Ann George

I think the quotation below from GreenMed Info just about sums it up. It’s not that an evidence base isn’t important, it’s the fact that anything outside of that gold standard, even if it has been in use for thousands of years with no ill effect, is regarded as invalid. A case in point is [...]

This week my grandchildren were very excited about appearing in the nativity play at their village school. It occurred to me to wonder whether any of them knew what frankincense and myrrh actually are, so I gave some to my grandson who tells me that everyone was very excited to see the actual thing. I [...]

Now that so many herbal medicines have been swept off the shelf in the EU’s relentless drive to makes us all safe by means of the Traditional and Herbal Medicinal Products Directive which came into force last month, we discover after all that herbs aren’t the problem. According to scientists who have written to the [...]

As a coffee addict, I am always pleased to see research which tells me that it is not always the villain it is supposed to be.  Now, a large study using data from just under 35,000 women taken over a 10 year period has found that those women who drink coffee daily are at a [...]

A new study has shown that herbal remedies based on Echinacea, Brahmi, or Ashwagandha can enhance immune function by increasing immunoglobulin production. Furthermore, these herbal medicines might regulate antibody production by augmenting both Th1 and Th2 cytokine production. Yamada K, Hung P, Lim BO, “A comparison of the immunostimulatory effects of the medicinal herbs Echinacea, [...]

Rather surprised at a programme on BBC next week. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b010fq6q Why should mammals be debating whether breast is best or not? Surely we should be talking about what is the best and kindest way of feeding babies who aren’t breastfed – for whatever reason. And this should not depend on global businesses who have done [...]

The European Traditional and Herbal Medicinal Products Directive (THMPD) which is about to come into force will severely restrict everyone’s access to herbal medicine and plants which have been used safely for thousands of years. I have already posted my worries about this new legislation and have now found a Europe-wide petition to try and [...]

One of the more worrying aspects of the new Traditional Herbal and Medicinal Products Directive (THMPD) which is coming into force on May 1st is that, although I will be able to continue dispensing liquid and dried herb prescriptions as before,  I will no longer be able to access any of the herbal tablets on [...]

16th February 2011 The Health Secretary announced to Parliament today that herbal medicine practitioners will be regulated from April 2012. The four UK health departments have agreed that the Health Professions Council (HPC) should hold a statutory register of practitioners who supply unlicensed herbal medicines to people to enable the supply of herbal medicines to [...]