[Fwd: Medicines For The Earth]

[Guest guest]

From David Crow

 

Will Morris

 

Medicines For The Earth

 

The Eco-Physiology of Plants

 

By David Crow, L.Ac.To be presented at the Medicines From the Earth

Symposium 5/31 - 6/2/03

 

<http://www.botanicalmedicine.org>

 

<http://www.botanicalmedicine.org>www.botanicalmedicine.org

<http://www.botanicalmedicine.org>

 

Introduction

 

We are entering a period in history when human health will be seriously

challenged. If the destructive trends of rapid global warming,

accelerating loss of biodiversity, widespread pollution and degradation

of ecosystems, deepening poverty, malnutrition, and political

instability are not reversed, all forms of medicine will become

increasingly ineffective, unaffordable, and unavailable. For large

populations in many parts of the world, this future has already arrived.

 

The causes of these conditions are numerous, complex, pervasive, and

seemingly overwhelming. There is, however, one solution that has the

potential to unify humanity in worldwide healing ? the plants.

 

Plants are the foundation of civilization and culture. They created the

biosphere of the earth?s surface, and they regulate its functions.

Plants are the ultimate source of all health and prosperity; they feed

us, give us clothing and shelter, provide fuel, fiber, and countless

other necessities. Every breath we breathe is the breath of plants,

which supports all life. Plants are the origin of medicine.

 

When healing an illness, there is often relatively little that doctors

and patients can do to directly produce optimum functioning of human

physiology. Plants, however, provide the biochemical and nutritional

compounds that assist the body?s internal ecology and promote its innate

homeostasis and equilibrium. Phytonutrients nourish the organs, support

the tissues, and enhance immunity, while the medicinal constituents of

botanical species detoxify metabolic waste and xenobiotics (harmful

foreign substances). No synthetic pharmaceutical drug can perform these

functions.

 

Similarly, there is relatively little that people can do to reverse

global warming, to stabilize disturbed weather patterns, or to detoxify

environmental contamination. But plants do all of these things. They

cool the planet, help regulate the seasons, recharge groundwater,

restore soil fertility and stop erosion, regenerate the ozone layer,

bind atmospheric carbon dioxide, and purify the toxins we put

everywhere. Plants perform the same crucial functions in the outer

environment as they do in the inner environment of the body.

 

This article, along with ?The People?s Pharmacy? and ?The Pharmacy of

Flowers,? outlines a broad vision of plants as humanity?s primary

resource for solving the complex and potentially devastating challenges

we face. The article begins with a brief overview of how plants created

and sustain the biosphere, followed by an exploration of the parallels

between human and plant physiology, and comparisons between disease

processes in the human body and planetary ecosystems. Finally, it

outlines some of the ways plants are being used for healing the

environment, and how these functions are similar to healing mechanisms

in the human body.

 

Plant physiology and planetary evolution

 

The life-supporting elements that we often take for granted are the

result of unimaginably long cycles of evolutionary processes. It can

accurately be said that plants created, and continue to create, the

world we live in. Recognizing our dependency on the eco-functions

performed by plants increases our sensitivity to the conditions of the

environment, and encourages us to protect and restore the natural world.

 

From the perspective of plant eco-physiology, four events are of major

significance in the long biological history of the earth. The first is

the appearance of single-celled photosynthetic organisms in the

primordial ocean about three billion years ago. This pre-plant

photosynthesis brought about three planetary changes: the radiant energy

of sunlight began to be converted into chemical energy, which became the

nutritive foundation for all subsequent life forms; atmospheric oxygen

increased, which allowed the evolution of more complex organisms and

life forms; and atmospheric oxygen was converted to ozone, which

provided protection from solar ultraviolet radiation and allowed

migration of life onto land.

 

The second evolutionary step was the migration of multi-celled

organisms, the precursors of modern plants and animals, onto land about

450 million years ago. By 400 million years ago, early vascular plants

were radiating across the land.

 

The third important development was the evolution of plant roots. By 375

million years ago, root structures penetrated almost a meter into the

soil. This development brought about major changes in the soil and

atmosphere; between 400 and 350 million years ago a 10-fold decrease in

atmospheric carbon dioxide occurred, as a result of plant respiration

and microbial activity in the root systems.

 

The fourth evolutionary step occurred around 100 million years ago, with

the appearance of flowering plants. This relatively sudden development

brought about a rapid expansion of biodiversity, culminating in human

beings, as new forms of life evolved in symbiotic relationships with the

plant realm.

