Medicinal Herbs

( Article Type: Explanation )

Traditional medicine and healing has used herbs as medicine for thousands of years and over 65% of all formal medicines are based on herbal or plant-based structures or formulas.

The CSIR has now commenced a programme of identifying several hundred medicinal herbs with a view to developing them as registered drugs that can be sold to drug companies.

There have already been a number of breakthroughs and the CSIR team is confident that it can produce some special medicines.

In the past, some who have recognised the commercial opportunity to sell traditional herbs to drugs companies and makers of ‘traditional remedies’, have carelessly hacked trees and plants down and caused enormous damage.

Partnerships have thus been formed between traditional healers and nature conservation officers to enable the healers to harvest their needs without destroying the sources.

The nature conservation officers are also promoting bush-planting programmes to ensure that the specimens are available in the future.