Lyn Blythe Medical Herbalist

17/06/2026

Personalised herbal medicine focuses on blending combinations of herbs tailored entirely to your unique health history, rather than relying on one-size-fits-all single herbs. This holistic approach ensures your remedies work in harmony to support your specific needs.

🌿 Are you relying on single herbs for your health? Here’s why a tailored blend works better! 🌿
Our bodies require nuanced, supportive care. If you’ve ever browsed the health aisle and picked up a single jar of something like St John's Wort, you might have been disappointed by the results. Here is why bespoke herbal medicine is so much more effective:

The Power of Combining Herbs
Herbalists rarely use single, isolated herbs. Instead, they carefully combine multiple plants, so they work together synergistically. One or two herbs might target the root cause, while others soothe system/s and aid absorption. This creates a balanced, highly effective formula designed just for you.

Rooted in Your Personal Story
No two people are the same, and neither should their remedies be! During a consultation, a qualified medical herbalist reviews your full case history—including your lifestyle, diet, and any existing medications—to ensure the blend is perfectly matched to your body’s unique needs.

Want to ensure your herbal journey is safe, effective, and tailored entirely to you? Consult a qualified and insured medical herbalist.

16/06/2026

Stress and burnout

As an adaptogenic herb, Rhodiola rosea helps the body manage and adapt to stress by regulating stress hormones like cortisol and supporting cellular energy metabolism. Evidence-based clinical trials suggest it significantly reduces mental fatigue, burnout, and stress-related impairments in physical and cognitive performance.

Are you feeling the heavy weight of burnout? 🌿
In our fast-paced world, chronic stress can take a massive toll on the body. Prolonged pressure often leads to burnout, which the World Health Organization officially recognises as an occupational phenomenon. If you are experiencing mental fatigue, difficulty concentrating, and physical exhaustion, you don't have to navigate it alone.

As a medical herbalist, I often turn to evidence-backed, natural remedies to help the body recalibrate. One of my favourite herbs for someone stressed is Rhodiola rosea (also known as Golden Root).

What is Rhodiola, and how does it work?
Rhodiola is classified as an adaptogen. This means it naturally increases your body's resistance to physical, chemical, and environmental stressors. Instead of just masking symptoms, it actively supports your body's stress-response systems—helping to prevent the physiological damage of chronic stress.

What the Science Says:
• Burnout & Stress Relief: Clinical studies suggest that Rhodiola rosea can significantly improve symptoms of burnout, including emotional exhaustion, irritability, and stress-induced physical fatigue.
• Mental Performance: It has been found to boost cognitive functions like memory, focus, and alertness—especially during demanding or high-stress periods.
• Cortisol Regulation: Research suggests it helps balance cortisol levels, accelerating the body's natural return to a calm, balanced state.

Combining herbs
Herbalists very rarely give herbs singly though. Instead, they are trained in selecting a carefully balanced combination of herbs to address an individual’s symptoms, and to tie this in with the whole medical history of that person. It is this combining of appropriate herbs which increases their effect.

If you would like help finding a combination of herbs to suit your individual needs, get in touch!

Some research
Stojcheva, E.I.; Quintela, J.C. (2022). The effectiveness of Rhodiola rosea L. preparations in alleviating various aspects of life-stress symptoms and stress-induced conditions – Encouraging clinical evidence. Molecules [Online]. Available from:https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9228580/pdf/molecules-27-03902.pdf

11/06/2026

Plant power for brain health

🌿 Can we naturally protect our brains against dementia?

As a medical herbalist, this is one of the most frequent questions I receive in my practice. While no single magic pill—herbal or conventional—can guarantee prevention, much clinical research suggests that specific botanical medicines possess neuroprotective properties to help keep our mind sharp as we age.

There are many available herbs with a long history of use for helping cognitive function, but here are three familiar kitchen-garden herbs with a long-standing reputation for doing just that. Research indicates these herbs work via anticholinesterase and anti-inflammatory pathways to help preserve brain health.

🧠 Sage (Salvia officinalis)
Sage has been shown to improve cognitive performance and alertness. Studies suggest it may help inhibit the breakdown of acetylcholine—a vital neurotransmitter responsible for learning and memory.

🌿 Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)
Long revered as the "herb of remembrance". Renowned for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, research suggests rosemary contains key compounds, such as carnosic acid, which can cross the blood-brain barrier to support neural connections and defend brain cells against oxidative stress. Even simply inhaling the aroma of rosemary has been linked to better scores on memory tasks!

