Discover why “Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy” is considered the gold standard reference for serious herbalists—a thousand-page masterpiece that combines rigorous science with clinical wisdom from two of the world’s leading herbal practitioners.
I am starting a new book review series; I hope you enjoy it. I have a large library of herbal books. Some of them, quite frankly, are gathering dust. I bought them, started to read them, and gave up. I didn’t find anything of value in them. The same information is rehashed over and over. Boring. Others I found quite useful.
There are two types of books I would like to talk about in this series.
The first book that I chose is, I think, one of my all-time favorites. It is a masterpiece.
This comprehensive textbook is called “Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy“, By Kerry Bone and Simon Mills. It represents one of the most authoritative and evidence-based resources in modern herbal practice. I think it has become the gold standard for serious herbal practitioners and students of the herbal craft.
It seems expensive at first sight; it costs between $100 and $130 depending on the seller. But believe me, it is worth the investment. The second edition is the latest one, dating from 2013. So it is 13 years old; let’s keep that in mind.
First of all, a few words about the authors.
Kerry Bone is an Australian herbalist with over 35 years of herbal practice. His credentials are pretty outstanding. He founded and runs the herbal medicine program at the University of New England and directs the Australian College of Phytotherapy. He works for MediHerb, a herbal product company, where he leads research and development. He has written more than 40 research papers and six textbooks on herbal medicine. His work and lifetime contributions to herbal medicine have earned him major awards. Quite impressive.
Simon Mills is no less impressive. He is a British herbalist who has been practicing since 1977. He studied at Cambridge and qualified through the National Institute of Medical Herbalists in the UK. Mills is a leading figure of the herbal world in the UK and he advised the British government (the House of Lords) on complementary medicine in 2000. Yeah, I know. He has published several important textbooks and clinical research studies. Since 2016, he has worked for Pukka Herbs, leading their herbal research initiatives. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine in 2006.
What else can I say? They are “the dudes” of herbal medicine.
The book has more than a thousand pages divided into 3 big sections.
Section One is about background information. This is where we start. It’s important to take time to understand this section. Because it provides the intellectual scaffolding for the rest of the book. It is the soil into which we will plant the seeds. It includes some pretty important topics.
First of all, a historical overview of major herbal traditions around the world (Graeco-Roman, Chinese, Ayurvedic, and 19th-century North American medicine). I love this part. It demonstrates that we have common themes across all cultures. This is where tradition not only meets science, but also can combine with science to help us build our practice.
Then we have a scary part. You’re ready? It delves into the chemistry of plants. Some herbalists do not find this section sexy at all. But you know what? We need this knowledge. At least at a high level. In this section, we review the different phytochemical groups (alkaloids, glycosides, tannins, flavonoids, mucilages, essential oils, saponins) and their mechanisms of action. If you do not understand the exact structure of a tannin, that’s OK. But you need a minimum of knowledge regarding how they work and how they can help us.
And some parts are just fascinating. Like how constituents are transformed in the small intestinal tract, then the gut flora in the colon, then the liver, then make their way into the kidneys for elimination. This complex dance of constituents into our body is just fascinating to me. And yes, I am an herbal geek and former engineer; I admit it. I get excited about this kind of stuff.
There is a chapter on the principles of traditional herbal medicine. Cleansing and removing toxins, using heating remedies to stimulate vitality and digestion, supporting the body with tonics (which are strengthening remedies), the importance of convalescence, which is often neglected. I love this chapter because it gives us simple and yet major interventions we can put in place with pretty much everyone.
There is a critical chapter on optimizing herbal safety. It covers contraindications, adverse effects, herb-drug interactions, working with special populations (like kids, pregnant and breastfeeding women, etc.). Also discussed here are product quality and contamination. Very concerning. We see tons of bad products today, with long supply chains and questionable traceability.
It is not overly alarmist; it is practical and grounded in reality. Adverse effects happen once in a while. I have seen my fair share of them. We need to know what to expect when we start.
So again, section 1, very important, we lay the foundations.
Now, section two of the book. This section is about clinical strategies for the most common conditions you will encounter in your practice. Very solid and built on the experience of those two practitionners.
It starts with a discussion on dosage for whole herbs, liquid extracts, powders, capsules, standardized extracts.
And then we move into herbal strategies for approximately 100 modern health conditions, organized by body system.
Let me give you an example. Let’s say you need to work with a case of inflammatory bowel disease like Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. This is a medical condition, so the physician is the primary contact here. But in a supportive role, the authors give us the levers of the strategy. Even before getting into herbs, it’s important to understand the levers.
In this example, they suggest :
Once we know the levers, they propose some herbs. Boswellia and calendula to calm the inflammation. Flaxseed to soothe the mucosa. Globe artichoke as liver herbs, etc.
And then we get into real case studies, with initial intake and follow-up.
The recommended herbs come from the English-based tradition, with roots in the US, the UK, Australia. In the sense that it is different from herbs we use in France. For example, some herbs like goldenseal, Oregon grape, blue flag are mentioned. They also use Chinese herbs (like baical skullcap or Chinese astragalus) and Ayurvedic herbs (like andrographis or crataeva). And they also use herbs from the European practice, of course, all mixed.
Now, I practiced in the US, so I am used to this model, no problem. I actually like it. But if you speak English as a second language and you practice in Italy, maybe, or Germany, or Switzerland, just know that the plants used in this book are from all over the world.
That being said, the clinical strategies still hold wherever you live. For instance, whey they suggest andrographis as a strong antibacterial herb for gut infection, I may choose a combination of oregano and walnut leaf. Yeah, I know, not exactly the same. But I know which lever I need to pull, and I will use local herbs with similar effects.
This is, in my opinion, the most valuable part of the book. The strategies. The levers. From two clinical herbalists who have been practicing for decades. I would buy the book just for this part. Of course, the plant monographs are outstanding too. But you can find pretty good monographs if you know where to look. But clinical strategies, well, this requires the wisdom of the practitioner, and it is not easy to find.
Part three of the book is the Materia Medica. 50 herbs, researched in a lot of detail. Very long monographs covering the most clinically relevant medicinal plants. Each monograph includes:
Again, very impressive work. These are kind of “the ultimate monographs”, as of 2013, mind you. So the last 13 years of research will not be present.
My conclusion, as you may guess, is that I highly recommend this book for serious herbalists.
This is not a book for casual browsing. It is not a book full of poetic descriptions, pictures, drawings, and other herbal ramblings. I mean, I do love herbal ramblings, but this is not it. It demands intellectual engagement. It is a reference book after all.
For those seeking to understand not just what herbs do, but why and how they work, and how to apply this knowledge safely and effectively in clinical practice, this book is indispensable.
And that’s it for today. Thanks for being here. I will see you soon for the next episode of TheFrenchHerbal!
