Herbal Care for Women: A Guide to Phytotherapeutic Agents in Gynaecology and Reproductive Health
A peer-reviewed, open-access edited volume in ten chapters
Edited by Dr. Anuradha Singh
About this Book
Women's health has always been closely tied to the plant world. Long before modern gynaecology took shape, midwives, vaidyas and traditional healers relied on herbs to ease menstrual pain, support conception, nourish mothers through pregnancy and lactation, and comfort women through the transition of menopause. Much of that knowledge survives in everyday practice today, and a growing body of laboratory and clinical research is now testing which of these remedies work, how they work, and when they should be avoided.
This volume brings that research together. It opens with an introduction to women's health and phytotherapy and a chapter on the phytochemistry and mechanisms of action of medicinal plants used in gynaecology. It then follows the reproductive life course: herbal agents for menstrual disorders, two complementary chapters on polycystic ovary syndrome and hormonal imbalance, herbal support in fertility, and herbs in pregnancy, lactation and postpartum care. Later chapters address common gynaecological conditions and the perimenopause and menopause, and the book closes with safety, standardisation and future perspectives.
Each chapter is complete in itself, with its own abstract, keywords and references, and sets traditional use alongside the available scientific evidence, with due attention to quality, dosage, herb–drug interactions and safety in pregnancy and breastfeeding.
The book is intended for students, teachers, researchers and practitioners in pharmacy and the health sciences. It is published open access under a Creative Commons Attribution–NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) licence; every chapter may be downloaded and read free of charge.
Each chapter is independently peer-reviewed and available for free download and online reading. The complete volume is published under a single Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) licence and a single book-level DOI.
Table of Contents
About the Editors
