Phytochemistry, the Military and Health

Phytotoxins and Natural Defenses

Andrew G. Mtewa, Chukwuebuka Egbuna

• Publisher: Elsevier
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN: 9780128215562
• eBook ISBN: 9780128232309
• Topic: Physical Sciences
• Subtopic: Botany

Phytochemistry, the Military and Health: Phytotoxins and Natural Defenses comes as a response to the gap that there has for so long existed between phytochemistry and survival of both service personnel and civilian communities during and after conflicts. Armed conflicts cause a lot of devastation to communities and should be avoided as much as it can be possible. The devastation is usually evident in service provisions such as Health, Education, Water, and Food among many others. Both service personnel and civilians are affected to various degrees. Facilities usually end up being physically destroyed, with no essential supplies and/or having dysfunctional systems. Going with untreated wounds, communicable and non-communicable diseases for weeks with no medical interventions due to the conflicts, disease burdens heavily weigh down on communities as well as security personnel. To make the situation even more complicated, masses of people are forced to migrate for safety and security reasons, likely going with diseases along wherever they go. In such instances, phytochemicals become handy in providing solutions from first aid, basic analgesia, antimicrobials, and the general improvement of health. Phytochemicals are known to play a major role in the day to day management of diseases and health. There has been much research into their effectiveness as community medicines and as alternatives to conventional drugs. However, the role that phytochemicals play in the military, counterterrorism, and security has been overlooked. Phytochemistry, the Military and Health: Phytotoxins and Natural Defenses discusses the roles that phytochemicals play as friends and foes in the military, including insights aimed to help develop antidotes against phytochemicals and other chemical agents used maliciously as weapons. Filling a gap between drug discovery, security, and emergency medicine, this book describes which plants can be categorized for protection and controls, which can be helpful in times of conflicts and soon after conflicts, in military operations, and those that can be used as deterrents and as emergency medicines. Carefully designed to show the contribution that phytochemicals play in safety and security, this book is useful for researchers, regulators and anyone interested in plant chemistry. - Covers the contribution that phytochemicals play in safety and security - Contains insights that will help in the development of antidotes against phytochemical and other chemical weapons - Categorizes plants in terms of their usefulness as well as the potential security risks they possess

Table of contents

• Phytochemistry, the Military and Health
• 1 Introduction to phytochemicals and the military
• 2 Phytochemicals, plant toxins, and their influence in military strategies
• 3 The world’s most toxic plants service personnel should be wary about
• 4 Overview of the traditional systems of medicine in different continents during postwar recovery
• 5 Ethnopharmacological properties of Asian medicinal plants during conflict-related blockades
• 6 Applications of phytochemicals against nerve agents in counterterrorism
• 7 Psychoactive plants and phytochemicals
• 8 Plant-based analgesics during conflicts
• 9 Important antihistaminic plants and their potential role in health
• 10 Plants and phytochemicals against accidental plant skin poisoning
• 11 Plants for management of diarrhea
• 12 Phytochemical solutions in the face of chemical subjection
• 13 Pharmafoods for body cleansing of toxic exposure to chemical and biological warfare agents
• 14 Prevention of liver problems from adverse chemical agents by healthy nutrition and Unani dietotherapy
• 15 Food allergens and how to ameliorate their effects by phytochemicals
• 16 Plants against malarial and typhoid fever
• 17 Plants effective against insomnia and sleep apnea
• 18 Roles of medicinal plants in the treatment of connective tissue diseases
• 19 Life-threatening diseases and conditions in the battlefield: Pyrotherapeutic perspectives
• 20 Plant-based nutrition supplementation on the well-being of servicemen
• 21 Obesity: Causes, consequences, and disease risks for service personnel
• 22 Water testing for potential phytochemical contamination and poisoning
• 23 Identification and analysis of toxic phytochemicals
• 24 Molecular optimization of phytochemicals into antidotes
• 25 Application of nanoceutical technology for fast and efficient control of illness
• 26 Water resources security and management for sustainable communities
• 27 Impacts of inorganic/organic pollutants on agroecosystems and eco-friendly solutions
• 28 Plant-based first aid kits for emergency response
• Index