Entrepreneur brings healing through herbs

Tiffany Scott owned a hair salon for 12 years, but after being forced to stay home due to the pandemic, she realised that she had other interests.

"I reflected on what I really wanted to do because I was doing a business I could do. But I was not sure if this is what I really wanted to do until we were forced to be on a break. I realised I really wanted to get into herbs and plant medicine," she told THE STAR.

Scott said her knowledge of these herbal remedies came from her grandmother, who was heavily engaged in natural medicine. She remembers using the cerasee plant to bathe for hyperpigmentation, and making hair shampoos from the hibiscus flower. She was also influenced by her partner, Adrian Edwards, when he introduced her to some courses he studies at the Aboriginal Medical Association (AMA). Scott added that she is certified in herbalism and is currently studying at AMA, while also taking courses with noted herbalist Dr Ben Israel.

"The information from how I grew up, along with my partner introducing me to these courses, is what really cemented everything," she said.

Scott and Edwards started Nuture Being - creating products that cater to the body's internal health - last March. Then in August, they launched Nurture Aset for Life - which deals with products that support the integumentary system - the outer layer of the body, including the skin - and the lymphatic system. Scott told THE STAR that their skincare products, along with Nurture Her, which treats polycystic ovary syndrome, and Nuture Him for testosterone building, are some of the bestsellers.

"It is exceptional; it's almost like we hit the ground running, because we have not seen a down day since we started. What happens is that we sell the product, but we also give information on what the herbs do. So even if you don't buy the product from us, you can source it yourself," she said.

Noted physician Dr Alfred Dawes explained how the increase in the use of natural remedies stems from a distrust of major pharmaceutical companies.

"There is an increase in consciousness, where people are realising that many of the older remedies that were proven for thousands of years by our ancestors are being pushed aside as complimentary medicine, to embrace mainstream medicine that have only developed over the last 100 years or so," he said.

Dawes stated that many of these herbal medicines are just as good or better than western medicine. However, he advises that people should use them under the guidance of a trained herbalist and notify the medical doctor about any product they are using, since certain herbs may interfere with medical prescriptions.

"Cerasee tea masks the glucose reading, and you think the glucose is under control, but it's not. We look at fever grass because it is nature's aspirin; and you don't give children aspirin, because they can end up with a condition known as Reye syndrome, and we don't know if there is a risk with drinking fever grass," he said.

However, Dawes noted that we can only refer to anecdotal evidence for herbal medicine because companies are not able to put a trademark on the herbs; therefore, there is no reason for these large pharmaceutical companies to invest millions of dollars to show that they are effective.