My Interview With a Herbalist

I’ve always been fascinated by digestive troubles. When I was a new dietitian, I read everything I could on how to use diet to manage diarrhea and constipation, the pain of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and the heartburn associated with acid reflux. Amazingly, bloating was almost never discussed as a nutritional topic and it took me years of working in private practice to learn what bloating is and how to banish the bloat. Some of my favorite tips and tricks to banish the bloat include: drinking peppermint tea or chewing fresh, picked or dried ginger or chewing a few organic fennel seeds after a meal. Recently, I wanted to dig deeper into the science behind these magical herbs, so who better to talk to than my all-time favorite herbalist and good friend Emily!

Tell us a little about you, & Pohutukawa Natural Health? And please tell us the difference between a herbalist and a homeopath - I get this question A LOT!

Hey I'm Emily! I am a nutritionist and Medical Herbalist and I currently live in Regina, SK.

Pohutakawa Natural Health is my business where I support lovely humans with their health using custom herbal medicine, whole foods nutrition, and thoughtful supplementation (if necessary!).

I also do freelance writing and research work for natural health companies, run herbal medicine workshops, and am currently working on creating an online course where I teach people how to build their own herbal first aid kit at home.

A Pohutakawa is a gorgeous tree that grows in New Zealand - it is sometimes called the New Zealand Christmas tree because it blooms with gorgeous red flowers in December. I highly recommend a Google image search!

I lived in NZ for over a decade, did my training there, and am married to a Kiwi, so it was really important to me to have that reflected in my branding.

A herbalist is basically someone who uses herbs (aka - plants) as medicine. The tricky part about the term herbalist is that it's not regulated, so anyone can call themselves a herbalist even if they have just done a short course. If you are going to see someone for a serious health concern it is worth asking about their training and if they belong to a professional body who keeps them accountable. I am personally a member of the Canadian Herbalist's Association of BC.

Homeopathy is quite different from herbalism, though it is also a natural health modality.

Homeopathy is based on the principle that "like cures like" and homeopathic remedies use very tiny doses of things (some plants, but also things like minerals and animals) to stimulate the body's healing ability. It has received lots of criticism because the doses are so small that some people say there's nothing there! While I don't use homeopathy in my practice, I know some great practitioners who love it and say it works really well - so I'll reserve my judgement!

As you know, I work with a lot of people with troubled tummies: spasms, pain, bloating, noise etc. My go-to herbal remedies are always: peppermint or ginger (is ginger even a herb?) but I'm sure there's more out there! So besides these two, what else can people try for a troubled tummy?

Yay I absolutely love ginger and peppermint and use them all the time with folks. I say that any plant that can be used medicinally is a "herb" but I love that thin line between food and medicine.

There are SO MANY herbs that are great for digestion. Chamomile and Lemon balm are two of my favorites and what I love about them is that they also help calm the nervous system and can reduce anxiety. So great for that gut-brain connection or when people have digestive issues which are exacerbated by stress.

I also love to work with bitter herbs or foods before a meal. Bitter tastes stimulate the cephalic phase of digestion - meaning they help get your body ready to digest food. It's the reason behind the "aperitif" - a bitter alcoholic drink that has been traditionally used in Europe before a meal. For bitters I love Globe Artichoke or Dandelion root in a tea or tincture/drops (a tincture is a herb that has been extracted in alcohol and water).

Another great way to do this is a small salad with bitter greens like arugula as your appetizer!

Just going back to peppermint and ginger, can you please give us the science behind why these two herbs are so amazing.

Ginger has been used as both a food and a medicine for thousands of years, across many different cultures. It contains volatile oils (which is what gives ginger it's strong smell and taste) and these have been shown to be antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory. Ginger has a strong effect on the GI system and has been traditionally used for seasickness and other forms of nausea. Research on ginger has shown that it stimulates the flow of saliva, bile, and gastric secretions, as well as increase gastrointestinal motility - meaning food doesn't just sit in your belly, but actually moves through your GI tract like it should! It also contains high levels of antioxidants and has some antiplatelet actions - making it perfect for cardiovascular support as well. There are quite a few good clinical trials on ginger for nausea, including pregnancy morning sickness, for indigestion and bloating, as well as for issues like painful periods.

Peppermint is also full of volatile oils, which contribute to its antispasmodic actions. It also acts to relax the smooth muscles and sphincters of the GI tract, helping to alleviate symptoms of gas and bloating. Peppermint oil (in enteric-coated capsules) have been studied specifically for IBS, but if people want to use peppermint regularly just to support healthy digestion, then I love a cup of peppermint tea after a meal.

With all the herbs mentioned so far, is there a superior way of taking them? Fresh? In tea? Dried?

Every herb is a bit different and you can get really geeky and use herbs differently depending on what kind of constituents (aka - plant chemicals) you want to pull out. I think for many plants - especially those with lots of volatile oils - fresh is best. We all know the difference that fresh herbs make in our cooking - and using them medicinally is no different.

I love teas for most herbs that you use at home because it is easy, inexpensive, and we all have access to hot water and a cup - no fancy equipment required! Both ginger (fresh and either sliced or grated) and peppermint (either fresh or dried) make beautiful teas.

However if I have clients that I'm working with who need herbs that are either harder to come by, or they need larger doses, then I usually custom blend a tincture for them. The other benefit of that is I can make it super specific to their needs - so if they have stress and constipation and skin issues - I can make a tincture for that!

Is there anything else we should know?

I think everyone should know that herbs are for everyone and it doesn't need to feel weird or complicated or too hippy haha. We all use herbal medicine every day. Did you have a cup of tea or coffee today? Then you had a hot-water extraction of a plant and felt the effects of the phytochemical caffeine!

It is super empowering to start playing with plants in your day to day life and I encourage everyone to give it a go.

This has been amazing - thanks Em! And where can we find you?

I'm on IG, FB, and occasionally YouTube. I have a freebie on my website called Build Your Own Herbal First Aid Kit that everyone should have (ginger is definitely in there!). I do consults via Zoom like everyone else in the world right now...and I love working with rad humans!

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