Botanica Health

Botanica Health Welcome to the online community for Botanica Health, an independent health shop, herbalist, and clin

Botanica Health is a boutique health store and clinic specialising in cutting edge supplementation and nutrition.

Every time I do this it just feels right - soothing, calming, gentle. It is the most wonderful, therapeutic tool and it ...
08/09/2026

Every time I do this it just feels right - soothing, calming, gentle. It is the most wonderful, therapeutic tool and it is supportive in so many ways -
Stress reduction
Relaxation
Calming an overactive nervous system
Supporting parasympathetic “rest and digest” activity
Supporting vagal regulation
Reducing feelings of anxiety and tension
Helping you unwind after a stressful day
Promoting better sleep
Easing tired, heavy legs
Reducing mild swelling in the legs and feet
Supporting venous blood return from the legs
Relieving tension in the lower body
Relaxing the hips and lower back
Improving body awareness
Encouraging slow, deeper breathing
Creating a sense of calm and safety
Providing a restorative break when you feel overwhelmed
Helping with post-exercise recovery
Supporting relaxation during menopause
Potentially helping with stress-related menopause symptoms
Helping you transition into an evening routine
Giving the body a chance to rest without physical exertion

Although this study was small from 2004 it was nonetheless remarkable. The patients had severe carotid artery stenosis -...
02/09/2026

Although this study was small from 2004 it was nonetheless remarkable.
The patients had severe carotid artery stenosis - 70 to 90 percent blockage.
https://www.tesble.com/10.1016/j.clnu.2003.10.002

This more recent study found that Urolithin A, a compound produced by the body following the consumption of foods such as pomegranates, walnuts, and some berries,” may improve heart function as much as 80%, including “improving the heart’s ability to relax and reducing stiffness.”
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/natural-compound-from-pomegranates-may-help-improve-heart-function?utm_source=earthconsciouslife.org&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=sleep-loss-savior-80-heart-improvement-eco-pageant&_bhlid=d6299b29fcfa8482b0c65aed191a3bdd25d5fc5a -A-improves-HFpEF-heart-function-up-to-80

❤️In Burkina Faso, West Africa, the day ends with the community gathering together to share their day. Everyone is welco...
27/08/2026

❤️In Burkina Faso, West Africa, the day ends with the community gathering together to share their day. Everyone is welcome. Everyone feels worthy, and it is a time to laugh and cry. No one is isolated or alone with their thoughts and worries.
We all need someone to talk to. And if we find ourselves alone it can be incredibly cathartic to write worries down. As the saying goes to “get it off your chest”.
❤️For adults with major depression: roughly 50% of people taking an antidepressant in typical trials achieve a ≥50% reduction in symptoms. But placebo response is also substantial—around 35–40% in antidepressant trials.
❤️A meta-analysis comparing St John’s wort with SSRIs found very similar pooled results for both response and remission, with St John’s wort having fewer people discontinue because of side effects.
❤️A 2024 systematic review/meta-analysis of 7 randomised trials involving 325 people with depression found a significant reduction in depression scores with magnesium supplementation.
❤️ A 2026 Cochrane review concluded that exercise may be moderately more effective than no treatment and found little or no difference between exercise and antidepressants or psychological therapy in the limited direct comparisons available.
❤️There is evidence that people taking the same antidepressant for two or more years are less likely to receive a review than newer users. Scottish NHS guidance specifically describes some patients as being “lost in the system” and continuing medication that may no longer be needed.
❤️In one survey of people with long-term antidepressant use, 48% said they had not had their medication reviewed at least every three months.
A few other thoughts - over the years I have found Hawthorn, Yerba mate, Rosemary, Milk thistle and Holy basil among others lift depression.
Lemon balm can help ruminating thoughts and calm the nervous system. 🤍

I just came across this photo. It was 2013 and I remember it as one of my most memorable and delicious lunches. We were ...
24/08/2026

