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Can you recommend a way to get started with effective herbalism? Books, resources, etc. I've been fascinated by it for a while but am at a loss on where to begi

by pugio 9y ago

Can you recommend a way to get started with effective herbalism? Books, resources, etc. I've been fascinated by it for a while but am at a loss on where to begin, or how to separate effective recipes from age old placebos.

chepaslaaa 9y ago
www.erowid.org has a lot of information about psychoactive plants if that's a part of herbalism that could interest you
freehunter 9y ago
I’ve been astounded here today by the number of otherwise scientifically minded people who are seriously interested in homeopathic remedies. At the risk of running afoul of dang again, can I ask what is so attractive about trying to find medical purposes for scented oils when medical science has yet to prove any effect beyond pure placebo? I lost all interest in the subject when Steve Jobs tried to use herbal remedies to cure cancer and, despite running the most profitable company in the world, died of an easily curable form of cancer. What is it that makes people so hesitant to believe medical science and so willing to believe an article on the Internet saying that lavender oil applied to the humors can cure diseases? I know so many people who forget that “essential” means “the essence/scent of” and not “required for life” and I’ve never been able to figure out why without them getting offended and shutting down.
- ianai 9y ago
  You’ve confused homeopathy with herbalism/home remedies/supplementation. Homeopathy is basically “if weakened virii inoculate people against infection then surely weakened versions of toxins should do the same.” Herbs and supplements are, at best, whole plant medications. St Johns Wort is prescription only in other countries because it’s very effective against major depression and other things. Some people go down this route for financial reasons. It is much cheaper for someone without insurance to treat things with OTC things than actually getting insurance while tackling a disease, disorder, or etc. TLDR: Steve Jobs made a poor life choice. But that doesn’t make everyone not taking chemo or other cancer treatments an idiot. Those are typically prohibitively expensive treatments.
- johtso 9y ago
  You seem to be conflating homeopathy with herbal remedies. Two totally different things. Homeopathy involves diluting things until you're left with nothing but a sugar pill. Herbal remedies involve contact with actual ingredients that may or may not have useful properties.
- smallnamespace 9y ago
  > what is so attractive about trying to find medical purposes for scented oils when medical science has yet to prove any effect beyond pure placebo There is a risk here of going down the road of scientism, which is to conflate empiricism and the scientific method itself with a specific, imperfect implementation of it. I've looked into this myself, and the profit motive for doing well-funded research on plants as a potential medicine are probably 1-2 orders of magnitude lower than for pharmaceuticals that are much easier to control and patent. It can take ~billions to develop a new drug and get it through the FDA process, and it's the potential profits that actually fund the research. This level of research funding is obviously never going to happen under the current incentive and regulatory structure for investigating plants that anyone can buy for a few dollars, even if those same plants worked just as well as a pharmaceutical drug. Science is like a high focused searchlight. It obviously isn't going to find things that it doesn't focus much on. That doesn't mean the things that science has left only briefly examined definitely work (and I anyone who tells you otherwise is probably trying to sell you something), but it does mean that the universe of true facts is much wider than the universe of things that have been definitively proven through science.
  - freehunter 9y ago
    I’m not entirely sure that’s true. Many medicines we have are plant-based, and pharmaceutical companies make tons from them. What they do is figure out what about the plant actually works, simulate it with other chemicals, and then sell that. I mean Oxy is super profitable and it’s literally refined cocaine, which is as vegan as you can get. Under the current incentive and regulatory structure, it seems like literally anything they can prove works, they can get a patent on. Pharma companies are so money hungry that if tea tree oil really did cure cancer, they’d refine it and patent that shit in a heartbeat. The fact that they haven’t says so much to me.
    - newnewpdro 9y ago
      > I mean Oxy is super profitable and it’s literally refined cocaine, which is as vegan as you can get. Opium poppy != Coca plant As for your other statements, there's actually an abundance of medicinal plants and herbs which are not commercialized due to having dose:response curves too unpredictable to be productized and sold to a litigious public. Medicinal value != commercial value
ianai 9y ago
I usually just research options for whatever’s bothering me on the internet. Go slow, though, and stay close to your primary doctor. Also, if you really want to life hack and generally make the most dramatic changes for the better in your life, look at your diet. Food has a majority affect on every part of our lives.

