Mental Health Awareness week recently highlighted the often hidden reality that one in four of us experience some sort of mental health problem but resources for NHS treatment are limited.

We need to do much more to boost prevention and early intervention. Mental health care has now been declared a high priority and solutions are being sought. As well as improving NHS services, we should examine ways of preventing demand for NHS treatment in the first place.

There is increasing evidence, for instance, of the benefits of gardening and growing food to improve mental health for those suffering acute or persistent problems.

Other forms of treatment need to be considered. Using herbal medicine prescribed by Medical Herbalists, together with diet and lifestyle advice and the therapeutic benefits of a consultation, can be very effective in treating anxiety and mild to moderate depression, improving general health and vitality, and helping to limit the side effects of drug treatment. Such early intervention can stop such issues seriously deteriorating.

Many herbal medicines can be beneficial. St John’s Wort is a well-proven treatment for mild to moderate depression. Other important nerve tonic herbs include Skullcap, Vervain and  Schisandra.  Anxiolytic herbs such as Passionflower and Valerian are used to treat anxiety together with herbs that restore adrenal function such as Liquorice, Rhodiola, Withania and Siberian ginseng.

Using these herbal medicines with their gentle action and few side effects in combination with diet advice, and a listening ear could provide a turning point to improving mental health and a way of avoiding the need for NHS treatment.

Women with PCOS are increasingly seeking treatment for their symptoms from a Medical Herbalist.  The symptoms experienced include irregular menstrual cycles, hirsutism, weight gain, acne, hair loss, anxiety and depression.  The majority of women with PCOS have insulin resistance which results in high levels of insulin and this can lead to increased androgen production by the ovary.

Those with PCOS are dissatisfied with the orthodox treatment available. Metformin, an insulin-sensitising drug, is associated with unpleasant gastro-intestinal side effects. Other options such as the contraceptive pill, synthetic progestin and anti-androgens are also associated with unwanted side effects so many look for alternative forms of treatment.

The key to treatment of PCOS is a change in diet and increase in regular exercise to promote weight loss. This reduces insulin resistance. The diet should have a low glycaemic index with a reduction in refined sugar and increase in vegetable intake.

Successful results have been obtained for the use of herbal medicine in the treatment of PCOS (1). The approach of a Medical Herbalist is to select a mix of herbs tailored to each individual to give an integrated and holistic approach to treatment.  The herb actions selected will help decrease insulin resistance, decrease androgen production, balance ovarian hormone production, promote liver function, reduce cystic growth and support the nervous system.

PCOS is often associated with low thyroid function. Herbs may therefore be given to promote thyroid function which may help to balance metabolism and improve weight loss.

PCOS is a complex condition with a wide variation in the symptoms experienced by each individual. The tailored multi-target approach of herbal medicine when combined with diet and lifestyle changes offers an effective treatment option.

1. Rooney, S., Pendry, B. (2014) Phytotherapy for Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: a review of the literature and evaluation of practitioners’ experiences. Journal of Herbal Medicine 4: 159-171.
   

The alarming growth in people's resistance to sometimes life-saving antibiotic drugs is increasingly seen by senior politicians and professionals as a considerable threat to our health.

The ability to fight bacterial infections with antibiotics was one of the main advances in health care during the 20th century.  
But the effectiveness of antibiotics in the 21st century is blamed on overusing antibiotics in medical treatment and in farming.

The seriousness of antibiotic resistance was identified by the Chancellor of the Exchequer at a meeting in Washington of the IMF.  He told delegates that ten million people a year could die by 2050 if antibiotics can no longer treat infections and argued that that this is an even greater threat to humanity than cancer.  (Times 15/4)

We need to curb the use of antibiotics and find alternative ways of treating infections. Herbal medicines can also help combat antibiotic resistance. They have a significant potential to treat minor infections so reserving precious antibiotics for use in more serious cases. There are many medicinal herbs which have antimicrobial action and which were used traditionally in treating infections.

We do not want to return to the days when only herbal medicines were available. And today's herbal medicines have clear differences. Modern conditions, considerably more hygienic than in previous centuries, mean that the milder action of herbal medicines can be more effective.

Modern research has identified the antimicrobial action of plant constituents, which herbs are most effective, and the therapeutic doses required. Furthermore, research has shown that a combination of antibiotics and herbal medicine can enhance the action of antibiotics and help to overcome antibiotic resistance.

An area where herbal medicine can be particularly effective is treating and preventing urinary infections.  Those suffering from recurring urinary infections are repeatedly treated with a course of antibiotics only for the infection to return. I have had success in using herbal medicine to treat the infection and prevent recurrence of urinary infections using a tailored combination of herbs to treat the infection and also  enhance the ability of the body’s own immune system to fight infection.

Alarmingly, there is evidence that children are increasingly unable to fight common infections because the antibiotics given cannot kill the bacteria. A particular example is urinary tract infections caused by E.coli.  Treatment with herbal medicine could be an effective alternative either used in combination to enhance antibiotic treatment or alone to prevent recurrence of infection.

