Foreword
Diabetes and hypertension are two of the most prevalent chronic diseases in the world. According
to the 2012 World Health Organization’s statistics report, one in three adults worldwide has raised
blood pressure while one in ten adults have diabetes. Prof. Mohamed Eddouks has crafted a book
entitled “Phytotherapy in the Management of Diabetes and Hypertension”, bringing out a timely
volume with contributors from several continents. Following the success of Volume 1, various
aspects of these two prevalent diseases are discussed in the second volume.
A number of topics are covered in 11 chapters, including a comprehensive overview on the herbal
pharmacotherapy of hypertension, an overview on the new approaches for the treatment of
diabetes and hypertension using herbal medicines; combating diabetes with indigenous medicinal
plants. In addition to the overviews, there are nine chapters focusing on specific herbs and plants
for the prevention and treatment of these chronic diseases, including some Chinese medicines,
curcumin, silymarin, caraway (Carum carvi L.), Premna serratifolia Linn. (Arani), Eugenia
jambolana. Lam., Coccinia indica Wight and plants belonging to the genus Senna.
With the advance in technologies, more in-depth understanding on the pathogenesis of the diseases
and more robust investigations on phytomedicine, I envision that phytotherapy will play an
important role in the management of diabetes and hypertension. This book would be a treasure for
the field; it gathers traditional wisdoms, contemporary experimental studies and clinical trials for
quite a number of promising phytomedicines for the prevention and treatment of these prevalent
chronic diseases.
This is an e-book published by Bentham Science Publishers, which is different from the traditional
concept of hard or soft cover book. This approach will make the book more easily accessible to a
wider section of readers. It is a great pleasure on my part to pen a foreword for this nice, multiauthored,
international publication on a topic very close to my heart. I profoundly wish the editor a
great success and will look forward to see more Volumes culminating from this beginning. I also
extend my sincere thanks to all the contributors for their excellent efforts in making this book a
good reference for the readers.
William C.S. Cho
Department of Clinical Oncology,
Queen Elizabeth Hospital,
Hong Kong
Southern Medical University
Nanjing Medical University
Ningxia University
Ningxia Medical University
China
