Why people take herbal medicine

Why people take herbal medicine

 

Mohammad Shamsuddin Khaled

 

Nowadays, many people of our country know about herbal treatment or herbal medicine. In Bangladesh, herbal medicine means Unani & Ayurvedic medicine. It is also called Traditional Medicine. Recently, the World Health Organization estimated that 80 per cent of people worldwide rely on herbal medicines for some aspect of their primary health care.

 

In our country people have become dependent on allopathic medicine. These medicines have different side effects which have bad impact on our physical health. But natural medicines have no side effects. So, anyone can take it without any doubt.

 

The history of herbal medicine

 

Plants had been used for medicinal purposes long before recorded history. Ancient Chinese and Egyptian papyrus writings describe medicinal uses for plants as early as 3,000 BC. Indigenous cultures (such as African and Native American) used herbs in their healing rituals, while others developed traditional medical systems (such as Unani, Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine) in which herbal therapies were used. Researchers found that people in different parts of the world tended to use the same or similar plants for the same purposes.

 

 The Bangladeshi system of medicine was called the Unani & Ayurvedic. The Bangladeshi materia medica, or list of herbs used as medicines, was quite extensive. As early as 800 BC one Bangladeshi writer knew 500 medicinal plants and another knew 760 - all indigenous plants of Bangladesh. Bangladeshi herbalism or Unani & Ayurvedic is still practiced today, and many authentic, traditional formulations are available outside of Bangladesh.

 

In the early 19th century, when chemical analysis first became available, scientists began to extract and modify the active ingredients from plants. Later, chemists began making their own version of plant compounds and, over time, the use of herbal medicines declined in favour of drugs. Almost one-fourth of pharmaceutical drugs are derived from botanicals.

 

Recently, the World Health Organization estimated that 80% of people worldwide rely on herbal medicines for some part of their primary health care. In Germany, about 600 - 700 plant based medicines are available and are prescribed by some 70% of German physicians. In the past 20 years in the United States, public dissatisfaction with the cost of prescription medications, combined with an interest in returning to natural or organic remedies, has led to an increase in herbal medicine use.

 

Importance of herbal medicine

 

As our lifestyle is getting techno-savvy, we are moving away from nature. However, we cannot escape from nature because we are part of nature. We have not yet fully explored what nature has stored in for us. This fact can be disturbing point with humans. Certain European and Oriental countries have been exploring the use of herbs and has been in practice over the centuries. Great work has been done which eluded the common man's reach and knowledge. With life on tech-route for every individual in the 21st century, human sufferings are coming out with different names. The basic herbs have the answer. The overall key is no side effects and effective remedies. The remedies are in sync with nature which is the biggest plus point where no other medicine can claim these facts. The golden fact is use of herbal treatments is independent of any age groups.

 

How do herbs work?

 

In many cases, scientists aren't sure what specific ingredient in a particular herb works to treat a condition or illness. Whole herbs contain many ingredients, and they may work together to produce a beneficial effect. Many factors determine how effective a herb will be. For example, the type of environment (climate, bugs, soil quality) in which a plant grew will affect it, as will how and when it was harvested and processed.

 

Where will patients get the treatment?

 

Every government hospital and health complex in different districts has the facilities to take Unani & Ayurvedic treatment. There are BUMS (Bachelor of Unani Medicine & Surgery) & BAMS (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine & Surgery). Doctors are providing traditional treatment. They listen to the patients' problems very carefully. This treatment is also cost effective. So, its popularity is increasing day by day. Besides, there are different private chambers where people can take traditional treatment.

 

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2015/06/06/95455

 

Indigenous medicine needs recognition – Professor Gibson

 

Windhoek

The effectiveness and importance of the use of traditional medicine around the world are overlooked and therefore such medicine lack recognition as being as useful as scientifically tested pharmaceutical modern medicine, a visiting South African professor told a public lecture.

Being unscientifically tested and approved, traditional medicine therefore remains unrecognized to have the right and consent to be used freely and to be widely available to those who need it.  This was stated at the public lecture held at a resort in Windhoek on Tuesday night, presented by Professor Daina Gibson from the University of the Western Cape in South Africa.

The lecture was about “Medicinal plants as players in the health system.”

“There have been controversies between professional medicinal doctors failing to recognize the use of traditional medicine, describing it as being unfit for use, as bio-scientific tests have not been conducted on them,” stated Gibson.

She added that traditional medicine should be given recognition to be used in cases when there is a lack and shortage of modern medicine but warned that traditional medicine should not be used simultaneously when using pharmaceutical medications.   

Those with the know-how should pass on the knowledge to others in order to preserve the ancestral knowledge, although it is very difficult to know those possessing indigenous knowledge as such individuals usually keep this knowledge to themselves.

