Phytotherapy is the scientific name for treatment using medicinal plants, that is to say the use of plants in all their forms to relieve a symptom, cure or prevent an illness.
If flowers, leaves, roots and bark have been used since the dawn of time for healing, it is current scientific rigor that allows us today to associate the therapeutic activity of a plant with all its molecular complexity.
Homeopathy, herbal medicine, aromatherapy… it’s all about dosage
We cannot talk about herbal medicine without taking stock of the different types of medicine that use plants.
If you too have trouble seeing the difference between homeopathy, herbal medicine or aromatherapy, this article is for you!
In all 3 cases, plants are indeed used. In this sense, we could consider that these are 3 types of phytotherapy. And yet… this is not quite the case. The big difference here lies in the dosage of active ingredients.
Wait, let me explain, it's not that complicated.
Homeopathy to “treat evil with evil”
Homeopathy is a discipline that uses plants which, in high concentration, would cause in the patient symptoms similar to those he wishes to relieve.
These plants, which are rightly considered to be real poisons, can be used in homeopathy because they are very highly diluted. Thus, we no longer find any active ingredients, that is to say active molecules, in the finished product.
The principle of this discipline is therefore to “treat evil with evil” by putting the organism in contact with an infinitesimal quantity of a toxin in order to provoke a reaction from the organism which will allow it to defend itself.
Phytotherapy, natural pharmacology
Unlike homeopathy, herbal medicine uses plants concentrated in active ingredients. Here, like “classic” medicines, the properties of the plants are used to counteract the symptoms felt by the patient.
Again, there are different types of concentrations, and different types of extractions. Extraction is the step that allows the active ingredients to be “removed” from the plant for use.
- Mother tinctures are plant extractions made in alcohol and which are very diluted.
- Plant powders are finely ground plants that have not undergone any extraction (the extraction of the active ingredients will take place later, in the patient's body, hence a great variability of effect for this type of phototherapy)
- Herbal teas are probably the best-known form of extraction. Here, we use a part of the plant that is dried (ideally not cut very much so as not to denature the plant and thus preserve its properties) that we boil in water and then we collect the water in which the plant is to be infused. Here again, we observe a variability of effect because the quantity and type of active ingredients extracted depend on the way in which the herbal tea was prepared (quantity of plants infused, infusion time, water temperature, part of the plant used, etc.)
- Concentrated plant extracts are extractions made in water and/or alcohol that allow the active ingredients of the plant to be extracted and concentrated enough to have a therapeutic effect that can be reproduced from one patient to another. In this type of extraction, we find active ingredient dosages that can be similar to the dosages found in medications.
This therapy can be used both for basic treatments, which allow the patient to be rebalanced in depth, and for so-called “crisis” treatments which allow a symptom to be quickly relieved.
Aromatherapy, a natural medicine far from being gentle
Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils. It is the most concentrated form of the plant.
The principle is simple, the plants are brought to the boil in water and it is the resulting evaporation that is recovered. This is then cooled and will separate into two phases, an aqueous phase (composed of water) which corresponds to the hydrosols, and an oily phase (composed of oil) which corresponds to the essential oils.
Essential oils correspond to the most concentrated forms of extraction of the plant. They should therefore be used with caution, at a rate of one to two drops per dose, and are subject to numerous contraindications, particularly in children, epileptics, asthmatics or pregnant women, due to this high concentration of active ingredients.
Essential oils can be used orally, following the recommendations and precautions for use, or applied topically. Indeed, thanks to its oily composition, the essential oil can easily pass through the different layers of the skin to reach its target and induce the desired effect.
This therapy is often used in crisis treatment because prolonged use of essential oil can expose you to risks of toxicity and adverse effects.
Herbal medicine today
Since the dawn of time, we have used medicinal plants and their multiple properties to treat ourselves. These magic potions and beverages have been the subject of precious transmissions that have allowed us to heal ourselves generation after generation.
But plants still have certain limitations since their medicinal properties depend directly on the quality of the active ingredients recovered.
It is therefore not surprising to see that herbal medicine has long been abandoned in favor of chemical medicine, which allowed more diligent control of dosages and therefore of therapeutic effects.
And today, because we have managed to combine the combined strength of the traditional use of medicinal plants with the extraction processes, biochemical and pharmacological analyses and clinical trials of conventional medicine, we are able to offer effective care through modern phytotherapy, at the service of patients.
