Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects about 300 million people worldwide, a total that is expected to rise to about 400 million over next 15-20 years. The currently used drugs for the treatment of this disease in modern medicine are so far from satisfactory as they provide only symptomatic relief, produce several adverse effects and may lose effectiveness on continued use. Medicinal plants have been known for millennia and are highly esteemed all over the world as a rich source of therapeutic agents for the prevention of diseases and ailments. The importance of herbal medicine in the treatment of asthma is indisputable. Four of the five classes of drugs currently used to treat asthma namely; β2-agonists, anticholinergics, methylxanthines and cromones have origins in herbal treatments going back at least 5000 years. In the present article an attempt has been made to review antiasthmatic medicinal plants with their Botanical name, Family and part used.
Loading....