An HERBAL/MEDICAL DICTIONARY BY MICHAEL MOORE A Glossary of terms used in Herbalism, Medicine and Physiology Descriptions, Explanations, and Implications in Wholistic and Vitalist Therapy SOUTHWEST SCHOOL OF BOTANICAL MEDICINE PO Box 4565. Bisbee, AZ 85603 An HERBAL / MEDICAL DICTIONARY by Michael Moore The definitions below are pertinent to my use of those terms as an herbalist. Those of you versed in medicine may find the emphasis sometimes peculiar. You are used to employing those parts of anatomy, physiology and pharmacology that explain phenomena treatable with Standard Practice Medicine. Clinical diagnosis uses the physical sciences to help define conditions with medical implications, even though much of both physiology and pharmacology deals with observations that may not have medical treatment. It isn't unimportant, simply not pertinent. MY application of physiology and pharmacology is similarly biased towards MY tools. Herbs work rather poorly within the current medical model; they neither block nor suppress effectively (at least those that are reasonably safe). The best that can be said is that they NUDGE. We need to use the sciences to define constitutional, environmental and life-style factors, since we cannot CREATE a new state, only manipulate existing potentials. With herbs, you usually try to STIMULATE native resistance, and need to understand the factors that compromise it. The focus is on self-limiting and acute disorders, chronic and functional disorders, and the subclinical imbalances that are not "ripe" enough to warrant a medical approach but that compromise general health and that may in time lead to disease. Medicine needs to use procedures in intervening when native strengths have proved inadequate; the use of herbs needs to understand the co- factors and physiology of native strengths in order to extend them. Hence some of the definitions, while being accurate, may seem to emphasize almost trivial aspects. It's all a journey, this process of trying to help sick people. Current medicine drives quickly, but only on roads it has built. Herbal therapies travel on horseback; poorly on the roads, best across the countryside where the cars can't go. The great evils of medicine are that it claims to be scientific (it is an art using science as a tool) and that it denies other modalities (using the standards of science, not art). January, 1995 Albuquerque, New Mexico tAt ACHENE A dry, one-seeded fruit, without a predictable opening and formed from a single carpel. It usually one of many, like an unshelled Sunflower seed. ACHLORHYDRIA The lack of free hydrochloric acid in the stomach; more broadly, inadequate or suppressed secretions. Without enough acid, proteins are not broken down, butterfats are not digested, Vitamin B12 may not be absorbed, and there is a long-term risk for the potential of food sensitivities to undigested foreign proteins. ACID In our context, a substance having a pH below that of neutral water (7.0) when in solution. Most metabolic waste products are acidic. Sour. See pH ACIDOSIS Specifically, the abnormal buildup of acids in the body, classically caused by diabetes or kidney disease. Broadly, the potential caused by increased protein intake or metabolism, coupled with inadequate intake (or loss) of alkali. ACUTE A type of disease or disorder having a sudden onset with severe symptoms, and generally a short or self-limited duration (such as a head cold or sprain). The opposite of CHRONIC. ADAPTOGEN A recent (and to me, slightly flaky) term used to describe agents, often botanical, that stimulate non-specific resistance, and that seem to decrease hypothalamus and pituitary over-reactions to perceived...not real...stress. ADENITIS An inflammation of one or several lymph nodes, or related lymphoid tissues. ADRENAL CORTEX The outer covering of the two adrenal glands that lie atop each kidney. Embryonically derived from gonad tissue, they make steroid hormones that control electrolytes, the management of fuels, the rate of anabolism, the general response to stress, and maintenance of nonspecific resistance. ADRENAL MEDULLA The inner part of the adrenals, derived embryonically from spinal nerve precursors, they secrete epinephrine, norepinephrine and dopamine; used locally as neurotransmitters, sensitive receptors can be mobilized totally by the adrenal medullas. ADRENALIN Called epinephrine in the U.S., this is a substance secreted into the