 

Similarities Between Plant and Human Anatomy and Physiology

 

Plants and humans share numerous anatomical and physiological

characteristics; we are actually more similar than different.

Understanding these remarkable parallels gives us a greater appreciation

for the kinship that exists between the plant and human realms, which in

turn is the basis of reverence for nature and respectful coexistence

with biodiversity.

 

The similarities between plants and humans can be simplified into three

categories: basic life needs, anatomical and physiological

characteristics, and subtle functions.

 

Basic life needs

 

The basic needs of plants and people are the same. Plants and people

share the fundamental biological cycle of birth (germination), growing

to maturity, reproduction, aging and decline, and death. Plants and

people both need nutrients in order to grow and thrive, water to moisten

the tissues and facilitate metabolic processes, air for respiration, and

environmental and seasonal conditions conducive to life. Plants and

people both need defense mechanisms to protect themselves from the

elements and from other organisms; both suffer from diseases, viral and

bacterial infections, and parasitic infestations.

 

Anatomical and physiological characteristics

 

There are numerous parallels between the anatomical structures and

physiological functions of plants and people. Plants have outer cells

that function similarly to skin. Just as human skin is lubricated and

protected from the external elements by oily secretions of the sebaceous

glands, the aerial surfaces of plants secrete wax produced from fatty

acid precursors for waterproofing and immunity. Human bodies are shaped

and supported by bony skeletons, while plants have their own connective

tissues and skeletal structures; the growth and development of plant

cells and organs rely on a skeleton comprised principally of

microtubules and microfilaments. The blood vessels and capillaries of

the human body can be compared to the xylem (wood) of plants, which is a

complex vascular tissue containing water-conducting cells; the blood and

lymph correlate with the various fluids that flow through the channels

of the plants. The human alimentary canal is comparable to the roots,

which draw nourishment into the outer tissues and cells of the plant.

Humans and plants both have reproductive systems; human sperm and ova

can be compared to the pollen-producing stamens and ovary-containing

pistils.

 

Like humans, plants have complex immune systems. Plants produce purely

mechanical defenses, such as spines and thorns. Chemically, they secrete

essential oils and oleoresins, which function as immunological compounds

to discourage herbivores, stimulate healing of wounds, and protect from

insect and fungal pathogens. Plants react to pathogens and diseases by

producing certain antibacterial compounds; phytoalexins are probably the

most studied of these defensive compounds. These immune responses can be

compared to various responses of the human immune system, such as the

activation of lymphocytes. Plant metabolic functions are governed by

hormones, as are human functions. Gibberellins are one group of hormones

that control growth and a wide variety of other plant developmental

processes.

 

Plants have detoxification mechanisms that work to break down

xenobiotics; many of these mechanisms are similar to how the human body

deals with toxic compounds. Both plants and humans require certain

nutrients and enzymes to efficiently remove toxins and to protect

themselves from stress. For example, glutathione plays an important role

in various physiological processes of both plants and humans,

functioning primarily as an antioxidant.

 

Like humans, plants suffer oxidative stress and free radical damage when

exposed to xenobiotic compounds, and produce antioxidants in response.

Pollutant tolerance in plants is determined by many of the same

physiological mechanisms as in humans. In general, there are more

similarities between the metabolic pathways of plants and humans than

there are differences.

 

The bodies of plants, like the bodies of humans, support complex

microbial ecosystems. From the root tips to the tips of the highest

leaves, plants provide a diverse habitat for a wide range of

microorganisms. Just as the skin and mucous membranes of the human body

are the biogeography for various colonies, each zone of a plant has its

own cohort of microorganisms. Both the human and the plant body set the

stage for its microbial inhabitants, and in turn, the microbes establish

a range of varied relationships with their partners, ranging from

relatively inconsequential transient visits, to symbiotic functions, to

pathogenic attacks.

 

Subtle functions

 

There are other fascinating parallels between plants and humans that are

more in the realm of subtle energetic physiology than purely biochemical

or anatomical functions. Plants, like humans, have circadian rhythms.

