The readers of this site do not need to be convinced that their health belongs in their hands and theirs alone. Bestowed degrees, white coats, and alphabets following one’s name are not equivalent to education. Everyone reading this is capable of making correct health decisions for himself and his family.

When doing your own research into natural or modern medicine, you’re likely to find some common terms defining “actions” of a particular drug or herb. Below I’ve listed a glossary of common actions. My main source is Medical Herbalism: the Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine by D. Hoffmann, and other sources are cited inline. My comments are woven into this article throughout, and any opinions and personal experience will be clearly stated.

Adaptogenic

Definition

herb or drug that produces an increase in bodily resistance and vitality; helps the body adapt to and defend against environmental stress

Commonly Used Adaptogenic Herbs

  • holy basil
  • ginseng (American and Siberian)
  • ashwaghanda
  • CBD oil without THC

Use

The idea is that these herbs reinforce a nonspecific resistance against environmental stressors, and thus help the body resist disease that can be either directly caused by or tied to environmental stress.

Remark: Adaptogens and stress deserve their own detailed article. One will be forthcoming in the future.

Proposed Mechanisms

The specific mechanism by which various herbs aid in the stress response has not been clinically determined. Various generalizations made include

  • alteration of endocrine functions of the pituitary-adrenal gland axis, which causes a normalization of stress hormone levels and decreased predisposition to stressed states
  • stimulation of the pituitary gonadal system, which helps with immune support

Remark: With this and any other writing on natural medicine, you’ll find that many sources such as WebMD and Wikipedia have a clear bias against any natural medicine. However, if you’re the type who needs Western-style studies and clinical trials, you’ll find that a Google scholar search typically will turn up a more complicated picture. There is quite a lot of clinical evidence for the efficacy of natural medicine, even if the mechanisms aren’t fully understood. Most clinical studies will wrap their conclusions on herbal medicine with many qualifiers to avoid writing too positively. Take a good look at the data itself when you dig deeper.

Alteratives

Definition

an herb or drug that gradually restores proper function and increases overall health and vitality

Common Alterative Herbs

  • garlic
  • echinacea
  • sarsparilla
  • nettle

Use

The definition is admittedly vague, but these herbs are used to help the body with various functions, particularly waste elimination through kidneys, liver, lungs, or skin. They’re also used as digestive stimulants. I simply use these (garlic) as regular food or (echinacea) as a nice tea.

Proposed Mechanisms

Unknown, beyond “general stimulation of various bodily systems and functions”

Anticatarrhal

Definition

an herb or drug that helps the body remove excess mucus

Common Anticatarrhal Herbs

  • yarrow
  • garlic
  • echinacea
  • boneset
  • peppermint
  • sage
  • thyme

Use

You’d seek one of these typically when you or someone you know has an ear, nose, or throat infection.

Proposed Mechanisms

Unknown, but these herbs have been used for centuries with clear results. I personally seek yarrow, echinacea, and sage when I feel some sinus-type pressures or phlegm in the throat.

Anti-Inflammatory

Definition

an herb or drug that helps the body combat inflammation in various parts of the body

Common Anti-Inflammatory Herbs

  • yarrow
  • dill
  • licorice
  • lavender
  • chamomile
  • peppermint
  • linden
  • elder
  • sage
  • CBD cream (topical)

Use

The use completely depends on where the inflammation is. For musculoskeletal inflammation, such as arthritis, the herb may be applied topically, as CBD cream. (Personal note: I have seen this work in my own family.) I’ll make a tea to drink to fight inflammation specific to the location. For example, digestive issues call for peppermint or sage tea. Cold/flu symptoms call for yarrow, elderberry, licorice, and/or echinacea.

Proposed Mechanisms

Mechanisms of action depend on the chemical constituents. For example, some herbs contain salicylic acid (precursor to aspirin), and are useful for musculoskeletal inflammation. (More for arthritis than sore muscles, by the way.) Others contain steroid precursors, such as licorice. These chemicals are metabolized into molecules that fight inflammation. Others contain terpene-rich essential oils (such as chamomile and calendula) and are indicated for digestive inflammation.

