Chinese Herbal Medicines and Active Metabolites: Potential Antioxidant Treatments for Atherosclerosis

Chinese herbal medicines.

HISTORY Since the emperor Shen Nong tasted 100 herbs and taught the Chinese people how to use them in diet and therapy, herbal medicine has been an integral part of Chinese culture and medical practice. Descriptions of herbal therapy occur in the earliest texts that discuss Chinese medical practice. The traditional Chinese materia medica includes minerals and animal parts as well as herbs. Late...

Common herbal treatments for senile dementia in ancient civilizations: Greco-Roman, Chinese, Indian, and Iranian

Background: Senile dementia is the most common kind of dementia with considerable social and economic costs. Since the nature of disease is multi-pathological, current treatments cannot cover all aspects of the disease. Recently, scientific considerations have focused on the role of natural products, especially those with traditional backgrounds. Objective: to review natural treatments of demen...

Interactions Between Chinese Herbal Medicines and Drugs

The popular use of herbal products in the general community raises concerns for potential herb– drug interactions. The risk of herb–drug interactions is increased if the herbal medicines are used concurrently with drugs which have a narrow therapeutic range, or are used in certain groups of patients, such as the elderly or those with impaired liver and renal functions. This short paper reviews ...

Interaction between warfarin and Chinese herbal medicines.

In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the human body is divided into Yin and Yang. Diseases occur when the Yin and Yang balance is disrupted. Different herbs are used to restore this balance, achieving the goal of treatment. However, inherent difficulties in designing experimental trials have left much of TCM yet to be substantiated by science. Despite that, TCM not only remains a popular form...

Screening of Herbal Medicines for Potential Toxicities