A Basic Glossary of Herbal Medicine Effects
Image Credit: Herbal Academy of New England
As a part-two to my glossary of herbal preparation techniques, I decided to make one for some of the effects too! What’s the difference between an emmenagogue and an abortifacient? What’s the fancy word for “cures fevers”? Here’s a list of the most common terms used to describe herbal medication effects.
Abortifacient - Promotes or induces abortions of foetuses
Adjuvant - A therapy that is used to increase the action of another therapy, rather than as a treatment in and of itself, such as adjuvant chemotherapy for cancer.
Anaesthetic - Causes loss of sensation, and usually unconsciousness, by suppressing nerve function rather than through analgesia.
Analeptic - Stimulates action or restores correct action in the central nervous system
Analgesic - Relieves pain without suppressing functionality of pain-receptive nerves
Anaphrodisiac - Reduces libido or sexual arousal
Androgenic - An agent that mimics the action of, increases the production of, or blocks the reabsorption of androgens (e.g. testosterone). May not actually act as androgens themselves.
Anorectic - An agent that suppresses the appetite; not related to anorexia nervosa, which is a psychological disorder.
Anorexia - Abnormally low appetite, a common symptom of many infections or diseases. This is a physical symptom, unrelated to anorexia nervosa.
Anorexia nervosa - A psychological disorder which manifests itself through extreme and abnormal reduction in consumption of food, resulting in extreme weight-loss. Most commonly related to feelings of lack of control, or an obsessive need to maintain thinness. Frequently causes death. Not related to anorexia the physical symptom.
Antianaemic - Reduces symptoms of anaemia
Antibacterial - Kills or otherwise prevents the spread, growth or reproduction of bacteria
Antibilious - Reduces stomach disease, most typically indigestion
Anticatarrh - Reduces inflammation of the mucous membranes of the head and neck
Anticoagulant - Prevents or limits the clotting of blood; colloquially known as “blood-thinning”
Antidepressant - Reduces the effects of or causative agents of psychological depression
Antidiabetic - Reduces, relieves or treats diabetes
Antidiarrhetic - Reduces or cures diarrhea
Antiemetic - Causes the stopping of vomiting (emesis)
Antifungal - Kills or otherwise prevents the spread, growth or reproduction of fungi
Anti-inflammatory - Reduces and controls inflammatory histamine responses
Antimicrobial - Kills or is otherwise destructive to microorganisms generally
Antioxidant - Prevents or inhibits the formation of oxygen radicals within the body; prevents or inhibits the oxidation of molecules, usually proteins
Antipruritic - Reduces, cures or treats itching
Antipyretic - Reduces, cures or treats fevers
Antirheumatic -Reduces pain caused by rheumatic disorders of the joints
Antiseptic - Opposes the actions of sepsis such as the formation of pus; promotes asepsis
Antispasmodic - Causes a reduction in spasms and convulsions of the muscles
Antitussive - Reduces, cures or treats coughing
Antiviral - Kills or is otherwise destructive to viruses or virion particles
Aperient - A form of very mild laxative
Aperitive - Stimulates the appetite; combats anorexia (the symptom)
Aphrodisiac - Promotes an increase in libido and sexual arousal
Asepsis - Sterile, without lifeforms (especially microbial); healthy blood is always aseptic, for example
Astringent - An agent that causes the coagulation or binding of proteins, especially in cell membranes
Bitter (as in medicine) - A form of aperitive; may also stimulate digestive function and metabolism
Cardiac - Of or related to the muscles, structures and extracellular matrices of the heart
Carminative - Causes relaxation of the stomach and its associated sphincters
Catarrhal - Of or related to inflammation of the mucosal membranes of the head and neck
Cathartic - Causing the purging of waste, typically in the faeces or by promoting bowel movements
Cholagogue - Induces the production of bile
Cicatrizant - Aids in the formation of scar tissue; helps heal wounds
Contusion - A subdermal bursting of the capillaries; a bruise
Counterirritant - An agent that produces an inflammatory response in an adjacent region to an area of damage as a means of treating that damage
Demulcent - Soothes, reduces pain and inflammation, or regulates proper mucous production in mucosal membranes
Depressant - An agent that temporarily reduces metabolic and functional activity of the body or a specific organ or tissue
Dermatitis - Inflammation of the skin, producing raised weals, itchiness, redness, or other indications of rash
Diaphoretic - Increases production of sweat
Diuretic - Increasing or promoting urine flow or production
Dysmenorrhea - Painful or abnormal menstruation
Dyspepsia - Painful or abnormal digestion
Ecbolic - Increases uterine contractions, usually used to faciliate or induce labour
Emetic - An agent that causes vomiting (emesis)
Emmenagogue - An agent that induces normal menstruation processes, usually through breakdown of the uterine lining
Emollient - An agent that softens and soothes skin, especially chapped, dried, or damaged skin
Errhine - Inducing sneezing; related to demulcents
Escharotic - A caustic agent that induces destruction of tissues, often causing aseptic necrosis. May induce sloughing.
