Medical Herbalism

What is Medical Herbalism?
Medical Herbalism is the use of plants in the treatment of illness and is often combined with dietary and lifestyle advice. Although many pharmaceutical drugs were originally isolated from plants as single ingredients, herbal medicines are derived from whole plants. These whole plant extracts contain a complex of constituents and have several simultaneous therapeutic actions in the body. Another benefit of using balanced plant extracts is that adverse effects are much less common with herbal medicine, especially when prescribed by a fully qualified medical herbalist.
The approach of the medical herbalist is holistic; the person as well as the disease is treated. The combinations of plant medicines that are prescribed are tailor-made to the individual. Therefore, in addition to treating the symptoms of the main complaint, the underlying issues are also being addressed. Although herbal medicine is gentler on the body than conventional medicine, it is no less effective.

What happens in your first consultation?
During the first consultation Daren will assess the person as a whole by taking a full medical history. As a form of holistic medicine, Medical Herbalism aims to treat the person as well as the symptoms. In addition to discussing your symptoms, time will be spent identifying the underlying or root causes. Simple investigations may be done like checking your blood pressure, especially during your first consultation. Daren also likes to take your pulses on each arm and view your tongue (forms of Chinese medical diagnosis). This initial consultation may take up to 1½ hours, although a shorter time is required for young children.
Bringing a summary of your past medical history in list form is often very helpful. If you have had any investigations from your GP such as blood tests, or from another holistic practitioner and you have the test results please bring them along too. It is important to inform Daren of any medication that you are taking either prescribed by your GP or purchased over the counter, including any vitamins, minerals or other supplements.
At the end of the consultation a herbal prescription may be prepared in the dispensary that can be taken home with you. Any herbal medicine prescribed may be a combination of plants chosen for the therapeutic action required specifically for you. In addition, recommendations on diet, dietary supplements and lifestyle with accompanying leaflets may also be offered.

What happens at a follow up consultation?
Daren generally sees you again after two weeks to assess your progress, and whether there is a need to adjust your management plan or herbal prescription. This session usually lasts between ¾ to 1 hour. Thereafter, appointments can usually be spaced out to monthly or even further apart, but this does depend on the condition and the progress made.
Once the condition is properly managed further treatment may not be required or if a maintenance prescription is necessary, then it can be just repeated without a consultation and either collected, or sent in the post. If any problems develop in the meantime, you can contact Daren by phone or email.

How do I use the herbal medicine prescribed?
All prescriptions are fully labelled with the directions on how to use them. The majority of prescriptions that Daren dispenses are in liquid form and are simply mixed in a small quantity of water before taking – there is no need to boil them up or infuse in water.

For skin conditions topical treatments such as creams and lotions also can be prescribed.

Daren dispenses all his prescriptions in the herbal dispensary at this clinic. The clinic also stocks a comprehensive range of dietary supplements from Lamberts Healthcare.

Can herbal medicine be taken alongside my GP’s prescription?
Daren is trained to work with doctor’s prescriptions, so the herbs in your prescription will be chosen to avoid interaction with any current medication. Furthermore, Daren worked as a pharmacist for 19 years and is experienced in working with conventional and herbal medicine, and their potential for interaction.

Is it safe?
Herbal medicine has been used for thousands of years and their safety has been proven over the course of time. Increasingly, modern research is supporting the efficacy and safety of herbal medicine. This form of holistic medicine is natural and safe when correctly prescribed and dispensed by a fully trained medical herbalist.
Members of National Institute of Medical Herbalists (MNIMH) have been trained in modern medical sciences and know when there is a condition for which herbal medicine is not appropriate, then referral to other health practitioners will be discussed. At your consultation please bring the details of any medical conditions that have been diagnosed and all the medication you are taking.

Who will benefit from it?
The approach of Western Herbal Medicine to healthcare is complementary, and suitable for most people of all ages, from children to the elderly. The patient’s presenting complaint, medical history as well as their constitution are taken into account when prescribing your tailor-made medicine.
Like all forms of medicine there can be no guarantee of a complete cure. However, with Herbal Medicine may patients make significant progress, when prescribed by a fully trained medical herbalist.

Can I combine Medical Herbalism with other treatments?
Medical Herbalism can be used alongside conventional medicine and other forms of complementary and alternative medicine.
Traditional Acupuncture commonly complements the practise of Medical Herbalism and a separate consultation is not necessary as your full case history will provide all the details to design a treatment plan, to include acupuncture. You can discuss your treatment options prior to this consultation or you may like to consider them during the consultation. Many patients have had regular acupuncture treatments and then decided to add a herbal prescription to their treatment programme, and vice versa.

What is food Intolerance testing and how can this help me?
Food intolerances may produce a variety of symptoms such as digestive and bowel problems, headaches and chronic tiredness. Unlike allergies, the symptoms of food intolerance can be delayed for hours or even days, which makes it difficult to identify the offending foods.
The food intolerance test performed at this clinic uses a finger-prick blood sample and identifies antibodies to a number of foods within an hour. If a person is found to be food intolerant, they are usually sensitive to more than one food and all must be removed at once from the diet for symptoms to disappear. This kit tests for reactions to 59 commonly eaten foods, which is the major advantage over the elimination diet based simply on removing suspect foods. The food intolerance test is quick, highly selective and sensitive to specific food antibodies, and is safe. Daren will explain the results and advise you on the removal of foods that have been detected as problematic while offering suggestions of alternative foods. Many people find that by simply removing the problem foods from their diet could make them feel better in days.

Confidentiality
All consultations are completely confidential. Patients are given plenty of opportunity to discuss their treatment during the consultation. If with the findings during your consultation contact with your GP is necessary, your prior consent will always be obtained first.