Blog Resources
Our blogs are a key component of our mission to promote public & educational awareness of using medicinal plants for health, as medicine, and to prevent disease.
While the UK lags behind other nations in embracing medicinal plants, science is proving their fundamental importance to our health. Medicinal plants, when used properly, are natural, safe, and effective
Here, we invite you to explore the world of medicinal plants for your health. Our growing collection of blog posts offer practical tools and guidance to help you embrace them responsibly and effectively.
Before diving into the blogs, feel free to learn more about our overall approach at the end of this page – what our blogs provide, responsible use, and medicinal plants for health, prevention and safer treatments, all rooted in the latest scientific research.
Check back often for new posts and updates!
Plant Medicine in the Management of Obesity
The recent news on the hazards of weight-loss drugs overlooks mentioning the safe and effective plant-based options. At Dilston Physic Garden, we encourage exploring safer, plant-based solutions that have been
Echinacea: Traditional use and modern science behind its immune support
For generations, echinacea has been a staple in Native American medicine, primarily used for treating colds, coughs, and respiratory infections, healing wounds and skin conditions like burns and insect bites,
Elderberry – a natural remedy for colds & flu, and much more!
In England, summer is said to begin when the elderberry tree blooms and ends when its fruit ripens. Elderberry Sambucus nigra L. has been used for thousands of years and remains
Unlock the power of essential oils: Global traditions, proven benefits, and everyday wellness!
Delve into the fascinating world of essential oils, exploring their origins, the science-backed benefits they offer, how to use them, the differences in their use in this country compared to other countries, along with important safety tips for using them.
As always, our aim is to help you integrate these natural medicines into your daily life with confidence and ease.
Overall Approach and Responsible Use
Our Blogs Provide
Easy-to-Follow Guides and Recipes: Learn how to incorporate medicinal plants into your daily routine.
Support for Key Areas of Health: Explore ways to improve immune, digestive, respiratory, cardiovascular, brain, and skin health.
Solutions for Modern Challenges: Find plant-based approaches to managing anxiety, depression, insomnia, and cognitive decline.
Sustainable Practices: Learn to grow, source, and prepare plant remedies in ways that respect both your health and the environment. Increasing wild green spaces (which naturally contain native medicinal plants) provides a place for wellbeing in the community, and is essential to restoring biodiversity, especially in the UK, one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world.
Health, Prevention, and Safer Treatments
Incorporating a diverse range of medicinal plants into our diets and lives can:
Improve Physical and Mental Health: Medicinal plants not only support health and help address causes of many chronic conditions, they also enhance our life and overall wellness.
Prevent Chronic Disease: Edible medicinal plants – including herbs, spices and a range of fruit and vegetables, contain vital compounds that help reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and cognitive decline, and that are antibiotic, antiviral, antifungal and immune supporting.
Provide Safer Treatments: When used correctly – the correct plant medicine and at a therapeutic level, plant medicine can effectively treat a range of common conditions, often with fewer side effects (e.g. lower addiction risk) compared to pharmaceuticals.
Responsible Use is Essential
While medicinal plants are powerful allies for health, proper use is crucial:
Consult Experts: Speak with a NIMH medical herbalist or healthcare professional before using medicinal plants for children, during pregnancy, or if you have a medical condition, allergy or take medications.
Never Stop prescribed medications without professional advice.
Choose Reputable Sources: Always source plant products and supplements from trusted suppliers -from companies that list their full ingredients, prepare products correctly to standards.
Do not buy or harvest endangered species.
Transforming Health (and the NHS) with Medicinal Plants
Our evidence is grounded in robust scientific research, combined with an understanding of the unique benefits of each plant. By reconnecting with the natural world, using science as the bridge to educate the public and health professionals, we rediscover how plants help us thrive.
Only Way Forward: If we start teaching medicinal plant use, nutrition, and health & wellbeing awareness alongside core subjects like maths and English now, we could transform our nation’s health within a generation—removing the strain on the NHS by addressing its challenges, like an ageing population and a rise of long-term illnesses.
Is it possible to imagine a time when humans can be more self-sustaining, and our healthcare systems primarily address unavoidable illnesses supported by adequate medical resources?