bloodstream and reacted to by specialized receptors throughout the body, initiating a "code blue" or flight-or-fight response. Many receptors are a regular part of sympathetic function, and respond to their own local relative, norepinephrine or noradrenalin, in the course of normal autonomic nervous system interplay. See: SYMPATHETIC, PARASYMPATHETIC, LIMBIC ADRENERGIC Functions that are dominated by epinephrine (the blood hormone) or norepinephrine (local sympathetic adrenergic nerve stimulus) ADRENOCORTICAL Pertaining to the adrenal cortex. ALOPECIA The loss of hair. AERIAL The parts of plants growing above ground. ALKALINE In our context, a substance having a pH above that of neutral water (7.0) when in solution. Signified as pH (potential of Hydrogen), alkaline fluids, such as the blood (pH about 7.4), have the ability to neutralize acids (solutions below pH 7.0). Metabolic wastes are acids, and the alkaline reserve of the blood neutralizes them until they are excreted. See pH ALKALOID One of a varied family of alkaline, nitrogen-containing substances, usually plant-derived, reacting with acids to form salts. Normally intensely bitter, alkaloids form a body of substances widely used in drug and herbal therapy. They are usually biologically active and have a toxic potential. The term is more pharmaceutical and medical than chemical since alkaloids come from a variety of otherwise unrelated organic compounds. (Examples: caffeine, morphine, berberine). ALTERATIVE A term applied in naturopathic, Eclectic, and Thomsonian medicine to those plants or procedures that stimulate changes of a defensive or healing nature in metabolism or tissue function when there is chronic or acute diseases. The whole concept of alteratives is based on the premise that in a normally healthy person, disease symptoms are the external signs of activated internal defenses and, as such, should be stimulated and not suppressed. Sambucus (Elder), as an example, acts as an alterative when it is used to stimulate sweating in a fevered state. Without a fever or physical exertion, Sambucus tea will increase intestinal, lung, and kidney secretions. With fever or exercise, the buildup of heat from combustion, and the dilation of peripheral blood supply, it takes the defense response to the next stage of breaking a sweat. You might have sweated eventually anyway, but you may be one of those people who doesn't perspire easily, and a diaphoretic such as Sambucus will act as an alterative for you by stimulating the next stage of defenses sooner than you would have on your own. The term alterative is sometimes inaccurately used as a synonym for "blood purifier," particularly by nature-cure neo-Thomsonians such as Jethro Kloss and John Christopher. "Blood purifier" is a term better applied to the liver, spleen, and kidneys, not to some dried plant. ALTERNATE Having plant parts, particularly leaves, arranged alternately along a stem, as opposed to in pairs or whorled. AMEBIASIS Having an amoebic infection, usually in reference to amoebic dysentery, caused by the parasitic amoeba, Entameba histolitica. AMENORRHEA Absence or suppression of menses. Primary amenorrhea is the failure to begin menses by age 16, secondary amenorrhea is tardy menses (from pregnancy, stress, dieting, illness or intensive physical training) in the previously menstruating woman. ANABOLIC Promoting anabolism. Specifically, an agent or function that stimulates the organization of smaller substances into larger ones. Examples: making a starch out of sugars, a protein out of amino acids, or making triglycerides out of fatty acids are anabolic functions. Anabolic steroids are internal or external substances that will induce increased body size or mass. The opposite of CATABOLIC. ANAL WARTS Also called Condylomata acuminata. A sexually transmitted viral infection, caused by human papillomavirus. See VENEREAL WARTS ANALGESIC A substance that relieves pain. (Examples: aspirin, Balsam Poplar.) ANESTHETIC A substance that decreases nerve sensitivity to pain. Examples: nitrous oxide, Peppermint. ANGINA PECTORIS A painful chronic heart condition, characterized by an oppressive sensation, difficulty breathing, and pain in the chest or arms. Attacks are often triggered by exertion or a sudden adrenergic discharge, and the underlying cause is insufficient blood supply to the heart muscles ANGINA, VASOMOTORIA Like the previous, but less dangerous and more frequently