Complementary and alternative medicine herbal therapies for atopic disorders.

More than 42% of patients with atopic disorders use some type of complementary or alternative medicine, underscoring the importance of determining the scientific validity of such treatments. This review summarizes herbal therapies from China, Japan, Korea, and India, and provides an introduction to some Western preparations. Although well-controlled scientific studies of many of the Asian herbal therapies have been carried out, and some basic studies have been performed for various herbal components (active ingredients), additional research is needed to assess the composite effects of many of these remedies.