They make food taste good, but that's just the start...
Herbs have been used for their medicinal properties since ancient times. Until the development of modern chemistry in the 19th century, they were the only reliable means of curing ailments, and are still a source of inspiration to today’s pharmaceutical industry.
Besides adding herbs to food, the simplest way to benefit from their curative powers is by drinking an infusion. These are prepared in exactly the same way as a tea by steeping leaves or flowers in hot water.
Herbs can also be applied externally as skin washes, compresses, or poultices, since their medicinal properties are absorbed through the skin. To make a herbal poultice, use the plant material strained from your infusion, and apply it directly to the skin. Compresses are similar, but wrapping the plant material in cloth or gauze prevents it entering an open wound.
Here’s a list of common ailments herbs can help relieve.
Acne: Use a compress of elderflowers, sorrel or thyme
Bruising: Use a poultice made up of comfrey or hyssop
Colds: Try an infusion of camomile, fennel or sage, or inhale the vapours from warmed eucalyptus oil
Constipation: Basil, dandelion, liquorice or parsley
Cuts and scratches: Soak cotton wool in an infusion of comfrey or marigold to soothe
Improve digestion: Include garlic, rosemary, dill, parsley, fennel and caraway in your diet
Indigestion: Peppermint, anise and coriander
Stress: Basil, camomile or ginseng
And here’s what common herbs can do for you:
Basil: Lowers blood sugar, relieves stress-related conditions such as hypertension, reduces fever and joint pain, and soothes itching skin. Taken before a journey, an infusion of basil leaves even helps prevent travel sickness.
Camomile: Used to relax, aid digestion and relieve headaches, and can also alleviate allergies.
Dandelion: Eaten in salads, dandelion leaves are a diuretic, while the roots help the kidneys and liver purify the blood. They also improve digestion.
Garlic: This herb helps lower cholesterol and blood pressure, improves blood circulation, and lowers blood sugar levels. It is one of the most effective antibiotic plants available, acting on bacteria, viruses and parasites, and was used during both world wars to disinfect wounds.
Ginger: This treats nausea, indigestion, cramps, headaches, and lowers cholesterol.
Ginseng: This has been used for over 7,000 years. It enhances physical and mental stamina, boosts energy, reduces cholesterol and blood sugar, and increases resistance to stress and disease.
Hyssop: This can be used to treat coughs, bronchitis, catarrh, sore throats and colds. It is also a useful asthma remedy.
Marjoram: Drunk in a tea, this is a digestion aid that promotes sweating and encourages menstruation in women. Strongly antiseptic, it can treat respiratory conditions such as coughs, tonsillitis, bronchitis and asthma. Wild marjoram counters flatulence, and marjoram oil is good for toothache or painful joints.
Nettle: These contain iron and vitamin C, ideal for anaemia and poor circulation. A nettle poultice will treat eczema and other skin conditions; its astringent properties stop bleeding; and hay fever and arthritis sufferers swear by it.
Scots pine: These leaves have a mildly antiseptic effect in the chest, useful for arthritic and rheumatic problems and digestive disorders, while the warmed essential oil relieves asthma and bronchitis.