So now that we have gone over how herbs work in your body, let’s go over how to use them!
There are many ways that herbs can be prepared so that they can work medicinally. Herbal preparations can be taken one of two ways – orally or topically. Depending on the preparation, you will get different results in how the herb works in your body. This means that different properties are brought out by different methods of processing the herbs.
Let’s start with topical applications:
- Liniments
- Lotions and creams
- Hydrosols
- Flower essences
- Oils and salves
- Ointments and balms
- Suppositories, boluses
- Fomentations
- Poultices
- Baths
- Douches
Now oral preparations are further broken down into preparations using a solvent and those not using a solvent.
Those that use a solvent:
Water-based solvents
- Infusion (teas)
- Decoctions
- Concentrates
- Jellos
- Flower essences
Alcohol-based solvents
- Tinctures – maceration
- Tinctures – percolation
Sugar or honey-based solvents
- Sryups
- Oxymels
- Electuaries
Other types of solvents
- Wine infusions
- Vinegar infusions
- Glycerites
- Oil infusions
Oral preparations not using solvents
- Capsules
- Pills or tablets
- Powders
- Lozenges
Next week I will go into more detail about what the topical ones are.
Thanks for looking, see you next week!
