Nature’s Medicine
The medicinal and healing power of plants
Long before the idea of pharmaceutical medicines such as antibiotics or drug store cough syrups, human beings used their natural surroundings to heal and tend to the sick in their communities. To this day, many people still seek out natural and homemade remedies for their illnesses, and even prefer them over something manufactured that comes in a little plastic bottle. Today, 80% of people around the world still depend on herbal medicinal products and supplements as a primary part of their healthcare. Especially in the past few decades, scientists and anthropologists have become more interested in the traditional medicinal uses of plants not only for cultural study, but also to supplement and enhance modern medical practices. This is because some pharmaceuticals, such as antibiotics, can become less effective if not used properly, as well as because a lot of the pharmaceuticals we rely on today were developed from plant compounds. Scientists are searching for and discovering new medicines in plants all the time, so research into the healing properties of some plants can potentially lead to new life-saving medicines. This is especially important as the effectiveness of some synthetic drugs seems to decline in some cases, like in cases of antibiotic resistance.
Seeing as the use of plants to heal ailments goes back as far as human history, there are many written volumes from across the centuries that contain images, descriptions, and medicinal uses of plants, and often ways to prepare them. Books of this nature are referred to as “herbals” and the University of Vermont Silver Special Collections Library has several of these. The “Italian Herbal,” (thus called because it was originally written in Italian) for example, is a collection of illustrations of medicinal herbs including the conditions they treat and how they are applied. This work dates from sometime between 1475 and 1525, and is only one of several such herbals the Silver Collections library has from this time period.
These are two pages from the “Italian Herbal.” These illustrations are not necessarily botanically accurate, and the plants depicted have not been identified to species, but nonetheless are one of the early examples of using plant drawings that are recognizable and useful to the reader. This collection and others like it predate the Linnaean system of plant classification (which gives plants their two-part Latin scientific names we use today), but have served as an early example of plant description and naming systems.
Another example from the Silver Special Collections Library is John Gerard’s Generall Historie of Plants from 1597. This is one of the first herbals published in English, and also one of the first that showed the entire plant body in the image, using woodblocks to create the likenesses of the plants being described. The volume contains over 1,000 plants and their descriptions and medicinal uses. While Gerard’s herbal did not contain entirely accurate information of all the plants included, it was still seen as a standard for works of its kind for some time.
These two pages from John Gerard’s "Generall Historie of Plants" focus on kinds of nightshades. Every plant is depicted in detail from leaves to roots underneath its scientific and common names. This is followed by a description of the plant, where it is found and when it flowers, and how it is to be prepared for its medicinal purposes.
In addition to historical herbals, modern books have also been written about medicinal plants. These often include photographs and detailed descriptions of medicinal plants, and can include information about plants from around the world. While the old herbals were limited by their authors’ ability to travel or gain knowledge from far-off regions, it has become much easier to write comprehensive volumes covering a larger geographical area with the help of modern technologies. One example of this can be found in the UVM Pringle Herbarium’s library, titled Medicinal Plants of the World by Ben-Erik van Wyk and Michael Wink. This volume was published in 2004, quite a while after the previously discussed examples. This book goes much more in depth into approximately 350 plants that have medicinal uses. It describes not only their cultural and historical uses, but also the chemical compounds and pharmacological activity of the plants. Despite the clear advances in the science and research between herbals from 500 years ago and modern books, the goal remains the same: trying to relay potentially important information about plants with healing properties.
In our very own state of Vermont, there is a celebrated herbalist named Rosemary Gladstar who founded the Sage Mountain Herbal Retreat Center and Botanical Sanctuary in central Vermont, and who has published several books on medicinal uses for plants. A couple of these can be found in the Howe Library at UVM, including Rosemary Gladstar's herbal recipes for vibrant health and Herbal healing for women : simple home remedies for women of all ages. This book provides information on ways that people can heal common ailments through natural means, and applies to a very broad spectrum of issues, thus appealing to a wide audience. These books, and books like them, differ from the ancient herbals previously mentioned and even from modern collections of medicinal plants, in that these are meant to be more broadly circulated and accessible to the average user and serve a stronger purpose for the general public.
These are two of the books by Rosemary Gladstar that are found in the Howe Library. Gladstar’s focus on herbal uses is more for day-to-day usage and general health and is written in a manner that makes this information more accessible to a larger audience.
