When Man appeared more than 3 million years ago, he began to use plants but not only as food. He discovered the benefits of plants after trial and error. These different benefits were discovered slowly. His observations linked to experience taught him to diagnose, to find the right plants for the treatment and finally cure illnesses

Nowadays, progress in biochemistry, in organic and pharmacological analysis, as well as plant physiology have led to a better comprehension and rationalization of the effects of certain plants, enhancing certain ancestral uses of plants. Traces of ancestral use of medicinal plants were discovered in the Chinese, Indian and Aztec civilizations. The first book on medicinal plants called «Treaty of Medicinal Plants» was written by Emperor Shen Nung, the Shen Nung Ben Cao Jing around 2850 BC. The Chinese were probably the most skillful with medicinal plants.