What is Herbal Medicine?
Herbal medicine (also called botanical medicine, phytotherapy, or herbalism) is the use of plants - or parts of plants such as leaves, roots, seeds, bark and flowers - for medicinal purposes. It has been used across cultures for thousands of years to treat & prevent illness, manage symptoms, and promote the body's own healing processes.
At its core, herbal medicine recognises that plants contain bioactive compounds; chemical constituents that influence physiological processes in humans. These compounds interact with body systems in measurable ways, and modern science continues to investigate how they work, both on their own and in combination with other plant constituents.
Herbal medicine is grounded in both traditional knowledge - informed by centuries of observation and documented use - and scientific research that explores how specific plants and their constituents affect human biology. While the evidence base varies from one plant to another, clinical trials and pharmacological studies exist for many commonly used herbs, and ongoing research continues to expand our understanding of their mechanisms and effects.
