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Paramemetic
Emergent

Registered: 09/19/06
Posts: 167
Last seen: 16 years, 11 months
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Resources for medicinal plants?
#6149944 - 10/09/06 12:42 PM (17 years, 4 months ago) |
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I'm currently looking into developing a working knowledge of natural medicines; primarily interested in old apothecary medicines and methods - the stuff that worked before we started using pharmaceuticals (which of course made all the natural methods stop working. ).
For the record, I'm not some anti-pharmacy goon, I work in a pharmacy and love pharmaceuticals - but any attempt to research herbal (and specifically plant) medicines ultimately ends up getting me nowhere. I simply cannot find decent searchable sources or materials online, and I'm not keen on spending a lot of money on a crapshoot with a book unless one comes very well recommended. It would be preferable to be able to look up these plants by the symptoms they treat, rather than learning every plant in and of itself.
Most searching online brings me to wanna-be-pharma companies with silly pills that likely don't work properly and that defeats the whole point - if I wanted to get pills, I'd go to the damn pharmacy where I work.
So, does anyone know of any comprehensive herbal medicine sources online, or alternatively, any big reference books on plant-based apothecary medicines? This can include medicines that are derived by processing from plants, as well as other (preferably legal) medicines derived from plants. And I recognize not all will be FDA approved, I am capable of doing safety research myself (though a good reference should include some evidence of efficacy, even by case report).
This is more of a hobby thing than a need for medicine at the moment - I work in a pharmacy, I'm cool with "real medicine." But I'm fascinated by old-school medicine as prepared and used by apothecaries, before the rise of the modern pharmacist.
-------------------- "Reality is that which doesn't go away when you stop believing in it." - N. Bohr "The world is ruled by letting things take their course. It cannot be ruled by interfering." - Tao Te Ching, 48
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Corporal Kielbasa

Registered: 05/29/04
Posts: 17,235
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Re: Resources for medicinal plants? [Re: Paramemetic]
#6150005 - 10/09/06 01:10 PM (17 years, 4 months ago) |
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i come across the knowledge every where. Normaly interest in certain plants leads me into more information. I can get you a old pharmacopia book from the 1800, cost yo uabout 175 though. Has all that knowledge. Looks into herbs, look into the cultures that used them, go to the library and do some research.
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Paramemetic
Emergent

Registered: 09/19/06
Posts: 167
Last seen: 16 years, 11 months
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An old pharmacopeia may be exactly what I'm looking for, actually. I reckon I can find one in the library, yes.
I'm not coming here with a complete lack of information - I've so far simply found it very difficult to find any information compilations - the individual plants themselves are less than useful in context: looking for what plants are used to treat, it becomes tedious to look into each plant, rather than each symptom.
-------------------- "Reality is that which doesn't go away when you stop believing in it." - N. Bohr "The world is ruled by letting things take their course. It cannot be ruled by interfering." - Tao Te Ching, 48
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zorbman
blarrr


Registered: 06/04/04
Posts: 5,952
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Re: Resources for medicinal plants? [Re: Paramemetic]
#6150314 - 10/09/06 02:38 PM (17 years, 4 months ago) |
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I would suggest looking at Dr. John R. Christopher's work. He was probably the most famous modern day herbalist. You can search by ailments or formulas. I downloaded the entire web site and copied it to disk. It is not comprehensive but I found it helpful as he had actually used the medicines he recommended on real patients.
The day may come when we no longer have access to pharmaceuticals and I want to be prepared.
http://www.herballegacy.com/
There are also several reference books dealing with natural medicines. Take your pick:
http://www.amazon.com/American-Pharmaceu...ie=UTF8&s=books
http://www.amazon.com/Herbal-Medicines-P...ie=UTF8&s=books
http://www.amazon.com/Herbal-Medicines-T...ie=UTF8&s=books
May I ask what type of work you do in the pharmacy?
-------------------- “The crisis takes a much longer time coming than you think, and then it happens much faster than you would have thought.” -- Rudiger Dornbusch
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Shroomism
Space Travellin


Registered: 02/13/00
Posts: 66,015
Loc: 9th Dimension
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Re: Resources for medicinal plants? [Re: zorbman]
#6150520 - 10/09/06 03:26 PM (17 years, 4 months ago) |
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I use herbalism almost exclusively to treat my illnesses.. when I do get sick, which is rarely.. mostly I use medicinal herbs to prevent illness and maintain health. Not counting medical emergencies that require surgery or some such.. but I am firm believer in the power of herbs. Even cancer can be turned around through a combination of a balanced healthy diet, exercise, sunshine, and the proper combination of herbs.
These are some of the sites I use most frequently for quick referencing:
http://www.herbalremediesinfo.com/
http://www.herborganic.com/herbguide/frame.html
http://altnature.com/
http://www.ccnh.edu/students/HerbGuide/index.asp
http://www.swsbm.com/homepage/
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Paramemetic
Emergent

Registered: 09/19/06
Posts: 167
Last seen: 16 years, 11 months
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Re: Resources for medicinal plants? [Re: Shroomism]
#6150753 - 10/09/06 04:23 PM (17 years, 4 months ago) |
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These are all good resources worth my looking into more, thanks. I've bookmarked them all.
I'm a Certified Pharmacy Technician, zorbman. This largely involves typing up prescriptions, filling prescriptions, and dealing with insurance companies. I typically sum up my job description as "I count pills."
-------------------- "Reality is that which doesn't go away when you stop believing in it." - N. Bohr "The world is ruled by letting things take their course. It cannot be ruled by interfering." - Tao Te Ching, 48
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skynet
Stranger
Registered: 12/01/05
Posts: 21
Last seen: 17 years, 3 months
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Re: Resources for medicinal plants? [Re: Paramemetic]
#6150773 - 10/09/06 04:28 PM (17 years, 4 months ago) |
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