Many modern drugs are the purified form of chemicals present in traditional medicines.
Aspirin is made chemically now in pure form, but the original source was willow bark. Digitalis was originally purified from fox glove, a flower, and ephedrine from a desert shrub. Only a few fungi have been used as traditional medicines. Scientists continue to visit other countries to collect and study traditional medicines hoping to discover new drug sources. The use of this fungus was relatively unknown in this country until it was credited for the success of Chinese women athletes at the National Games in Beijing, in 1993.