I just came across this photo. It was 2013 and I remember it as one of my most memorable and delicious lunches. We were in Istanbul and we came across a very simple eatery that seemed to cater for the local fishermen, and the food was simple too. The bread was passed from table to table in a plastic box (you can see on the table), I might have been a bit concerned about all the other hands in there, but can’t remember now. And then I had little fried fish with lettuce, onion and a can of Coke. I remember loving the meal and the whole experience. It was just so relaxed. The chatter and noise of the other people and the rudimentary setting.
I left smiling and grateful.
Fast forward to 2019 to another memorable meal in Avignon.
We came upon a vegan restaurant, and for some reason I wanted to go in. Again rudimentary, a cat was wandering over the tables and I’m not vegan and desperately wanted cheese, but there was a goats cheese on there. The only animal based addition. So we decided to go in.
What followed was so beautiful I almost cried. The love and attention put in to the meal we ate was hard to describe. The exquisite combinations and colours, the flavours, the freshness. I could literally feel the loving care in every bite. Huge expertise, an eye for detail, and someone with an incredible palate went in to making this meal and it blew my mind.
Just as I typed this I heard a lady in our shop talk about how when we get neurotic about health it’s bad for us. It is.
This is not to say we should become care-less but we care without drowning in it. So much about health is about letting go, freeing up, relaxing, appreciation, gratitude, laughter, camaraderie and joy. ❤️
Health can truly flow from this.

“Do not think that the person who is trying to console you lives effortlessly among the simple, quiet words that sometim...
20/08/2026

“Do not think that the person who is trying to console you lives effortlessly among the simple, quiet words that sometimes make you feel better. His life is full of troubles and sadness and falls far short of them. But if it were any different he could never have found the words that he did.”
Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

17/08/2026

“If you care about your longevity and health, be a socially affiliated baboon who is better than high-ranking ones at walking away from provocations.”
Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers
Robert M. Sapolsky

Just a quick message! I’m afraid I don’t monitor my inbox on Facebook much. I get so many messages, lots on Instagram an...
14/08/2026

Just a quick message! I’m afraid I don’t monitor my inbox on Facebook much. I get so many messages, lots on Instagram and obviously emails etc. So I’m not deliberately ignoring you.
Instagram I do reply and obviously emails.
It can be overwhelming and questions that take time to respond to. But I do my best.
I appreciate the interactions and the fact that people are interested and want to know more or occasionally disagree with me ;-)
We are living in an era of information overload. I too find it too much and I totally understand how confusing this all is.
Just yesterday I met with a lady (we had a previous phone call) she has suffered for years and years with acid reflux, bloating, stomach pain, and h.pylori. She was incredibly distressed.
I first started helping her 4 weeks ago exactly. Dietary tweaks, a few things she hadn’t thought of that perhaps weren’t serving her well, a few herbs and supplements.
She is now completely symptom free.
But one thing she said to me was “there is so much information out there I didn’t know what to do”, and in fact she thought how she was eating was supporting her digestion but in my view it wasn’t. And so she trusted me.
And she is over the moon. 🌙
PS Bonnie is always monitoring the world as it walks by. Luckily she doesn’t have an inbox.

Melancholia (depression) was traditionally associated with the liver and Gerard, in his herbal of 1597, writes that ‘my ...
14/08/2026

Melancholia (depression) was traditionally associated with the liver and Gerard, in his herbal of 1597, writes that ‘my opinion is that this, the milk thistle, is the best remedy that grows against all melancholy diseases’.

Thomas Bartram describes Milk Thistle as ‘one of the best liver remedies’ and says its actions as ‘bitter tonic, cholagogue for promoting flow of bile up to 60% in liver disorders, choleretic, antidepressant, antioxidant to inhibit action of free radicals, liver and gall bladder protector, detoxifier’.
He describes its uses as including ‘to assist digestion of fats, hypertension, stitch in the side, toxaemia from drugs, to correct pale stools, cirrhosis. Lowers blood fats, inflammation of gall bladder and duct, food allergy, damage caused by alcoholism and environmental poisons, fatty liver, to raise bilirubin levels, premenstrual tension, mushroom poisoning, candida, to assist liver function in chronic degenerative disease, to increase flow of milk in nursing mothers’.

Think “boil it, cook it, peel it or leave it.”Drink sealed bottled water or properly treated water.Be cautious with ice ...
10/08/2026

Think “boil it, cook it, peel it or leave it.”

Drink sealed bottled water or properly treated water.
Be cautious with ice unless you’re confident it’s made from safe water.
Eat food that’s freshly cooked and served hot.
Be more cautious with raw salads, cut fruit and food that’s been sitting around.
Wash your hands before eating.
Don’t assume an expensive or highly rated restaurant automatically means zero risk.

Address

26 High Street, Rusthall
Tunbridge Wells
TN48RY

Opening Hours

Monday 9:15am - 5pm
Tuesday 9:15am - 5pm
Wednesday 9:15am - 5pm
Thursday 9:15am - 5pm
Friday 9:15am - 5pm
Saturday 9:15am - 1pm

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