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Medicinal knowledge followed the growth and fading of greatcivilizations that enriched its flow with their traditionalexperiences as evident from the fact that there has been a cycle inthe evolution of ideas where ancient medicine never died, it keptevolving in forms. Early man transferred his knowledge orallyhence, there is a paucity of records. The first well-preserveddocumentation of medicinal practices discovered, was in the form ofclay tablets and cuneiform writings of the Mesopotamianshighlighting the richness of the medicinal practices of that era.Indias medicinal practices are just as rich as its culture. Its twomedicinal systems i.e Ayurveda, that evolved in the north andSiddha, that evolved in the south are among the oldest and arestill prevalent all over the world. According to tradition, Chineseemperor Chien Nung, over 4,000 years ago, put together a book ofmedicinal plants called Pen Tsao. It contained descriptions of morethan 300 plants, several of which are still used in medicine. Thehieratic writings of the Egyptian papyri reveal an unusuallyextensive material medica. The Greeks were critical in theirscientific observations that enriched the system. The Romansinherited the medicinal knowledge from the Greeks and built furtheron its edifices. Downfall of Roman Empire gave rise to the Arabianworld. The Arabs further enriched medicinal knowledge that has beenpassed through civilizations. Monks in Europe who studied and grewmedicinal plants and translated the Arabic works further nurturedthis knowledge.
The present work traces the journey followed, giving a briefaccount of the contribution of all the major civilizations to thedevelopment of medicinal systems. The book further speaks aboutseveral prominent personalities of each medicinal system who helpedin shaping the system. Each civilization recorded their medicinalknowledge in some or the other form that are called the Herbals.This work gives a compilation of herbals from the Mesopotamiansuntil Renaissance period. Thus provides an insight into medicinalpractices of each period. These herbals were the source ofmedicinal knowledge and were relied upon by medicinal practitionersuntil the nineteenth century.
Nineteenth century led to the discovery of substances such asalkaloids, glycosides, resins, volatile oils, gums, tannins, etccollectively called secondary metabolites. A small fraction ofthese constituents have been isolated and explored for theirmedicinal properties. Secondary metabolites is very vast topichence, selected categories of secondary metabolites have beendiscussed. This book also discusses in brief, their biosynthesisalong with their role as pharmaceuticals.
Though Allopathy remains as the mainstream in health care,herbal medicines have been main source of primary healthcare inmany nations. These herbal medicines are the synthesis oftherapeutic experiences of generations of practicing physicians ofindigenous systems of medicine for over hundreds of years. Eachcountry, each region, each tribe has their own traditional healthcare system. The practice, the belief and the basis of a fewtraditional systems, prevalent in each continent are discussedproviding a brief insight into these traditional systems ofmedicine.
This book also includes monograph of 120 plants. Scientific dataalong with traditional uses are included in these monographs tohighlight their usage as mainstream pharmaceuticals.
In order to facilitate better understanding, a glossary ofvarious terms used throughout this work has been provided in theend.ISBN - 9789380235585
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Pages : 618
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