Gibson gave the example of Chinese and Indian medicine as being useful, urging that they should be brought on board to share the knowledge on how they pursued their traditional medicines so that others could learn and follow the same route.

“There should be policies and regulations that will see that such things are preserved and given a platform where they can be practised freely. Traditional medicines don’t have side effects as they come natural, thus we should protect and preserve them through planting more of the species used instead of harvesting everything,” stated the Western Cape university professor.

The Directorate of Traditional Medicine, African Traditional Medicine Day, National Drug Policy of 1996 Medicines and Related Substances Amendment Act (No 72 of 2008), Traditional Health Practitioners Act (22 of 2007), Interim Traditional Health Practitioners Council in 2013 and Draft of National Policy on African Traditional Medicine were listed as some of the structures, policies and regulations followed in South Africa. Gibson said traditional medicine practices in the Western Cape are prevalent to such an extent that they harvest and trade in approximately 700 tons of traditional medicine around the world and 100 tons in South Africa.

Gibson is a trained anthropologist specializing in medical anthropology.

She has previously published national and international journals on hospital ethnography, transformation of the South African health care system, ex-combatants and trauma; gender sexuality and reproductive health; masculinity, gender based violence and tuberculosis.

https://www.newera.com.na/2015/06/04/indigenous-medicine-recognition-professor-gibson/

 

 

