Table of Contents

Contents; Preface; Introduction; Medicine systems of the world; Plant parts used; Dosage forms; Use of medicinal plant products; Active ingredients; Quality control and safety; Efficacy of medicinal plant products; Regulation of herbal remedies and phytomedicines; The plants in alphabetical order; Health disorders and medicinal plants; Overview of secondary metabolites and their effects; Quick guide to commercialised medicinal plants; Glossary; Further reading; General index; Acknowledgements and photo credits.

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A scientifically accurate guide to 350 of the best-known and most important medicinal plants, illustrated by more than 800 colour photographs;The text covers each plant’s botany, origin, main historical and modern uses, active ingredients and pharmacological effects, the most recent regulatory status of each plant, as well as an indication of its efficacy in clinical trials;Includes an overview of the various active ingredients (secondary metabolites) that explains how medicinal plants work as well as a section on the various health conditions that are treated with medicinal plants;A checklist of over 900 medicinal plants gives the correct scientific name, common names, family, origin, main compounds, main actions and uses of each plant;Rights to the first edition were obtained by the USA, Canada, UK, Germany, Poland, Australia, New Zealand and Southeast Asia with translations into German, Korean and Polish