Herbalism

Plants have been used for their medicinal properties since time immemorial and they have provided the basis of the modern pharmaceutical industry's research programmes since its foundation. Many modern drugs are derived from plant products.

It is inevitable that with a practice as steeped in antiquity as herbahsm, different traditions have grown up in different parts of the world. For instance, there is a Chinese tradition, and Islamic influences in western herbalism are clearly marked.

Herbalists differ from conventional therapists in their use of the whole plant, or unrefined extracts of parts of the plant, rather than specific chemical entities isolated from the plant.