“A” to “Z” Therapeutic Properties & Flower Remedies
Generated on 9/18/2008
Updated on 2/18/2009
Updated on 2/22/23
As all of you know I am done working on my Master Herbalist degree and moving on to my Doctor of Naturopath (ND). As I'm working along it seem to me that I was always looking up words to understand this foreign language, lol, so I decide to bring this to you, now all of us can understand together.
Click on the hyper-link below to find what you are looking for (to move around this growing document or just scroll).
If you find a word that is not in this document please email the word to me at melody@melodyanns.com I will be happy to add it.
– Deafness – A person who is not able to hear as well as someone with normal hearing – hearing thresholds of 20 dB or better in both ears – is said to have hearing loss. Hearing loss may be mild, moderate, severe, or profound
– Debility – Weakness, lack of tone. (Return to Asthenia).
– Deciduous – Any plant that sheds all its leaves once each year.
– Decoction – An herbal preparation in which the plant material (usually hard or woody) is boiled in water and reduced to make a concentrated extract.
– Decongestant – Substance used to reduce nasal mucus production and swelling.
– Deficiency disease – Any disease, such as beriberi, caused by nutritional deficiency.
– Dehiscence – Splitting open of a wound.
– Dehydration – Deficiency or loss of water in body tissues marked by thirst, nausea, and exhaustion.
– Delirium – Acute mental disorder due to organic brain disease, causing hallucinations, disorientation, and extreme excitation.
– Dementia – A permanent acquired impairment of intellectual function that results in a marked decline in memory, Language ability, personality, spatial skills, and/or cognition (orientation, perception, reasoning, abstract thinking, and calculation). Dementia can be either static or permanent, and can result from many different causes. Senility, loss of mental function.
– Demineralization – Loss of minerals from the bone.
– Demulcent – Soothes, protects and nurtures internal membranes. An herb rich in mucilage that soothes and protests irritated or inflamed tissue.
– Demulcent Febrifuge – Reduces heat while building bodily fluids.
– Demulcents – Mucilaginous principles which are used in solution to soothe and protect irritated mucous membranes or other tissues. Soothing, especially to mucous membranes. A substance that soothes tissue.
– Deodorant – Corrects, masks, or removes unpleasant odors.
– Deobstruent – Removes body obstructions.
– Deobstruents – (Term obsolete and not very definite.) Remedies which overcome obstruction; aperients.
– Deodorants – Substances which destroy or hide foul odors.
– Dependence – A somatic state that develops after chronic administration of certain drugs; this state is characterized by the necessity to continue administration of the drug in order to avoid the appearance of uncomfortable or dangerous (withdrawal) symptoms.
– Depilatories – Substances used to remove hair.
– Depressant – Drug that lowers nervous or functional activity; sedative.
– Depressants – Sedatives.
– Depression – Is a common mental disorder. Globally, it is estimated that 5% of adults suffer from the disorder. It is characterized by persistent sadness and a lack of interest or pleasure in previously rewarding or enjoyable activities. It can also disturb sleep and appetite. Tiredness and poor concentration are common.
– Depresso-Motors – Herbs which lessen motor activity,
– Depurants – Herbs which cleanse wounds, ulcers, etc.
– Depurative – Cleans or purifies blood by promoting eliminative functions. Helps combat impurity in the blood and organs.
– Dermal – Pertaining to the skin.
– Dermatitis – Skin inflammation.
– Dermatomycoses – Skin infection caused by fungi.
– Dermis – The layer of skin that lies underneath the epidermis. Blood and lymphatic vessels and the glands that secrete perspiration and sebum are all found in the dermis.
– Detergent – Cleansing to wounds, ulcers or skin itself.
– Detergents – Herbs which act upon the emunctories, so as to cause excretion, and thereby purify the system.
– Detoxicant – Removes toxins.
– Detoxification – The process of reducing the buildup of various poisonous substances in the body.
– Detoxifying – A process in which the liver uses one of two major enzyme pathways to change a toxic substance, such as an anticancer drug, into a less toxic substance that is easier for the body to excrete. To remove harmful chemicals from the body or from something.
– Detumescence – Reduction or subsidence of swelling.
– Diabetes – Diabetes mellitus. A group of diseases that result in too much sugar in the blood (high blood glucose). Most Common types are: Type 2, Type 1, Prediabetes and Gestation diabetes.
Type 2, the body either doesn't produce enough insulin, or it resists insulin.