caused by purely neurologic stimulus. The pain is more spasmodic and there is usually little actual blood vessel blockage. ANGIOTENSIN A substance formed in tissues or blood vessels when there needs to be local or even massive vasoconstriction. The primary precursor is renin, made by the kidneys, and elevated when the blood seems dehydrated or low in volume; the next substance needed for this reaction is a liver protein, angiotensinogen; when both are present in the blood, local factors can then form this pressor substance. Excess production is often implicated in high blood pressure. ANORECTIC An agent that suppresses appetite for food. ANOREXIA Having little or no appetite for food. ANTIBODY Immunologic proteins, usually made from immunoglobulins, that are capable of binding to, and rendering inactive, foreign substances that have entered the skin envelope and have been deemed dangerous. They may be synthesized anew in the presence of a previously encountered substance (antigen); they may be present in small amounts at all times in the bloodstream; or they may be present in the tissues in a more primitive form designed to react to a broad spectrum of potential antigens. The latter may be responsible for some allergies. ANTICHOLINERGIC An agent that impedes the impulses or actions of the nerves or fibers of the parasympathetic ganglia, competing with, and blocking the release of acetycholine at what are called the muscarinic sites. Cholinergic functions affected are those that induce spasms and cramps of the intestinal tracts and allied ducts. Examples: Atropine, Datura, Garrya. ANTICOAGULANT A medication or natural compound that slows or prevents the formation of blood clots. Examples: Heparin {endogenous), Dicumarol and warfarin (drugs), Melilotus (coumarin-containing). ANTIDEPRESSANT Literally, substances meant to oppose depressions or sadness, and generally heterocyclic types such as Elavil, MAO inhibitors like phenelzine, or lithium carbonate. This category of substances formerly included stuff like amphetamines and other stimulants. Our only plants that could fit the current definition would be Hypericum, Peganum and perhaps Oplopanax. ANTIFUNGAL An agent that kills or inhibits fungi, and, in my usage here, an herb that inhibits either a dermatomycosis like ringworm or athlete's foot, or one that inhibits Candida albicans either externally as a douche or internally as a systemic antifungal. (Examples: Nystatin, griseofulvin, Tabebuia.) ANTIGEN A substance, usually a protein, that induces the formation of defending antibodies. Example: bacterial toxins, Juniper pollen (in allergies). Auto-immune disorders can occur when antibodies are formed against normal proteins created within the body. ANTIHISTAMINE An exogenous agent that inhibits the release of histamine, the amino acid derivative that stimulates vasodilation and permeability under many circumstances, particularly tissue irritation. The most common type of antihistamine, the H1 receptor antagonist, produces many moderate side effects, and the H2 receptor antagonist cimetidine is even more problematic. That they are so commonly used can lull both physician and patient into trivializing their iatrogenic potential. Histamines, which are most abundant in the skin, respiratory, and GI tract mucus membranes, help heal; using antihistamines to inhibit the healing response for the whole body simply in order to lessen the acute but physiologically superficial symptoms of something like hay fever is to risk many subtle side effects. ANTIMICROBlAL An agent that kills or inhibits microorganisms. ANTIOXIDANT A substance that prevents oxidation or slows a redox reaction. More generally, an agent that slows the formation of lipid peroxides and other free- radical oxygen forms, preventing the rancidity of oils or blocking damage from peroxides to the mitochondria of cells or cell membranes. (Examples : Vitamin E, Larrea (Chaparral), Gum Benzoin.) ANTIPHLOGISTINE An agent that limits or decreases inflammation; an anti- inflammatory or antihistamine. ANTISPASMODIC A substance used to relieve or prevent spasms of the smooth muscles of the intestinal tract, bronchi, or uterus.