Types of Herbology

Herbology involves taking herbs and combining them into medicinal herbs to cure or ease an ailment. As long as there has been man, plants have been used to make medicine. The word "herb" is a derivation of "herbe" and the Latin word "herba." Today the term "herb" denotes any part of a plant used for medicine, and originally applied only to non-woody plants.

Chinese Herbology

• Chinese herbal medicine is a combination of experimentation and research dating back to Shen Nong, a tribal chief in China who lived along the Yellow River Plateau around 2700 B.C. He wrote The Classic of Materia Medica, a book on traditional Chinese herbal medicine which is still used today.

  Chinese herbology is the practice of combining herbal medicine with acupuncture treatments to heal the body, and treats the whole person, not only the disease or symptoms. Herbal formulas are individualized, and no two people will receive the same herbal medicine treatments.

Native American Herbology

• For over 40,000 years, Native Americans have practiced medicinal healing using the plants and animals they found around them. This type of herbology grew over time as different tribes came into contact with one another. The elements of Native American healing vary from tribe to tribe. Healing was conducted by a medicine man or woman. Their knowledge was not written down, but passed on from the elders in oral tradition.

  The beliefs of Native American medicine are based on the wholeness and balance of a person, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Diseases can be caused by internal thoughts such as negative thinking, and external causes such as environment, impure air, and food. The healer's goal is to restore balance.

Western Herbology

• Western herbology is a mixture of knowledge from the Greeks, Egyptians, and other Europeans through the ages. The De Materia Medica, written by Dioscorides in the first century A.D, is considered the most influential book on western herbal medicine. This type of herbology combines European and Native American herbs to treat and prevent illness. Western herbalism categorize herbal remedies according to characteristics such as their strength, effects and composition.

Ayurvedic Herbology

• This type of herbology treats the body, mind, and soul, bringing health to all three. The word "ayurveda" in Sanskrit, translates to "knowledge of life." The basis of ayurvedic herbology believes in maintaining a balance between a healthy diet, getting enough exercise, the use of herbs and spiritual fulfillment. Ayurvedic herbology bases the concept of healing on keeping a balance of our three doshas which are Vata which is the nervous system, Pitta is the digestive system and Kapha is the lymph system. The doshas are equivalent to the western concepts of energies. Ayurvedic medicine treats the body and spirit together.

European Herbology

• The basis of this type of herbology is the traditional use of European herbs to help the body heal itself. European herbology is also called European herbalism, and was originally practiced based on a system of energies whose roots began in early Greek and Roman medicine. The treatment of ailments is done by mixing herbal remedies using all parts of a plant for a specific purpose.