American Botanical Council
Terminologies used in Pharmaconosy
Healthcare Systems
Allopathy: Also known as "conventional medicine" in Western societies, allopathy focuses on
treating the symptoms of diseases primarily through prescription drugs and surgery. This
approach utilizes a process of reductionism (focusing on the symptoms exhibited in a part of the
organism rather than focusing on the organism as a whole.)
Ayurvedic Medicine: Literally meaning the "science of life." Ayurveda is a 5,000-year-old
system of medicine originating in India that combines natural therapies with a highly
personalized, holistic approach to the treatment of disease, which is believed to be the result of
disharmony between the person and the environment. Ayurvedic medicine works to balance the
three basic types of energy (doshas) that occur in everyone and everything: vata, pitta, and
kapha.
Eclectic Medicine: A branch of American medicine popular in the latter half of the 19th and
first half of the 20th century that made use of therapies found to be beneficial to patients
including medicinal plants, as well as physical therapy practices. “Eclectics” were doctors who
practiced with a philosophy based on “alignment with nature.”
Homeopathy: A system of medicine founded in the late 18th century in which remedies consist
of diluted substances from plants, minerals and animals. It is based on a theory that "like cures
like." Remedies specifically match different symptom pattern profiles of illness to stimulate the
body’s natural healing process.
Indigenous or Tribal Medicine: A healthcare system that tends to incorporate various methods
of botanical and animal medicines as well as specific ceremonial rituals of the culture to cure
disease. The medicinal knowledge is passed from generation to generation primarily through oral
traditions. The system tends to be unique to each tribe.
Kampo: Japan’s traditional medicine system which has been used since the Han period (206BC
to 220 CE of ancient China. The Shang han lun is a therapeutic handbook for the application of
herbal prescriptions based on the use of raw herbs.
Naturopathy: A holistic medical system that treats health conditions by utilizing what is
believed to be the body’s innate ability to heal. Naturopathic physicians aid healing processes by
incorporating a variety of natural methods based on the patient’s individual needs.
Traditional Chinese Medicine: A 3,000-year-old holistic system of medicine combining the use
of medicinal herbs, acupuncture, food therapy, massage, and therapeutic exercise. Chinese
, physicians look for the underlying causes of imbalance in the "yin" and "yang" which lead to
disharmony in the "qi" (energy) in the body. Traditional Chinese Medicine addresses how illness
manifests itself in a patient and treats the patient, not the ailment or disease.
Unani-Tibb: Also known as Unani Medicine, Arabian medicine, or Islamic medicine, Unani is a
Persian word meaning Greek and Tibb is an Arabic word meaning medicine. The origins of
Unani-Tibb are based on the system of Greek medicine developed by Hippocrates and Galen and
later refined by the Persian scholar-physician, Ibn Sina, also known as Avicenna (980-1037 CE).
Approaches
Aromatherapy: The art and science of the controlled use of essential oils extracted from plants
to promote physical and psychological well-being. The oils are generally diluted in a carrier or
base oil and used topically or via inhalation. While it is still unclear how aromatherapy works, it
may be that the essential oils interact with receptor sites in the central nervous system.
Flower Essences: In the 1930s, Dr. Edward Bach developed an approach to healing using
vibrational medicine from flowers known as "flower essences." Flower essences are made by a
sun infusion of flowers in a bowl of spring water and preserved with alcohol. The essences are
believed to embody the distinct imprint or energetic pattern of each flower species, and are used
internally or topically to balance emotional states. The underlying philosophy focuses on
stabilizing emotions in order to dissipate illness and stimulate internal healing processes.
Food as Medicine: Considered the foundation of good health in numerous traditional medicine
systems, eating a diverse and colorful whole foods diet offers an array of nutrients and
phytochemicals known to be fundamental to preventing and treating disease.
Herbal Medicine: An approach to wellness and healing which uses plant or plant-derived
preparations to treat, prevent, or cure various health conditions and ailments, herbal medicine is
incorporated into various medical systems. Although it does not have a specific point of
conception, it is estimated that 80% of the world’s population relies on medicinal plant
preparations for their primary healthcare needs, according to the World Health Organization.
Despite the extensive use which can be attributed to the use of plants in traditional medical
systems, our knowledge of the plants and their values remain largely unexplored.
Homeopathy: A system of therapeutics introduced by the German physician Samuel
Hahnemann in 1796 based on the “law of similar,” homeopathy or homeopathic medicine states
that all diseases are best treated by diluted drugs or substances that produces effects similar to the
symptoms of specific conditions or diseases in healthy individuals. This is similar to the theories
applied to the use of vaccinations.