🍋 Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis)
Feeling a bit scattered or stressed? Lemon balm is a gentle, calming herb shown to improve mood and cognitive function during stressful tasks. Clinical evidence indicates extracts can be safe, well-tolerated, and effective in reducing agitation while supporting overall memory.

Clinical trials suggest that combinations of these herbs (and others) can yield significant improvements in memory and cognition in ageing adults.

Herbal medicine offers a way to support your brain. However, because everyone's medical history is unique, it is always best to consult with a qualified medical herbalist to tailor a specific combination of herbs to you, as an individual, especially if you are taking medications.

Some research studies:

Northumbria University (2016). Herbs that can boost your mood and memory [Online]. Available from: https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/news-events/news/2016/04/herbs-that-can-boost-your-mood-and-memory/

Zheng, S.Y., et al (2025). A perspective on the mechanisms of herbal medicine for cognitive impairment. Front. Neurol [Online]. Available from: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2025.1610542/full

09/06/2026

09/06/2026

Optimising digestive health:
Healing the digestive tract to improve nutrient absorption and naturally support our health.

So much of our ability to take part in normal life depends upon us having a functioning digestive system; one we can rely on! It is vital to address any problems, to optimise digestion, and allow our digestive system to “age well”.

The use of herbs to aid digestion has long been part of traditional medicine systems across the globe, both as culinary additions (such as rosemary, turmeric and thyme), also as “natural” medicines.

Herbal actions relevant to improving digestion include:

• Demulcents
Mucilage-rich herbs, such as marshmallow, soothe and protect inflamed tissue, facilitating healing, addressing diarrhoea and constipation, and reducing sensitivity of the bowel.

• Bitters
The bitter taste sends a message to the gut to release digestive hormones and stimulate appetite. This increases digestive juices and bile flow, essential for optimal digestion. Herbs which are bitter include yarrow and agrimony.

• Astringents
Have a binding action on mucous membranes, reducing irritation and inflammation, creating a barrier against infection and reducing fluid loss, for example, helping diarrhoea. Herbs with astringent properties include meadowsweet.

• Carminatives
Carminative herbs are rich in aromatic oils which soothe the gut wall, encouraging it to function optimally, easing griping pains and helping remove gas. Examples include fennel, peppermint, ginger and chamomile.

• Anti-inflammatories
These soothe the inflammation of the tissues, and include chamomile, lemon balm and meadowsweet.

• Antispasmodics
Ease muscular spasms of the gut. Many are calming “nervines”, so soothe the owner of the stressed gut too! Examples here include chamomile, valerian and cramp bark (the clue is in the name!)

• Laxatives
There are a great many laxatives to choose from in herbal medicine, utilising different mechanisms. Senna is one of the most well-known and used by the general population, but as it is a stimulating laxative, it should actually be used short-term only, as the bowel becomes reliant on it. Other herbs with a laxative effect, with different mechanisms, include psyllium seeds, dandelion root and liquorice root.

• Hepatics
This is an old term for herbs which support liver function. This is important in digestion as they help bile flow, vital for digestion, also can play a liver-protective role. Examples in this category include dandelion root and milk thistle seeds.

• Nervines
Help the nervous system. They include tonics, relaxants and stimulants, and all have their uses, depending upon the condition, but also the individual affected. They ease anxiety and tension in both gut and mind. These include valerian, chamomile and rosemary.

Herbalist approach
A herbalist will spend at least an hour taking a full case history, from birth to the present day. This allows a combination of relevant herbs to be selected from the hundreds of possibilities, to combine these and to tailor this combination to the individual, for example, choosing those which can be taken safely alongside medications, where necessary. It is also important to consider diet and lifestyle factors too.

Some studies:

Aregawi, L.G., et al (2023). The effect of ginger supplementation on the improvement of dyspeptic symptoms in patients with functional dyspepsia. Cureus [Online]. Available from:https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10525921/pdf/cureus-0015-00000046061.pdf

Paluch, Z. (2020). The therapeutic effects of Agrimonia eupatoria L. Physiol Res [Online]. 69 (Suppl 4) S555-S571 Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8603700/

08/06/2026

Chelsea Physic Garden is well worth a visit 🌿

06/06/2026

A recent systematic review and meta-analysis on use of herbal medicines for an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) concluded herbal medicines improved results of thyroid function tests:

Ghaffari-Saravi, F., et al (2024). Herbal remedies for hypothyroidism: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Caspian J Intern Med [Online] 16 (1): 1-8 Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11607114/

04/06/2026

Protect your bone health naturally after 60!

