🌿 Botanical Medicine: The Original Medicine
For thousands of years, humans relied on plants as their primary source of healing. Every ancient culture—from Egyptian and Greek physicians to Indigenous healers around the world—used botanical preparations to restore health and balance. These plant-based therapies formed the foundation of medicine for millennia, continuing until the late 19th century when modern pharmacology began to emerge. Today, Naturopathic Doctors honour this long-standing tradition by integrating evidence-informed botanical medicine into individualized care.
🌿 So what happened?
Why did this ancient wisdom become suppressed and hidden from society?
🌿 The Flexner Report & How Medicine Changed
- Before 1910: Many schools taught botanical, homeopathic, and naturopathic medicine across North America.
- 1910 – The Flexner Report: Funded by the Carnegie Foundation, the report recommended that medicine focus on laboratory science, anatomy, and pharmacology.
- Rockefeller involvement: The Rockefeller Foundation funded schools that adopted this new pharmaceutical and research-based model.
- Licensing changes: Governments rewrote laws so only graduates from “approved” medical schools could receive licenses.
- Impact on natural medicine: Botanical and homeopathic colleges lost funding or closed because they couldn’t meet the new standards.
- Result: It became illegal to treat patients without a medical license, which effectively removed most natural medicine from mainstream healthcare.
- Today: Licensed Naturopathic Doctors integrate evidence-informed botanical care within a regulated healthcare system, reconnecting modern medicine with its natural roots.
Educational information only. For personalized care, please consult your Naturopathic Doctor.