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Indian Medicinal Herbs
There is a sudden emphasis on the
holistic approach to healthcare – newspapers, television and
journals are flashed with advertisements about the popularity
of the ancient Indian herbs which are extremely effective in
dealing with any kind of ailment in the most natural and
safest way.
Herbs play a very important role in the modern times when the
damaging effects of food processing and over-medication have
assumed alarming proportions. Not
only as alternative medicines,
herbs, are also used in cosmetics, various food items and most
popularly teas. People are slowly starting to believe that
herbs have a vast potential for their use as a curative
medicine.
What are
herbs?
In the language of Botany, a herb can be defined as a plant
that does not have a wooden stem and withers and dies after
flowering. However, we now use this term commonly for all
plants (with woody/non woody stems) which can be used for
medicinal or culinary purposes (any part of the plant like
leaves, stems, roots, flowers, fruits or seeds).
Uses of
Herbs
Using herbs to treat different diseases have in used in the
Indian and Chinese traditions for more than thousands of
years. You will be surprised to know that most of the
medicines that we use today are originally derived from
botanicals herbs of yester-years. For example aspirin is
derived from the white willow tree; quinine from the bark of
the cinchona tree and digitalis from foxglove.
Herbs have been very effective in preventing illnesses; their
widespread popularity can also be attributed to the gentle
nature of medications that do not have any side effects.
As I have mentioned earlier, herbs are used in many ways. The
ultimate objective of their use is that they should interact
directly with our body chemistry. Though they are used in
food, cosmetics, drugs or even fragrances, it must be
remembered that that their key ingredients must be absorbed in
our body for showing the benefits. Once these herbs enter the
blood stream, they distribute themselves and influence the
whole body system. In this article I will discuss about a few
Indian herbs that are very effective for medicinal purposes.
Medicinal herbs
Atharva Veda has mentioned various herbs that can be used for
medicinal purposes. Some of these are very common and used in
everyday lives:
Neem – this herb is very
powerful for handling all sorts of skin related issues like
scabies, eczema, warts, psoriasis and dandruff. Neem contains
Nimbidol and Gedunin that have very good fungicidal
properties.
Basil – more commonly
known as Tulsi, basil is considered to be one of the purest
and most sublime plants. It is also used for dealing with skin
disorders as it is a blood
purifier and kills bacteria. For cough or cold or any
inflammation of the throat, tea made with basil leaves can be
used for instant relief.
Turmeric – turmeric or
haldi is a common and popular medication for treating any kind
of injuries and infections.
Sandalwood – also called chandan, this plant has an
extraordinary fragrance. The bark of a sandalwood tree is very
smooth and can be made into a fine paste. Sandalwood paste can
be applied on any parts of the body to give a smooth,
unblemished and lustrous look. Its unique fragrance is also
used in various oils and soaps
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