There is accumulating evidence that plants have multiple circadian

clocks both in different tissues and, quite probably, within individual

cells. Plant growth, like the growth of the human body, is guided by

gravity. Gravitropism, the ability of plant organs to use gravity, has

been recognized for over two centuries. Like the human body, plants

develop symmetry of form; like the human body, these processes arise in

embryogenesis. Plants communicate, both with other plants and with other

forms of life. The primary signaling mechanism for this is

semiochemicals. These secreted compounds act as attractants and

repellants of beneficial or destructive insects, and allow plants to

inform other plants of events such as insect attacks and infestation.

Studies have also demonstrated that plant growth is stimulated by

certain kinds of music and inhibited by others, indicating some level of

sensory awareness and sentience.

 

Parallels Between Human Illness and Biospheric Disorders

 

One of the most remarkable aspects of traditional Asian medical systems

is the practice of diagnosing and treating illness as disequilibrium of

nature?s elements within the microcosm of the human body. Ayurvedic and

Chinese medicine describes physiological activity using imagery of

external elemental forces as they manifest within the individual organs

and tissues, such as heart fire, heat in the liver, wind disturbing the

nervous system, spleen dampness, and lung dryness.

 

The implications of this philosophy are both profound and scientifically

accurate. It reveals that we are inseparable from nature; that we are

composed of nature?s elements; that these elements are continuously

circulating into, through, and out of the body; that the body functions

according to the same laws as the planetary biosphere; and that nature?s

intelligence strives to restore equilibrium within the body. This

knowledge of biological interrelatedness and interdependency, which is

the basis of many yogic and contemplative practices, is urgently

relevant for our modern world.

 

Traditional Asian medicine is fundamentally a system of

?eco-physiology,? which applies the principles of terrestrial ecology to

the functioning of the human body. These universal principles are not

only applicable to the human body, however - they can also be used to

help diagnose and treat disturbances of the biosphere. Using the

holistic humoral and energetic models of traditional Asian medical

systems, a number of correlations can be made between disorders within

the human body (microcosm) and the biospheric functions of the earth

(macrocosm). Exploring these similarities is a kind of ?macro-thinking?

that helps develop awareness of the unity of body and nature; it is also

important for clinical success, since illnesses are inseparable from the

outer elements and increasingly related to environmental factors.

Without this holistic perspective, it is difficult to identify and

remove the root causes of illnesses, and natural medicine loses much of

its depth and power. The relevance of this knowledge to plant

eco-physiology is that both the internal and external aspects of

diseases are corrected by the physiological functions of plants.

 

The most critical disease process occurring at the planetary level is

global warming. From an eco-physiological viewpoint, global warming is a

fever of the earth. Global warming in turn creates the conditions for

epidemics of infectious febrile diseases. Drought and desertification,

two increasingly severe manifestations of global warming, can be

compared to dehydration and yin deficiency syndromes, which are also

generated by chronic heat conditions. In the same way that botanical

medicines provide a wide range of anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, and

demulcent compounds, plants are the key to reversing global warming and

desertification through their oxygen-generating, carbon-dioxide-binding,

water-recycling, and environmental-cooling functions.

 

Water pollution in the outer environment can be closely correlated with

various forms of fluid toxicity that affect tissues. Water pollution,

water stagnation, and the generation of pathogens are closely linked, as

when dams create overgrowth of malarial mosquitoes or microbial

pathogens. In the body, fluid stagnation, fluid toxicity, and the

overgrowth of pathogens are also closely related, as when chronic

phlegmatic congestion breeds opportunistic viral and bacterial

infections of the respiratory tract, or lymphatic stagnation leads to

inflammatory skin conditions. Botanical medicines effectively treat

fluid stagnation and toxicity syndromes; plants are also the primary

agents for remediation of water pollution and purification of microbial

ecologies.

 

Contamination of the soil can be compared to contamination of the bodily

terrain, especially the digestive tract. Loss of topsoil and depletion

of soil fertility leads to malnutrition, which is depletion of the

body?s tissues. Depletion, toxicity, and genetic modification of the

plant kingdom are a fundamental cause of nutritional disorders; both can

be linked through the concept of the ?earth? element in Chinese and

Ayurvedic medicine. Plants are the primary source of nutrients for the

body and its tissues, and they are also the primary agents of soil

regeneration and the most important way of preventing erosion of topsoil.

 

A wide range of further parallels can be made between human and

biospheric physiology. Erratic weather patterns generated by global

warming can be described as disordered biorhythms. ?Dead zones? in the

ocean created by agricultural toxins can be compared to necrotic tissues

of the body. Fascinating comparisons can be made between various

diseases, such as cancer and AIDS, and their corresponding

manifestations in the biosphere. More examples will be explored below.

