Question about Native American, Indian Medicine?

This site does not discuss how modern medicine utilized Native American medicines, but it does identify how plants were used by the different Nations.

Native American Ethnobotany

A Database of Foods, Drugs, Dyes and Fibers of Native American Peoples, Derived from Plants.

Your search string may contain "AND" or "OR" in capitals.

- For example: (milkweed AND drug) Use "food", "drug", "dye" or "fiber"

- You can also use the terms listed in ( ) eg. analgesic, Tuberculosis Remedy

- Also terms such as poultice, chest colds, sore throat, etc.

You can also use the "tribe" in the search (milkweed AND Chippewa),

The online database, now contains 44,691 items. This version added foods, drugs, dyes, fibers and other uses of plants (a total of over 44,000 items). This represents uses by 291 Native American groups of 4,029 species from 243 different plant families. About half of them are medicinal.

Native American Ethnobotany

http://herb.umd.umich.edu/

http://www-personal.umd.umich.edu/~dmoerman/about_...

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It depends on what plants are available where you live. Some of the plants that are used in my area were not available where I lived as a child and vice versa.

One plant we collect in my area is Canada/Eastern yew (Taxus Canadensis). It has long been used as a medicinal plant in my area. Today It's used in cancer treatment.

http://herb.umd.umich.edu/herb/search.pl

PLANTS Profile

http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=TACA7

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Ground hemlock or Eastern yew

http://cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/index/easternyew

Ground hemlock in demand

http://cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/news/319

Ont. backs research on hemlock against cancer

http://www.canadiancattlemen.ca/news/ont-backs-res...

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I know a webpage that has quite a few of the plants the Cherokee use as medicine...

http://www.coolrogue.net/plantmedicine/plantindex....

I can remember going into the wood with my grandfather to gather some of these plants that he used....

These sites list a couple......but I too, am having trouble googling it. Buckthorn has been widely used as a cure for constipation here for thousands of years.....and its now the main ingredient in most laxatives.

http://herbalmusings.com/Native%20American%20Herba...

http://www.erowid.org/entheogens/ethnobotany/ethno...

I can tell you about many natural substances used for everyday things, that nix out the need for chemically processed store-bought items......but for medicines, I seek those who know.

We call herbal medicines "lifeway" medicine (to distinguish it from "spiritual" medicines)

You could try searching under that. I know women on the res who do practice and teach it, but don't know any books about it.

Have you tried google?

Ps-Don't get angry at me, if I knew the answer I would have told you. I know a few of the Natives on here, maybe they are not on yet. Either way at least I answered your question with a semi-decent answer, you should be grateful.