The history and ups and downs of herbal medicines usage

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, there was a steady decline in the therapeutic use of herbal medicines. More recently however, largely due to the potent side effects of modern synthetic drugs and increasing contraindications to their usage, a resurgent trend has emerged towards the use of medicinal plants. Nonetheless, herbal medicines have continued to be in substantial demand in the developing world not only because they are readily available and moderately inexpensive but also because of cultural acceptability. Knowledge concerning any underlying etiology of illness was limited in the distant past and the nature of plant constituents, together with an inadequate understanding of their mechanistic therapeutic applicability has restricted the use of plants in medicine over the years. Consequently, herbal medicine usage has been based since ancient times almost exclusively on experience coupled with trial and error. Accordingly, the rebirth of herbal medicine, particularly in developed countries, is chiefly centred on renewed interest by society and advancing scientific information regarding plants and their constituents.