Antimicrobial

Definition

herb or drug that helps the body destroy or resist pathogenic microorganisms. (Here we include antifungal, antibacterial, and antiviral in one category.)

Common Antimicrobial Herbs

  • yarrow
  • garlic
  • cayenne
  • echinacea
  • peppermint
  • rosemary
  • sage
  • clove

Uses

You can use these herbs in tincture, tea, or capsule form as medicine. You can also work these into food (chicken soup). The overall use of these herbs should be pretty obvious — help the body fight off various infections.

Proposed Mechanisms

To answer this question would take much longer than a glossary. These herbal actions are extremely diverse. Some directly interfere with the pathogen itself, and others stimulate the body’s immune response.

Antispasmodic

Definition

an herb or drug that prevents or eases muscle spasms or cramps, relaxing the autonomic nervous system

Common Antispasmodic Herbs

  • licorice
  • hops (be careful with this one)
  • chamomile
  • lemon balm
  • peppermint
  • passionflower
  • skullcap
  • valerian
  • ginger

Uses

When we say “antispasmodic”, we are typically targeting muscles controlled by the autonomic nervous system (heart, stomach, digestive system, respiratory), although some antispasmodics can be muscle relaxants in the more intuitive sense. I head straight for ginger or peppermint tea with an irritated stomach. Typically ginger or peppermint tea will have an immediate effect. The only caution I’d give here is that anyone suffering from acid reflux should avoid peppermint tea at night, as it relaxes the esophageal sphincter and may allow for worse reflux. Drink your peppermint tea during the day if this applies to you.

I haven’t found herbs that are primarily antispasmodic to reduce pain from muscular exercise.

For the ladies, cramp bark is primarily indicated to help with menstrual discomfort.

Proposed Mechanisms

Antispasmodics induce physical relaxation of muscles through the relaxation of the autonomic nervous system.

Astringent

Definition

an herb or drug that constricts body tissues

Common Astringent Herbs

  • yarrow
  • witch hazel
  • rosemary
  • rhubarb
  • tea leaves (yes, regular tea)
  • sage

Uses

Anticatarrhal herbs tend to also be astringent and provide additional help with respiratory issues, such as yarrow. Sage is a helpful digestive astringent, and witch hazel an effective skin astringent. You choose this category of herbs to reduce irritation on tissue surface and create barriers against infection.

Proposed Mechanisms

The main constituent in these herbs are tannins, which is a category of chemicals that was named for exactly what you think — tanning leather. Essentially, astringents help produce a temporary “leather cost” on the surface of tissue by causing a mild constriction of body tissue. This is why witch hazel is so nice for irritated skin or dressing wounds. (I use it for skin irritation after shaving.)

Bitters

Definiton

an herb or drug that tastes bitter and promotes various stimulating actions in the body

Common Bitter Herbs

  • dandelion root
  • boneset
  • bearberry
  • wormwood
  • yarrow

Uses

Bitter herbs are used primarily for digestive processes such as appetite stimulation, increasing release of digestive “juices” from the liver and pancreas, increasing bile flow, and regulation of pancreatic hormone secretion. They also stimulate self-repair mechanism in the gut.

Proposed Mechanism

The sensation of bitterness sends a signal to the central nervous system, which then signals the gut to release gastrin, a digestive hormone. Gastrin has a range of effects on the body, particularly regarding the above uses and actions.

Cardiac Herbs

Definition

Herb or drug that as some kind of action on the heart. These can include cardiotonics, which have an observably beneficial effect on the heart and blood vessels but do not contain cardiac glycosides and cardioactives which do contain cardiac glycosides and should be treated with care.

Common Cardiac Herbs

  • yarrow
  • garlic
  • cayenne
  • motherwort
  • ginger

Uses

Since it is unlikely anyone reading this will be trying to treat some acute condition, the typical use is simple promotion of heart health. (This is why I didn’t list very powerful cardioactive agents.)

Proposed Mechanisms

Varied, and still under some debate. Some can act as a circulatory stimulant (such as ginger), and others seem to act on the central nervous system (rosemary).