About this episode
Our semi-annual 20% off Sale is active now! For the entire month of July, use code hawthorn at checkout to take 20% off all our online courses! Sussing out herb-drug interactions is complicated! In this episode we take the example of Celexa + skullcap, and demonstrate the process of investigation we’d use to sort out whether a proposed risk is real. We start with the Botanical Safety Handbook, because it has certain features which make it significantly better than other manuals or databases. These include the varied relevant experience and skills of the editorial team, its clarity about real vs theorized reactions, and other critical data points which are directly relevant to the herbalist’s practice. Checking one resource isn’t sufficient, though. We also need to consider the fact that ‘absence of evidence is not evidence of absence’, and remember that constitutional variations can significantly change the efficacy of a given herb for a particular person. Information outside of scientific studies – such as the popularity of an herb or the prevalence of a drug, as well as traditional practices with plants – can help us to orient ourselves more precisely. For further education about herb-drug interactions: Herb-Drug Interactions & Herb Safety – our complete course on this subject teaches you all the ins & outs of identifying potential interactions, avoiding them, and conducting reality checks on information you encounter about these risks. The Botanical Safety Handbook – our #1 resource for this information. HHP 101: How Herbs Are Different From Drugs – a key episode of our podcast, these concepts are helpful when learning how HDI may occur. Everything’s on sale in July! All our offerings are self-paced online video courses. They all with free access to twice-weekly live Q&A sessions with us, lifetime access to current & future course material, open discussion threads integrated in each lesson, an active student community, study guides, quizzes & capstone assignments, and more! Use code HAWTHORN at checkout to get 20% off! If you have a moment, it would help us a lot if you could subscribe, rate, & review our podcast wherever you listen. This helps others find us more easily. Thank you!! Our theme music is “Wings” by Nicolai Heidlas. Support the show You can find all of our online herbalism courses at online.commonwealthherbs.com!