by pugio 9y ago

chepaslaaa 9y ago

www.erowid.org has a lot of information about psychoactive plants if that's a part of herbalism that could interest you

freehunter 9y ago

I’ve been astounded here today by the number of otherwise scientifically minded people who are seriously interested in homeopathic remedies. At the risk of running afoul of dang again, can I ask what is so attractive about trying to find medical purposes for scented oils when medical science has yet to prove any effect beyond pure placebo? I lost all interest in the subject when Steve Jobs tried to use herbal remedies to cure cancer and, despite running the most profitable company in the world, died of an easily curable form of cancer. What is it that makes people so hesitant to believe medical science and so willing to believe an article on the Internet saying that lavender oil applied to the humors can cure diseases? I know so many people who forget that “essential” means “the essence/scent of” and not “required for life” and I’ve never been able to figure out why without them getting offended and shutting down.

ianai 9y ago
You’ve confused homeopathy with herbalism/home remedies/supplementation. Homeopathy is basically “if weakened virii inoculate people against infection then surely weakened versions of toxins should do the same.” Herbs and supplements are, at best, whole plant medications. St Johns Wort is prescription only in other countries because it’s very effective against major depression and other things. Some people go down this route for financial reasons. It is much cheaper for someone without insurance to treat things with OTC things than actually getting insurance while tackling a disease, disorder, or etc. TLDR: Steve Jobs made a poor life choice. But that doesn’t make everyone not taking chemo or other cancer treatments an idiot. Those are typically prohibitively expensive treatments.
johtso 9y ago
You seem to be conflating homeopathy with herbal remedies. Two totally different things. Homeopathy involves diluting things until you're left with nothing but a sugar pill. Herbal remedies involve contact with actual ingredients that may or may not have useful properties.
smallnamespace 9y ago
> what is so attractive about trying to find medical purposes for scented oils when medical science has yet to prove any effect beyond pure placebo There is a risk here of going down the road of scientism, which is to conflate empiricism and the scientific method itself with a specific, imperfect implementation of it. I've looked into this myself, and the profit motive for doing well-funded research on plants as a potential medicine are probably 1-2 orders of magnitude lower than for pharmaceuticals that are much easier to control and patent. It can take ~billions to develop a new drug and get it through the FDA process, and it's the potential profits that actually fund the research. This level of research funding is obviously never going to happen under the current incentive and regulatory structure for investigating plants that anyone can buy for a few dollars, even if those same plants worked just as well as a pharmaceutical drug. Science is like a high focused searchlight. It obviously isn't going to find things that it doesn't focus much on. That doesn't mean the things that science has left only briefly examined definitely work (and I anyone who tells you otherwise is probably trying to sell you something), but it does mean that the universe of true facts is much wider than the universe of things that have been definitively proven through science.
- freehunter 9y ago
  I’m not entirely sure that’s true. Many medicines we have are plant-based, and pharmaceutical companies make tons from them. What they do is figure out what about the plant actually works, simulate it with other chemicals, and then sell that. I mean Oxy is super profitable and it’s literally refined cocaine, which is as vegan as you can get. Under the current incentive and regulatory structure, it seems like literally anything they can prove works, they can get a patent on. Pharma companies are so money hungry that if tea tree oil really did cure cancer, they’d refine it and patent that shit in a heartbeat. The fact that they haven’t says so much to me.
  - newnewpdro 9y ago
    > I mean Oxy is super profitable and it’s literally refined cocaine, which is as vegan as you can get. Opium poppy != Coca plant As for your other statements, there's actually an abundance of medicinal plants and herbs which are not commercialized due to having dose:response curves too unpredictable to be productized and sold to a litigious public. Medicinal value != commercial value

ianai 9y ago

I usually just research options for whatever’s bothering me on the internet. Go slow, though, and stay close to your primary doctor. Also, if you really want to life hack and generally make the most dramatic changes for the better in your life, look at your diet. Food has a majority affect on every part of our lives.