Type 1, A chronic condition in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin.
Prediabetes, A condition in which blood sugar is high, but not high enough to be type 2 diabetes.
Gestation diabetes, A form of high blood sugar affecting pregnant women.
– Diaphoretic – A substance that induces sweating. Causes perspiration and increases elimination through the skin.
– Dialysis – A technique using sophisticated machinery to remove waste products from the blood and excess fluid from the body in the treatment of kidney failure.
– Diaphoretic – Promotes perspiration, enabling the skin to eliminate waste from the body, thus helping the body ensure a clean and harmonious inner environment.
– Diarrhea – Frequent bowel evacuation, especially of soft or liquid feces.
– Diastole – Period of the cardiac cycle in which ventricles are not contracting.
– Diastole pressure – Minimum blood pressure during cardiac cycle.
– Dicot – See Dicotyledon – Having an embryo with two cotyledons, leaves with typically reticulate venation, and floral organs usually arranged in multiples of four or five : dicotyledon
– Dicotyledon – Angiosperm having two seed leaves or cotyledons; dicot.
– Digestant – Contains substances (i.e. ferments, acids) which aid in digestion.
– Digestion – Process of breaking down large particles and high-molecular-weight substances into small molecules.
– Digestion Inflammation – Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a term that describes disorders involving long-standing (chronic) inflammation of tissues in your digestive tract. Types of IBD include: Ulcerative colitis. This condition involves inflammation and sores (ulcers) along the lining of your large intestine (colon) and rectum.
– Digestion (Poor) – Many signs could mean your digestive system is unhealthy: Upset stomach: Gas, pain, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, and recurring heartburn could indicate that your GI system finds it difficult to process food and get rid of waste.
– Digestion (Weak ) – A weak digestive system means an unhealthy intestinal condition that will adversely affect your whole body and cause problems such as abdominal pain, constipation and diarrhea, malabsorption.
– Digestive – Substance that promotes or aids the digestion of food.
– Dilated cardiomyopathy occurs when the ventricle (generally the left ventricle) becomes dilated, and the ventricular muscle weak and relatively flaccid. As a result, the pumping action of the ventricle becomes weak; the amount of blood pumped with each heart beat drops; and the body's organs do not receive their full quotient of blood. Probably the best measure of the severity of a person's dilated cardiomyopathy is the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), a measure of the percentage of the left ventricle's volume that is ejected with each heart beat. Normally, the LVEF is greater than 50%. Patients generally experience a reduction in exercise capacity as the LVEF approaches 40%, and often experience symptoms at rest (weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath) when the LVEF is in the 20 – 30% range.
As dilated cardiomyopathy progresses, symptoms of shortness of breath, weakness, fatigue, and leg swelling worsen. The propensity to develop life-threatening arrhythmias (ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation) also increases as the LVEF drops. The mainstay of therapy is drug treatment: digitalis, diuretics, ACE inhibitors and beta blockers are commonly used. For many patients, a new breed of pacemakers that synchronize and optimize ventricular contraction can improve both symptoms and survival various types of cardiac assist devices (essentially, implantable pumps) are also progressing rapidly. (Return to Cardiomyopathy)
– Diluents – Herbs which dilutes secretions and excretions.
– Diphtheria – An acute, infectious, bacterial disease characterized by a membranous exudation that covers the mucous membranes, usually in the neck area. Symptoms may include pain, swelling obstruction of breathing, and prostration. The disease can result in heart damage and is often fatal.
– Disinfectant – Cleansing agent that destroys bacteria and other microorganisms, used on surfaces and surgical tools.
– Disinfectants – Substances which have the power of destroying the noxious properties of decaying organic matter.
– Disintegration time – The time required for a tablet to break up into granules of specified size (or smaller), under carefully specified test conditions.
– Dissolution time – The time required for a given amount (or fraction) of drugs to be released into solution from a solid dosage form.
– Dithiolthiones –Phytochemicals found in broccoli that increase levels of enzymes that help protect against certain types of cancer.
– Diuretic – Promotes activity of kidney and bladder and increases urination and elimination of urine. A type of drug that causes the kidneys to make more urine. Diuretics help the body get rid of extra fluid and salt. They are used to treat high blood pressure, edema (extra fluid in the tissues), and other conditions. There are many different types of diuretics.