If we are to ensure our future health we must consider alternatives such as herbal medicines in fighting infections.
 

Type 2 Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease with life-threatening complications. More than three million British adults have type 2 diabetes and this is growing by 5% or 150,000 people each year.

This growing problem flows from increases in obesity and sedentary life styles. Worryingly, one in three adults show pre-diabetic signs with poor control of blood glucose levels, which boost the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
The good news is that if you are pre-diabetic and you act now, you could stop type 2 diabetes in its tracks. The risk of developing diabetes is minimised by catching the condition early as pre-diabetic signs can precede full-blown type 2 diabetes by many years.

You can, therefore, make changes that significantly improve glucose control.  This requires better diet, and lifestyle. And that can be effectively combined with treatment using herbal medicine.

This early control of blood glucose stops the need for drugs, and the dangers of long-term complications such as heart and kidney disease, blindness and nerve damage, leading to amputations.

A pre-diabetic state is defined as fasting glucose levels which are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as type 2 diabetes. In healthy individuals, blood glucose is usually tightly controlled but during the development of type 2 diabetes the control of both fasting and post-load glucose becomes abnormal. This results from insufficient secretion of insulin and lower responses to insulin.

The key to treatment is to increase insulin production and then the response to insulin.  Weight loss is a very crucial part of lifestyle changes needed to achieve this. Losing >5% can reduce low level inflammation and insulin demand, and increase insulin response.

Diet changes should include less saturated fat intake, more fibre, no refined carbohydrates, plenty of vegetables and low fruit, as well as moderate protein intake including more nuts, which also curb the risk of diabetes development.  Exercise of at least 30 minutes for five times a week starting with gentle walking is very important as  are good sleep patterns which aid weight loss.

Treatment with herbal medicines enhances the benefits of these vital life style changes. A group of herbs which are particularly beneficial are spices such as ginger, garlic, cinnamon, turmeric and capsicum. These reduce inflammation and help balance blood glucose. Other effective herbs in controlling blood glucose include gymnema, fennel, liquorice, goat’s rue, ginseng and baical skullcap.

A Medical Herbalist will select the best of these glucose-controlling herbs for each individual and combine them with others to improve liver function, lower cholesterol, improve vascular function and reduce inflammation. They will advise which nutritional supplements are necessary for balancing blood glucose. These include chromium, magnesium, omega 3 fatty acids, vitamin B, vitamin D and zinc which are very important for normalising glucose levels.

Combining crucial life style changes with herbal medicine treatment provides a real opportunity to reverse poor control of blood glucose and prevent the development of type 2 diabetes. This will avert long term health problems and improve the chances of continued good health and well being.
 

Acid reflux is the back flow of acid from the stomach into the oesophagus causing pain in the chest known as heartburn.  

Other symptoms include a bitter taste in the throat, bloating, burping, and nausea. If acid reflux occurs frequently, it leads
to gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.  

Acid reflux has various causes. One is a hiatus hernia, where a hole in the diaphragm allows the upper part of the stomach to protrude into the chest cavity. Other causes are poor lower oesophageal sphincter tone, pregnancy, and stress. And there's Irritable Bowel Syndrome and diet-related factors such as low fibre, spicy or fatty foods, and being overweight.

The orthodox treatments frequently given for acid reflux are proton pump inhibitors and other drugs which reduce stomach acid production. However, overproduction of acid may not be the underlying cause so reducing production does not always lead to effective treatment. A key point is that heartburn results from acid being in the wrong place, in the oesophagus rather than confined to the stomach, and not necessarily from too much or too little acid production.

In fact, low stomach acid production may in some cases be the cause of the symptoms.  Acid produced in the stomach activates the digestion of protein and helps kill bacteria ingested in the food.  So low acid production slows digestion, increases gas produced by bacteria and also delays closure of the oesophageal sphincter. Food remaining in the stomach for longer causing delayed gastric emptying, increased gas production and looser sphincter control can result in the backward flow of stomach content and acid into the oesophagus. Reducing acid production would therefore only worsen symptoms.

This demonstrates the importance of trying to understand and treat the cause of the condition before prescribing acid-reducing drugs.

There is a wide range of herbal medicines which can be used to treat acid reflux. The herbs selected will depend on the causes and the symptoms experienced by each individual. The herbal actions include improving protection of the oesophageal lining, reducing inflammation, promoting tissue healing, increasing the tone and effectiveness of the lower oesophageal sphincter, encouraging the stomach to empty its content into the duodenum, antibacterial, reducing gas production, optimising digestive enzyme production, and reducing nervous tension and the effects of stress.

Herbal medicine offers a gentle, effective and safe approach to treating the symptoms and causes of acid reflux without the long term need to take acid reducing drugs.

Endometriosis occurs in 1 in 10 women. Public awareness of the disease has been greatly increased over the last week by reports in The Guardian. Individual women including Hilary Mantel and Oona King describe how endometriosis has influenced their lives causing pain, illness and infertility.

