Botanical Medicine Sites

• American Botanical Council  "A non-profit educational and research organization disseminating science-based information that promotes the safe and effective use of medicinal plants and phytomedicines." Mark Blumenthal, Executive Director. Publishers of Herbalgram.

• American Herbalists Guild "A non-profit, educational organization to represent the goals and voices of herbalists. It is the only peer-review organization in the United States for professional herbalists specializing in the medicinal use of plants." Publishes the Journal of the American Herbalists Guild.

• Henriette's Herbal Home Page  Huge information site including herbal FAQs, articles, newsgroup archives, plant photographs, and King's American Dispensatory, an Eclectic classic.

• HerbMed®   Excellent site that "provides uniquely comprehensive access to the available scientific publications and data on each herb, with dynamic updating to ensure completeness." Search on herb or chemical for direct links to abstracts on PubMed.

• Herb Research Foundation News Online  Science News and Research Reviews pertaining to botanical medicine.

• Jonathan Treasure   A fine site that "offers information on herbal medicine (as distinct from herbal medicines) sometimes also called phytotherapy. It includes definitions of herbal medicine, extended book reviews of leading texts on the subject, and resources on herb-drug interactions." From Jonathan Treasure, MNIMH

• Medical Herbalism   A Journal for the Clinical Practitioner. "The purpose of Medical Herbalism is to strengthen the herbal practitioner, to preserve and develop the science and art of herbal medicine, and to promote communication and sharing of clinical methods and experiences." Paul Bergner, Ed.

• A Modern Herbal   Classic of English medical herbalism from Maude Grieve, 1931.

• National Institute of Medical Herbalists (NIMH) "The UK's leading professional association of practitioners of herbal medicine."

Chemistry and Phytochemistry Sites

• General Chemistry   Resources include a good glossary, library of common compounds, tutorials and much more. From Fred Senese at Frostburg State University.

• Planta Medica   Scientific journal of medicinal plant research. View abstracts. Temporary free subscriptions allow full-text access back through 1999.

• Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry Publishes many studies relevant to plant constituents in botanical medicine. Search the archives for abstracts; free full-text sample issue.

Herbal Education

• Appalachia School of Holistic Herbalism provides "sound technical training balanced with spiritual insight. We offer beginning, intermediate, and advanced programs focusing on preventative medicine, self-nourishment, and sustainable living. Our courses cover all branches of herbal healing, from flower essences to pharmacognosy, incorporating modern scientific research while keeping ancient traditions at their center. We draw from Native American teachings, the Wise Woman Tradition, Shamanism, Ayurveda and Chinese Medicine as well as conventional practice." The school offers courses in Fundamentals of Herbs & Plant Energies, a Traditional Herbalist Program, and Advanced Herbal Therapeutics.

• Australasian College of Health Sciences "based in Portland, Oregon, is a leader in natural health education ... one of the oldest and most respected distance education natural health colleges, offering flexible programs, a highly qualified faculty, and a diverse student body." The Department of Herbal Medicine offers numerous online courses.

• Bastyr University offers a Bachelor's degree in Herbal Sciences which confers "a solid foundation of herbal study that includes up-to-date scientific information and centuries-old knowledge."

• Blue Ridge School of Herbal Medicine has summer, winter, and weekend programs directed by clinical herbalist Corey-Pine Shane. "Healing with plants is an ancient tradition with a history as long as humanity’s, if not longer ... we learn how to integrate the history and tradition of herbal medicine with modern insights and science to create a holistic way of understanding the body in health and disease ... you will come to learn a holistic paradigm of healing, how to look for the underlying cause, the 'pattern of imbalance' that creates disease rather than just alleviating symptoms. At its base, holistic Herbalism treats clients, not diseases."

• California School of Herbal Studies, located in Sonoma County (near San Francisco), was founded in 1978 by Rosemary Gladstar; the program "continues in the spirit in which it was formed by offering a multi-perspective approach to Earth-centered botanical studies...Successful graduates of our intensive program leave here with the knowledge they need to enter and contribute to the rapidly blossoming field of herbalism, and receive certificates of completion that are highly regarded by the herbal community." 

• The Chestnut School of Herbal Medicine offers "classes in the tradition of Roots Herbalism - the kind where your hands get dirty as you develop life-long relationships with plants. Our classroom is the outdoors - garden, forest, field, mountain, and stream." Juliet Blankespoor, director. Located in Asheville, NC.

• The Herbal Bear School of Botanical Medicine "offers workshops, classes and apprenticeships in traditional herbal studies, environmental awareness, and outdoor skills" in New York City and the Catskills.

• Herbal Therapeutics School of Botanical Medicine is directed by David Winston, "one of the world’s top herbal clinicians with over 34 years of experience and training in Eclectic medicine, traditional Cherokee medicine, and traditional Chinese medicine."

• International College of Herbal Medicine (ICOHM) offers a three year Diploma in Clinical Herbal Medicine and a two-year course of post-graduate study in Herbal Medicine via the Internet. "We work from Gisborne, New Zealand and have an international lineup of tutors who are practicing skilled herbalists as well as trained doctors, pharmacists, midwives, writers and educators."

• Mountain Gardens, located in Yancey County, North Carolina, offers classes and workshops in traditional Western and Asian medicinal plants. Joe Hollis' uniquely rich gardens are surrounded by the beautiful Pisgah National Forest.

• North American Institute of Medical Herbalism offers many different certificate-granting courses and seminars in the Vitalist tradition, which "incorporates all aspects of science, especially physiology and pathophysiology, but equally values knowledge from traditional medicine, empirical observation, instinct and intuition ..." Paul Bergner, director. Located in Boulder, Colorado.

• Prairie Wise Herbal School located in Kansas City, MO; Kahla Wheeler, director; "dedicated to hands-on, personal, experiential learning ... committed to growing knowledgeable herbalists that contribute to their community. The school offers workshops, prairie and wild plant walks, lectures, a one-year general herbalist program and an extensive clinical herbalist program."

• Southwest School of Botanical Medicine  is located in Bisbee, Arizona. Excellent courses focus on traditional clinical herbalism with a special emphasis on plants of the Southwest. In addition to school information, this site presents a huge cornucopia of clinical texts and manuals, medicinal plant images, classic Eclectic and Thomsonian works, ethnobotanical information and much more. Directed by Michael Moore.

• Tai Sophia Institute  offers a Master of Arts in Botanical Healing program with expert teachers. "Students may concentrate their program in three main areas of study: Clinical practice, research/ethnobotany or production and standards of botanical remedies."

Other Sites of Interest

• AHPA  American Herbal Products Association. "The national trade association and voice of the herbal supplement industry...AHPA's mission is to promote the responsible commerce of herbal products. 100% of AHPA's resources are dedicated to furthering the responsible sale and use of herbs and herbal products through AHPA's expertise and experience."

• HerbNET  Information service from the Herb Growing & Marketing Network.

• Medscape Huge and useful medical information site.

• Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy    Look up information on diseases and conditions.

• National Center for the Preservation of Medicinal Herbs "The Center's objectives are to protect and expand populations of medicinal herbs, especially those deemed to be at risk...In addition, the Center will research growing methods, encourage organic farming of these herbs and educate the public about the at-risk status of medicinal herbs."

• PubMed   Search millions of abstracts from scientific journals for information on constituents and clinical studies.

• United Plant Savers   Their mission is "to protect native medicinal plants of the United States and Canada and their native habitat while ensuring an abundant and renewable supply of medicinal plants for generations to come."

Know of a great link? Send it to me at
info@herbalchem.net

Lisa Ganora