Customer Reviews

The ABC Clinical Guide to Herbs [with supplement]

5 star:		(6)
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1 star:		(3)

 

 

In fairness to the authors, this is a potentially useful book if you do not have any other books by Mark Blumenthal and you do not subscribe to periodicals by the American Botanical Council. It is far from the best of in its field, because it is given to restating the vocabulary rather than giving meaning, as in this description of milk thistle:

Hepaptoprotective; reduces serum gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) and transaminases (ALT, AST), reduces triglyceride in serum; reduces malondialdehyde...

This is simply the ploy used by herbalists with a more limited grasp of technical terminology. One herbalist might say, "flushes the liver," which is meaningless, while these herbalists say, "reduces serum gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase," which is meaningless to most readers and of very limited clinical value to practitioners. Reduces GGT how? Through action on hepatocytes? By maintaining plasticity? By introducing variation in laboratory measurements without beneficials changes to tissue? Can we assume our patients are better if their GGT titers are reduced?

Dr. Blumenthal obviously reads and writes. He sees a scientific fact, rephrases it, and adds a citation. This may be impressive, but it isn't useful. And the focus is exclusively herbal. Physicians would be much better served to read Murray & Pizzorno's textbooks on naturopathy than this long vocabulary exercise.

How many times is this author going to publish the same book? Sure there's some new information--new in the sense it wasn't in his other books, but already dated compared to the science--and there are some new products--not a complete list by any means. But, please, once was enough!

This book should be on every pharmacy reference shelf whether it is in the corner drugstore or the hospital pharmacy. Herbal questions arise continuously in practice and very often the pharmacist does not have the information at hand. The sections in this book on pharmacological actions, clinical review, and clinical studies are especially valuable as these often do not exist in other herbal references. The information on clinical studies is displayed in a series of tables that are quick to scan yet are detailed. For Ginkgo there are six pages of clinical studies tables. Contraindications, adverse effects, and drug interactions are there also for each herb and there is just enough botany and chemistry to keep an academic interested. This book is thorough and yet concise. It covers the 29 best-selling herbs in the United States and the information on each plant is extensively referenced. I have recommended this book to my students and I am currently using it in my courses.

First we had the COMPLETE German Commission E Monographs. Then it was the EXPANDED (Completer?) German Commission E Monographs. Now it's the Completest German Commission E Monographs, I suppose. If you've read one, you've pretty much read them all. Save your money, get any of the guides by Murray & Pizzorno. At least they aren't limited to 29 herbs. I'm returning my copy of this book.

This book is simply the best there is. This is a claim many have made about the American Botanical Council's earlier encyclopedic guides to the clinical use of herbs, but there is a reason to buy this book even if you have The Complete German Commission E Monographs or the The Expanded German Commission E Monographs. Mark Blumentha, Tara Hall, Alicia Goldberg, Tanja Kunz, Kara Dinda, Josef Brinckmann, and Dr. Bernd Wollschlaeger have gone beyond the herbs considered by German science to the herbs North Americans use. There are, quite simply, more herbs in this book, more of the herbs people use every day.

One might ask why these herbs weren't considered in earlier volumes, but the simple fact is, the depth of documentation in any book authored by Mark Blumenthal takes years of study, consultation, and practice. While many say it more eloquently--I hope the authors put up their back cover on this website--I'll say it, too, anyone who cares about and wants to know more about the medicinal use of herbs simply has to have this book. Rob Rister.

The ABC Clinical Guide to Herbs is an excellent resource for healthcare professionals and consumers alike. The information contained was compiled by a team of professionals including an MD and is the result of an exhaustive research of the available literature. The consumer section (called patient information sheet) contains a short and easy to read description of 29 most commonly used herbal products. The Clinical Overviews are written for physicians and other healthcare professionals and the Monograph is reserved for those who demand most detailed information about the respective herbal remedy. The book contains a wealth of information and is scientifically based.
I recommend it for anyone demanding straightforward and qualitative information about herbs.

This book should be on every pharmacy reference shelf whether it is in the corner drugstore or the hospital pharmacy. Herbal questions arise continuously in practice and very often the pharmacist does not have the information at hand. The sections in this book on pharmacological actions, clinical review, and clinical studies are especially valuable as these often do not exist in other herbal references. The information on clinical studies is displayed in a series of tables that are quick to scan yet are detailed. For Ginkgo there are six pages of clinical studies tables. Contraindications, adverse effects, and drug interactions are there also for each herb and there is just enough botany and chemistry to keep an academic interested. This book is thorough and yet concise. It covers the 29 best-selling herbs in the United States and the information on each plant is extensively referenced. I have recommended this book to my students and I am currently using it in my courses.

Considering all the dreck that is out there, there book is a welcome addition. I consider it the best available book for both healthcare providers and for the interested lay public. It is both accurate and accessible - truly the standard reference on the topic.

I saw this book prior to publication and was quite impressed. It is an authoratative resource for both healthcare professionals and individuals wanting to utilize botanical medicines as part of their self care. I find especially of value their review of clinical studies.