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HERBAL THERAPY 

 Herbal Medicine, sometimes referred to as Phytotherapy, Botanotherapy or Botanical Medicine is the use of plants for their medicinal value and has a long and respected history, it is the oldest form of health care known to mankind. A herb is a plant valued for it medicinal, aromatic or savoury qualities. I do use the leaves, stems, flowers, roots, bark and berries of a vast variety of plants to prevent and treat illness.Herbalism dates back to the dawn of time when man evolved due to the existence of plants, relying on plant material for food, clothing and shelter as well as medicine. It is impossible to know exactly when we first started using herbs for medicinal purposes but archaeological remains from early civilisations show that plants were used in burials and other rituals. Much of the use of plants appears to have been developed through observing animals and trial and error.Marshmallow root and yarrow have been found carefully placed around the bones of a Stone Age man in Iraq – these herbs continue to be used widely today. The entire Middle East has a rich history of herbal healing. Texts survive from ancient cultures in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Egyptian hieroglyphs show physicians in the first and second centuries AD treating constipation with senna pods and using caraway and peppermint to relieve digestive problems.Herbal law was passed down from generation to generation and gradually information was methodically collected from native peoples and compiled in herbal pharmarcopoeias. One of the first written records of herbal medicines was Chinese, in around 2800BC in the ‘Pen Ts’ao’ by Shen Nung. Later, around 1800BC the records of King Hammurabi of Babylon include instructions for the use of medicinal plants.Throughout the Middle Ages botanicals were the only medicines available and households would have small herb gardens; also the village herbalist would train an apprentice. During Tudor times Henry VIII appears to have been touched by the plight of the poor and their inability to afford doctors. He produced his now famous ‘Charter of King Henry VIII’, which enabled many poor people of the time to obtain treatment from a herbalist. The Charter also protected the rights of the Herbalists themselves and provides a safeguard for the continuation of herbal practices today.