| Herbal Supplements | Spring Tonic Herbs | Herbs to Eat | Herbal Teas | Pictures |

Herbal Supplements - Safety and Effectiveness

The herbal supplement industry is worth billions of pounds in Britain and even more in North America. We seem to have an endless demand for newer, more exotic supplements. We also seem to be able to accept some of the incredible claims for those herbal supplements.


Ginkgo bilobataken for memory loss and as a prophylactic against Alzheimers disease. This herb should not be taken when you are taking regular aspirin or other blood thinning products including high dose Garlic capsules.Black Cohoshis taken to help menopausal symptoms, but should not be taken if you have a family history of breast cancer.St John's Wortis taken for mild depression, but should not be taken if you are already taking any form of anti-depressants and some experts believe that it may also interfere with the contraceptive pill and other drugs.Hawthornis taken for heart problems, but should not be taken with other prescription heart medication.Golden Sealwhich is an internationally endangered plant and is sold for infections should not be taken if you have high blood pressure.Devil's Clawoften taken for arthritis pain and inflammation should not be taken if you have diabetes or low blood sugarLiquoricetaken for a variety of problems should never be used in high blood pressure and those taking medicinal doses should have their blood pressure checked regularly.

 

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Herbs have been traditionally used for centuries to cleanse the blood and provide a tonic for the spring and summer following the long winter blues. Herbs can boost liver function and help encourage the immune system.

Simple country plants, often thought of as weeds, have long been used in Britain to boost vitamin and mineral intake and to kick start the sluggish body after the winter months. They often grow unwanted in the garden. Always remember that it is not advisable to pick plants in the wild - it is often illegal and they may have pesticide and pollution remnants in their leaves and roots.

Nettles are freely available and are a good source of vitamin C, histamine and minerals such as iron, calcium and silica. Spring picking of nettle tops, with gloves, gently steamed or baked in a pie can provide a tonic to the blood. They help the kidneys to gently expel toxins from the blood. For women who are breastfeeding they are reputed to help increase milk production. An old use for nettles was to flay the joints to remedy chronic rheumatism - it's much kinder to visit a herbalist. In old Herbals nettle seeds were recommended "for the stings or bites of venomous creatures and mad dogs' - Grieve. As a final note old herbalists suggested combing the hair daily with expressed nettle juice to stop thinning of the hair!

Young Dandelion leaves are often eaten in salads on the continent. They can be quite bitter but contain vitamins A, B and C as well as various minerals. A few leaves only should be eaten at a time as they have a reputation for increasing the flow of urine - well named in France as Pissenlit. Dandelion roots can be roasted and taken as a coffee substitute. The roots stimulate bile flow and give a boost to the liver.

Burdock root (but leaves can be used) which grows freely in the wild is one of the best blood tonics as it contains iron, sulphur and B vitamins. A decoction of burdock root will aid the liver and help remove those toxins which cause gout and arthritis. Great with Yellow Dock for skin problems.

If you are digging up yellow dock from your garden save the roots. They are really rich in minerals and especially iron. Use half an ounce diced to one pint of water and simmer for 20 minutes. Drink half a cup a day.

Oats are a tonic to the nervous system with lots of really great ways to eat them. Start the day with porridge and snack on oatcakes to keep your sugar and fat intake down. Raw oats are also wonderful skin softeners. Use a tablespoonful in a bag with 2-3 drops of your favourite essential oil. Leave under the running hot tap and relax in a scented, skin softening bath.

For those with a sluggish digestion try a tea made with Common Agrimony . It can be bitter which stimulates the digestion so don't add sugar or honey - you need the bitter taste for it to work. It may also help with loose bowels. Agrimony has slender spikes of yellow flowers and deep green leaves and the whole plant has a slightly aromatic scent. It has a long held reputation for ' such as are bitten with serpents' - Dioscorides - ancient herbalist.

Lemon balm tea is a wonderful alternative to normal tea and coffee drinks. It is lemony and uplifting to the spirits. It also helps those who have a nervous tummy or are of excitable disposition. It can help to increase your energy levels to cope with the stress of modern life. Beekeepers may be interested to plant it near their hives as according to ancient Greek Pliny the bees 'When they are strayed away they do find their way home by it'.

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We happily eat our way (hopefully) through a large number of vegetables each week.  But there are also tastes and plants that we miss out on because they have gone out of fashion or are just thought of as 'weeds'.  I am in the process of compiling a list of herbs that have been used as a food source in the past, or are still used in this way.  I am happy to receive ideas and suggestions from anyone who knows more - please feel free to contact me with any information which you wish to share about herbs that you use as part of a meal.