(Examples: barbiturates, Garrya.) ANTIVIRAL An agent that experimentally inhibits the proliferation and viability of infectious viruses. In our domain of herbal medicines, some plants will slow or inhibit the adsorption or random initial attachment of viruses, extend the lifespan of infected target cells, or speed up several aspects of immunity, including complement, antibody, and phagocytosis responses. Herbal antivirals work best on respiratory viruses such as influenza, adenoviruses, rhinoviruses, and the enteric echoviruses. Touted as useful in the alphabet group of slow viruses (HIV, EBV, CMV, etc.), they really help to limit secondary concurrent respiratory infections that often accompany immunosuppression. ANTIPHLOGISTINE An agent that limits or decreases inflammation; an anti- inflammatory or antihistamine. APOCRINE Secretory glands, especially found in the armpit and groin, that secrete oily sweat derived from shed cell cytoplasm, and which contain aromatic compounds that possess emotional information for those nearby. Examples: The smell of fear, the scent released after orgasm, the odor released by annually-frustrated Chicago Cubs fans. APTHOUS STOMATITIS Little ulcers or canker sores on the surface. of the tongue, lips, and cheek mucosa. In adults, they are often related to gastric reflux and dyspepsia. AROMATICS Chemically, molecules containing one or more benzene rings, but in our usage, plant compounds which, upon contact to the air, form gases which can be smelled: volatile oils. (Examples: menthol, Peppermint oil.) ARRHYTHMIAS An abnormal or irregular rhythm, usually in reference to the heart. ARTERIAL Blood that leaves the heart. When it leaves the right ventricle, it is venous blood; and when it leaves the left ventricle, through the aorta, it is fresh, hot, oxygenated red stuff. After it has passed out to the capillaries and started to return, it is venous blood. ARTERIOSCLEROSIS The condition of blood vessels that have thickened, hardened, and lost their elasticity-"hardening of the arteries." Aging and the formation of blood-derived fatty plaques within or directly beneath the inner lining of the arteries are the common causes. Many of the large arteries aid blood transport from the heart by their rebound elasticity, "kicking" it out; smaller ones have muscle coats that need to contract and relax in response to nerves. All this is compromised when there is arteriosclerosis. ARTHRITIS Literally, inflammation of one or more joints, usually with pain and sometimes with changes in the structure. Osteoarthritis is a chronic condition of loss in the organization of joint cartilage, with gradual calcification of the gristle, formation of spurs, and impaired function. Rheumatoid arthritis is an auto-immune disorder, with chronic inflammation and eventual distortion of the joints; the victim experiences a lessening of good health, worsening metabolic imbalance, allergies, and general stress (emotional, physical, and dietary). ASCITES An abnormal buildup of serous fluid, usually in regards the viscera. Although many infections and serious metabolic disorders can induce it, the most common cause is trauma and surgery. ASTHENIC having little tone or strength, especially in regards the nervous system or the skeletal muscles. ASTHMA, EXTRINSIC Asthma triggered by pollen, chemicals or some other external agent. ASTHMA, INTRINSIC Asthma triggered by boggy membranes, congested tissues, or other native causes...even adrenalin stress or exertion ASTRINGENT An agent that causes the constriction of tissues, usually applied topically to stop bleeding, secretions, and surface inflammation and distension. Some, such as gallotannins, may actually bind with and "tan" the surface layer of skin or mucosa. (Examples: a styptic pencil, Oak Bark.) ATONIC Having poor tone or diminished strength. ATOPIC A type of inherited allergic response involving elevated immunoglobulin E. Sometimes called a reagin response, it means that you have hay fever, bronchial asthma, or skin problems like urticaria or eczema. It can be acquired, sometimes after hepatitis or extended contact with solvents or alcohol, but if your mama sneezed and your daddy itched, you will probably have one form or another of the above stuff at different times of your life. Solution: since you can't change your stripes, keep in balance and avoid, if possible, the distortions of constant medications, both prescription and over-the-counter. ATROPINE An alkaloid derived from Belladonna (Atropa belladonna) and related plants that blocks some cholinergic or parasympathetic functions. It has been used to stop the cramps of diarrhea and is still found in some OTC cold remedies, since it dries