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- KOREAN
- P-ISSN3022-6805
- E-ISSN3022-6791
- KCI
ISSN : 3022-6805
Vol.5 No.2
Abstract
Medicinal uses of edible and other plants for prevention and cure of obesity and overweight associated metabolic and mental health problems have since long been known to scholars and practitioners of Ayurvedic and other traditionally known system of medicine. Modernized versions of numerous edible plant derived formulations mentioned in ancient Ayurvedic texts are at present some of the most popular, or best selling, herbal remedies in India and numerous other countries suffering from double burden of diseases caused by malnutrition and obesity. Preclinical and clinical information now available on edible plants and their bioactive constituents justify traditionally known medicinal uses of products derived from them for prevention and cure of obesity associated type-2 diabetes, psychopathologies and other health problems. Such information now available on a few edible Ayurvedic plants and their formulations and suggesting that their stress response regulating effects are involved in their broad spectrums of bioactivity profiles are summarized in this communication. Implications of recent physiological and pharmacological observations made with numerous phytochemicals isolated from edible plants for better understanding of traditionally known medicinal uses of herbal remedies are also pointed out.
Abstract
The so-called “Needham's Grand Question” (NGQ) can be formulated as why modern science was developed in Europe despite the earlier successes of science and technology in ancient China. Numerous answers have been proposed. In this review, it will be pointed out that traditional Chinese natural philosophy (TCNP) and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) are in fact dealing with problems of highly complex dynamical systems of Nature and human beings. Due to the lack of mathematical machinery in dealing with such complex phenomena, a holistic approach was taken by ancient Chinese instead. It was very successful for the first eighteen centuries. In the recent three centuries, however, the reductionist and mechanistic viewpoints of Western natural philosophy, sciences, and medicine have been prevalent all over the world up to now. The main obstacle in preventing the advancement of TCM, TCNP and its sciences is actually the lacking of proper mathematical tools in dealing with complex dynamical systems. Fortunately, the tools are now available and a “chaotic wave theory of fractal continuum” has been proposed recently. To give the theory an operational meaning, three basic laws of TCNP are outlined. These three laws of wave/field interactions contrast readily with those of Newton’s particle collisions. Via the proposed three laws, TCM, TCNP and its sciences can be unified under the same principles. Finally, an answer to NGQ can be accurately given. It is hoped that this review will help promoting a genuine understanding of natural philosophy, sciences, and medicine in an ecumenical way.
Abstract
Arthritis is a major cause of joint pain, stiffness, and subsequent disability which adversely affects quality of life. Seriously, it can lead to long term social and psychological effects including loss of independence, depression, and anxiety. Arthritis is usually treated with joint replacement surgery or medications. However, the artificial joint is temporary and pharmacological measures have side effects, such as addiction or hypersensitivity. Thus, orthotics has been developed to improve arthritis as a nonpharmacological measure. The increased regional load across compartments of articular cartilage is an important factor in the cause of the arthritis. Mubal®, a clinical shoe insole, has a sliding function to help people to walk straight and realign the body balance. The slide of Mubal® reduces the knee joint loading in patients with arthritis. In addition, pumping function of Mubal® can mitigate arthritis by stretching the squashed nerves from lumbar to cervical vertebral and actively circulating blood of pelvic limb. In addition, Mubal® could help to stimulate the growth plate. Therefore, Mubal® can be used for the child with short stature as well as patients with arthritis.
Abstract
Traditional East Asian Medicine (TEAM) prescriptions typically consist of several herbs based on the assumption that the herbs operate synergistically and/or cooperate on several related pathways simultaneously. This is a general concept that is widely accepted in TEAM, but it has not been tested systematically. To check this assumption statistically, we have text mined traditional Korean medicine text the Inje-ji(仁濟志, Collections of benevolent savings), a text that contains more than 5000 herb-cocktail prescriptions. We created herb–pairing network based on herb–herb pairing specificity and performed a systematic network analysis. Herbs were shown to be used selectively with other herbs and not randomly. Moreover, herb pairs were more specifically associated with symptoms than were single herbs. Single herbs and combinations of herbs specifically used for diabetes mellitus were successfully identified. As conclusion, herb-pairings in TEAM are not randomly constructed; instead, each herb was selectively used with other herbs. In terms of statistical significance, herb pairs were more specifically associated with symptoms than were single herbs alone. Collectively, these results suggest that it may be important to understand the interactions among multiple ingredients contained in herb pairs rather than trying to identify a single compound to resolve symptoms.
