Thoughts on hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
There’s a lot in the news these days about menopausal symptoms and HRT. Concerns about it increasing risk of certain cancers appear minimal and there is increasing evidence of benefits which are not limited to menopausal symptoms. In addition to typical menopausal and...
Stress and the role of adaptogenic herbs
Modern life is stressful in so many ways and can affect people in different ways depending on their individual strengths and weaknesses or ‘constitution’. Some types of stress are healthy, like the acute short-lived stresses of exercise, work requirements,...
Feverfew, migraine and inflammation
The chard plants on my allotment have been interspersed with beautiful feverfew flowers this year. As a remedy for preventing migraine headaches and arthritic pains, the leaves are best used fresh and a couple taken daily with a bit of bread and butter, as they can be...
Herbal Bitters
Bitter herbs are one of the most important groups of herbal medicines. The picture on the left is a bed of greens on my allotment which has an assortment of leaves for use in salads and stir-fries, including chicory, dandelion, kale, rocket and mizuna. The bitter...
Self-heal: A little used but potent healer
This tiny plant is popping up all over the place at the moment, in lawns and grass verges. Although little used in modern herbalism, it has been the surprising subject of research studies for its antiviral and anticancer properties. However, its traditional uses are...
Lime flowers
Lime trees are covered with feathery yellow-green flowers at this time of year and these are the parts commonly used by herbalists. Lime flowers make a a relaxing tea for helping with anxiety and poor sleep, but as with all herbs there's much more to it than that. As...
Shepherd’s purse
Shepherd's purse is a lesser known weed that is flowering at the moment; it's easily identified by the 'purse' or heart-shaped seed pods on the stem. The entire plant above the ground is used to make a medicine that's commonly used to reduce unwanted bleeding. It does...
Why hot chillies are good (for lots of) us
In news this week, a cautious discussion about why hot chillies 'might' be good for us, following a recent study of thousands of Americans which suggested general benefit to health of eating chillies. Chillies have been long valued in herbal medicine for their warming...
Osteoporosis and bisphosphonates
A news item today highlights the long-term use of bisphosphonate drugs that are used for people suffering from osteoporosis by slowing the breakdown of bone. However, evidence now shows that they actually weaken bone by producing microscopic cracks. Not many people...
Children’s Mental Health Week
Children's Mental Health Week was marked this month. Statistics around children's mental health are worsening and it's reported that half of schools struggle to get mental health support for their students. Not many people are aware of the benefits that herbs can...
