Difference of Herbal and Conventional Drugs

Difference of Herbal and Conventional Drugs

Although superficially similar, herbal medicine and conventional pharmacotherapy have three important differences:

Use of Whole Plants- Herbalists generally use unpurified plant extracts containing several different constituents. It is claimed that these can work together synergistically so that the effect of the whole herb is greater than the summed effects of its components. It is also claimed that toxicity is reduced when whole herbs are used instead of isolated active ingredients (“buffering”). Although two samples of a particular herbal drug may contain constituent compounds in different proportions, practitioners claim that this does not generally cause clinical problems. There is some experimental evidence for synergy and buffering in certain whole plant preparations, but how far this is applicable to all herbal products is not known (Vickers and Zollman, 1999).

Herb Combining- Often several different herbs are used together. Practitioners say that the principles of synergy and buffering apply to combinations of plants and claim that combining herbs improves efficacy and reduces adverse effect. This contrasts with conventional practice, where polypharmacy is generally avoided whenever possible (Vickers and Zollman, 1999).

Diagnosis- Herbal practitioners use different diagnostic principles from conventional practitioners. For example, when treating arthritis, they might observe, “under functioning of a patient’s symptoms of elimination” and decide that the arthritis results from “an accumulation of metabolic waste products”. A diuretic, choleretic or laxative combination of herbs might then be prescribed alongside herbs with anti-inflammatory properties (Vickers and Zollman, 1999).