 

Parallels between antibiotic and pesticide use

 

Another important series of correlations can be made between the effects

of antibiotics and the effects of pesticides. Philosophically,

antibiotics and pesticides both reflect the nature-dominating paradigm

of modern Western culture. Medically and ecologically, both practices

are unsustainable. Economically, their use is driven primarily by

corporate profit motive.

 

The relevance of this information to plant eco-physiology is that plants

are the solution to the worldwide problems caused by antibiotics and

pesticides in both the micro and macro ecosystems. Medically, the

phytonutrients, alkaloid compounds, immune-enhancing polysaccharides,

and essential oils of botanical species will become increasingly

important as microbial virulence increases and antibiotics lose their

effectiveness. Ecologically, the revival of biodynamic and organic

gardening methods will replace toxic agricultural chemicals as pesticide

and herbicide resistance increases. Antibiotics and pesticides both

target unwanted organisms. Both destroy the complex healthy microbial

communities in the various terrains where they are used; antibiotics

destroy healthy intestinal, mucous membrane, and skin flora, while

pesticides destroy the microbial communities in the soil and natural

predators such as beneficial insects and birds. Both approaches lead to

increased resistance and virulence in bacteria, insect pests, and

invasive weeds. The use of both is followed by a rebound effect:

overgrowth of candida and other opportunistic infections after

antibiotic use, and flourishing of insect pests after the effects of

spraying have worn off. Antibiotics weaken immunity, while pesticides

and herbicides decrease soil fertility and plant resistance. Increased

pathogenic virulence and resistance combined with weakened host immunity

leads to susceptibility to re-infection after antibiotic use, and

susceptibility of plants to opportunistic diseases after pesticide use.

Antibiotics lead to accumulation of toxicity within tissues and organs

after repeated use, while pesticides and herbicides lead to accumulation

of chemical toxicity in soil, water, and air.

 

Parallels between organic gardening and natural medicine

 

On the other hand, parallels and analogies can be made between the

non-toxic methods used in organic gardening and farming, and the

principles of natural healing. Both activities are based on the

eco-physiology of plants, whether in the garden or in the body.

 

Building healthy soil by promoting microbial communities through

composting has an obvious correlation with improving digestive function

by building healthy intestinal bacterial ecology. Insects attack plants

with poor immunity, just as bacteria opportunistically attack weaknesses

in immune defenses. Increasing biodiversity, such as integrated pest

management and companion planting, increases plant resistance; in a

similar way, botanical medicine and integrated therapies strive to

strengthen the body through the use of a broader spectrum of nutrients

and healthy stimuli. Using aromatic plants to repel insects in gardens

is similar to the use of essential oils to treat bacterial and viral

infections. Increasing the availability of oxygen and nutrients to

tissues by increasing circulation is similar to supplying nutrients to

plants through proper aeration of soil. Providing good drainage of water

in the garden is comparable to improving fluid metabolism and removing

congestion.

 

Phytoremediation: Using plants to heal the environment

 

Phytoremediation is the removal and degradation of contamination in

soils and groundwater by plants. It utilizes a variety of plant

physiological functions, including direct uptake of toxins, metabolism

of those toxins into less toxic or nontoxic compounds, and degradative

processes of bacteria and fungi within plant root systems. These

processes, which are capable of removing low to moderate levels of

environmental pollution, can be correlated with similar functions in the

human body, which also degrade and eliminate xenobiotics and metabolic

waste.

 

There are many advantages of using phytoremediation over conventional

remediation methods: it is less expensive, it can be applied to a wide

range of toxic metals and radionuclides, it is minimally disruptive to

the environment, it is solar powered and energy efficient, it requires

little maintenance, and it is aesthetically pleasing. There are

thousands of phytoremediation projects in different stages of research

and development around the world.

 

A wide range of environmental toxins can be remediated using plants.

Phytoremediation is being used to clean up metals, pesticides, solvents,

explosives, crude oil, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and landfills. Hybrid

poplar and Eastern cottonwood remove chlorinated solvents in ground

water. Petroleum and its hydrocarbons can be removed from soil and

ground water using alfalfa, poplar and juniper, fescue grass, crabgrass,

and clover. Polyaromatic hydrocarbons are remediated with ryegrass and

mulberry trees. Heavy metals can be removed from soil using poplar and

pine trees, chaparral, various grasses, and castor plants. Radionuclides

can be removed from ground water with sunflowers and water hyacinth, and

from the soil with mustards and cabbage. Explosives such as TNT can be

removed from groundwater with duckweed and parrot feather grass.