Here is what I have managed to compile so far.  Watch out for more information.  Please make sure that you can recognise the plants correctly before using them and pick from a place where pesticides are not used.  Special note - wild plants must not be dug up, if you are using roots then grow the plants in your garden or window box.

Buckwheat, Fagopyrum cymosum - the seeds are ground and used for baking bread and cakes.

Burdock, Arctium lappa - the young stalks may be boiled or steamed and eaten like asparagus.

Chickweed, Stellaria media - steam young chickweed to eat as a spinach type vegetable, or chop the whole plant minus the roots in salads.

Comfrey, Symphytum officinale - the roots may be cooked like asparagus and if you leave a small amount of root in the ground it will probably regrow.  The leaves may be used as spinach and are particularly pleasant if dipped in batter and fried as comfrey leaf fritters.  * Remember that comfrey should only be eaten sparingly and occasionally.

Couchgrass, Agropyron repens - at last I have found something non-medical to do with Couchgrass, which grows from every little speck of root.  Grind the roots up and mix with your bread flour.

Dandelion, Taraxacum officinale - the roots dried and ground make a very acceptable coffee substitute.  You can mix with Chicory root if you like your coffee a bit more on the bitter side.  The young leaves are excellent in salads as they add a bitter, spicy element - but make sure they are really young.

Elder, Sambucus nigra - the flowers make a delicious cordial or fizz as well as a pleasant tea.  The wild fruit makes a jam or syrup full of vitamin C or a nice pie with apples.  Please leave at least half the fruit/flowers on the tree for other creatures to enjoy and to keep them alive during the autumn and winter.

Elecampane, Inula helenium - a very large plant with huge leaves and wonderful flowers, but you can eat the roots by candying them, and there are always plenty of roots.....

Evening Primrose, Oenothera biennis - the roots may be boiled or roasted and used like parsnips, whilst the young shoots may be eaten raw in salads.  Remember that it is the seeds that produce the oil.

Good King Henry, Chenopodium bonus henricus - an old fashioned vegetable plant which seems to be appearing in seed catalogues again.  Lots of choice here - eat the young, raw leaves in a salad, use the larger leaves as a spinach substitute and cook the young shoots as an asparagus substitute, and it keeps growing.  Great value for a small garden.

Goosegrass, Galium aparine - yet another green vegetable herb to cook as spinach, whilst if you have the patience to pick the seeds from your clothes where they have stuck fast you may grind them to form a coffee substitute.

Hawthorn, Crataegus monogyna - known as 'bread and cheese', use the leaf buds in sandwiches and salads and when in fruit make into a hedgerow jam (remembering to remove the seeds) but do leave some for the small animals and birds to eat through the winter.

Horsetail, Equisetum arvense - the shoots may be used as you would use asparagus or alternatively you could toss them in batter or flour and fry for breakfast.

Marshmallow, Althea officinalis - use the young leaves and tops in salads or as a cooked green vegetable.

Nettle, Urtica spp - there are loads of uses and lots of recipes (see Mrs Grieve).  Use the young tops picked in the spring as a spinach substitute - they are cleansing and nourishing for the blood.  Use the very young tops in salads - the sting goes when they wilt.  Make nettle tea, nettle wine, add to root beer.

Purslane, Portulaca oleracea - the raw leaves may be used in salads and the shoots cooked as a cooked vegetable and in soups.

Rosehips, Rosa canina - I'm sure lots of you remember Rosehip Syrup and you can make your own from the fruit or hips of this rose, although you do need to remove the seeds first.

Sweet Cicely, Myrrhis odorata - the seeds and the leaves and stems may be used as a sweetener especially with stewed fruit and rhubarb in particular.  The leaves may also be used raw in salad imparting an aniseedy taste to the salad and to cooked vegetables and soups.

Shepherds Purse, Capsella bursa-pastoris - once again use the young leaves as a spinach.

Silverweed, Potentilla anserina - use the tubers as a root vegetable.

Sloe, Prunus spinosa - Use the leaves as a tea and the berries as a wine, to make infused gin or in hedgerow jams, jellies and pies.

Willow Herb, Epilobium angustifolium - the young shoots may be steamed and eaten like asparagus

Yarrow, Achillea millefolium - eat the young leaves in salad for a peppery taste.

Herbal Teas

How to make a herbal tea.

To make a really good herbal tea try to use fresh ingredients.  However good quality, preferably organic, dried herbs are nearly as tasty.