Endometriosis occurs when endometrial cells that line the uterus travel outside the uterus to other parts of the body. These cells are still stimulated by a woman's reproductive hormones and shed blood during menstruation each month. Blood from these cells is unable to leave the body and causes deposits to accumulate and form scar tissue.

The women in the newspaper reports describe poor diagnosis of the condition. GPs can be unsympathetic and dismissive. The symptoms experienced are very diverse and can vary from asymptomatic to intense menstrual pain for a week each month. The intensity of the pain does not necessarily relate to the severity of the condition. Other symptoms include chronic pelvic and back pain, painful ovulation, bloating, pain during or after sex, abnormal bleeding, nausea and fatigue.

Possible causes of endometriosis include retrograde bleeding into the abdominal cavity during menstruation, increased exposure to oestrogen, immune dysfunction and genetics. If your mother or sister has endometriosis, there is a higher chance that you will also have it.

There is no cure for endometriosis. Treatments are designed to relieve symptoms and aid fertility. The choice of orthodox treatment includes surgery, preferably skilled laparoscopic excision, hormonal treatments such as the contraceptive pill and pain management.  

Medical Herbalists offer an effective approach to treatment. As identified by Hilary Mantel, ‘Alternative practitioners are often good listeners and highly empathic’. She also states that’ Herbal medicine harnesses the knowledge of countless generations gone before’. Key benefits of the approach of Medical Herbalists are that we are holistic and treat the body as a whole, and that we tailor the treatment so that each case can be managed individually. This is particularly important in the treatment of endometriosis.

The therapeutic approach taken by a Medical Herbalist would be to:

• Reduce pain
• Address any hormonal imbalances
• Improve the immune system
• Support the nervous system and reduce the response to stress
• Improve circulation and drainage to the pelvic area
• Restrict growth of endometrial tissue
• Detoxify to improve tissue health.

This approach would be combined with diet and life style advice to help women with endometriosis relieve symptoms, improve health, aid fertility and generally improve their ability to cope with the condition.

Anxiety is the feeling of fear and panic. We all sometimes feel anxious in anticipation of a stressful event or potentially important decision. Because this is a normal response it is not always possible to identify when it becomes a problem. However, if the feelings of anxiety are very strong and regularly occur for everyday events, then it is important to consider how anxiety can be reduced. This is necessary to prevent physical and psychological symptoms of anxiety such as panic attacks, depression, fatigue, muscle tension, difficulty in concentrating and insomnia which can also lead to more serious illness.

Herbal medicine offers a holistic approach to treatment. It can be used to prevent acute anxiety symptoms as well as healing the body to improve the long term response to stressful events. Other factors may exacerbate anxiety and require actions, in tandem with herbal treatment, to maintain blood sugar levels, identify any food allergies, ensure adequate intake of nutritional supplements such as B vitamins and magnesium and getting sufficient good quality sleep.

Two groups of herbal medicines are particularly effective in the treatment of anxiety.  First, adaptogens such as Siberian Ginseng, Ashwagandha and Rhodiola. These herbs improve the body’s ability to respond to stress. They do this by regulating the neuroendocrine system and particularly the hypothalamic-pituitary – adrenal axis to normalise the production of adrenal hormones. All adaptogens help to modulate and enhance the immune system and provide antioxidant nutrients. Second, nervines or nerve tonics such as Oat seed, Skullcap, and St John’s Wort which are calming and relaxing, restore emotional balance and nourish the nerves and nervous system.  Nervines such as Passion Flower, California Poppy and Motherwort are effective in calming excess nervous activity and can be used to relieve acute anxiety symptoms.

Combining adaptogens and nervines herbs for the treatment of anxiety restores the function of the nervous and adrenal systems and allows the body to normalise its response to stress.

Lower back pain is common for most adults at some time. And costs billions in lost working days

In most cases the pain is mechanical triggered by bad posture while sitting or standing, bending awkwardly, or lifting incorrectly.

Orthodox treatment involves reducing the pain with paracetamol or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen. While this relieves pain, it suppresses rather than heals and does not address the causes. Moreover, long term use of NSAIDs can spark gastrointestinal upset, peptic ulcers and intestinal bleeding.

Herbal treatment can offer an effective alternative. Some herbal medicines have an analgesic action, although not as potent as pharmaceutical pain killers, but more importantly herbal medicines can be used to resolve the conditions causing the pain and promote healing for long term recovery.  Herbs are well tolerated by people and do not cause the long term damage of NSAIDs.

The herbal approach to treating lower back pain is by reducing the inflammation, which causes the pain with anti-inflammatory, analgesic herbs such as Devil’s claw, Ginger, Willow bark, Turmeric, Capsicum and Boswelia. These herbs are combined with others that reduce muscle spasm and relax muscles, restore the function of injured nerves and promote structural healing of muscles and connective tissues.

Using a combination of herbs allows treatment of pain, inflammation, muscle tension and tissue damage for healing and long term recovery rather than just suppressing the pain.