Herbs for Home Treatment is a user-friendly guide to herbs and their medicinal properties, in which Anna Newton explains how to deal with common illnesses, including problems of the digestive, respiratory, circulatory and nervous systems, and suggests essential herbs as well as those which are also useful to have in the cupboard. She also offers advice on how to get the best out of herbs for general health, including how to maintain energy levels, increase stamina, and improve your mood. She provides information on dosages, possible allergies, and when to seek professional help. Anna advises on growing and storing herbs, and creating tinctures, oils and ointments for a home apothecary and first-aid kit for when travelling abroad, and gives a list of UK retailers of herbs and professional herbalists.
200pp, 190mm x 234mm, illustrated, 2009

Extract
Herbs are the most natural form of medicine. Our bodies evolved to digest plants well and absorb all the nutrients. It follows that herbal remedies, being of plant origin, are easy for our digestive system to break down and assimilate. In fact, many food items used in appropriate amounts, for example garlic or thyme, become effective medicine. Herbs contain hundreds of individual compounds, and herbalists believe that this biochemical complexity of plants matches the complexity of our bodies, and that is one of the reasons why whole-plant preparations can work very well in comparatively low dosages.

There are many advantages to being able to medicate with herbs: you avoid the potential side effects of many common pharmaceuticals, herbs are cheap and easily available, but most of all you will be helping your body to heal itself in a safe, natural way and not just suppressing symptoms.

At home I regularly use five medicinal herbs as teas, two types of skin ointments, about three to four essential oils and three to four specific blends made up from a few other tinctures. That is all. I do not need a full-blown apothecary to treat the majority of common health problems, and neither will you. The beauty of medicinal plants is that they are incredibly versatile: the same herb can be used for a very diverse range of problems. Take common chamomile: nausea during pregnancy, infant colic, indigestion, toothache, puffy eyes and acne are just a few cases where it could possibly be used. I have relied on my herbal first-aid kit on holidays in Britain and Europe as well as in the remote areas of Bhutan and Mongolia, and it fitted into a small plastic box. Herbs for Home Treatment will help you to assemble your own individual herbal medicine chest to use at home, and a small first-aid kit to use when away.

Helping the body to heal itself
Herbs help the body to heal itself, rather than just suppressing the symptoms. A classic example is the treatment of high blood pressure. The appropriate herbal treatment can not only bring blood pressure down but will also restore the healthy function of the circulatory system, so that after a period of treatment your blood pressure should remain normal without any medication. Similarly, taking echinacea will improve the function ofyour immune system, which will then be better at fighting off disease.

Calendula
Otherwise known as marigold, calendula is the treatment for the skin. It is antibacterial, antiviral and anti-fungal. It promotes skin cell division and hence the healing of any skin injury. It is also anti-inflammatory.

Calendula can be used in any situation where the skin has been broken, either through injury or disease. Its main uses include the treatment of cuts, grazes, sunburn, heat burns, insect stings, various skin rashes and nappy rash. Unless you are allergic to calendula, you can try it on virtually any skin problem except for bruising - where comfrey would be better - and some cases of eczema.

You can use calendula as an ointment, cream, infused oil, poultice or compress, depending on the problem. Ointments can be made in a variety of ways, but this recipe is the easiest to use.

Calendula ointment

• Prepare the herbs: strip the petals off the flowers and weigh them - you need 120g.
• Melt 600g of emulsifying ointment in a glass dish that has been placed in a saucepan half-filled with water on a low heat (emulsifying ointment is a ready-made ointment base available from the chemist).
• Add 270ml glycerol (available from the chemist).
• Add 330ml water.
• Add 120g herbs.
• Simmer for 3 hours while stirring occasionally, refilling the saucepan with water if necessary.
• Strain through a jelly bag into a glass bowl while still hot. (Be very careful!)
• Stir continually until cold.
• Put into sterilised dark glass jars with a palette knife, making sure that no air pockets are left.
• Label the contents with the name and date of making.

Lemon Balm
Lemon balm is a superb digestive tea that also makes you relaxed and ensures good sleep. When it starts growing fresh in my garden in the spring and summer, I often give it to my dinner guests at the end of the evening to aid their digestion, and may have commented how well they slept afterwards. Lemon balm infusion, made from fresh leaves, has a wonderful green colour, zesty scent and a fresh lemony taste. This tea, whether made from the fresh or the dry herb, is good for people whose digestive problems stem from anxiety, as it is both a digestive aid and a relaxant to the nervous system.

Use a good handful of fresh leaves (not twigs), shredded into smaller pieces, per pint-sized teapot. You can add honey to this tea, or even a slice of lemon to enhance the natural taste.

From Herbs for Home Treatment, ?2009 by Anna Newton, published by Green Books.