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Ease and relax your hardworking joints and muscles. Napiers warming cream is used to comfort muscles, joints, backs a...
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An Introduction to Essential Oils Essential oils are highly concentrated plant extracts that are obtained through steam distillation, cold pressing, or other methods. These oils are known for their distinct aromas and therapeutic properties, and ...
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We offer a wide range of high-quality aromatherapy and essential oils, carefully curated from aromatic plants and known for their therapeutic properties. Our collection includes pure essential oils, fragrance oils, carrier oils, and bath oils, amo...
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At Napiers, we are committed to supporting women at every stage of their lives. We understand the unique health needs and challenges that women face, from reproductive health and menstrual health to fertility and pregnancy, hormonal health, and me...
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Managing stress, sleep, and mood are crucial aspects of maintaining overall well-being and mental health. At Napiers, we understand the impact that these factors can have on our customers' lives and offer a range of herbal and natural products to ...
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Alan is a fully qualified Five Element Acupuncturist and has been practising this wonderful system of medicine at Napiers Clinic in the West End of Glasgow for the past 18 years.
Angela practices Herbal Medicine at Napiers Bathgate, Edinburgh & Glasgow, as well as with the Napiers CLAID Clinic.
Audrey is a Medical Herbalist, graduating in 2007 with a BSc (Hons) in Herbal Medicine & Phytotherapy from Edinburgh’s Napier University and is a registered member of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists (MNIMH). Audrey is a practicing member within the Napiers CLAID Clinic.
As a fully qualified, experienced Holistic Therapist, Bettina works with clients on a one-to-one basis to establish an optimal treatment plan or therapy to best support your skin health and well-being.
Cat offers a range of massage including holistic, deep tissue, trigger point therapy, advanced sports stretching and pregnancy massge.
Claire is an experienced Western Medical Herbalist (BSc), a member of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists (NIMH) and works at Napiers online clinic.
Clare is an experienced medical herbalist based in the West Highlands of Scotland, home to deer, livestock, ticks, and Lyme disease. She works for the Napier's CLAID clinic on a Thursday morning.
Clare began training at Edinburgh’s Napier University in 2005, gaining a Bachelor of Science Degree in Herbal Medicine in 2009. She joined the Napiers Clinic team shortly after her graduation, initially working in the dispensary before beginning her herbal practice in 2010. Since then she has been a key member of our clinical team, working alongside Dee Atkinson in running the general herbal clinics, as well as heading the Baby & Child Clinic.
Cybele is a passionate Sophrologist and founder of Chamapola, Healing Yourself - Healing Together.
Dean is a Naturopathic Practitioner experienced in Nutrition and Herbal Medicine. With interests in nerve problems, cardiovascular health, digestive disorders as well as male and female reproductive system wellbeing.
Dee is the senior herbal practitioner at Napiers the Herbalists in Edinburgh. She runs a general medicine clinic with a special interest in women’s health, managing hormonal health and ageing. More recently, Dee set up the Napiers Long Covid Clinic to facilitate an integrated approach between doctors, herbalists and nutritionist to this new disease.
Isabelle has over 20 years helping individuals and couples achieve their fertility goals through nutrition.
Jill is a fully qualified and insured Advanced Clinical Massage Therapist offering Outcome Based Treatments
John is a friendly and experienced counsellor offering 1-1 sessions on Fridays at Napiers Clinic in Edinburgh city centre and online via FaceTime/Skype. He has worked in private practice supporting people for over 18 years and brings a wealth of experience.
Kate is a BANT registered Nutritionist who owns and runs the Edinburgh Clinic of Nutrition. She trained for three and a half years at Patrick Holford's renowned Institute of Optimum Nutrition in London and is currently studying with The Institute of Functional Medicine in the US.
Kim is qualified in Aromatherapy Massage and Indian Head Massage. Working with the needs of her massage clients led to a deeper interest in their health and Kim studied the BSc (Hons) Herbal Medicine degree at Napier University, Edinburgh. Kim is one of the lead herbalists within the Napiers CLAID Clinic and sees many patients.
Kirstin is a fully qualified member of the Society of Homeopaths and holds an RSHom distinction in Classical Homeopathy. Kirstin qualified from the Northwest College of Homeopathy's four-year training course in Manchester.
Lynn is a registered osteopath and has been practicing osteopathy for nineteen years. She studied osteopathy and cranial sacral therapy at the European School of Osteopathy and graduated in 1991. Lynn has a background in physiotherapy and is trained in structural, craniosacral, functional, fascial and visceral osteopathy.
