Examines the research issues and methodological problems that need to be resolved in order to exploit the therapeutic potential of medicinal plants and herbs. The objective is to establish lines of action for bringing the wealth of traditional knowledge into the mainstream of medical practice, whether through the development of new drugs or the quality control and standardization of traditional remedies. The opening chapters describe the potential uses of medicinal herbs in primary health care, set out criteria for the selection of plants for further research or immediate use, and compare the use of specific remedies in different countries. Issues that need to be considered when testing for pharmacological and therapeutic activity are also discussed. The third chapter, devoted to research, considers the need for a different methodological approach when attempting to develop drugs from herbal sources. Information ranges from an alert to methodological pitfalls in pharmacological research on medicinal plants, through a discussion of the reasons why the pharmaceutical industry has withdrawn from this area of research, to a list of 30 plants deserving priority investigation. Arguing that the clinical trial methodology developed for synthetic compounds is inappropriate for testing medicinal plants, the fourth chapter establishes a model for clinical evaluation that avoids several of these methodological pitfalls. Subsequent chapters consider what can be done to strengthen the role of herbal remedies in primary health care and address questions of standardization and regulation. The book concludes with an outline of research priorities for the coming decades.

WHODOC

WHO monograph

4