Nitrates can be remediated with cottonwood and poplar trees. Various

water plants, including hyacinths, are being used in municipal sewage

treatment.

 

In the last five years it has become clear that while phytoremediation

has significant benefits in certain applications, its widespread

commercial use is limited by the natural processes of plant physiology:

plants degrade toxins slowly, large areas are needed for planting, many

plants cannot be grown in the soils and climates where they are needed,

and much remains unknown about the field in general. The scientific

community involved in this research is now exploring genetic

modification of plant physiology as a way of enhancing their remediating

powers.

 

Some improvements in plant remediation capacity using genetic

modification have been reported, such as using bacterial genes to help

plants degrade mercury more efficiently. By inserting mammalian genes to

express cytochrome P450 liver enzymes, plants have been modified to

enhance their degradation of trichloroethylene, a ubiquitous toxic

solvent used in dry cleaning.

 

It is ironic that scientific advances intended for human betterment are

the original source of the chemical, biological, and nuclear waste that

now needs remediating. It seems likely that the well-intentioned efforts

to improve plant functions with genetic modification, like much of

modern allopathic medicine, may yield symptomatic benefits while

worsening the overall health of the biosphere. Holistic medicine, on the

other hand, addresses the causative factors of illness and works to

eliminate them. The obvious solutions to widespread contamination of the

earth is to first stop manufacturing and using toxic substances

(detoxifying the patient from addictions), converting to nontoxic

plant-based alternatives (creating a healthy lifestyle), and enhancing

phytoremediation capacities by restoring ecosystems to their original

biodiversity (restoring systemic immunity and homeostasis).

 

The Eco-Physiology of Phytoremediation

 

Phytoremediation can be categorized into six basic plant functions:

phytodegradation, phytoextraction, rhizofiltration, rhizodegradation,

phytostabilization, and phytovolatilization. These functions are clear

examples of the eco-physiology of plants and its practical applications

for environmental remediation. Several comparisons can be made between

these plant processes and human metabolic functions.

 

Phytodegradation

 

Phytodegradation, also known as phytotransformation, is the breakdown of

contaminants by metabolic processes within the plant, or the breakdown

of contaminants external to the plant through the effect of compounds

produced by the plants. Plants degrade contaminants through enzymatic

pathways, and the metabolites are incorporated into new plant material.

Phytodegradation processes are effective on organic pollutants including

petroleum byproducts, pesticides like DDT, and explosives like TNT.

 

The processes of phytodegradation can be compared to detoxification

processes in the human body, especially those occurring in the liver,

such as the cytochrome enzymatic pathways.

 

Phytoextraction

 

Phytoextraction is the use of plants to absorb toxic metals from the

soil into the harvestable parts of the roots, stems, and leaves.

?Hyper-accumulators? absorb unusually large amounts of metals in

comparison to other plants. One or a combination of these plants is

selected and planted at a particular site based on the type of metals

present. After the plants have been allowed to grow for some time, they

are harvested and either incinerated or composted to recycle the metals.

Approximately 400 species of hyper-accumulators exist, including

representatives of many families from herbs to perennial shrubs and trees.

 

Unlike phytodegradation, the plant does not destroy or use the material,

but simply stores it; as it absorbs more from the soil, concentrations

of the substance within the plant can become extraordinarily high. For

example, the tree Sebertia acuminata absorbs so much nickel that it

bleeds a blue-green latex when cut, caused by the oxidized nickel.

Metals such as nickel, zinc, and copper are preferred by a majority of

the hyper-accumulating plants; others absorb radioactive strontium,

cesium, and uranium.

 

Phytoextraction can be used to pull contamination from water deep in the

earth. Because trees are the largest plants in the world, they are able

to take up more contaminants than other plants. Poplar trees are being

used to extract the widely used solvent trichloroethylene from soil and

water. Ninety-five percent of the solvent can be removed from

groundwater by simply planting the trees and letting them grow, and

about ninety percent of the solvent is degraded into harmless compounds.

Through this function of hydraulic pumping, trees also prevent the

spread of contaminated water to other areas.