Malgorzata graduated from the College of Naturopathic Medicine where she studied Western Herbal Medicine and Naturopathic Nutrition /Diplomas in Herbal Medicine (2017), Naturopathy (2017), and Naturopathic Nutrition (2020). She is also qualified in KORE Therapy, Anmo-fu - 5 Element Abdominal Massage, Craniosacral Balance and Stress Release Therapy and Cupping. Her first degree is a PhD in History.
Margaret practices Naturopathic Nutritional Therapy at Napiers Edinburgh.
Mark runs the podiatry clinic, offering diagnosis and treatment of various disorders relating to the feet, ankles, legs and lower back. He offers podiatry, chiropody, orthotics and nail surgery.
Mary is a qualified therapist in Swedish, Indian and Thai Foot Massage.
Mary trained in Edinburgh, and has been working as a complementary therapist since 1999, holding diplomas in Clinical Aromatherapy, Reflexology, Therapeutic Massage and Hopi Ear Candling gained from the International Therapy Examinations Council (ITEC). She is a member of, and is fully insured to practice with, the Complementary Therapists Association (CThA).
Melissa qualified from Middlesex University in 2000. She runs a general herbal practice from her boat, The Herbal Barge, which is based on the river Lea in North London. Melissa joined the CLAID Clinic Co-operative to work collaboratively in an integrated and specialised context to support patients with long covid.
Mike is a body worker and NLP Practitioner who is passionate about working with the person as a whole; offering treatments that integrate body and mind.
Monica has a Masters degree in herbal medicine from the University of Central Lancashire. She is the research herbalist heading up the Napiers CLAID Clinic. The CLAID Clinic specialism is Lyme disease Borrelia burgdorferi and co-infections - crypto-infections Bartonella, Babesia, Rickettsia, Erlichia, Anaplasma, Mycoplasma, etc. A research herbalist is not the same as a medical herbalist and Monica does not run a general clinical practice. This allows her to focus on Lyme disease and bacterial and viral infections.
Natasha is an experienced and qualified medical herbalist in Western herbal medicine, a forager and mycotherapist. As well as practicing as part of Napiers' general herbal medicine practice, she also sees patients as part of the CLAID Clinic.
Nikki was awarded a first class honours degree in Herbal Medicine from the University of East London and trained at clinics in Glasgow and London. She was also awarded the Arthur Barker prize for her final examination grades. Nikki also has ITEC Diplomas in Holistic Massage and Aromatherapy. She is a member of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists which is the UK’s leading professional body representing herbal practitioners. NIMH members follow a strict code of conduct and are committed to ongoing and continual practitioner development and training.
Ona Madorell is a qualified Naturopathic Nutritionist, graduating with distinction from the College of Naturopathic Medicine (CNM). She has further enhanced her expertise through a course in blood test interpretation and a postgraduate program focused on the microbiome.
Pearlyn is a licensed acupuncturist and a registered member of the Acupuncture Society, and is fully insured to practice acupuncture, tuina, cupping and moxibustion.
Rebecca is an Associate Nutritionist, specialising in gut health and women's health, from hormone imbalance to fertility, pregnancy and beyond.
Sara is qualified Medical Herbalist, Ayurvedic Therapist and Yoga teacher, holding an MSc. in Western Herbal Medicine from Middlesex University.
Satya trained at the School of Natural Medicine where she graduated with a Diploma in Healing Diets and additional immersion studies in Herbal Medicine, Healing Diets, Iridology & Naturopathy, Quantum Botanicals and Flower Essences. Satya has a Nonviolent Communication Leadership Certificate with Bay NVC and an MA in European Dance Theatre Practice from Trinity Laban.
Sheila is a Holistic Therapist who qualified in KCR in 2019 with the KCR Academy. After a long career in retail, an ankle injury led her to seek an alternative approach to healing.
Shona has worked at Napiers Clinic for 30 years where she has picked up a wealth of knowledge about various complementary therapies. She trained as a Food Sensitivity tester with The Health Partnership Company, where she was taught how to use the 3 point marker system.
Thanos is an experienced Medical Herbalist and practises as a Herbalist and Orthopaedic Acupuncturist at Napiers in Edinburgh and at Napiers Bathgate.
Wendy qualified in 2002 with a BSc(Hons) in Phytotherapy. Since then she has practiced in Fife, Angus and the Lothians. She is a member of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists.
Lots of people get cold sores repeatedly, especially when they are run down. They find them highly embarrassing. Once the virus is in your body it can be hard to manage. People with genital herpes find this even more distressing. Take a look at so...
