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“Early in my career, I believed each person needed their own distinct formula, so I only made individual herbal extracts.
But both practitioners and natural food stores were constantly demanding formulas. I reviewed my clinical practice cases and found that though I might not be using the exact same formula for each patient, there was often a basic group of herbs that consistently worked for a specific condition.
For example, our Original Bitters Compound came from a base of Dandelion root, Orange peel, Angelica and Artichoke. I had found that that combination was incredibly useful for helping to stimulate gastric hydrochloric acid and enhance digestive function.
Our formulas are based on a nucleus of about 300 herbs that I've consistently used clinically for specific conditions with good results.
While people with complicated problems should consider going to a clinical herbalist to get a formula designed specifically for them, we have seen over many years that you can create herbal formulas that work well for the vast majority of people.”
David Winston is often asked why H&A uses herbs from around the world, and several herbal traditions.
“In my clinical practice I use what works, whether the herbs are from Asia (including Chinese and Ayurvedic herbs), Europe, Africa, South or North America.
I think it’s unfortunate that many people limit themselves to a handful of herbs, which essentially means trying to fit the patient to the available herbs. There are Chinese and Ayurvedic herbs that have simply no Western equivalents. There are Western herbs for which there are no Ayurvedic or Chinese equivalents, and so I choose the best from each of these herb worlds. Of course, it depends on what is seasonally available or whether we can find high quality botanicals that are free from heavy metals and pesticides. We require that herbs be of high quality, preferably organically grown or sustainably wildcrafted. We use the best that we can find in the world, literally.
I use herbs according to their specific indications, energetics, modern research and my decades of clinical experience. I am trained in Western/Eclectic, Chinese and South Eastern Herbal Traditions, so I have experience with many different systems of medicine and the wide array of herbs used by each tradition. This means that I am not bound to standardized combinations or the few herbs have been studied by science for a specific condition. I combine tradition, science and experience together in my use of herbs.
I’ve learned that to understand herbs better you need to know not only what they do, but also their energetics. Is the herb warming or cooling, or bitter or drying or moistening? Only then will you understand how to combine them effectively for a specific purpose.
Take our lung formulas as an example. We have respiratory tonics and anti-spasmodic formulas, but we also have energetically based formulas: one for hot and dry lung conditions, one for cold and dry, one for cold and damp, and one for hot and damp.”
