Finding reliable sources for dosage of herbal medicines is one of the hardest parts in my experience. It is very important to understand what you are using not just in identification but how they work and how the viability of the plant changes from season to season, type of environment it is growing (shaded or full sun, soil type etc), and what is a safe dose to use. If you get it wrong then at best you may feel sick or have other mild symptoms, at worst you will die. Factor in the human element (individual metabolism, body weight etc) then the need for sound, authoritative advice is obvious. There are many sites on the Internet which offer misleading, outdated or just plain wrong information. There is nothing wrong with the net just as long as you are discerning about the quality of the source.
Here are a couple of the better sites which also provide more reliable information and also suggested dosages. Just remember even with the commonest herbs, any may have an allergic reaction to them so when first trying a new one start off with a small area of skin or ere on the lower end of any suggested dose.
American Botanical Council - The Commission E Monographs
From the site:
In 1978, the German government established an expert committee, the Commission E, to evaluate the safety and efficacy of over 300 herbs and herb combinations sold in Germany.
MONOGRAPHS
The results of the Commission E were published as official monographs that give the approved uses, contraindications, side effects, dosage, drug interactions and other therapeutic information essential for the responsible use of herbs and phyto-medicines.
Whilst plant monographs are produced by different sources and inevitably advice and detail do vary, they are reckoned to be one of the most reliable sources of this type of info.
This link takes you to an expanded list of the more common herbs, whilst no means an exhaustive list it has good info. Click on any of the links for full details:
Expanded Commission E
As an example, here is the link for:
Meadowsweet
From the site just the Use & Dose details. Read the rest too!:
Uses
The Commission E approved the internal use of meadowsweet as supportive therapy for colds.
The British Herbal Compendium indicates its use for atonic and acid dyspepsia, gastritis, peptic ulceration, and rheumatic and arthritic pains (Bradley, 1992). In France, traditional indications for use are allowed, including for fever and influenza (Bradley, 1992; DPM, 1990). The German Standard License for meadowsweet tea indicates its use for feverish common colds for which a sweat treatment is desired and also to increase the amount of urine (Bradley, 1992; Braun et al., 1997; Wichtl and Bisset, 1994)
Dosage and Administration
Unless otherwise prescribed: 2.5–3.5 g per day of cut meadowsweet flower or 4–5 g per day of cut meadowsweet herb, and other galenical preparations for infusions; a cup of the infusion drunk as hot as tolerable several times daily.
Infusion: Steep 2–3 g in 150 ml boiled water for about 10 minutes.
The second, whilst not strictly 'official' is nevertheless a good resource for the subject written by a very knowledgeable chap with loads of links, materials etc. It is quite detailed but readable
Michael Moore - SW School of Botanical Medicinehttp://www.swsbm.com/homepage/. It is based in the USA so some of the herbs will not be relevant but many are.
Because books are old does not mean they are invalid indeed as medicine progressed over the 20th Century many 'old fashioned' folk medicines and medications in use for thousands of years were dropped from later medical books and research in favour of the new medicines made in a lab. So often these older books are the only practical guides for the out of fashion medicines which of course are all the rage now
It does mean that some of the advice is questionable given more modern research but fundamentally they offer a really good starting point for wild plants we might use in bushcraft.
Hope that lot helps
