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Term
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Definition |
| Adaptogen |
has a normalizing effect that tends to 'right' whatever is wrong with the body. eg. f blood pressure is too high, it brings it down. If it is too low, it raises it. |
| Alkaloids |
Different alkaloids, different functions. Some are hallucinogenic others are poisons. They are the most potent group of plant constitants and are important tools of herbalists and healers. |
| Alterative |
cleanses or alters the internal environment of the body without producing noticiable laxative or diuretic effects. Restore proper function of the body. Blood cleansers |
| Analgesic |
Reduce pain externally and internally |
| Anthelmentic |
Destroy and expel worms from digestive tract: aloe, garlic, wormwood, pumpkin seed, black walnut. |
| Anti-bilious |
remove excess bile. Dandelion, barberry, golden seal, vervain |
| Anti-catarrhal |
removes excess phleghm and mucus. boneset, cayenne, echinacea, eyebright, garlic, golden seal,mullein, slippery elm. |
| Anti-emetic |
reduce nausea and vomiting. black horehound, meadow sweet, cayenne. |
| Anti-inflammatory |
reduces inflammation (heat, swelling and pain) chammomile, st John's Wort, white willow, |
| Anti-lithic |
prevent the formation of stones in urinary tract. Barberry, cornsilk, gravel root, stone root, hydrangea, p |
| Anti-microbial |
destroys microorganisms. cloves, echinacea, garlic, wild indigo, wormwood, |
| Antioxident |
helps prevent free radical damage of oxygen radicals. prevent aging. |
| Antiseptic |
destroys bacteria and other microorganisms. |
| Anti-spasmodic |
relaxes muscles prevents or eases cramps and spasms. Cramp bark, black haw, black cohosh, motherwort, valerian |
| Anodyne |
Reduce pain externally and internally. |
| Aperient |
Mild laxatives. |
| Anthraquinones |
purgatives and natural dyes. Stimulate the colon. Senna, Buckthorn, Aloe, Rhubarb, yellow dock. contain these chemicals. |
| Aromatic |
strong odor from volatile oils. |
| Astringent |
Contract and tones muscle fiber and other tissue . Contain tannins. |
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| Bitters |
Stimulate digestion, liver, antibiotic, anti fungal, anti tumor, sedative, expectorants, anti-inflammatories.. |
| Blood purifier |
removes toxins from the blood by strengthening liver function. |
| Cardiac glycosides |
Increase force and power of heart beat without increasing the amount of oxygen requirement. Foxglove, lily of valley, squill. |
| Carminative |
reduces flatulance (intestinal gas) |
| Cathartic |
increases bowel movement |
| Cholagogue |
stimulate release of bile from the gall bladder. laxative. |
| Coumarins |
Anti clotting. |
| Decongestant |
relieves respiratory congestion |
| Diaphoretic |
increases perspiration and detoxifies through the skin |
| Demulcent |
contains mucilage which can soothe internal tissues. comfrey, flax seed, marshmallow, slippery elm. |
| Diaphoretic |
promotes perspiration and eliminates toxins through the skin |
| Digestant |
aids the digestion of food |
| Diuretic |
increases the flow of urine to expel excess fluids from the body |
| Emetic |
cause vomiting |
| Emollient |
soften, soothe and protect the skin |
| Expectorant |
expels phlegm or mucus from the lungs and sinuses by causing coughing, sneezing, and drainage |
| Flavones |
anti-spasmodic, diuretic, circulatory and cardiac stimulants. Rutin, hesperidin, bio-flavonoids. Buckwheat, many fruits |
| Febrifuge |
reduces fever. cayenne, elder flower, peppermint, quininie |
| Galactogogue |
increases milk flow from mammaries |
| Hepatiac |
strengthen and tones the liver, increases flow of bile. dandelion, golden seal, mountain grape, |
| Hypnotic |
induce sleep. california popy, hopps, valarian, chamomile |
| Immune-stimulant |
causes the immune system to increase activity. echinacea, garlic, astragalus |
| Laxative |
increases bowel movement. barberry, buckthorn, cascara sagrada, senna, |
| Mineralizer |
provides trace minerals` |
| Nervine |
strengthens the nervous system. Some are stimulants otheres are relaxants. black cohosh, ginseng, hops, lemon balm, lavender, red clover, valerian |
