Cardiovascular diseases are, despite all advances in medicine, the most common cause of death in the Western world. Is the stress typical of the modern lifestyle responsible for this, along with poor nutrition, psychological misprogramming, or even harmful microorganisms? Or is it because we no longer properly understand the heart and its function? These questions are explored by cultural anthropologist and ethnobotanist Wolf-Dieter Storl in his new book. Among indigenous peoples and in pre-industrial times, heart diseases in the modern sense were hardly known. As "heart medicine," plants that worked on the spiritual and emotional level and made the heart joyful again were used. In addition to these traditional, ancient heart plants, the book also presents the herbal remedies of modern cardiology, such as foxglove (Digitalis), lily of the valley (Convallaria), or strophanthus. Illustrated with high-quality color photos of plants and numerous black-and-white images. A new, holistic perspective on the highly relevant topic of heart problems, presented from ethnological, ethnomedical, ethnobotanical, and folkloric viewpoints. Informative, insightful, and easy to read.