ADAPTOGENS: Herbs for Strength, Stamina, and Stress Relief

ADAPTOGENS: Herbs for Strength, Stamina, and Stress Relief

By Steven Maimes and David Winston, RH (AHG)

Healing Arts Press (Inner Traditions): $18.95 quality paperback, 324 pages, illustrated. ISBN: 1-59477-158-8. Published April 2007.

The definitive guide to adaptogenic herbs, formerly known as “rejuvenating herbs,” that counter the effects of age and stress on the body.

• Reveals how adaptogens increase the body’s resistance to adverse influences.

• Provides a history of the use of these herbal remedies and the actions, properties, preparation, and dosage for each herb.

We all deal with stress every day, and every day our bodies strive to adapt and stay balanced and healthy. In Adaptogens, authors Steven Maimes and David Winston provide a comprehensive look into adaptogens, non-toxic herbs such as ginseng, eleuthero, and licorice, that produce a defensive response to stress in our bodies. Formerly known as rejuvenating herbs or tonics, adaptogens help the body to “adapt” to the many influences it encounters. They increase stamina and counter the normal effects of aging and thus are becoming important tools in sports medicine and in the prevention and treatment of chronic fatigue and other stress-related disorders.

Maimes and Winston present the historical uses of these herbal remedies in India, Russia, China, and the Americas and explain how they work and why they are so effective at combating stress-induced illness. Monographs for each adaptogen also present the latest scientific research and include the origin, traditional use, actions, properties, preparation, and dosage for each herb.

About the Authors of Adaptogens

Steven Maimes, the former owner of an herbal products business in the San Francisco Bay Area, is a researcher, freelance writer, philosopher, and principal of SALAM Research in Rochester, New Hampshire.

David Winston, RH (AHG), is an herbalist and ethnobotanist who has practiced Cherokee, Chinese, and Western herbal medicine since 1969. He is the president of Herbalist and Alchemist, Inc., author of Saw Palmetto for Men & Women, and coauthor of Herbal Therapy and Supplements. He lives in Washington, New Jersey.

Praise for Adaptogens

"Adaptogenic herbs can be most useful in the quest for health in our stressful society. David Winston and Steven Maimes explain and champion the use and benefits of these important herbs." - James A. Duke, author of The Green Pharmacy

"Essential reading for all involved with adaptogens, whether practitioners or consumers. This is the first comprehensive guide to adaptogens based on good herbalism, good science, and NO hype! A truly excellent book.”

- David Hoffmann, author of Medical Herbalism and The Holistic Herbal

“With Adaptogens, David Winston and Steven Maimes have finally made this important healing concept accessible to a wider audience. We need adaptogens—gentle remedies that, over time, have the powerful effect of restoring and protecting our health on many levels. David Winston’s vast clinical and practical knowledge of herbs adds tremendously to the value of the book.”

- Christopher Hobbs, author of Handmade Herbal Medicines and Medicinal Mushrooms

“Brilliant! Fully researched, full of information not readily available, as well as being practical and easy to digest. The authors have managed to blend the traditional and recent scientific information into a fully comprehensive and informative text. This will become a classic, a definitive work on this most important group of medicinal plants.”

- Rosemary Gladstar, founder of United Plant Savers and author of Herbal Healing for Women

"Adaptogens are destined to play an increasingly important role in the future of health care. This book provides an excellent introduction to and comprehensive overview of their traditional uses and of the science supporting their safety and therapeutic benefits.”

- Mark Blumenthal, founder and executive director of the American Botanical Council

"The first part of this book provides an overview and background on adaptogens, i.e., herbs that produce a defensive response to stress. It discusses the history of adaptogens, their actions and health benefits, and a general discussion of the stress response. Part two is a materia medica of monographs on adaptogens and herbs that complement them. Each monograph includes names (both common and Latin), family, taste/energy, part used, cultivation, habitat, properties, chemical constituents, history, modern uses, safety ratings, dosage forms, and research studies."

- HerbalGram. 2007;76:70 American Botanical Council

Table of contents

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