Beautifully illustrated, this informative book describes the plants integral to Hawaiian medicine and healing, and discusses their uses past and present.

"Hawaiian herbal medicine, as practiced by the ancient Hawaiians, is emerging as a popular alternative to traditional medical practices today. This book provides ancient remedies for such ailments as headache, sore throat, insomnia, disorders in women, general loss of energy, as well as remedies for mending broken bones and insect bites."--Page 4 of cover.

"Planting the Future" shows how land stewardship, habitat protection, and sustainable cultivation are of critical importance to ensure an abundant renewable supply of medicinal plants for future generations.

"The aim of this book is to present a picture of past and present Polynesian medicinal plants. Although several books have been published on herbal medicine in Polynesia, these are either limited in geographic scope (mostly to Hawai'i) or are unscientific in basis. Restricting the study of herbal medicine to a single Polynesian island or archipelago is a disadvantage because the early accounts of medicinal practices are so sketchy. A more comprehensive approach is rewarding because so much can be learned from the similarities among the various Polynesian cultures. A scientific approach is necessary because of the nature of the subject--medicine and plants. "To establish a comprehensive and scientific basis for this book, three types of research were conducted: (1) an extensive review of the literature on Polynesia; (2) interviews with scores of Polynesian healers in Hawai'i, Samoa, Tonga, Tahiti. the Cook Islands, and Tokelau; and (3) botanical collecting work in Polynesia over a twenty-year period, involving over forty research trips to the South Pacific." --from the Preface

"I highly recommend this brief resource booklet for those interested in studying Polynesian and cross-cultural herbal medicines." --Quarterly Review of Biology

Medicine by Your Feet: Healing Plants of the Hawaiian Kingdom is a beautifully designed and practical guide to the plant medicines of the Hawaiian Islands. Included for each plant is its name, properties, regional and global uses, combinations, contraindications, scientific research, growing, dosages, and preparation information. Fully illustrated and indexed, this is a comprehensive yet easy to read reference for anyone desiring to learn more about holistic medicines.

A Hawaii-based practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine, David Bruce Leonard, has just released the new book Medicine at Your Feet: Healing Plants of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Taking ten years to complete, this first volume is one of the most authoritative sources of information on Hawaiian medicinal plants. Exhaustively researched, Medicine at Your Feet contains cross-cultural uses for 49 different Hawaiian plant medicines, many of which are easy to find. Included is information on medicinal properties, food uses, chemical constituents, herbal combinations, plant gathering protocols, possible drug interactions, scientific research and much more. Here is what the experts have to say about Medicine at Your Feet: "This book is exactly what I want with me on my next trip to Hawaii . . . or even if I stay home." - - Jim Duke, author of The Green Pharmacy."David is a thorough scholar who really knows his plants. This is an excellent resource." - - Dennis McKenna, Senior Lecturer and Research Associate, Center for Spirituality and Healing, University of Minnesota.David Bruce Leonard is a practitioner and teacher of traditional Chinese medicine with a working knowledge of more than 400 traditional Hawaiian, Chinese, and Western plants. A deep ecologist and Hawaiian native plant specialist, he has been a student of Hawaiian medicine under Kahu Kawika Ka'alakea, Kaipo Kaneakua and Na Kupuna 'O Hawai'i since 1992.