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Give herbs a chance

  • Sebastian Pole
    Sebastian Pole

    I am a registered member of the Ayurvedic Professionals Association, Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine and a Fellow of the Unified Register of Herbal Practitioners. I qualified as a herbalist with the aim of using the principles of Ayurveda (the ancient art of living wisely) and the Herbal tradition to help transform health. I have been in clinical practice since 1998.

    Having co-founded Pukka Herbs in 2001 I have become experienced in organic herb growing, practitioner grade quality and sustainable value chains. I am a Trustee of the FairWild Foundation, a Director of The Betonica School of Herbal Medicine and an Advisor to The American Herbal Pharmacopoeia and The Sustainable Herbs Project. Fluent in Hindi, a qualified Yoga therapist and passionate about projects with a higher purpose, I am on a mission to bring the incredible power of plants into people’s life. And that is why I started Herbal Reality and what it is all about.

    I live in a forest garden farm in Somerset growing over 100 species of medicinal plants and trees. And a lot of weeds!

    Author of Ayurvedic Medicine, The Principles of Traditional Practice (Elsevier 2006), A Pukka Life (Quadrille 2011), Celebrating 10 Pukka years (2012) and Cleanse, Nurture, Restore with Herbal Tea (Frances Lincoln 2016).

    Listen to our Herbcast podcast with Sebastian as the host.

  • 9:32 reading time (ish)
  • Herbal Research History Safety

Written by Sebastian Pole

There is a rise in complex chronic conditions, that single-molecule pharmaceuticals simply do not have the answer for. This article explores how and why herbal medicines can be here to help.

The rise of modern medicine and chronic illness

give herbs a chance

Despite the advances in modern medicine, hygiene and nutrition over the last 200 years, there are still high levels of non-communicable chronic diseases challenging health and life-satisfaction. And given the pressures on national budgets and healthcare systems, are there other approaches to health that could help alleviate some of this burden?

With an ever-growing evidence base, a trained community of professional clinical herbalists and a public eager for help, could it be herbal medicine that is a part of the solution and help fill some of the therapeutic gaps in current healthcare?

Sebastian Pole

I am a registered member of the Ayurvedic Professionals Association, Register of Chinese Herbal Medicine and a Fellow of the Unified Register of Herbal Practitioners. I qualified as a herbalist with... Read more

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