– Diuretics – Herbs which increase the secretion of urine. Tending to increase urine flow, or a substance that promotes the excretion of fluids. A substance that increases the flow of urine.
– Diverticulum – Saclike out-pouching of the wall of the colon.
– Diverticulitis – Colonic diverticulosis with inflammation.
– Diverticulosis – Condition characterized by the existence of diverticular sacs at weak points in the walls of the alimentary tract, especially the intestine.
– Dizziness – Feeling off balance, unstable, confused, as though whirling in place.
– DNA – Deoxyribonucleic acid. Substance in the cell nucleus that genetically contains the cell's genetic blueprint and determines the type of life form into which a cell will develop.
– Dopamine – A catecholamine neurotransmitter, precursor of epinephrine and norepinephrine. (Return to Catecholamines).
– Dosha – Any of the three types of vital energy in Ayurvedic Medicine. It is the balance between the doshas that determines health.
– Dorsal – Pertaining to the back.
– Dormancy – Period of time in which growth ceases.
– Dosage form – The physical state in which a drug is dispensed for use.
– Dose – The quantity of drug, or dosage form, administered to a subject at a given time.
– Double-blind study – A way of controlling against experimental bias by ensuring that neither the researcher not the subject knows when an active agent or a placebo is being used. (Return to Open trial)
– Douche – Introduction of water and/or a cleansing agent into the vagina with the aid of a bag with tubing and a nozzle attached.
– Drastic – A very active cathartic which produces violent peristalsis.
– Drastics – Purgatives which cause much irritation.
– Dromo – Refers to speed.
– Dromotropic effect – A change in the amount of time it takes the heart to complete one beat.
– Dropsy – The excessive accumulation of fluid within the body. It may be localized or general. If general, it may indicate possible kidney trouble or heart disease. Generalized edema. Excess of fluid in the tissues.
– Drug – Substance that affects the structure or functional processes of an organism, especially to prevent or treat disease or relieve symptoms.
– Drupe – A fleshy fruit, with one or more seeds, each surrounded by a stony layer.
– Dysentery – Indigestion. Infection of the intestinal tract that causes severe diarrhea mixed with blood and mucus.
– Dysfunction – Abnormal function.
– Dyskinesia – Defect in voluntary movement.
– Dysmenorrhea – Painful menstruation. Painful or difficult menstruation.
– Dyspepsia – Indigestion. Digestive disorder with abdominal pain and gas after eating, sometimes with nausea and vomiting. Symptoms of functional dyspepsia may include: Pain or burning in the stomach, bloating, excessive belching, or nausea after eating. An early feeling of fullness when eating. The feeling of fullness also is called satiety.
– Dysplasia – Any abnormality of growth.
– Dyspnea – Difficult or labored breathing. Sense of difficulty in breathing, often associated with lung or heart disease.
– Dystrophy – Organ or muscle disorder caused by insufficient nourishment or a hereditary disorder.
—References— “Advanced Treatise in Herbology” by – Edward E. Shook, N.D., D.C. Copyright by Wendell W. Whitman 302 E. Winona Avenue, Warsaw, IN 46580.
—References— Business Dictionary.com http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/anaerobic.html
—References— “Dicitionary.com” http://www.dictionary.com
—References— “From the Shepherd's Purse” by – Max G. Barlow, Copyright 1990, ISBN 0-9602812-0-7.
—References— Medicine Net.com http://www.medterms.com
—References— Medical Herbalism The Science and practice of herbal medicine by David Hoffman, FNIMH, AHG, Copyright 2003, ISBN – 0-89281-749-6
—References— “Nutritional Herbology” by – Mark Pedersen, Copyright 2008, ISBN – 10: 1-885653-07-7; ISBN – 13: 978-1-885653-07-9
—References— Planetary Herbology by – Michael Tierra, C.A., N.D., Copyright 1988, ISBN – 0-941524-27-2
—References— “Prescription for Nutrition Healing” by – Phyllis A. Balch, CNC, Copyright 2006, ISBN: 1-58333-236-7.
—References— “The Ultimate Healing System – The Illustrated Guide to Muscle Testing & Nutrition” by – Donald Lepore, N.D.
Copyright 1985, ISBN: 0-94717-11560-7.
—References— WebMD http://www.webmd.com/default.htm
—References— Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
—References— A Modern Herbal – https://botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/comindx.html
—References— Henriette's Herbal Home – https://www.henriettes-herb.com/faqs/index.html
—References—
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