Iain Maclean Herbalist

17/08/2026

13/08/2026

The endocannabinoid system of the nervous system and particularly the vagus nerve regulates homeostasis of the connection between brain and gut. It’s not the only part of the homeostatic process but maybe the most important. If it falters then homeostasis breaks down and disease processes may well occur. What do you think are important aspects of the endocannabinoid system that regulate the vagus nerve?

13/08/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1B4PCC7UGw/

Epidemics That Changed Medicine: One Physician's Record

Dr. Adolph Lippe is considered one of the best homeopathic physicians that ever lived.

In 1879, after being challenged to publish his mortality records, Lippe reported that over the previous two years, he had not lost a single patient from acute disease, including cases of typhus, typhoid fever, pneumonia, diphtheria, scarlet fever, cholera infantum, and erysipelas. These official statistics were on record with the Philadelphia Board of Health.

Elsewhere, Lippe wrote that he had treated more than 150 cases of malignant scarlet fever without a death, reported never losing a cholera patient under his care, and described caring for patients during a malignant smallpox epidemic with what he considered outstanding results.

Whether viewed as medicine or history, these published records are part of a remarkable chapter in American healthcare that deserves to be remembered.

06/08/2026

How time flies, 2 years ago this week we closed our doors at LiveLife for the final time after 24 years of trading. Seems like a dream now. Those last few years were very hard, the traffic light installation in 2019, the pandemic, the interest rate rises, the dropping off of sales, the inability to find a buyer for the business. Now in 2026, I would say it’s still a bit of a gamble to go into small business, confidence is low, governments are cutting back, people aren’t spending like they were back a decade or more ago. What’s around the corner? Anyones guess? I do wonder if people are seeking out preventative naturopathic medicine or are the majority happy with the status quo and its imperfections?

06/08/2026

Lots and lots of secrets in the world today. Secrets from governments, multinationals, pharmaceutical companies, councils, police, armed forces, banks, intelligence agencies, the medical profession, the legal profession. If lies are told and secrets are kept can you blame the general public for wanting to know the truth. The problem is who do you believe to tell you the truth that doesn’t have another agenda, it’s not easy. Children are told not to lie by adults who no doubt lie themselves. The priest tells the congregation not to lie and yet the church lies and keeps secrets from the congregation. Where to from here? Maybe we can never stop secrets and lying?
Does the media lie in order to protect donors?

03/08/2026

Why Exercise Is So Powerful

Exercise is remarkable because it improves multiple biological areas simultaneously.
It can:
stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis, improve insulin sensitivity, increase cerebral blood flow, reduce chronic inflammation, improve sleep quality, enhance cardiovascular health, support neurotrophic factors such as BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a vital, protein often called “fertiliser for the brain” because it helps neurons grow, stay alive and form new connections.
There is nothing else like exercise, make it a habit, and remember the naturally occurring cannabinoids make you feel good too.

02/08/2026

https://csiropedia.csiro.au/the-hungry-microbiome-why-resistant-starch-is-good-for-you/

Resistant starch is broken done by bacteria, the gas produced by this process is consumed by bacteria that produces Short chain fatty acids an essential part of our immune system and for maintaining a healthy gut lining, we are a symbiosis in life and evolution. Bacteria are not genetically isolated, they change, the environment dictates this, bacteria are pleomorphic not like trees, cats, dogs, humans, very different to speciated organisms.

We used to chew a lot, strong regular shaped jaws, healthy strong bodies, you still see this in areas where industrialisation is kept to a minimum, I believe in the last 2-3 centuries humans in the west predominantly have de-evolved and it will get worse before it gets better, it seems the majority are just not interested.

Bowel cancer is the second most common cancer in Australia. Research shows that eating fibre rich in resistant starch is […]

28/07/2026

Could Parkinson's Disease be understood partly as a failure of interconnected biological homeostasis—where microbiome, immune system, vagus nerve, endocannabinoid signalling, mitochondria and autophagy progressively lose their ability to compensate for one another?

The following relationship of systems and factors could look like this:

Environmental factors + ageing + genetics
Gut microbiome disturbance, longer term constipation
Altered metabolites + intestinal inflammation
Enteric nervous system dysfunction
Alpha-synuclein misfolding in susceptible individuals
Vagal and/or other neural pathways
Brain inflammation
Microglial activation
Mitochondrial dysfunction
Oxidative stress
Autophagy / mitophagy becomes insufficient
Alpha-synuclein clearance becomes impaired
Vicious cycle
Progressive loss of vulnerable dopamine neurons

Iatrogenesis (pharmaceutical drug induced disease) could also play a part, disrupting interconnected biological homeostasis, the so-called side-effects, understudied due to the industry's reluctance to admit this may well be a major issue, predominantly in western culture.

27/07/2026

Just finished reading James Nestor’s book Breath, a really good overview with exercises at the end, I would highly recommend reading it to gain a knowledge of how to breathe in a way that supports your health. Yes unfortunately a lot, myself included have suffered from dysevolution which has resulted in a smaller jaw, teeth crowding, smaller mouth and possibly as a result an effect on the nasal cavity. Still, James explains not all is lost, there are things we can do to improve this, and we can certainly improve our breathing, particularly through the nose, and this can have a host of positive effects on our blood chemistry, cardiovascular system amongst others. If you have breathing issues, from congestion, asthma, sleep apnea, snoring, frequent colds, etc this may well help out. If nothing else check out James’s YouTube interviews to see what he has been researching for many years.

24/07/2026

“We are witnessing emerge in real time this pervasive and tenacious machinery of power, propaganda, and technological control. The response will require vigilance, legal precedents, and structural reforms to allow for open online discourse in our digital future.”

Freedom of speech is an aspect of freedom, grounded in the human capacity to adhere to truth through persuasion rather than imposition.