Abstract
Adolescent menorrhagia is defined as excessive menstrual bleeding from menarche to adolescents. It is a distressing condition both for the patient as well as for her parents. If it is not managed in time itmay pose significant health problems that may leads to blood transfusion. We determined the efficacy of Geru (Red ochre) in controlling the amount and duration of blood flow in patients of Adolescent menorrhagia. This study included 40 teenage girls, who presented with heavy bleeding during menstruation to Outpatient Department, Sameena Maternity Nursing Home, Hyderabad during the year of 2013. Assessment of each case was done by history and Pictorial Blood loss Assessment Chart (PBAC) score. Geru powder was given for 2 cycles and results were assessed. The data was analyzed statistically. The mean PBAC score before treatment was 497.04 ± 389.92and after trial in 1stand 2ndit was found to be 471.13 ± 162.18 and 310.13 ± 142.15 respectively. On basis of results it was concluded that single unani drug Geru is enough in controlling bleeding and was found effective by its astringent and styptic properties.
Abstract
Many patients with psoriasis look for treatment options other than conventional treatment to control their disease with less side effects. We evaluated the prevalence and characteristics of herbal therapy usage among patients with psoriasis in Turkey. A self-prepared questionnaire about herbal therapies was applied to the psoriatic patients attended our dermatology clinic between October 2013 and December 2013. A total of 100 patients (55 male, 45 female; 7 - 80 years of age) were included in this study. Fortynine percent of patients used at least one form of herbal therapies. Juniperus oxycedrus and Aloe vera were found to be the most frequently used plants. 36.7% of the patients get benefit from herbal therapy. Only 12.2% of patients had informed their clinicians during or after herbal therapy usage. 22.4% of the patient had continued conventional treatment during herbal therapies. Side effects related with herbal therapy were developed in 26.5% of the patients. The risk of side effects was found to be 5.23 times more in patients using phytotherapies systemically compared with ones using topically. Our results show that herbal therapy usage is common among patients with psoriasis in Turkey. Since herbal therapies have the potential of interacting with the medical treatment modalities and causing life threatening allergic reactions, clinicians should be aware of plants used in psoriasis and possible adverse reactions related with them and also should not forget asking about herbal therapy history.
Abstract
Antioxidative and free radical scavenging properties of different stem extracts of Euphorbia trigona were evaluated and correlated with its total phenolic content. Aqueous, acetone and methanolic extracts of shade dried stem were obtained and were concentrated in vacuo. The antioxidant and free radical scavenging activities of stem extracts was determined by 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging assay, reducing power assay, deoxyribose degradation assay and Fe2+chelating assay. Total phenolic contents (TPC) were evaluated using Folin-Ciocalteu reagent. The results confirmed that the plant is a rich source of polyphenolic compounds which are invariably higher compared to other herbs. All extracts showed TPC in the range of 146.6 – 168.6 mg/g gallic acid equivalents at 300 µg/ml of extract. Among the three extracts ME showed highest scavenging activity as evidenced by maximum scavenging of DPPH (83.2%), OH• radicals (94.81%), Fe2+chelating activity (88.59%) and a high reducing power 0.623 at 300 µg/ml. Our results demonstrate that Euphorbia trigona, an unexplored xerophytic plant could be potential source of natural antioxidants and phytotherapeutic agents. The plant possess invariably high amount of polyphenolic compounds with a broad spectrum of antioxidant properties and could be further used for food, feed and pharmaceutical applications.