 

Phytoextraction of toxins by plants is analogous to the accumulation of

toxins within the organs and tissues, especially the liver.

 

Rhizofiltration

 

Rhizofiltration is similar to phytoextraction, but the plants are used

primarily to address contaminated ground water rather than soil. The

rhizosphere (the area surrounding roots of plants) contains 10 to 100

times the amounts of bacteria in unplanted soil; organic compounds

degrade faster in this microbe-rich area. As the roots become saturated

with contaminants, they are harvested. For example, sunflowers were used

successfully to remove radioactive contaminants from pond water in a

test at Chernobyl.

 

Rhizodegradation

 

Rhizodegradation is the breakdown of contaminants in the soil through

microbial activity in the root zone (rhizosphere). Certain

microorganisms can digest organic substances such as fuels or solvents

that are hazardous to humans and break them down into harmless products.

Plants release sugars, alcohols, and acids from their roots, which

provide nutrition for the microorganisms and enhance their activity.

Biodegradation is also aided by plants loosening the soil and

transporting water to the area.

 

The degradative and detoxifying effects of the microbial rhizosphere

during rhizofiltration and rhizodegradation are similar to functions

performed by beneficial intestinal flora in humans. Using the

rhizosphere of plants to enhance bacterial activity in soil is

comparable to using probiotic supplementation to remove pathogens such

as candida and their toxins.

 

Phytostabilization

 

Phytostabilization is the use of plants to immobilize contaminants

through absorption and accumulation by roots, adsorption onto roots, or

precipitation within the rhizosphere. This process does not remove the

toxins from the soil, but reduces their mobility, prevents their

migration into groundwater and air, and decreases their entry into the

food chain. Poplar trees, for example, can transpire between 50 and 300

gallons of water per day out of the ground. The water consumption by the

plants decreases the tendency of surface contaminants to move towards

ground water and into drinking water.

 

A simple parallel can be drawn between the use of plants to stabilize

toxins, and the body?s natural mechanism of encapsulation to prevent the

spread of various toxins into the blood and tissues.

 

Phytovolatilization

 

Phytovolatilization is the uptake and transpiration of a contaminant by

a plant, with release of the contaminant into the atmosphere.

Phytovolatilization occurs as trees and other plants take up water and

the organic contaminants. Some of these contaminants can pass through

the plants to the leaves and evaporate, or volatilize, into the atmosphere.

 

The leaves of plants are like lungs: both are responsible for

respiration and volatilization of waste gases.

 

Medicinal Plants Used in Eco-Restoration

 

Several plants with important nutritional and medicinal properties are

being utilized in ecological restoration and environmental remediation.

These species represent a unique category of phytoremeditation and plant

eco-physiology: plants which benefit the environment while

simultaneously providing food and medicine. Four examples are kelp, neem

trees, vetiver grass, and sea buckthorn.

 

Kelp

 

There are several species of kelp, which are among the fastest growing

plants in the world. Kelp produces more oxygen and binds more carbon

than any other sea plant; studies suggest that if the original kelp beds

of the world?s oceans were replanted (one percent of the ocean?s

surface), they could stabilize atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, the

primary greenhouse gas associated with global warming. Kelp forests

purify coastal ecosystems and provide habitat for fish populations.

Kelp, like other sea vegetables, is a highly nutritious food and

medicine, used specifically for supporting thyroid functions.

 

Neem (Azadirachta Indica)

 

Neem trees are an excellent example of an agro-forestry crop that

remediates environmental pollution while providing a wide range of

medicinal and agricultural products. The trees improve soil fertility,

rehabilitate degraded wastelands, control soil erosion, and prevent

floods; they can withstand extreme heat and high levels of water

pollution. Because they provide numerous items of commerce, neem

plantations are a panacea for economically depressed areas. The United

Nations has declared neem the " tree of the 21st century? because of the

many solutions to global problems that it offers.

 

In India, neem is considered the ?village pharmacy.? Every part of the

tree provides a variety of medicinal substances for a vast range of

symptoms. Neem leaves are a potent hepatoprotective agent; they are

effective against parasitic infections, have significant anti-ulcer

activity, and are strongly anti-inflammatory. Neem bark is used as a

bitter tonic with antibacterial properties; it is effective against a

number of skin conditions, including eczema, burns, herpes, scabies,

dermatitis, warts, and dandruff. The fatty oil expressed from the seed

has a long history of use as a nontoxic spermicidal contraceptive; it

also reduces uterine inflammation. A large number of herbal

pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and body care products are now based on neem

products.

