回顾了涉及数百种昆虫和其他无脊椎动物物种的传统愈合方法。一些用途是基于“simuliasimulibus”的宗旨(让喜欢被喜欢治愈),但并非所有非传统的健康促进做法都应该被视为迷信或一厢情愿,因为他们经受住了时间的考验。解决了两个问题:人类中完全不同的器官系统如何可能从提取物中受益,药水,粉末,分泌物,灰烬,等。单一物种的不同目标器官,例如支气管,肺,膀胱,肾脏,等。显然对一系列分类学上甚至不密切相关的物种有反应?即使治疗上使用的无脊椎动物通常很小,然而,它们拥有特定功能的器官,例如消化,气体交换,繁殖。他们有神经系统,内分泌腺,心脏和肌肉组织,它们含有大量不同的分子,如代谢物,酶,荷尔蒙,神经递质,分泌物,等。对药理学特性进行了越来越多的科学审查。考虑到这一点,以不同方式制备和使用的单个物种似乎可能具有多种用途。但是,例如,是否有呼吸和其他问题的补救措施,涉及蚯蚓,软体动物,白蚁,甲虫,蟑螂,虫子,和蜻蜓?由于无脊椎动物本身会感染和癌症,所有无脊椎动物都有共同的防御反应,这就是为什么发现每个物种都进化出自己独特的疾病对抗系统会更令人惊讶。为了获得更全面的了解,然而,我们仍然需要来自更广泛地区和种族群体的昆虫和其他无脊椎动物的民间药用信息,但是这项任务受到西方药物越来越占主导地位,传统治疗师无法甚至有时甚至不愿意将其知识传播给年轻一代的阻碍。然而,收集和不受控制地使用治疗性无脊椎动物会对某些备受追捧的物种施加不适当的压力,这也是必须牢记的事情。
Traditional healing methods involving hundreds of insect and other invertebrate species are reviewed. Some of the uses are based on the tenet of \"similia similibus\" (let likes be cured by likes), but not all non-conventional health promoting practices should be dismissed as superstition or wishful thinking, for they have stood the test of time. Two questions are addressed: how can totally different organ systems in a human possibly benefit from extracts, potions, powders, secretions, ashes, etc. of a single species and how can different target organs, e.g. bronchi, lungs, the urinary bladder, kidneys, etc. apparently respond to a range of taxonomically not even closely related species? Even though therapeutically used invertebrates are generally small, they nevertheless possess organs for specific functions, e.g. digestion, gas exchange, reproduction. They have a nervous system, endocrine glands, a heart and muscle tissue and they contain a multitude of different molecules like metabolites, enzymes, hormones, neurotransmitters, secretions, etc. that have come under increased scientific scrutiny for pharmacological properties. Bearing that in mind it seems likely that a single species prepared and used in different ways could have a multitude of uses. But how, for example, can there be remedies for breathing and other problems, involving earthworms, molluscs, termites, beetles, cockroaches, bugs, and dragonflies? Since invertebrates themselves can suffer from infections and cancers, common defence reactions are likely to have evolved in all invertebrates, which is why it would be far more surprising to find that each species had evolved its own unique disease fighting system. To obtain a more comprehensive picture, however, we still need information on folk medicinal uses of insects and other invertebrates from a wider range of regions and ethnic groups, but this task is hampered by western-based medicines becoming increasingly dominant and traditional healers being unable and sometimes even unwilling to transmit their knowledge to the younger generation. However, collecting and uncontrolled uses of therapeutic invertebrates can put undue pressure on certain highly sought after species and this is something that has to be borne in mind as well.