21 Mar Herbal medicine to put a spring in your step

The start of summer is a great opportunity to take your spring cleaning to a new level, clearing out old beauty regimes and rituals and taking time to try some herbs from your garden, coupled with natural herbal medicine, to give you a happy glow for the new season.

One excellent way to revitalise your tired winter body is to add some herbs to your food, your bath or your skin to get you ready for summer, feeling fitter and healthier than ever.

Here are a few of our favourite herbs for the new season that could help put a ‘spring’ in your step.

Milk Thistle herbal medicine

When it’s cold and miserable, many of us tend to choose food to provide comfort and warmth rather than for its nutritional value, so spring is a good time to think about improving your diet and detoxing your system.

Milk Thistle – or Silybum marianum to give it its Latin name – is a herbal medicine that contains natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, and is commonly used to detoxify the body, especially the liver.

It is designed to promote healthy digestive function and relieve the symptoms associated with occasional over-indulgence of food and drink such as indigestion and upset stomach, based on traditional use only.

Blue Flag herbal medicine

Blue Flag has detoxifying properties which could help your skin to achieve a healthy glow this springtime. It has long been used for the relief of minor skin conditions such as spots, pimples, blemishes, mild acne and even mild eczema by helping to cleanse and stimulate the removal of waste products from your system, including the toxins that can contribute to bad skin.

So if you want your skin to look its best this spring, make sure you get enough sleep, drink plenty of water and try taking a licensed herbal medicine such as HRI Clear Complexion that contains Blue Flag.

Rosemary

Rosemary is a commonplace herb often used in cooking, but did you know that Rosemary tea and essential oils are also great for feeling more mentally alert and inducing a feeling of overall wellbeing?

Try tying a bunch of Rosemary – ideally fresh from the garden – under the running tap into your bath. This will gently infuse your bathwater with Rosemary oils and produce a beautiful and relaxing scent.

St John’s Wort herbal medicine

St John’s Wort has been used as a herbal remedy for hundreds of years to treat the symptoms of anxiety and mild depression. Many of us can feel a little down when the weather is grey and overcast and it feels as if winter is dragging on forever.

So if you feel you are suffering from low mood, St John’s Wort could be the perfect herbal medicine to help offer a pick-me-up to relieve the symptoms of mild depression, seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and mild anxiety.

You could also try a licensed product such as HRI Good Mood that contains St John’s Wort and see if it could help you spend the rest of the year feeling happier.

Echinacea

Echinacea is a firm favourite herbal medicine with people who want to help keep winter colds at bay.

Many people take it all year round to help ward off a variety of viruses. Incorporating foods rich in Vitamin C such as citrus fruits, potatoes and dark green leafy vegetables into your diet can help give your body the nutrients it needs.

Adding regular doses of herbal medicines containing Echinacea such as HRI Cold and Flu Echinacea and HRI Coldcare could also boost your immune system, helping you to fend off viruses.

Dandelion root and leaf

As the weather warms up, and we start to wear less clothing, it’s natural to want to keep the dreaded bloat at bay so you look as smooth and sleek as possible under lighter springtime clothes.

Dandelion leaf and root are used in herbal medicines designed to relieve the symptoms of mild water retention that occur when the body stores water instead of passing it out naturally through urine and sweat. Signs of water retention include swollen hands, ankles or tummy and, for many women, tend to occur around the time of menstruation.

If you feel that you are retaining excess water, it is worth trying a herbal medicine such as HRI Water Balance that contains both Dandelion leaf and root to flush out unwanted fluid.

Burdock Root

Burdock Root is another herb that is great for helping your body to get rid of unwanted toxins, which is why it is found in the traditional herbal remedy HRI Clear Complexion which can help relieve the symptoms of skin problems such as spots, pimples and mild eczema.

Burdock Root cleanses the blood and has a mildly diuretic effect, helping to flush toxins out of your system.

Nettle Leaf

Nettle leaf contains natural antihistamines, making it particularly effective for treating the symptoms associated with seasonal allergies such as a runny nose, itchy, watery eyes, and sneezing. Nettle leaf is also high in essential vitamins and minerals and is easy to take in a comforting, tasty tea.

So, however you chose to get ready for spring, why not add some herbs into the mix to help you look and feel better. You can check which herbal medicine is right for you on the British Herbal Medicines Association website.

Image by Julia Caeser on Unsplash