| Oxytocic |
stimulate contraction of uterus. Blue cohosh, golden seal, squaw vine |
| Pectoral |
Strengthen and heal respiratory system. coltsfoot, comfrey, elder, elecampane, goldensel, mullein, licorice, |
| Phenols |
Easily form compounds. Have pain killing properties. Eugenol from cloves, thymol from thyme, and salicylic acid from willow are some. |
| Purgative |
increases bowel movement |
| Rubefacient |
topical application to skin causes dialation of surface capillaries. Cayenne, ginger, horseradish |
| Saponins |
anti inflammatories, expectorants, and sex hormones. golden rod, chickweed, mullein, wild yam, |
| Sedative |
calms the nervous system and reduces stress. blue cohosh, bugleweed, lady's slipper, skullcap, valarian |
| Sialagogue |
induce the flow of saliva. cayenne, gentian, ginger |
| Soporific |
induces sleep. see hypnotics |
| Stimulant |
increases circulation and energy. bayberry, cayenne, horseradish |
| Styptic |
stop bleeding. See astringents |
| Sudorific |
Increases perspiration and detoxification through the skin |
| Tannins |
Cause an astringent action. Treat burns, alleviate diarrhea or internal bleeding, infections in mouth, vagina, cervix, and rectum |
| Tonic |
strengthens and tones a part of the body |
| Volatile oils |
found in aromatic plants. Extraction produces essential oils. All are antiseptic, all are easily transported throughout the body acting upon the whole system, manifesting in the lungs, urine, sweat, etc. They stimulate the production of white blood cells. They act on the digestive tract and the central nervous system. Some relax and sedate while others stimulate. Their odor triggers a reaction through the olfactory nerves into the brain. |
| Vulnerary |
promotes the healing of tissues. aloe, comfrey (topical) chickweed, golden seal, plantain, marshmallow, mulllein, slippery elm, St. John's wort (topical) |
Adaptogen
I was taught a different definition of Adaptogen to that shown in the terminology list: An adaptogen is a substance that increases resistance to stress (adaptogen = increases the ability to adapt to stress). The term adaptogen is a relatively new one and was devised to explain the action of those few herbs having this effect (the ginsengs, withania, etc.). Not saying my version is more accurate than the one that's shown - just another perspective. Carole Bryant
Some Chemical Constituents of Herbs
Aldehydes:
highly reactive organic compounds that are anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, calming and sedative. found in lemon scented plants like lemongrass, melissa, and citronella.
Alcohols:
anti-bacterial and anti-viral. The sesquiterpenols stimulate immune response. They increase oxygenation around the pineal and pituitary glands.
Linalol
is antibacterial and boosts the immune system.Esters: result from the reaction of an alcohol with an acid. They are known to produce a relaxing and soothing effect on the body. They have strong anti-spasmodic and anti-fungal properties.
Flavanoids:
provide beneficial effecs on the capillaries, increasing blood flow and oxygenation of the cells and tissues.
Ketones:
stimulate cell regeneration and promote the formation of tissue. They also help to dissolve and discharge mucous of asthma, cold, flu, and cough.
Phenols:
deadly to bacteria and are anti-oxidant. Some phenols include thymol, eugenol, and carvacrol. Can anyone tell us what plants these are found in?? :-)
Terpenes:
inhibit the accumulation of toxins in the human body and help the liver and kidneys discharge built-up toxins. They are antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-spasmodic, and sedative.
Thujone:
relieves respiratory distress and stimulates the immune system.gloria
Herbal Preparations
There are many different ways of preparing herbs for use. Preparation makes the medicinal part available and in high enough concentration to effect a healing change. There are many ways of preparing herbs. You select the method based on how you expect the herb to perform, whether you will be using the herb internally or externally, and the part of the herb you are using.
Internal preparations
can be water based, solvent based, or used fresh/dry/powdered.
