The Handbook of Clinically Tested Herbal Remedies. Volumes I and II

This is a comprehensive account of 42 herbal extracts and proprietary preparations published in two volumes. The main part consists of botanical profiles and the chapters are entitled artichoke, bilberry, black cohosh, boxwood, purple butterbur, cat’s claw, chaste tree, cordyceps, cranberry, devil’s claw, dragon’s blood croton, Echinacea, elderberry, evening primrose, garlic, ginger, ginkgo, ginseng, grape seed, grass pollen, green tea, hawthorn, horse chestnut, kava, lemon balm, milk thistle, pygeum, red clover, red yeast rice, saw palmetto, St John’s wort, valerian and the proprietary preparations Wind, Cystone, Gastrim, Geriforte, Iberogast, Padma, Phytodolor, Prostane, Resistex and Sinupret.

Each botanical profile contains a summary section reviewing clinical studies, which is followed by product information and clinical trials that pertain to this particular product. If there is more than one product based on a particular botanical then the trials are grouped according to the product. An interesting feature of this book is the methods section, which gives details of searching (last search date summer 2002), trial selection and evaluation of clinical trial quality. It also provides manufacturer contact information.

Overall, this book is a valuable resource for all who are interested in herbal medicine. Considerable expertise has been drawn together, judging by the contributing authors. It gives an interesting and different perspective in that it provides the evidence according to the specific products used. One inherent problem with this book, however, is that with the current speed of new evidence being published it will soon become outdated and will require updating.