FW: LVSC health update - May 2015

Forward to a friend | Web version | May 2015 Dear colleague, Welcome to the May 2015 edition of our regular health ebulletin bringing you news from LVSC, Regional Voices (of which LVSC is a constituent member), the Department of Health, Public Health England, Care Quality Commission and NHS England. Where relevant, the ebulletins may include information from London's voluntary & community sector (VCS) as well as regional policy news - e.g. from the Greater London Authority, NHS England (London region), London CCGs,etc. We also intend to keep you up to date on the government's Five Year Forward View, including the transformation agenda in London (see LVSC section below to find out more about LVSC's work on this area in the coming year). If you wish to discuss any items to be included in future bulletins, please feel free to contact me. Kind regards Sandra Sandra van der Feen Policy Officer, LVSC sandra@lvsc.org.uk Mondays - Wednesdays only   LVSC news LVSC's health policy work 2015-2016 LVSC is a constituent member or Regional Voices, one of the strategic partners of the Department of Health, Public Health England and NHS England. LVSC has been funded for another year to take forward the strategic partners programme – Stronger Connections for Better Health. This programme is about building mechanisms for an effective flow of information, intelligence and evidence between voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations and the Department of Health, Public Health England and the NHS England. We have also been funded through our Regional Voices membership by NHS England to help take forward the Engaging Patients and Communities Programme of the Five year Forward View. This work will include improving local commissioning with small VCSE groups; support better involvement in primary care commissioning and other areas.   More information can be found on LVSC's health pages. You can also contact Sandra van der Feen, Health Policy Officer, LVSC: sandra@lvsc.org.uk (Mon-Wed only). Return to top Whole Systems Change: Co-producing models of health & care The report of the event which took place on April 16th is almost completed but we are still waiting for some information and comments before we can publish it. We do have some additional content regarding the workshops which is available online. They can be downloaded from LVSC's health policy page Return to top   London wide news London GP mental health scheme helps hundreds, skills up primary care staff and saves thousands According to NHS England, "more than 600 people now visit their GP instead of the hospital for regular physical and mental health checks thanks to a successful London scheme saving the NHS thousands". Across Newham CCG's 61 surgeries four teams Community Psychiatric Nurses (CPNs) are on stand-by to see patients with stable severe mental illnesses who have opted into the service. They no longer visit the psychiatrist in outpatients and can instead be seen at their local practice where they and their carers can get physical health checks Some of the money saved through this initiative has already been reinvested with East London NHS Foundation Trust to establish new services. The Clinical Commissioning Group is hoping to work alongside patients with mental health problems to support them getting back into the workplace. Return to top   National news Prime Minister on plans for a seven-day NHS David Cameron has given a speech setting out his plans for "a 7-day NHS, safe in our hands - for every generation to come. A press release can be viewed on the government website Return to top Mental health staff working with police and courts now cover half of England New Liaison and Diversion teams are now in place across half of the country to ensure that vulnerable people are supported in both police custody and the courts. The first wave began in April 2014 and this initiative has recently expanded to cover 28.5 million people as part of a two year trial. 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The programme, which opened on 26 March, is inviting expressions of interest from innovators from any sector in the UK and internationally who want to test their ideas to deliver health services in better ways at scale, and in a real clinical setting.   Through the programme, and with the support of the 15 Academic Health Science Networks (AHSNs), innovators will partner up with NHS and social care sites to trial new technologies, digital services and other innovations in service delivery with the potential to bring big benefits to patients.  London has 3 AHSNs: University College London Partners (UCLP); King's Health Partners and the Imperial College Health Partners (ICHP) In practice, a test bed site could mean equipping patients with wearable technology, combined with a new working pattern for clinical and nursing staff, all with the aim of helping people manage long-term conditions, address issues early and reduce preventable trips to hospital. 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Patients have already given more than 7 million responses in two years and the Friends and Family Test is now operating across most parts of the NHS. Return to top Find out how patients rate their quality of life after planned operations People who receive one of four surgical procedures (hip and knee replacement, groin hernia surgery and varicose vein treatment) can feed back on their quality of life before and after their treatment. This information is known as Patient Reported Outcome Measures (PROMS), that can be used by patients, medical staff, carers and commissioners to understand where some hospitals perform better or worse than one would expect. PROMS are an important source of patient feedback and can help inform people's choice for where they have their surgery or treatment. The results are published on the 'myNHS' website Return to top Information and resources about integrated pioneers on the NHS website The NHS website now holds information about the sites in an easily accessible way. It contains About Pioneers News & events (published article by Greenwich) Pioneer Community Resource Centre National workstreams  For example the Resource Centre contains integrated care value case toolkits for the different pioneer sits. In London these are: NW London Greenwich WELC (Waltham Forest, East London & City) Return to top Excess winter deaths and morbidity and the health risks associated with cold homes The guideline is for commissioners, managers and health, social care and voluntary & community sector practitioners who deal with vulnerable people who may have health problems caused, or exacerbated, by living in a cold home. It will also be of interest to clinicians and others involved with at-risk groups, housing and energy suppliers. This guideline makes recommendations on how to reduce the risk of death and ill health associated with living in a cold home. The aim is to help: Reduce preventable excess winter death rates. Improve health and wellbeing among vulnerable groups. Reduce pressure on health and social care services. Reduce 'fuel poverty' and the risk of fuel debt or being disconnected from gas and electricity supplies Improve the energy efficiency of homes. Overview Recommendations Return to top   Events & training   Writing that winning tender 18th June 2015 9:30 AM   to   4:30 PM – at Voluntary Action Islington Further information and registration With the move away from traditional grant funding, many organisations find themselves having to compete for funding through the commissioning process. This may be to continue existing services or to start new projects. Organisations need to understand the commissioning and tendering process to be able to present a viable case. This course will cover the different types of tendering process, putting a proposal together, preparing a realistic budget, being able to present your case and understanding the nature of contracts to ensure it knows what is being agreed. The London for All course looks at the essential skills involved, including identifying potential contracts, deciding whether to bid, writing an initial response, costing, demonstrating value for money and making your tender stand out Return to top Taking a deep breath: Cleaning up London's air Tuesday 7th July 2015 16:30pm - 21:00pm at St Bride Foundation, Bridge Lane, London, EC4Y 8EQ London continues to suffer the effects of poor air quality leading to around 4,300 early deaths per year. You'll be getting to the bottom of how to develop an action plan and put it into action, working with councils, planners, politicians and other communities. Event aims: Exploring robust solutions for tackling air pollution through law, policy, technology, behaviour change, sustainable transport, data sharing and community empowerment Discussing how citizen science can help you and your community Developing new ideas and solid actions to improve air quality Meeting people who share your ambitions and who you can make lasting connections with, including policy makers, local planners and other community groups Please confirm your attendance here Contact Sam Jelliman s.jelliman@lsx.org.uk 02072349400 for more information Return to top   United Nations – International Yoga Day – Sunday 21 June DSYM UK in  association with S-VYASA 21 June was declared as the International Yoga Day by the United Nations General Assembly on 11 December 2014. Yoga, a 5,000-year-old physical, mental and spiritual practice having its origin in India, aims to transform body and mind. The aim of the event is to create holistic awareness of yoga and its health benefits. The event, supported by the High Commission of India, is scheduled for 21st June 2015 at the Archbishop Lanfranc School. Event information Link to leaflet There will be a yoga exhibition in the main hall, yoga workshops in the classrooms and marquee & tents pitched on the playing fields where yoga related organisations would be able to promote their activities or style of yoga. Workshops & Lectures will be held on: Ayurveda, Pranayam, Mantrachanting, Guided meditation, Chair Yoga, Yoga for children Yoga Therapy for common ailments – Diabetes, Blood pressure, Asthma, Arthritis, Back Pain etc by Dr Robin Monoro Bookings details will become available soon but you can book the workshops here   Return to top       ABOUT REGIONAL VOICES This e bulletin is published monthly by LVSC as the London region member of Regional Voices. 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