Western medicine owes a great debt to tropical rainforests. Many drugs in common usage have been derived from rainforest plants, or identified through indigenous peoples use of 'natural' medicines. These include plants such as Chinchona, which was used as a basis for treating malaria.

An estimated one in four of all purchases from pharmacies in countries such as Britain contain an active ingredient derived from a tropical forest species.

Products include anaesthetics, contraceptives, enzymes, hormones, laxatives, cough mixtures, antibiotics and antiseptics. These have all been derived from rainforest species. Derivatives from rainforest plants are used to treat cancer, malaria, heart disease, bronchitis, hypertension, dysentery and tuberculosis.

The destruction of rainforests and ensuing loss of wildlife potentially threatens new medical discoveries. The destruction of tribal societies may also mean that traditional knowledge of useful plants is also lost.

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