 

One of the best examples of plant eco-physiology is nontoxic pesticides

produced from neem leaves. Neem-based pest control products, like herbal

antibiotics, have broad-spectrum modes of action that are not only

effective against pests, but also safer, less persistent in the

environment, and less prone to pest resistance than synthetic pesticides.

 

The bioactivity of neem has been extensively evaluated and is well

established. It is the only plant from which effective and eco-friendly

bio-pesticides are commercially manufactured. Neem pesticides are used

in India on crops like cotton, vegetables, fruit trees, coffee, tea,

rice and spices. The EPA has approved the use of neem products on food

crops in the US, as well as for ornamental and landscape plants. Neem

products are being used in commercial-scale crop management in Canada.

Neem-based pesticides are expected to capture 10 percent of the global

pesticide market by the next decade.

 

Another application of neem?s eco-physiology is nontoxic fertilizer.

Neem leaves, like many herbal medicines with bitter principles, have

dual functions: Indian farmers have traditionally used neem as a

fertilizer which also acts as a pest repellent. Neem leaves

simultaneously enrich the soil and protect plant roots from nematodes,

ants, fungi, and harmful bacteria.

 

Vetiver (Vetiver Zizanioides)

 

Vetiver is a grass with important phytoremediating functions. Because of

its deep and complex root system, it is one of the best grass species

for preventing soil erosion. In China, vetiver is being planted on a

large scale for pollution control and phytostabilization of mine

tailings. Vetiver roots also function as a highly efficient filter for

rainwater, slowing down runoff, controlling floods, and recharging

ground water. In places where vetiver is planted the soil moisture and

groundwater are significantly improved: water levels in wells are

higher, springs do not dry up, and small streams run longer into the dry

season.

 

Vetiver roots absorb and transform agricultural toxins. The grass

thrives in polluted water and improves both the quantity and quality of

the water. It is effective in removing agricultural phosphates and

nitrogen, and it mitigates environmental problems resulting from toxic

minerals. There is evidence that vetiver can remove pesticides as well.

 

Vetiver improves soil fertility and crop production. When used as an

amendment, it improves soil nutrients and increases crop yields. Vetiver

protects orchards by reducing the temperature in and above the soil and

increasing air moisture.

 

Vetiver is easy to establish, is inexpensive, and needs minimum

maintenance. It thrives in a wide range of ecosystems and different soil

types, can withstand serious drought and long-term water logging, is

more tolerant of hot and cold than the other grasses, and is not

seriously affected by pests or diseases. It promotes the growth of other

plants and helps restore vegetation.

 

Vetiver is now being grown for environmental purposes in over 100

countries. It provides a number of important items to households and

farms, such as fragrant sleeping mats, thatching for roofs, mulch, and

animal feed. Vetiver is the source of an aromatic oil used in perfumery,

incense, and medicine.

 

Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides)

 

Sea buckthorn is a shrub that has been used for numerous purposes for at

least 1,200 years. It is mentioned in Tibetan medical classics from the

sixth century. Until the 1980s its use was limited to Tibet and

Mongolia; now it is cultivated for a variety of purposes in China and

other places. The eco-physiology of sea buckthorn has valuable

environmental applications, while simultaneously providing numerous

medicines, foods, and cosmetics. The primary ecological benefits of the

shrub, like vetiver grass, are based on its complex and deep root

system, which provides excellent soil-binding properties, erosion

control, and stabilization of mountainsides.

 

Conclusion

 

The overall health of society is determined more by its nutritional,

hygienic, and environmental status than by the sophistication of its

medical systems. If medicine does not address these underlying levels of

wellbeing and illness, it is not holistic. Physicians and healthcare

practitioners of all disciplines have a responsibility to support

planetary ecological health by identifying the causes of diseases and

educating patients about how to remove those causes. As this holistic

consciousness increases throughout society, the recognition of plants as

agents of both medical and ecological healing will also increase; this

awareness, in turn, has the potential to dramatically change the

destructive priorities of modern society and lead to the creation of

sustainable, prosperous, and peaceful plant-based cultures. In my

opinion, this is the most important goal of medical practice today.

[Guest guest]

will do you have david crow's email address

thanks alon