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What is a herbalist and what does one do? |
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Page 3 of 3 Herbal drugs, however, are extracts from a part of the whole plant (e.g. leaves, roots, berries etc.) and contain hundreds, perhaps thousands of plant constituents.
Herbalists believe that the active constituents are balanced within the plant and are made more (or less) powerful by the numerous other substances present. For example, the herb Ephedra sinica is the source of the alkaloid ephedrine which is used, in orthodox medicine, to treat asthma and nasal congestion but it has the side effect of raising blood pressure. Within the whole plant are six other alkaloids one of which prevents a rise in blood pressure. Synthetic diuretics (drugs that increase the flow of urine) seriously reduce the potassium level in the body, this has to be restored using potassium supplements. The Herbalist uses dandelion leaves which are a potent diuretic but contain potassium to replace naturally that which is lost.
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