Major Herbs of Ayurveda

This is a much needed book! Essentially, it is a collection of monographs of medicinal herbs frequently used in Ayurvedic medicine, from Abrus precatorius to Zingiber officinale. Each of these monographs follows a clear structure, including headings such as botanical description, traditional and modern use, major chemical constituents, medicinal and pharmacological activities and safety profile.

As with so many other books reviewed in this section, a major drawback is the lack of a systematic approach. How is the reader to know which information was included and which was omitted? How do we know that the impression given based on selective citation is objective and reflects the totality of the known evidence? My other regret with this book is that clinical data (e.g. clinical trials or systematic reviews) are almost totally excluded. For many of the plants, no, or little such data may exist, but even for those where they are available, the authors repeatedly fail to include it.

Although these drawbacks are considerable, the book can, on balance, be recommended, if only because there is so little else on offer in Ayurvedic medicine.