Sage Advice by A Beginner Herbalist

28/11/2019

Good morning everyone! I just wanted to say a quick hello to some of my new likes on this page! It's been pretty slow lately that's why I haven't posted much. Nothing really new to share 😁 hopefully soon though!

19/10/2019

WTF Moment #2:

I have always knew that majority of the supplements sold in store have very minimal beneficial herbs than what they say. I and many others fall for this scheme and hide the fact with the simple saying "it's better than nothing." While there is some sliver of truth to that that "better than nothing" mentality, it can be actually be counterproductive.

"Sometimes an herbal product isn't effective because it contains the wrong plants or even just rice starch. A study published in the science journal BCM Medicine revealed that 44 herbal products from 12 companies (study did not identify which) 59% of the products contained plants that were not listed on the label. Of nearly half (48%) of products that were authenticated, one-third contained contaminants or fillers not listed on labels)."...

"Sometimes herbal products can be harmful because they are contaminated with adulterants. Out of 44 products tested in the New master study, 30 showed evidence of product substitution. Some of the contaminants in the herbal products pose serious health risks. In another study, around 24% of over 2600 traditional Chinese medicines assessed were adulterated, with over half containing two or more pharmaceuticals including anti-inflammatory, analgesic (i.e aspirin) and diuretic agents. Among Ayurvedic herbal products, a 2012 study found lead, mercury and arsenic contamination in 20% of remedies for both Indian and US suppliers."

This is the reason why people think that herbal medicines don't work... They just keep putting poisons into the commonly used herbs therefore just making us more and more sick.

I had an appointment with a dietician recently and she pointed me in the direction for me to do my own research on 3rd party tested supplements. 3rd party testing is pretty much unbiased testing done by labs who find everything from pure herbs to rodent droppings to even more harmful chemicals and they share it with consumers. Here are a couple she suggested:

NSF.org (National Science Foundation International)

Informed-choice.org (this is a site that Olympic athletes utilise to check their supplements)

NSF independently tests, audits, certifies, trains and consults for the food, water, health science, sustainability and consumer product sectors.

19/10/2019

So this happen last week... Intro course... IN THE BAG! BOOM! I started the Intermediate course a couple days ago and it is so much more in depth! I am so excited! Right now it's just briefly covering an overview of the whole course. But it seems so much better! I AM DO EXCITED!

11/10/2019

My first WTF from my course on this page:

"A deep concern is that cosmetics and personal care products marketed towards people of colour are significantly more likely to contain toxic and otherwise dangerous ingredients than those marketed to the general public, exposing these consumers to unnecessary health risks. Numerous studies have demonstrated that certain harmful ingredients- including formaldehyde-releasing and hormone disrupting agents- are present both in higher amounts and in more products marketed toward women of colour (Zoya & Shamasunder, 2017). In addition, an analysis by the Environmental Working Group of products marketed towards black women found that fewer safe and nontoxic products are developed and made available; in some product categories, none of the products analyzed could be considered "low risk" (Pestano et al., 2016)."

I am BEYOND speechless about this. It makes me want to make skin care products specifically for POC because apparently the cosmetic industry still thinks that melanin in your skin means you are "less than". Just a big ol' 🖕to that garbage. Maybe I can call it FU Cosmetic Industry Skin Care! And have a blurred out POC middle finger as the label.

11/10/2019

Starting the final unit of the intro course tonight! I think I am the most excited about this unit. Some of you guys may not know, but I am a certified esthetician! Granted I graduated YEARS ago from Marvel (15 years to be exact 😳😳😳) IT STILL COUNTS LOL!

I love skin care and beauty products. Before my current job I was one of those who wore the basic of makeup when ever I left my house. Foundation, powder and mascara were my go to. If I was going out for a function.... Let's just say I liked to play with glam makeup lol! But you can't have a good makeup application without taking care of your body (externally AND internally). So I always LOVED getting to try out new skin care products. It wasn't until recently my skin started to revolt against me. I haven't narrowed it down to what it is that bothers me but sometimes when I use products on my skin, I get a rash comparable to a sunburn. With this issue coming at me in full force I have started to use more natural skin care products. My favorite so far has been sweet almond oul mixed with EOs frankensense and Clary sage (if my skin was REALLY angry I would add a drop of lavender and it made it smell ANAZING). Now I am about to learn about herbs for body care I WILL BE ABLE TO USE HERBS AND EOS!!!

Oh, also since this IS in my wheel house, fire at me any questions you have for skin care and or makeup. It can be herbal related (I will have to learn more about this) or not. Keep in mind, I don't diagnose ailments... Best thing to do is go to a doctor and get a confirmed diagnosis and come to me and I can try and help you. If I can't help you then I will direct you to someone who can! Thanks everyone 💚💚💚

Also I added pictures of half of my heart Koda. He was OBSESSED with my herbal shipment and I couldn't figure out why until I remembered.... I got catnip LOL I have an addict cat lol!

09/10/2019

So... Sorry if Potty mouths offend you. But you do know who you are following right?🤷 If you don't know who I am... Hi my name is Danielle and I have a potty mouth LOL! It's a bad habit and there's no herbal remedy for it 😆

05/10/2019

I am going to say this right now:

I will not be diagnosing ailments nor will I be "prescribing" herbs for you. If you want to learn more about herbs that can benefit you or a love one then you can see a doctor who can give an official diagnosis and I can give you suggestions for herbs that can help support. keep in mind, I am not qualified currently so everything will be at your own risk should you choose to follow any suggestions made here. I will not be held responsible for any adverse reactions to herbs suggested withing this page. Be your biggest advocate and do your own research.

05/10/2019

Good Morning everyone! I am at a point I'm my course that isn't offering much interesting info to share. Mostly learning about the body and the nervous systems. While that's something that interests me... The average person isn't generally interested in the ways of the body lol!

Anyways... So I am wanting to have some feed back regarding this page. What is something that YOU are wanting to see on this page? Would you be at all interested in hearing about my trials in all the herbal mixtures I make?

One thing that I am starting to make is called a Materia Medica. It's essentially a reference book that an Herbalist puts together that breaks down different aspects of herbs and plants. I was thinking since this is an assignment in the course... Would you guys be interested in learning about herbs as I go in a sense like that?

So let me have it! I would love to hear your thoughts! Also stay tuned because I think I may be adding a blog aspect to this too 😁

30/09/2019

I am so excited about this! Like my page to follow what herbal things I am nerding out about :D