Capsules
Contain the whole dried, pulverized, powdered form of the herb. They are readily available from most health food stores.
Extract
Method used to remove the medicinal properties of a plant, usually volatile oils into an extracting medium or solvent.
Standardized Extract
This is usually a timcture or pill guaranteed to contain a specific quantitiy of the herb's main active ingredient. Sometimes a purified amount of the active ingredient is added to increase the potency to the stated level. Some herbalists won't use herbs altered this way because only certain compounds are used and others are discarded.
Infusion.
Infusions are teas. Teas are extracts into water of the tender parts of the plant like leaves and flowers. Usually they are prepared by pouring boiling water over fresh or dried herb. It takes three parts fresh herb to equal one part dry herb. When using aromatic herbs whose volatile oils will be lost with the heat, then a cold infusion (like sun-tea) can be used. It takes several hours for the medicinal properties to be infused into cold water. Infusions must be discarded after 48 hours because of bacterial growth.
Decoction
When the plant parts used are tough and fibrous then a decoction is used to release the oils. Roots, stems, barks, and seeds are prepared this way. Decoctions are prepared by pulverizing the plant material to expose the surface area, the pulverized material is put in a stainless steel sauce pan to which water is added. The mixture is brought to a boil and then simmered for ten to fifteen minutes, strained, and then consumed. A lid must be used to preserve the oils.
Tincture
A solvent is used to extract the medicinal properties of the herb in a tincture. Usually alcohol is the method of choice because the oils are readily absorbed into alcohol and alcohol also acts as a preservative. The shelf life of tinctures can be a year or more.Pulverized and powdered herbs are placed in a glass container that has a tight-fitting lid. 60 proof alcohol , (everclear, vodka, clear grain alcohol) is poured over the herbs and the container is tightly sealed. The mixture is shaken daily for two weeks then strained into a dark bottle through cheese cloth.
Dosages for tinctures are much less than for infusions or decoctions because the strength of the preparation is much stronger. Other solvents instead of alcohol are Apple cider vinegar or glycerine (in glycerine the term is glycerite)
Concentrated extracts
are tinctures that have had most of the water or alcohol removed.
Double extract
is a double strength tincture made by extracting fresh herbs into a tincture from a previous batch of herbs.External preparations are herbs used for wounds, skin, bruises etc. Many herbs that can be used externally may NOT be used internally.
Compress
Soak a soft cloth in a strong herbal tea, diluted tincture, essential oil, or aromatic water. Wring out the cloth and lay it on the skin. Cover with hot water bottle or heating pad to retain heat.Herbal Bath Add strong herbal teas or essental oils to bath water. Distribute well before getting into the water. May also be used for foot or hand baths.
Essential oils
are absorbed through the skin and the scented steam also has a therapeutic effect depending on the oil or herb used.
Linament
These are formulated to be easily absorbed throug the skin because they are used in massages. The preparation is made from herb and alcohol or herb with apple cider vinegar. Cayenne is often used in linaments. St. John's Wort heals wounds.
Poultice
Pounding or blending (in blender) fresh plant into sticky paste which is spread on the injury and covered with a bandage to keep into place. Sometimes poultices are made from clay and dried herbs and essential oils.
Salve
Petroleum jelly or oils are used as the base (olive or vegetable oils) Herbs with healing properties are added, beeswax is used to bind.
Here's one from Kathi Keville's book 'Herbs for Health and Healing' two ounces dried comfrey leaves, one ounce dried calendula flowers, two cups olive oil, one ounce pure beeswax, four drops each tea tree oil, and lavender essential oil. Heat herbs in olive oil over low heat for about 5 hours. Do not let oil boil or bubble. A crock pot on lowest temp setting should work well. If the lowest setting is too hot, turn off the heat once it has warmed (it should keep worm for at least an hour) then repeat the processs twice. After cooking, strain out the herbs while oil is still warm. Place one and one fourth cups of the herb oil in a pan, add beeswax and heat just enough to melt the wa. Add essential oils and stri. Finally, pour the salve into widemouthed jars. Store at room temp.
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