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• by:
• Houdret, Jessica

This is a practical, authoritative and safe guide to using herbs to help maintain general health and wellbeing. The appeal of using herbal remedies has been known for centuries and is growing in popularity. Herbs contain powerful properties that when used in the correct way can offer a more gentle therapeutic action without the side effects of many modern drugs.

Herbs once offered the only source of medicine available to many people. The book opens with a discussion of the history of herbs and their use in treating everyday ailments. It shows how to design and plant a herb garden and choose plants to grow that are suitable for easing the symptoms of specific health complaints. For those with little garden space there is advice on planting herbs in containers.

With the herbs to hand, there are step-by step photographic sequences and easy-to-follow instructions that show the different ways in which herbs can safely be used at home. There is advice on how to make a herbal tea, an infusion, a sleep pillow, a bath bag, a tincture, a decoction, a compress, a range of lotions and skin salves, as well as how to make best use of essential oils.

The second section of the book is arranged according to ailment such as sore throats, insomnia, and sunburn. The symptoms of each complaint are described, together with different methods of safe herbal treatment to help alleviate the problem. Each is illustrated with photographs where appropriate. Finally, an authoritative A-Z visual directory of herbs catalogues the herbs, their active properties and uses. Each is illustrated photographically for ease of identification, and the medicinal value of each is described.