up secretions. The main current medical use is in eye drops used to dilate the pupil. AUTOIMMUNITY The state of having acquired an immunologic memory that says a normal cell membrane is "other", and having forming antibody responses against it. A viral infection or organic chemical (hapten) may have started the response, but surviving healthy cells may have so close a charge pattern (epitope) that acquired immunity keeps on as if the cell was still "other". Any physical stress that causes the target tissue to become inflamed or replicate rapidly to heal can restimulate the auto-immune response. AXIL The upper angle formed by a leaf or branch with a stem. Things that pop out in the axils are called AXILLARY. AZOTEMIA The abnormal presence of urinary waste products in the blood. tBt BACTERIOSTATIC Slowing or stopping the proliferation of bacteria. BASAL METABOLISM The basic rate of combustion by a person, usually measured after sleep and while resting. BALSAMIC Soft or hard plant or tree resins composed of aromatic acids and oils. These are typically used as stimulating dressings and aromatic expectorants and diuretics. This term is also applied loosely to many plants that may not exude resins but which have a soothing, pitchy scent. Examples: Balsam Poplar, Eriodicyon. BASAL At or near the base, such as leaves sprouting directly from root or crown. BELLS PALSY An inflammatory condition of the facial, nerve, with paralysis, distortion and diminished tears. BENIGN PROSTATIC HYPERTROPHY, or HYPERPLASIA (BPH) The benign buildup in the prostate of "warts" or epithelial neoplasias that can block or interrupt urination, and which are usually concurrent with moderate prostate enlargement. They cause a dull ache on urination, ejaculation, and/or defecation. The diagnosis is medical, since the same subjective conditions can result from cancer of the prostate. BPH is common in men over fifty and can be the result either of diminished production of complete testosterone or poor pelvic circulation. Alcohol, coffee, speed, and antihistamines can all aggravate the problem. BETA BLOCKERS Drugs used to slow the response to epinephrine (released by the adrenal medulla), usually to attempt controlling high blood pressure BILIARY COLIC See CHOLECYSTITIS, CHOLECYSTALGIA, etc. BILIOUSNESS A symptom-picture resulting from a short-term disordered liver, with constipation, frontal headache, spots in front of the eyes, poor appetite, and nausea or vomiting. The usual causes are heavy alcohol consumption, poor ventilation when working with solvents, heavy binging with fatty foods, or moderate consumption of rancid fats. The term is genially archaic in medicine; people who are bilious are seldom genial, however. BILIRUBIN A waste product of hemoglobin recycling, it is primarily excreted in feces, oxidizing into that familiar brown color (except for beets). BILIRUBINEMIA The presence of abnormally high bilirubin in the blood, usually signifying hepatitis, with jaundice due next week. BIODIVERSE The state of life interdependency that is possible when large and small plants, soil organisms, insects, and fuzzy beasts exist in the ebb and flow created by the natural environment. Cut down the trees once and you lessen the biodiversity drastically. Wait fifty years and cut again and you have a small fraction of the life-form variety that you started with; the old diversity will never return...never. BIOMASS The actual amount of existing material within a species or genus. BIOSPHERE Literally, the part of the earth that supports life; more broadly, a large community of life-forms sharing a similar environment, such as a rain forest or prairie grassland. BIPINNATE A pinnate compound leaf whose leaflets, in turn, are stems that have pinnate leaflets. BITERNATE A compound leaf divided in threes, whose leaflets are in turn di- vided in pairs. BITTER TONIC A bitter-tasting substance or formula used to increase a deficient appetite, improve the acidity of stomach secretions and protein digestion, and slightly speed up the orderly emptying of the stomach. A good bitter tonic should possess little, if any, drug effect, only acting on oral and stomach functions and secretions. Dry mouth, bad gums, teeth problems with bad breath in the morning, and weak digestion, often with constipation, are the main deficiency symptoms. A bitter tonic has little effect in normal digestion. Example: Gentiana BORBORYGMUS The bubbling, gurgling