Terminologies used in Pharmaconosy
Healthcare Systems
Allopathy: Also known as "conventional medicine" in Western societies, allopathy focuses on
treating the symptoms of diseases primarily through prescription drugs and surgery. This
approach utilizes a process of reductionism (focusing on the symptoms exhibited in a part of the
organism rather than focusing on the organism as a whole.)
Ayurvedic Medicine: Literally meaning the "science of life." Ayurveda is a 5,000-year-old
system of medicine originating in India that combines natural therapies with a highly
personalized, holistic approach to the treatment of disease, which is believed to be the result of
disharmony between the person and the environment. Ayurvedic medicine works to balance the
three basic types of energy (doshas) that occur in everyone and everything: vata, pitta, and
kapha.
Eclectic Medicine: A branch of American medicine popular in the latter half of the 19th and
first half of the 20th century that made use of therapies found to be beneficial to patients
including medicinal plants, as well as physical therapy practices. “Eclectics” were doctors who
practiced with a philosophy based on “alignment with nature.”
Homeopathy: A system of medicine founded in the late 18th century in which remedies consist
of diluted substances from plants, minerals and animals. It is based on a theory that "like cures
like." Remedies specifically match different symptom pattern profiles of illness to stimulate the
body’s natural healing process.
Indigenous or Tribal Medicine: A healthcare system that tends to incorporate various methods
of botanical and animal medicines as well as specific ceremonial rituals of the culture to cure
disease. The medicinal knowledge is passed from generation to generation primarily through oral
traditions. The system tends to be unique to each tribe.
Kampo: Japan’s traditional medicine system which has been used since the Han period (206BC
to 220 CE of ancient China. The Shang han lun is a therapeutic handbook for the application of
herbal prescriptions based on the use of raw herbs.
Naturopathy: A holistic medical system that treats health conditions by utilizing what is
believed to be the body’s innate ability to heal. Naturopathic physicians aid healing processes by
incorporating a variety of natural methods based on the patient’s individual needs.
Traditional Chinese Medicine: A 3,000-year-old holistic system of medicine combining the use
of medicinal herbs, acupuncture, food therapy, massage, and therapeutic exercise. Chinese
, physicians look for the underlying causes of imbalance in the "yin" and "yang" which lead to
disharmony in the "qi" (energy) in the body. Traditional Chinese Medicine addresses how illness
manifests itself in a patient and treats the patient, not the ailment or disease.
Unani-Tibb: Also known as Unani Medicine, Arabian medicine, or Islamic medicine, Unani is a
Persian word meaning Greek and Tibb is an Arabic word meaning medicine. The origins of
Unani-Tibb are based on the system of Greek medicine developed by Hippocrates and Galen and
later refined by the Persian scholar-physician, Ibn Sina, also known as Avicenna (980-1037 CE).
Approaches
Aromatherapy: The art and science of the controlled use of essential oils extracted from plants
to promote physical and psychological well-being. The oils are generally diluted in a carrier or
base oil and used topically or via inhalation. While it is still unclear how aromatherapy works, it
may be that the essential oils interact with receptor sites in the central nervous system.
Flower Essences: In the 1930s, Dr. Edward Bach developed an approach to healing using
vibrational medicine from flowers known as "flower essences." Flower essences are made by a
sun infusion of flowers in a bowl of spring water and preserved with alcohol. The essences are
believed to embody the distinct imprint or energetic pattern of each flower species, and are used
internally or topically to balance emotional states. The underlying philosophy focuses on
stabilizing emotions in order to dissipate illness and stimulate internal healing processes.
Food as Medicine: Considered the foundation of good health in numerous traditional medicine
systems, eating a diverse and colorful whole foods diet offers an array of nutrients and
phytochemicals known to be fundamental to preventing and treating disease.
Herbal Medicine: An approach to wellness and healing which uses plant or plant-derived
preparations to treat, prevent, or cure various health conditions and ailments, herbal medicine is
incorporated into various medical systems. Although it does not have a specific point of
conception, it is estimated that 80% of the world’s population relies on medicinal plant
preparations for their primary healthcare needs, according to the World Health Organization.
Despite the extensive use which can be attributed to the use of plants in traditional medical
systems, our knowledge of the plants and their values remain largely unexplored.
Homeopathy: A system of therapeutics introduced by the German physician Samuel
Hahnemann in 1796 based on the “law of similar,” homeopathy or homeopathic medicine states
that all diseases are best treated by diluted drugs or substances that produces effects similar to the
symptoms of specific conditions or diseases in healthy individuals. This is similar to the theories
applied to the use of vaccinations.
