We live in an unprecedented time in history. Never before has healthcare separated botanical medicine (using herbs to treat disease and illness) so strikingly from the conventional medicine of the day. But why has botanical medicine become something people turn to only when conventional medicine has failed them?

From what I can tell, botanical medicine is considered a last resort because many people are unaware of its benefits. When generational knowledge of herbal remedies was forgotten, so was the knowledge of how helpful botanical medicine could be in the early onset of numerous health conditions (like flu, colds, anxiety, depression, and skin complaints) and even chronic complaints.

With the advent of modern medicine, people began to believe that pills and quick fixes were the only solutions to their health problems. They saw no need for the slower, gentler remedies of the past. And as the culture moved farther away from botanical medicine, people began to distrust natural cures.

Of course, medical innovations and progress have not been without success, especially in the 20th century. Antibiotics were a huge blessing to the healthcare system, helping to save many lives, including those of many children who often perished from tuberculosis and pneumonia. With the drastic reduction in child deaths, it’s no surprise that botanical medicine was first pushed to the back burner and then completely taken off the stove. People had never seen anything like antibiotics. So while remnants of traditionally taught botanical medicine may still have been used in rural and isolated areas, it was no longer a common practice, and it became a relic from the past.

So why should botanical medicine not merely be considered an alternative?

Here’s why: History proves its benefits, even when used alongside “modern” medicine.

Throughout history, cultures have combined the “conventional medicine” of their day with botanical medicine. This “conventional medicine” may have included religion or magic, but some ancient cultures practiced relatively modern techniques such as surgery, suturing wounds, bone setting, and even pregnancy tests. (An ancient Egyptian method requires women to urinate on barley seeds, and if the seeds germinated, the woman was pregnant. A study was done on this method’s effectiveness, and it turns out it was accurate 70 percent of the time!)

While some of these “conventional medicine” systems may seem laughable to us today (and for good reason), there is wisdom in keeping botanical medicine an active part of our own medical system. Even incredibly advanced medical systems shouldn’t leave botanical medicine behind.

The bottom line is this: As our understanding and knowledge of the human body grows, our conventional health practices change. This can be positive, but it can also be painfully detrimental. Medical professionals of the past look ignorant to us when they used leeches to cleanse the soul of an ill person or used mercury to treat syphilis or a skin malady. Anyone today would consider those treatments to be outrageous. Yet they were considered scientific at the time!

Even today, we recognize that some recent medicine treatments were harmful, such as the use of heroin as a cough suppressant. Sigmund Freud even used cocaine for anxiety and fatigue. Though these were often seen as medical innovations, they caused much harm before they were removed from the market.

With the ability to isolate chemicals and create drugs came the introduction of things never before used or consumed by humans. This started as early as the 1800s, with medical professionals isolating chemicals from herbs to make more potent remedies. And while this scientific practice has brought about great success, the advent of novel drugs has also facilitated great suffering.

Even today, medicine can solve one problem but create another in the process. Despite all the life-saving technology and wonderful medical innovation of the 21st century, safe and affordable treatments are sometimes ignored to make way for newly engineered solutions that create more profit. Injuries to these solutions are glossed over, often to negate whatever negative press our innovations might attract. It often takes years before things are put right.

Is our culture any different from the cultures of the past, which thought the way to alleviate a sickness was to cast a spell or rub mercury ointment on the skin? Yes and no.

Yes, because, like them, we fail to account for unforeseen consequences, are quick to jump on trends, and are slow to fix the problems.

But no, because, unlike past centuries, we do not rely on botanical medicine to support us when our innovations and perceived progress fail.

The knowledge of botanical medicine should not be limited to doctors and herbalists but be available to everyone. Our ancestors carried the knowledge of botanical medicine with them, no matter what was trendy or being pushed by a greater establishment. They learned from their mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers about botanical medicine.

Plus, up until recently, natural remedies have been one of the common denominators in medicine. The ancient Egyptians combined botanical medicine with surgery, an impressive knowledge of anatomy, and the need for cleanliness—all while casting various spells. The ancient Greeks combined amulets and charms with botanical medicine and cutting-edge discoveries (like the fact that arteries carried blood rather than air). The Chinese combined botanical medicine with the theory of yin-yang and acupuncture over 2,000 years ago, and they still use those practices successfully today.

Botanical medicine should be incorporated with conventional medicine, if only because it has the longest track record of any form of medicine. And generally, the longer the time frame, the more reliable the medicine.

If anything, botanical medicine can be a safety net, a first line of defense, or even the primary treatment for issues with which conventional medicine struggles (consider chronic conditions such as Lyme disease, anxiety and depression, fibromyalgia, and chronic fatigue syndrome).

Beyond this, botanical medicine can work alongside pharmaceutical drugs to improve outcomes with things such as cancer treatment and healing liver damage often caused by medication.

Of course, I’m not saying we don’t need conventional medicine. We certainly do. But botanical health practices could and should be incorporated into our medical culture. It should once again become common knowledge, and it should be passed on for generations to come.

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This article is provided for educational and informational purposes and does not constitute medical advice.