My Mom’s pot of nasturtiums!
Merry meet all,
Herbal actions, energetics and phytochemistry – say what? If you have ever gazed at a patch of stinging nettle or sniffed a peppermint leaf or added pungent basil to your salad, you would never have guessed there would be way more to herbs than met the eager eye. People have been using herbs for medicinal purposes, cooking or for spiritual purposes for about 60,000 years. In this post, I will share a few different ways for you to become more familiar with herbs.
Organoleptics
There are many ways to get to know herbs. Let’s take a look at the most basic way- other than growing them or enjoying them in tea. It’s called organoleptics and we have been doing that all this time. Organoleptics refers to the sensory properties of a substance that can be perceived by the senses, particularly taste, smell, and touch. Peppermint has potent volatile oils. If I brush by peppermint in the garden, a refreshing scent is released. yum! I see chamomile blossoms soak up the sun in the garden. I have been stung by stinging nettle. I feel the prickly needles from a pine or spruce tree in the winter. Those are all examples of organoleptics.
There is more to herbs than their beautiful aromas and flavor. We will explore herbal actions, energetics and phytochemistry now. If you have ever heard the terms anti-inflammatory, antiviral or antimicrobial before, then you are a bit familar with herbal actions.
Herbal Actions
Herbal actions are specific, physiological or therapeutic effects that an herb or a plant has on the human body, such as soothing or strengthening tissues or systems. These actions range from sedatives for calming a frazzled mind or adaptogens for stress and classify how herbs work.
A few examples of herbal actions and usage:
- Adaptogen: Helps the body adapt to stress and boost the immune system (e.g., ashwagandha)
- Alterative: Supports the metabolic processes and cleanses the blood (dandelion, nettle, burdock root)
- Antimicrobial: Protects against infection (e.g., Echinacea, goldenseal)
- Carminative: These herbs aid in digestive issues (e.g., ginger, fennel and chamomile)
- Demulcent (Soothes and protects irritated tissues (valerian, marshmallow)
- Nervines (Calms and supports the nervous system (passionflower, lavender, chamomile and lemon balm)
- Vulnerary (Heals and promotes wound healing (e.g., calendula, comfrey)
Herbal Energetics
Energetics refer to a system of traditional medicine that classifies herbs based on their temperature (hot/cold), moisture (moist/dry), and tone (tension/relaxation). It matches these qualities to an individual’s constitution, or the tissue state of a disease, to restore balance, such as using cooling herbs for inflammation.
- Temperature (Hot/Cold): Determines if an herb increases circulation and heat (e.g., ginger) or reduces heat and inflammation (e.g., peppermint).
- Moisture (Moist/Dry): Indicates if an herb adds moisture to dry tissues (e.g., marshmallow root) or dries damp/swollen tissues (e.g., goldenrod).
- Tone/Structure (Tension/Relaxation): Relates to tightening loose tissues (astringent) or relaxing tense muscles/nerves (antispasmodic)
- Hot & Dry: Used for individuals who are cold and damp, often using stimulant or warming, drying herbs.
- Cool & Moist: Used to soothe hot and dry conditions, such as using demulcent herbs (slippery elm, licorice) to treat inflamed, dry, and irritated mucous membranes.
- Relaxing & Warming: Used to treat tense, cold individuals, utilizing aromatic, warming herbs like cinnamon or ginger to increase circulation
Synonyms and Related Terms
- Constitutional Medicine: Tailoring herbs to a person’s unique, long-term body state.
- Humoral Medicine: An ancient system classifying people by humors (sanguine, phlegmatic, choleric, melancholic) which connect directly to hot/cold/wet/dry qualities.
- Vitalist Medicine: An approach that works with the body’s innate healing force rather than just fighting symptoms.
- Tissue States: A model often used in Western herbal medicine to identify physical states like depression, stagnation, or inflammation.
These principles allow for a “person-centered” approach rather than merely matching a single herb to a single symptom. The energetic qualities of an herb refer to the subtle ways that plants impact the human body, mind and/or the spirit. For example, ginger (Zingiber officinale) is energetically warming because it stimulates blood flow in the body. Marshmallow root (Althea officinalis) has a moistening energetic due to its demulcent properties. Echinacea ( Echinacea purpurea) tincture boosts the immune system and can make a person’s tongue tingle. Some energetics are strongly felt by the body while others are more subtle. Herbs like peppermint and spearmint are cooling and refreshing and herbs such as ginger and cayenne are warming.
Conditions
Conditions are considered as qualities or properties and can be referred to in terms of temperature, moisture and tension; energetic descriptors include warm, dry, cool, moist, tense, and relaxed.