While books are a great way to get a lot of information about plants and how to use and prepare them, they are not the only resource with which to learn about medicinal plants. The UVM Horticulture club, for example, maintains a large garden outside of Jeffords Hall that contains a wide variety of plants with signs indicating their Latin and common names. More specifically, along the front wall of the building there is a medicinal plant garden that includes educational signage. Living plant collections like this are found all over the world, and are often features of botanical gardens. They allow gardeners to implement educational themes into their designs, while also providing a more engaging way of learning about medicinal uses of plants. Observers can get up close with the plants, and even smell and touch them to help familiarize themselves with the herb.
On the left is the medicinal plant garden in front of Jeffords Hall. It contains dozens of medicinal plants with plaques that give a short description of what the plant is used to treat, and where it is commonly used. On the right is feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium), a medicinal plant, which is found beside the raised garden beds behind Jeffords Hall.
There are many plants we use frequently at home to make us feel better when we’re sick, such as chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) in tea, or Aloe vera to soothe a sunburn. A lot of these plants can be grown outside in a small herb garden in the summer, or even in pots as houseplants. These two previously mentioned plants, and many more like them, can be found in the Pringle Herbarium. The daisy and sunflower family (Asteraceae) on its own contains many plants that are used for medicinal purposes, chamomile being one of them. Another is feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium), which has been called “medieval aspirin,” and as such has been promoted for its use to calm fevers and headaches.
A specimen of "Matricaria chamomilla", better known as chamomile, in the Pringle Herbarium. Chamomile is often consumed in teas to induce sleep and soothe colds, or as an oil for aromatherapy or to soothe irritated skin.
A specimen of "Aloe vera" in the Pringle Herbarium, collected from Havana, Cuba. Aloe is a popular houseplant known to soothe skin afflictions such as sunburn, and is often kept on hand for this reason.
An example of plants being incorporated into more modern pharmaceuticals is the poppy flower, Papaver somniferum, which is the source of opium and its derivatives, including morphine and codeine, which are used as strong pain relievers in hospitals. The poppy flower is native to the land that is now Turkey, and has a history of use and cultivation going back to at least 3,400 BCE in Mesopotamia. The demand and cultivation for the plant increased as more civilizations began to learn about its effect and addictiveness. The plant was grown in more countries and traded along the Silk Road until it reached China, which would eventually lead to the Opium Wars of the mid 1800s. Because of its dangerous and addictive nature, opium has created a slew of issues as it began being produced and distributed illegally. While the plant has been very beneficial as a painkiller in modern medicine, it has also become detrimental to many people and societies as a recreational drug, especially for its role in producing heroin.
These are the only two specimens of "Papaver somniferum" housed in the Pringle Herbarium. The one on the left dates back to 1897 and was collected in Maine, while the specimen on the right was collected in 2014 by the current curator of the herbarium, Dr. Weston Testo, in Burlington. These are examples of the species of plant that is cultivated for opium production.
As modern medicine continues to advance, we should not overlook the remedies that come from all around us. People have been healing their ailments with plants for thousands of years, and most people today still do. Even many vital compounds in contemporary pharmaceutical medicines come from plants, and were often used by Indigenous peoples long before they became a part of Western practices. Herbal remedies do not replace the necessity of twenty-first century medical practices, but are also not to be overlooked in their usefulness, effectiveness, and cultural importance.
By Kylie Roth
References
Arber, A. R. (2012). Herbals, Their Origin and Evolution: A Chapter in the History of Botany 1470-1670. Cambrige University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511711497
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Ekor, M. (2014). The growing use of herbal medicines: issues relating to adverse reactions and challenges in monitoring safety. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 10(4), 177. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2013.00177
Feverfew: Usefulness and Safety | NCCIH. (2020). National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Retrieved November 15, 2024, from https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/feverfew
Opium Poppy. (n.d.). DEA Musuem. Retrieved November 15, 2024, from https://museum.dea.gov/exhibits/online-exhibits/cannabis-coca-and-poppy-natures-addictive-plants/opium-poppy
Petrovska, B. B. (2012). Historical Review of Medicinal Plants’ usage. Pharmacognosy Reviews, (6)11, 1-5. https://dx.doi.org/10.4103/0973-7847.95849
Rogers, K. (2024). Opium | Drug, Physiological Actions, & History. Britannica. Retrieved November 15, 2024, from https://www.britannica.com/science/opium
Srivastava, J. K., Shankar, E., & Gupta, S. (2010). Chamomile: A herbal medicine of the past with bright future. Molecular Medicine Reports, (3)6 895-901. https://doi.org/10.3892/mmr.2010.377