Herbal Medicine

As per available reports about 70 journals, 32 Conferences, 10 workshops are presently dedicated exclusively to herbal medicine and about 266582 articles are being published on the current trends in herbal medicine. In terms of research annually, USA, India, Japan, Brazil and Canada are some of the leading countries where maximum studies related to industry management are being carried out. As reported in Use of Herbal Medicines and Implications for Conventional Drug Therapy Medical Sciences, 2nd edition, Herbal medicines are an important part of healthcare throughout the world. In many countries including the U.S., herbal medicines are not regulated as extensively as conventional drug therapy. At present, there is a dearth of research evaluating the use of herbal medicines, especially in clinical trials. This, together with the ongoing development of new conventional drug therapies, compounds the number of unknown outcomes when using elements of these two treatment approaches together. Although many benefits can be derived from the use of herbs, potential areas of concern include possible product contamination and/or adulterations, potential toxicity, high potential of known and unknown drug/herb interactions, and substituting proven conventional medicine with herbal medicine. Mechanisms involved in herb-drug interactions are not fully understood, but both pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic processes may play a role. Because these can occur in 30-40% of older adults, health care providers and patients must be aware of potential interactions in order to monitor for alterations in therapeutic efficacy and/or potential toxicity.

Alternative & Integrative Medicine is an academic journal – hosted by OMICS International – a pioneer in open access publishing–and is listed among the top 10 journals in herbal medicine. Each year research scientists have noticed a rise in the number of congresses being held in this field. Alternative & Integrative Medicine provides a unique platform to researchers and scientist to explore the advanced and latest research developments in the field of herbal medicine, thus bridging the gap between researchers and young scientists.

OMICS International – a pioneer in organizing international conferences which organizes scientific conferences on Clinical Sciences, Engineering & Applied Sciences, Life Sciences, Medical Sciences, Omics & Management and Pharmaceutical/Chemistry and it is a perfect platform for global networking. 2nd International Conference and Exhibition on Traditional & Alternative Medicine (Traditional Medicine-2014) during August 25-26, 2014 Beijing, China. Traditional Medicine-2014 mainly aims to create a unique platform to bring experts and researchers in s Ayurvedic medicine, homeopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, aromatherapy and anthroposophic medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, traditional-medicine around the world, where they discuss the current research, achievements and advancements in the field.

There are many types of medicines used herbal medicine is also one among them. An herb is a plant or a part of a plant which is used to treat any disease and enhance well-being. It is believed by most of the people that an herbal medicine does not have any side effects. Mostly people use herbal medicine to improve their health as well as better maintenance of health because it does not have any side effects. Herbal Medicine is also used as dietary supplement. According to Archaeological evidence the use of herbal medicine dates back to 60,000 years (Paleolith). Herbal Medicine uses whole plant, any part of the plant (leaves, flower, fruit, bud, stem, root, etc.), and mixture of plant extracts. Most widely used herbal medicine is Chinese Herbal Medicine and Western Herbal Medicine. In developing countries 70-95% of people still relay on herbal medicine.

                               Herbal medicine is also called as traditional system of medicine. A person who has vast knowledge of herbs is known as herbalist. Herbal medicine is also called as “phytomedicine” or “Botanical Medicine”. Herbal Medicines are used in many ways like teas, tinctures and tablets, or applied externally in forms such as ointments, lotions and gels. It can be either given individually or can be given in combination to other drugs.