If you are using dried herbs then a single rounded teaspoon of herb per mug is normally adequate for a tasty tea, but if you have picked fresh herb then use a small handful per mug. 
Place the herb into a container (teapot, mug, infuser, cafetierre).  Pour over boiling water.  Cover - important to keep in any volatile oils.  Infuse for 5-10 minutes to taste.  Strain.  Drink whilst warm.
Some summer teas are very refreshing when cold and may be placed in the fridge to cool.

It is worth trying a range of teas before deciding which ones you prefer.  Some herbal teas are slightly bitter in flavour.  It is thought that, in order to appreciate a taste, it is necessary to eat or drink a substance at least three different times.  Try the bitter herbs 2 or 3 times before deciding that you definitely do not like them - believe me most of them grow on you!!!

Why use Herbal Teas

Drinking herbal teas may help you to reduce your dependence on stimulants such as coffee and increase your intake of liquids throughout the day.  Many herbal teas have additional benefits when drunk in medicinal doses and strength.  It is useful to drink herbal teas during change of diet, stressful life changes, at work, on holiday, when you are feeling unwell and when you feel well.

I have noticed a great deal of relief for women with urinary tract infections when they drink Cornsilk and Buchu tea regularly throughout the day.  Buchu leaves smell like blackcurrants and the tea is quite refreshing as well as offering soothing relief in cystitis etc.  Drink 5-6 cups per day in times of infection or when symptoms are noticed and then as you like the rest of the time.

Sage is an antiseptic drying herb which can help women during menopause.  It may be useful to drink a cup before bed.  However Sage can also be useful as a mouthwash and gargle for sore throats and gum disease.  It should not be drunk during pregnancy or breastfeeding.  It has lately been found that Sage can help with memory as well.

Fennel is a lovely tea to drink to relieve colic in both adults and children.  The tea has an aniseed flavour and smell.  The seeds may be chewed to cleanse the mouth and the tea drunk after eating or throughout the day.  Peppermint tea is also useful to relieve digestive system cramps and to calm the digestive system generally.  Fresh peppermint is easy to grow in the garden, one of those plants that believes it is for life not for one summer.  There are lots of types of mint plants available from your local garden centre - grow in a pot to contain its enthusiasm for life and you will have fresh mint teas throughout the summer.  Chamomile flowers offer a calming influence to the digestive system as well as to the body and mind as a whole.  It can be used for inflamation in the gut and may be drunk before bed to combat sleeplessness.

Talking of sleeplessness then it is worth trying Linden Flowers or Lime Tree flowers for a bedtime drink.  This tea has an mild aromatic flavour and is extremely pleasant to drink as a bedtime beverage.  It can also be useful to combat the stress and anxiety which may cause sleep disorders.  Lime Tree flower tea may be drunk throughout the day and will not cause you to feel drowsy.

Ginger is a herb which makes a stimulating and refreshing tea and is particularly pleasant as a wakeup tea made with fresh lemon slices.  Ginger is well known for relieving nausea and the tea may be sipped throughout the day.  It is pleasant both hot and cold.  Ginger is also used to improve the blood supply to the abdominal organs and so can help with digestion.

Herbal Teas to try

I have tried to include many herbs which may easily be grown in your garden plus a few which are easily available.

Refreshing
Rosemary
Peppermint
Lemon Balm
Lemon Verbena
Rooibos
Hibiscus
Ginger
Lemon and Ginger

Relaxing
Limeflowers or Linden Flowers
Chamomile
Lemon Balm
Vervain
Lemon Verbena

Digestives
Vervain
Dandelion
Chamomile
Peppermint
Ginger
Fennel
Marshmallow
Meadowsweet
Cinnamon
Cardamon

Liver Teas
Dandelion
Vervain
Chicory

Kidney Teas
Dandelion leaf
Celery Seed
Marshmallow
Parsley

Spicy
Cardamon
Ginger
Cinnamon
Fennel

Tonic
Nettle
Elderflower
Vervain

Anti-infective
Pot Marigold
Thyme
Sage
Rosemary

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Herb Pictures

I occasionally take pictures of herbs and display them here.  I warn you that I am not a photographer, but if you are having difficulty identifying a herb then they just might help.  Feel free to download and use them (non commercially as they are my copyright) if you like. 

Summer 2006

Bay

Calendula

Chickweed 1      Chickweed 2
Ephredra
Houseleek
Hyssop 1           Hyssop 2
Elecampane

Common Mallow

Nettle

Greater Plantain
Green Sage
Selfheal
Golden Rod
Tansy
Vervain


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