Members-only herb and supplement profiles from a traditional and naturopathic point of view.
The berry that flavours gin has a long second life as a European and North American folk herb for the bladder and the belly. This profile covers how traditions use it, why the evidence is thin, and the clear limits on how long and for whom it's used.
Tea tree oil is the Australian bush oil found in countless acne gels, foot creams and shampoos. It is for the skin and mouth rinses only, never for swallowing, and it needs careful handling around children and pets.
Borage is the blue "starflower" herb whose seed oil is one of the richest plant sources of GLA, an omega-6 fat. The leaf and flower carry liver-toxic alkaloids, so the vault page explains why only tested, PA-free seed oil is worth considering.
The feathery pickle herb is also one of the oldest "wind" seeds, brewed after meals, taken in Ayurveda for digestion and breast milk, and used as the original base of gripe water. Members can see what traditions use it for, what small studies show, and who should keep to kitchen amounts.
Epazote is a pungent Mexican kitchen herb traditionally stirred into a pot of beans, and it has a long folk history as a worm remedy. Its seed oil, though, is a known poison, so here's where the uses come from and what to know before you go beyond a sprig in the pot.
Evening primrose is a tall North American wildflower whose yellow blooms open at dusk. Indigenous peoples ate its roots and greens and used it on bruises and sore skin, and today its seed oil is one of the best-known "women's" and skin supplements.
A small, bitter garden flower from the cabbage family. It's the lead herb in Germany's best-known stomach drops, a multi-herb formula that has been studied for bloating, fullness and IBS-type discomfort.
Greater celandine is a poppy-family herb with a long history in European folk medicine, but taken by mouth it is linked to liver injury, and European regulators decided its risks outweigh its benefits. Here's where the uses come from, what the research says, and gentler herbs to look at instead.
Psyllium, known in India as isabgol, is the plant fibre behind many everyday fibre supplements, and it has some of the strongest research of any herb in the vault. Here's how traditions use it, what the newest guidelines say, and how to take it safely.
Frangula, or alder buckthorn bark, is a strong stimulant laxative herb used in Europe since the 1500s. It's for short-term use only, and the bark has to be properly aged first; here's what to know before reaching for it.