Euphoriant - Induces feelings of euphoria, pleasure, or enjoyment. Frequently associated with narcotics and other drugs of addiction.
Expectorant - Causes the removal of or facilitates the removal of fluids, usually mucous, from the body.
Febrifuge - See antipyretic
Galactagogue - An agent that acts to increase production of breast milk. Please note, this may not automatically mean the milk is safe for infants to drink.
Haemogogue -An agent that promotes the flow of blood. Not necessarily synonymous with anticoagulant.
Haemostatic - An agent that halts or staunches the flow of blood, especially through inducing rapid clotting. Usually but not always the same as a procoagulant.
Hepatic - Of or related to the liver and its function
Hypercalcaemia - A state of having too much calcium in the body
Hyperkalaemia - A state of having too much potassium in the body
Hypertensive - Increases blood pressure
Hypoglycaemant - Lowers levels of blood sugar , usually by acting on insulin receptors
Hypotensive - Decreases blood pressure
Insomniac - Prevents or reduces ability to sleep; does not imply a reduction in fatigue levels
Ketoacidosis - Uncontrolled ketosis resulting in too many ketones in the blood, causing acidification of the blood. A life-threatening medical emergency, must be seen by emergency medical professionals.
Ketosis - A state in which the body preferentially metabolises fats and fatty tissues over other sources of energy, producing ketones as waste
Lactifuge - Reduces the production of or expression of breast milk
Laxative - An agent that causes the loosening of faeces, by many possible methods
Masticatory - Induces production of saliva
Narcotic - Induces drowsiness, sleep, torpor, stupor, and lessens or totally deadens sensations of pain. Often related to euphoriants, all narcotics are highly addictive and many are used both medicinally and recreationally.
Nervine - Of or related to the function of the nerves; almost exclusively used in the context of tonics; when general reference must be made to the function of the nerves, “nervous” is more common.
Neuralgia - Sensations of pain, usually severe and acute, that are related to direct damage, abnormal structuring, or abnormal influences upon nerves.
Oestrogenic - An agent that mimics the action of, increases the production of, or blocks the reabsorption of oestrogens. May not actually act as oestrogens themselves.
Parturfaciant - Induces contractions associated with labour
Procoagulant - An agent that induces the clotting of the blood
Purgative - A form of strong laxative, one that causes evacuation of all intestinal contents
Resorbent - An agent that aids in the reabsorption of blood after contusions
Rheumatism - A general term used to refer to pains associated with the joints and (less commonly) the muscles, which most usually implies imflammation of the joints (arthritis)
Rubefacient - An agent that causes the reddening of the skin through the dilation of subdermal blood vessels; often induces pyresis, frequently used as a means of reducing inflammation
Sedative - An agent that causes relaxation of the body, usually inducing torpor, stupor, or sleep.
Soporific - An agent that induces natural sleep
Stimulant - An agent that temporarily increases metabolic and functional activity of the body or a specific organ or tissue
Stupor - A state of near-unconsciousness, but not complete loss of awareness
Subdermal - Beneath or below the level of the skin (dermis)
Sudorific - See diaphoretic
Tonic - An agent for increasing the strength, tone or potency of some aspect of the body. This is usually specified (e.g. nervine tonic), if not then refers to systemic increase.
Torpor - A state of inactivity, lethargy, relaxation, and reduced metabolic function
OK, so there are 93 terms here, and whilst I tried by absolutely hardest I may have got one or two partly or wholly wrong. If you think you’ve spotted a term that could be more completely defined, please do either send me an ask to clarify, or reblog it and add it on yourself.
Reblog with any additions you think should be included! I tried to include all the ones that come up most frequently in herbalism texts, but I might have missed a couple!
I sourced most of the terms in this list and tweaked many of the definitions from the American Botanical Council, which is a great little resource. However, I tried to rephrase things wherever possible (there’s a limit to how much you can change a definition, after all).
