones were the most prevalent prescribed body parts and indicated the highest cultural significance among traditional healing practices primarily for the treatment of spiritual protection, rheumatism, financial rituals and convulsions. Despite being classified under Schedule 1 of Ghana's Wildlife Conservation Act of 1971 (LI 685), that prohibits anyone from hunting or being in possession of a pangolin, our results indicated that the use of pangolins for traditional medicinal purposes is widespread among traditional healers in Ghana. A study on the population status and ecology of the three species of African pangolins occurring in Ghana is urgently required in order to determine the impact this harvest for traditional medical purposes has on their respective populations as current levels appear to be unmonitored and unsustainable.

Knowledge and uses of African pangolins as a source of traditional medicine in Ghana.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maxwell Kwame Boakye

Full Text Available Traditional medicine has been practised in Ghana for centuries with the majority of Ghanaians still patronising the services of traditional healers. Throughout Africa a large number of people use pangolins as a source of traditional medicine, however, there is a dearth of information on the use of animals in folk medicine in Ghana, in particular the use of pangolins. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalent use of pangolins and the level of knowledge of pangolin use among traditional healers in Ghana for the treatment of human ailments. Data was gathered from 48 traditional healers using semi-structured interviews on the traditional medicinal use of pangolin body parts in the Kumasi metropolis of Ghana. The cultural importance index, relative frequency of citation, informant agreement ratio and use agreement values were calculated to ascertain the most culturally important pangolin body part as well as the level of knowledge dissemination among traditional healers with regards pangolin body parts. Our study revealed that 13 body parts of pangolins are used to treat various medicinal ailments. Pangolin scales and bones were the most prevalent prescribed body parts and indicated the highest cultural significance among traditional healing practices primarily for the treatment of spiritual protection, rheumatism, financial rituals and convulsions. Despite being classified under Schedule 1 of Ghana's Wildlife Conservation Act of 1971 (LI 685, that prohibits anyone from hunting or being in possession of a pangolin, our results indicated that the use of pangolins for traditional medicinal purposes is widespread among traditional healers in Ghana. A study on the population status and ecology of the three species of African pangolins occurring in Ghana is urgently required in order to determine the impact this harvest for traditional medical purposes has on their respective populations as current levels appear to be unmonitored and

Traditional Chinese medicine for human papillomavirus (HPV) infections: A systematic review.

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Lin, Jing; Chen, Lanting; Qiu, Xuemin; Zhang, Na; Guo, Qiting; Wang, Yan; Wang, Mingyan; Gober, Hans-Jürgen; Li, Dajin; Wang, Ling

2017-07-24

Human papillomavirus (HPV) infections are common and generally harmless, but persistent infections can bring health problems like cancer and genital warts. For the uninfected group, HPV vaccines provide safe and effective protection, but they're type-restricted and expensive. For those infected, so far there have been a handful of treatments for HPV-associated benign or malignant diseases, traditional Chinese medicine being one of them. This systematic review focuses on the application of traditional Chinese medicine in HPV infection and related diseases on the basis of clinical findings. Moreover it covers compositions and mechanisms based on in vitro laboratory methods and animal models. Traditional Chinese medicine improves clinical index in the treatment of cervical cancer and genital warts; the mechanisms behind the effectiveness might be the regulation of cell apoptosis, viral gene transcription and translation, cell signal transduction pathways, and immune function.

An Evidence-Based Review on Medicinal Value of Clays in Traditional Persian Medicine.

