by Glory Lennon

Created on: January 19, 2009   Last Updated: February 03, 2009

In ancient times there was no such thing as going down to your local drug store for a cure for whatever ailed you. If your body wasn't functioning properly you went into the woods, the meadow or if you were industrious enough to plant one, to your herb garden. Back then you got better through herbal preparations made with common plants and every day herbs and spices.

No doubt with much trial and error folks back then sought the healing properties and health benefits of herbs and spices to heal, preserve and protect. Fortunately, they've done most of the work for us and the modern apothecaries, herbalists and others of the medical profession have done the rest.

We now know of many herbs and spices which can cure and prevent all kinds of ills to the body, mind and spirit. As the modern person likes things easy he/she has turned to herbal supplements for this purpose. If you were to go to any pharmacy, not only would you be overwhelmed by the quantity but also the variety. You would find virtually everything under the sun in tablet form all touting health benefits of some sort.

But are these claims true? Are herbal supplements really necessary? Do we really need to take St John's Wort to enhance our mood, Echinacea during flu season, Ginkgo Biloba to improve memory and Valerian when we're so stressed out we can't sleep? Some herbal enthusiasts would give a resounding yes to these queries.

But what about your average Joe and Jane? Would we actually improve our health by taking these herbal supplements? And with so many to choose from which should we take? Surely not all! We would rattle as we walked after taking that many pills. So, which are the most vital ones to take and which should we avoid altogether?

As with many things, that all depends on the individual. The FDA has come up with what they consider safety standards for herbal supplements. This is so we don't kill ourselves with "Good-for-you" herbs which might in fact harm us. It seems that some of the most commonly taken herbal supplements have negligible scientific evidence to back up their claims but cause little if any harm when taken in low doses but there are others that can cause trouble when not taken with caution nor with a thorough understanding of the herbs and their properties. For this purpose the book "The Healing Herbs: The Ultimate Guide to the Curative Power of Nature's Medicines" by Michael Castleman is truly invaluable.

These herbs with little or no scientific validity to their claims, however,

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