passage of gas across the transverse colon...NOT a small North African rodent. BPH Benign Prostatic Hypertrophy, or Hyperplasia. BRACTS Reduced or modified leaflets that are usually parts of flowers or an inflorescence, generally subtending or beneath the floral parts. BRADYCARDIA A distinctly slow heartbeat, which may be a normal idiosyncrasy or with causes ranging from regular strenuous exercise to abnormally slow heart stimulus to the side-effects of medication. Bradycardia is usually defined as a pulse below sixty beats a minute, or seventy in children. BRADYKININ A plasma polypeptide that tends to lower blood pressure and increase capillary permeability. BRAIN FEVER Cerebral hyperemia. See Poe, Edgar Allen BRICK DUST The presence of reddish brown sediment in the urine, indicating uric acid, hippuric acid and creatinine excess in the blood...an anabolic greaseball who needs more liquids and alkali and who has over-acidic urine. It can be symptomatic of more serious problems as well. BROMIDES A binary salt of bromine, formerly used as a simple sedative. Given so freely and with no intent of affecting a healing, it became synonymous with a useless treatment only meant to shut up the patient. Excessive bromide use can cause some pronounced neurologic disturbances... they disappear with cessation of the drug. BRONCHITIS Inflammation of the mucus membranes on the bronchi, usually caused by an infection, sometimes by allergies or chemical irritations. BRONCHORRHEA Excess mucus secretions by the bronchi; a runny nose of the lungs. BUFFERING SYSTEM The several blood factors that enable the acid waste products of metabolism to be carried in the alkaline blood without disrupting its chemistry. These include carbolic acid, carbonates, phosphates, electrolytes, blood proteins, and erythrocyte membranes. BURSITIS Inflammation of a bursa, the lubricating sac that reduces friction between tendons and ligaments or tendons and bones. The more common localities for bursitis are the shoulders, the elbows, the knees, and the big toe (a bunion). tCt CALYX The outer set of sterile, floral leaves; the green, clasping base of a flower. CANDIDIASIS Generally, a disorder caused by Candida (Monilia) albicans. This is a common yeast-like fungus found in the mouth. vagina. and rectum, as well as on the outside skin. It is a common cause of thrush in infants and vaginal yeast infections. In recent years much attention has been given to the increased numbers of people with candidiasis in the upper and lower intestinal tract. This condition is now known to occur as a result of extended antibiotic therapy and anti-inflammatory treatment. Most anti- inflammatory drugs are really immunosuppressants, and the normal, stable competition between fungus and bacteria is altered by the antibiotic use; this rather benign and common skin and mucosal fungus can then move deeply into the body. Although both therapies are of major importance in managing disease, they are often prescribed or requested trivially, and both are centerpieces to the increased reliance on procedural medicine (surgery). The drug industry is paralyzed by the cost of marketing new drugs, whereas surgical procedures need far easier peer and FDA acceptance. Procedural medicine normally needs antibiotic AND anti-inflammatory therapy. CAPlLLARY The smallest blood or lymph vessel, formed of single layers of interconnected endothelial cells, sometimes with loosely attached connective tissue basement cells for added support. Capillaries allow the transport across their membranes and between their crevices of diffusible nutrients and waste products. Blood capillaries expand and contract, depending upon how much blood is needed in a given tissue and how much is piped into them by the small feeder arteries upstream. They further maintain a strong repelling charge that keeps blood proteins and red blood cells pushed into the center of the flow. Lymph capillaries have many open crypts, allowing free absorption of interstitial fluid forced out of the blood; these capillaries tend to maintain a charge that attracts bits of cellular garbage too large to return through the membranes of exiting venous capillaries. CARBOS Carbohydrates, like starch or sugar. CARDIOGLYCOSIDES Sugar-containing plant substances that, in proper doses. act as heart stimulants. Examples; digitoxin, strophanthin. CARDIOTONIC A substance that strengthens or regulates heart metabolism