If you’re taking a good multivitamin and mineral but still find it hard to feel energetic throughout the day it could be time to consider herbs. There is no herbal equivalent to a multivitamin but herbs can help treat symptoms such as anxiety, poor concentration, headaches, insomnia and lack of energy.

For concentration: Ginkgo biloba is the memory herb and studies have shown it can help prevent dementia.

For ageing: Milk thistle is a fantastic herb to help your body get rid of the effects of ageing free radicals.

For anxiety: Valerian and skullcap can help relax your nervous system when you feel anxious and tense. You can take them daily until you start to feel calmer.

For hot flushes: The best herbal supplement for hot flushes is black cohosh. Buy the whole herb in capsules or tincture and get organic where possible. I use a mix of herbs in the clinic containing black cohosh, agnus castus, dong quai, sage and milk thistle; they are contained in Black Cohosh Plus

For headaches: If you get recurring headaches you need to find out why. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you under stress? While you are working out why try taking feverfew everyday.

For mood: Taking St John’s Wort three times a day is a great way to lift your mood. Studies have shown that it is effective as an antidepressant, as long as you are NOT on any other medication, especially the pill or HRT. If stress or tiredness are contributing to your low mood try taking rhodiola daily for four weeks.

For weight loss: The best way to lose weight is to eat healthily and exercise more but some herbs, such as as green tea extract could help rev up your metabolism to help you burn more calories.

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 12th, 2007 at 4:11 pm and is filed under General Health, Herbs, Superfoods. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.