As oestrogen levels decline, herbal medicine offers personalised, plant-based support to maintain bone density. Specific herbs, nutrition, and daily habits can keep you strong and active for years to come.

🌿 Natural Bone Support After 60
As we age, it is common for bone remodelling to slow down, making us more prone to weak bones and fractures. But bones are living tissue that responds well to the right support.

Herbalists combine traditional herbal wisdom with modern holistic care to help you maintain your independence and strength.

🌱 Herbs for Bone Strength
Nature provides a medicine chest to help slow bone loss. Herbs like red clover, horsetail, turmeric, to name but a few, have been studied for their ability to support bone mineral density and reduce bone degradation.

🏃‍♀️ Daily Habits for Strong Bones
Medicine isn't always in a bottle! Small daily choices make a massive difference to your skeleton:

• Weight-Bearing Exercise: Activities like brisk walking, dancing, or even racket sports signal your bones to stay strong and dense.
• Mineral-Rich Nutrition: Focus on calcium and magnesium-rich leafy greens and herbs like nettle and horsetail, which are packed with silica.
• Vitamin D: Get a little safe daily sunshine to ensure your body absorbs the calcium it needs.
• Address any digestive problems: the best diet in the world only helps if your digestive system is working optimally to allow it to absorb the available nutrients.
• Specific balance exercises: adopting my physio hat for a moment! Research supports use of targeted balance exercises to prevent falls occurring, which obviously then prevents fractures, so preventing a decline in mobility and health. Prevention is better than cure!

This approach supports the body’s innate ability to heal and renew.

If you want to explore a natural, personalised approach to your bone and joint health, book a tailored herbal consultation to create a plan that suits your exact needs.

📍 Clinics in Wroughton and Melksham.

Website: https://www.lynblythe.com

Email: [email protected]

03/06/2026

Flourishing together at the moment on , our local long-distance path, elderflowers and wild dog rose, the perfect combo for a lovely tea (although any unsprayed garden rose could be substituted too).

Use a head or two of elderflowers per cup of boiling water, add a few rose petals to taste. Cover and allow to infuse for 5 minutes. Strain and enjoy!

As delicious as elderflower cordial is, with all its sugar or honey, this is healthier!

02/06/2026

Elderflowers as medicine

Elderflowers (Sambucus nigra) have a long history of use as a medicine, and they’re flourishing in our hedgerows now!

Key actions:
o Diuretic
o Anti-inflammatory
o Anti-viral
o Promotes sweating in a fever (diaphoretic)

Traditional uses:
o Coughs and colds
As an infusion; the mild perspiration helps reduce a fever and eases nasal congestion.

o Catarrh and allergies, including hay fever
Long history of use for chronic catarrh, ear and sinus infections and allergies, reducing nasal congestion and promoting mucus drainage.

Infusions of the flowering tops help reduce hay fever symptoms but are more effective if started some months before the beginning of the hay fever season. If, however, hay fever symptoms have already started, qualified herbalists have access to stronger herbs (Schedule 20 herbs) which can be combined with elderflowers to increase efficacy.

Often combined with nettle leaves for hay fever, or eyebright (Euphrasia officinalis), plantain (Plantago lanceolata) and goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea) for rhinitis with catarrh.

o Arthritis
The use of elderflowers in arthritis is thought to be a consequence of the diuretic effect (increased urine production) removing waste products.

o Candidiasis (overgrowth of Candida albicans in the gut)
Elderflowers are combined with marigold flowers (Calendula officinalis, not garden marigold) and thyme (Thymus vulgaris) as an infusion.

o Skin care
Topically, elderflower infusions have traditionally been used to soothe skin inflammation.

Some studies:
Stepien, A.E., et al (2023). Health-promoting properties: anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties of Sambucus nigra L. flowers and fruits. Molecules [Online] 28 (17) 6235 Available from: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10489118/

Hawkins, J., et al. (2019). Black elderberry (Sambucus nigra) supplementation effectively treats upper respiratory symptoms: a meta-analysis of randomized, controlled clinical trials. Complementary Therapies in Medicine [Online] 42, 361-365 Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0965229918310240