Conditions are referred to in Western herbalism as tissue states. A fever is warm, a cough can be dry or moist, and swelling can be damp. Choosing herbs to heal that have the opposite quality to help counteract these energetics in order to return the body to balance. For example, if a person has heatstroke, you would choose cooling herbs. To help heal a sunburn or a burn from hot steam, a person could choose the soothing energetic properties of aloe vera.
The energetics of an individual are evident in their constitution. In Ayurveda, it is believed that everyone has a prakruti,which means their natural, unchanging constitution. An individual’s constitution can change throughout their lifetime. A person can have a dry constitution such as dry skin, dry nails which is made worse during certain seasons of the year, such as fall to winter.
Herbal actions and energetics can help us understand a person’s health condition and temperance. The task of understanding which herbs would be best suited to treat the person’s condition is much easier if we understand a person’s state of overall wellbeing and health conditions. Someone who routinely experiences excessive stress would benefit from ashwagandha, echinacea, or eleuthero root. Someone who suffers from sinus infections and moist coughs with excess mucus would benefit from the dry properties of thyme (Thymus vulgaris) while a dry cough with very little mucus could benefit from the moistening properties of licorice root (Glycorriza glabra or marshmallow root). Licorice root has a moistening effect on dry tissues.
Let’s look at a few more terms about herbal energetics: cooling, warming, relaxing and stimulating. They sound like herbal actions, but are regarded more as properties. For example, the term “cooling” can be confusing and mean more than one thing. Let’s go back to our example of peppermint. If the herb has a cooling action, then the herbal property would be thought of as lowering the body temperature. But if the herb was considered a diaphoretic, that would suggest the action of encouraging perspiration to bring down a fever. That makes the term “cooling” a property. Cayenne and ginger are warming and stimulating. Ginger root relieves nausea, it has an antiemetic action and property. It contains potent antispasmodic volatile oils that soothe spasms in the digestive tract. However, ginger root is quite potent and pungent and I recommend ingesting ginger root when nausea has passed.
Herbal actions explain what an herb does to the body, and properties refer to descriptors of the action. Peppermint aids the digestive system (carminative) and energizes the human body (stimulating).
Phytochemistry
Phytochemistry is the study of phytochemicals- chemical compounds that are derived from plants. Phytochemistry combines botany with plant chemistry. It studies the structure, biosynthesis, metabolism and certain functions. There are many chemical compounds within herbs. They range from menthol derived from peppermint, gingerol derived from ginger root, tannins derived from acorns and saponins derived from soapwort. These are a few examples, as there are lots of chemical compounds in herbs and definitely more than one chemical compound in herbs at the same time. There are too many to mentiom here.
Scientists who regularly study the chemical compounds within herbs often prefer to isolate a sole chemical compound. That means that they do not study all the chemical compounds in the herb/s and then they don’t value all the chemical compounds as a whole. Nature, as we all know, is far more complex than that. It refuses to be boxed or contained.
I find phytochemistry fascinating! I love studying all about the many chemical compounds in herbs and how they benefit the human body. Willow bark contains salicin, the active compound. That is where aspirin was originally derived from! I will share an example of willow bark with you, salicin, the chemical compound found in willow bark.
- Active Compound: Contains salicin, which the body converts into salicylic acid, providing analgesic (pain-relieving) and anti-inflammatory effects similar to aspirin.
- Common Uses: Effective for treating low back pain, arthritis (especially osteoarthritis), muscle pain, and fevers.
- Benefits: It acts as a natural antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent, often used in tinctures, capsules, or tea.
- Safety & Side Effects: While generally safer than aspirin, it can still cause side effects like diarrhea, nausea, itching, and rash. It should be avoided by those with aspirin allergies, bleeding disorders, or kidney issues.
- Dosage: Studies often cite 120–240 mg of salicin daily as effective for pain relief.
It is advisable to use these herbs in moderation or low doses. You never know how your body can react to it, especially if a person is taking a prescription. Using a small dose is best. It is also advised to talk to your family doctor if you are on medication while taking herbs for medicinal purposes. Some herbs such as St. John’s wort react very badly to the Wayfarin prescription. So go slow!
I created my own willow bark tincture. I have made several tinctures and again, I would encourage using a low dose if you are not familiar with its effects. Making your own tinctures actually helps you save money in the long run. Do speak with your family doctor if you are on medication.
I hope you enjoyed reading this post. Maybe this will encourage you to learn more about our herbal allies.
Till next time
Blessed be, Spiderwitch
