"Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food"

Hippocrates

Basil is an important herb with references of use beginning in India and Egypt. With Alexander the Great bringing the herb from Asia to ancient Greece in about 300 BCE (Milner), basil was introduced as a remedy to soothe scorpion stings, sea dragon bites, and other irritable wounds. The essential oil found in Basil is an anti-inflammatory and helps relieve pain from the sore. Basil is filled with vitamin-C, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and iron (WebMD).

Greco-Roman Remedies:

The Greek physician Dioscorides is known as one of the most important pharmacopeia of the ancient Greece and Roman world. His five-volume medical manual, commonly known as De Materia Medica (in Latin), includes plant-based ointments for sores and wounds. Dioscorides believed ingesting basil would cause insanity. Despite this belief, the ancient Roman physician, Pliny, defended the herb's medicinal uses (Tobyn). The argument of basil's remedial uses went back and forth between ancient physicians. The main use of basil as a remedial herb was for simple, non-life threatening injury.

Late Medieval/Early Renaissance Remedies:

The Greco-Roman remedies were visibly used in the later part of the Medieval era into the early Renaissance. Following the end of the Middle Ages, Florentine doctors returned to medicinal practices of classical antiquity. Reading and identifying Discoridean plants became problematic with sketches of herbs and plants being eerily similar to one another (Sarton). The confliction regarding the use of basil continued into this period with some fearing the herb and some defending it.

Modern Remedies:

Although Basil is typically not recommended by your local pharmacist, it can still be considered remedial for less problematic illnesses. Basil today is used to potentially clear breakouts of acne by applying a gel containing the herb for eight weeks. Because of the herb consisting of an essential oil, it is suggested to use with aromatherapy for mental alertness. Other smaller uses are:

• Head Colds
• Loss of Appetite
• Blood Circulation
• Warts
• Snake and Insect Bites
• Intestinal Gas

(WebMD)

None of these remedies have sufficient evidence to be used by the masses to rid of their illness, but some (Herbalists) believe this herb works better than over-the-counter medication.