Lots of people get cold sores repeatedly, especially when they are run down. They find them highly embarrassing. Once the virus is in your body it can be hard to manage. People with genital herpes find this even more distressing. Here I look at some herbs and dietary approach that help many people to prevent herpes outbreaks.
Cold sores are sores that develop as painful bumps under the skin, commonly near the lips but in the case of genital herpes, in the genital region. The symptoms of herpes are that these red, angry bumps then break out ons toe surface of the skin. Once the bumps have erupted they weep, get crusty and they get really, really sore. Conventional treatment is a cream from the chemist which can alleviate some of the symptoms but rarely stops them in their tracks. Herpes sores can erupt over and over again. Sometimes they go away for a while, lying dormant, only to reappear later in life.
These sores are caused by a virus called herpes simplex. Most of us get infected during childhood and the virus then lives dormant in our bodies. When it is reactivated it shows up as a cold sore, or genital sore, often in the same place, particularly if we are run down (low immunity), stressed or not eating properly. For some women they also seem linked to the menstrual cycle.
Melissa officinalis (Lemon Balm) is my herb of choice for treating cold sores as it is active against the herpes virus family. It is fantastic both for cold sores (HSV-1), genital sores (HSV-2) and for shingles (herpes zoster).
In the winter I always have a little bottle of blended melissa essential oil in my handbag because, if you put it onto the usual place that cold sores break out, at the very first tingle, it will often stop the cold sore from developing at all1.
This is useful to know because quite a few other essential oils will help a cold sore to dry up quicker (tea tree oil, clove oil and lavender oil are good examples) but only melissa oil works so fast. Apply it with a cotton bud to minimise the risk of spreading the infection… and no kissing!
If you get cold sores regularly you need a deeper approach. Firstly, take melissa as a tea, drinking three cups a day for a week or two. True to its common name of ‘lemon balm’, it has a wonderful delicate lemon taste that you will come to love! You can get the dried leaf from Napiers or any good herbalist.
If you like the taste of liquorice, add that to your tea as well. People often ask if there is a cure for herpes and generally the virus is with us permanently after the first infection. However, lab tests on liquorice root (the plant not the sweeties!) have shown that it can irreversibly inactivate the herpes simplex virus2. Liquorice tea is available loose from Napiers and in teabags from most supermarkets and health food shops. Trametes versicolor, the Turkey Tail mushroom has also been shown to inactivate the virus.
The other thing to look at is your general health. If you have a low or weakened immune system and seem to catch every cough, cold and flu that is going around, you will have more cold sore outbreaks. In that case, you need to examine your diet. Your body needs nutrients to stay healthy. It’s as simple as that! If you don’t eat enough fresh (and ideally raw) fruit and veg, are dieting too much, smoking or living on junk food or processed foods, you are denying your body the essential nutrition it needs and the first place it will show is your skin!
As well as melissa, taking a course of good quality echinacea for two weeks will help to boost your immunity especially if you are prone to colds and flu.
If stress and fatigue triggers infections you could also try rhodiola root and take up yoga or meditation to learn how to handle stress longer term. Both herbs are available as licensed herbal medicines.
As a dietary supplement, elderberry syrup diluted with warm water as a tea or fizzy water as a refreshing drink with a dash of lemon, makes a pleasant addition with natural immune stimulating and antiviral properties. Adding fresh, crushed garlic to every meal or to salad dressings helps enormously too.
References
1. Allahverdiyev A, Duran N, Ozguven M, Koltas S. (2004) Antiviral activity of the volatile oils of Melissa officinalis L. against Herpes simplex virus type-2. Phytomedicine. 2004 Nov;11(7-8):657-61.
PMID: 15636181
2. Pompei R., Flore O., Marccialis M.A., Pani A and Loddo B. (1979) Glycyrrhizic acid inhibits virus growth and inactivates virus particles. Nature 281, 689 - 690 (25 October 1979); doi:10.1038/281689a0
Astani A, Reichling J, Schnitzler P. (2012) Melissa officinalis extract inhibits attachment of herpes simplex virus in vitro. Chemotherapy 2012 58(1):70-7 PMID: 22377592
Mazzanti G, Battinelli L, Pompeo C, Serrilli AM, Rossi R, Sauzullo I, Mengoni F, Vullo V. (2008) Inhibitory activity of Melissa officinalis L. extract on Herpes simplex virus type 2 replication. Nat Prod Res. 2008;22(16):1433-40.
PMID: 19023806
This article was first appeared in The Ethical Hedonist magazine.