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Hosseinkhani, Ayda; Montaseri, Hashem; Hosamo, Ammar; Zarshenas, Mohammad Mehdi

2017-01-01

The use of earths and clays for medical purposes dates back to antiquity. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in researches on traditional remedies in the hope of discovering new drug. Iran is an ancient country with a medical backbone acquired from the experiences of ancient Persian scholars, who had made a great contribution to the development of the medical sciences. Many medical and pharmaceutical books by early Persian scientists still exist and may have the potential of leading researchers to new drug discoveries. Owing to the emergence of new and antimicrobial-resistant infections, present-day medicine has recently begun focusing on medicinal earths and clays especially as mineral antimicrobials. The current study is, therefore, aimed at gathering information regarding medicinal clays in traditional Persian medicine (TPM). Five main Persian materia medica with the key word 'tin' (clay) and current databases such as PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar were searched by key words 'white, green, red, maroon, violet, black, grey and pink clays' and 'pharmacological effects'. Twenty three clays were found in Persian manuscripts. Although their mineralogical compositions are unknown, different pharmacological properties have been attributed to these mineral medicaments. Clay's properties were widely used in medieval times for the treatment of infections to poisoning. They were also used in compound formulations, possibly for their pharmaceutical formulation modifying effects. Modern scientific proofs have also been found in many of the medicinal clays reported in Persian manuscripts. Although many of the reported clays are still unknown, their characterization may lead to new medicinal developments. Novel analytical methods available today make it possible to elucidate the chemical compositions of these minerals as parameters responsible for their medicinal effects. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please

[Study on moisture sorption process model and application traditional Chinese medicine extract powder].

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Tingting; He, Yan; Xiao, Xiong; Yuan, Liang; Rao, Xiaoyong; Luo, Xiaojian

2010-04-01

Study on the moisture sorption process characteristics of traditional Chinese medicine extract powder, to establish a mathematical model, provide a new method for in-depth study for moisture sorption behavior of traditional Chinese medicine extract powder and a reference for determine the production cycle, and predict product stability. Analyzed moisture absorption process of traditional Chinese medicine extract powder by utilized the law of conservation of mass and Fick's first law to establish the double exponential absorption model, fitted the moisture absorption data and compared with other commonly used five kinds of model to estimate the double-exponential absorption model. The statistical analysis showed that the coefficient of determination (R2) of double exponential model, Weibull distribution model and first order kinetics model were large, but the residues sum of squares (RSS) and AIC values were small. Synthesized the practical application meaning, we consided that the double exponential model was more suitable for simulating the process of Chinese medicine extract powder moisture absorption. The double exponential is suitable for characterization the process of traditional Chinese medicine extract moisture absorption.

Medicinal Plants Used by a Mbyá-Guarani Tribe Against Infections: Activity on KPC-Producing Isolates and Biofilm-Forming Bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Brandelli, Clara Lia Costa; Ribeiro, Vanessa Bley; Zimmer, Karine Rigon; Barth, Afonso Luís; Tasca, Tiana; Macedo, Alexandre José

2015-11-01

The traditional use of medicinal plants for treatment of infectious diseases by an indigenous Mbyá-Guarani tribe from South Brazil was assessed by evaluating the antibiotic and antibiofilm activities against relevant bacterial pathogens. Aqueous extracts from 10 medicinal plants were prepared according to indigenous Mbyá-Guarani traditional uses. To evaluate antibiotic (OD600) and antibiofilm (crystal violet method) activities, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Staphylococcus epidermidis ATCC 35984 and seven multi-drug resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC)-producing bacterial clinical isolates were challenged with the extracts. Furthermore, the susceptibility profile of KPC-producing bacteria and the ability of these isolates to form biofilm were evaluated. The plants Campomanesia xanthocarpa, Maytenus ilicifolia, Bidens pilosa and Verbena sp. showed the best activity against bacterial growth and biofilm formation. The majority of KPC-producing isolates, which showed strong ability to form biofilm and a multidrug resistance profile, was inhibited by more than 50% by some extracts. The Enterobacter cloacae (KPC 05) clinical isolate was the only one resistant to all extracts. This study confirms the importance of indigenous traditional medicinal knowledge and describes for the first time the ability of these plants to inhibit biofilm formation and/or bacterial growth of multi-drug resistant KPC-producing isolates.