What do the following have in common: the promise of Botox as the key to everlasting youthful looks; E. coli O157 hamburger disease; a mysterious illness which killed 35 heroin users in 2000; and the assassination by poisoned umbrella-tip of a Bulgarian dissident in the 1970s? The answer is that all of these are caused by toxins, the powerful...

An extraordinary compendium of information on herbal medicine, Medicinal Plants of the World, Volume 3 comprehensively documents the medicinal value of 16 major plant species widely used around the world in medical formulations. The book's exhaustive summary of available scientific data for the plants provides detailed information on how...

In 1860, Oliver Wendell Holmes pointedly expressed himself to the Massachusetts Medical Society: “I firmly believe that if the whole Material Medica, as now used, could be sunk to the bottom of the sea, it would be all the better for mankind, and all the worst for the fishes.” Should one think the same about the current approach...

While one may not find ancient studies that substantiate the pomegranate's curative and preventive qualities, the exalted status of this fruit goes back as far as the history of agriculture itself. Allusions to the pomegranate are readily found in the oldest cultures of the Indus Valley, ancient China, and classical Greece, as well as in...

The prominence of the Bupleurum species cannot be overstated. Across China and Japan, it serves as a main or supplementary ingredient in over two thirds of traditional medications. For over 2000 years, it has been used to treat fevers, intestinal maladies, malaria, and countless other afflictions. Modern research indicates that it may possess...

Known for their ease of use, artful presentation of scientific information, and evidence-based approach, James Duke’s comprehensive handbooks are the cornerstone in the library of almost every alternative and complementary medicine practitioner and ethnobotanist. Using the successful format of these bestselling handbooks,...

There is nothing better than a freshly picked apple or raspberry from your own backyard and yet many homeowners lack the resources or the necessary gardening acumen to effectively plant and harvest their own fruit. While some fruits, like apples, grow in almost any climate (as many as 35 of 50 states providing perfect conditions), others like...

A fresh examination of the past successes of natural products as medicines and their new future from both conventional and new technologies. High-performance liquid chromatography profiling, combinatorial synthesis, genomics, proteomics, DNA shuffling, bioinformatics, and genetic manipulation all now make it possible to rapidly evaluate the...