Bio Health Raspberry Leaf Tablets

A few months ago I visited a warehouse sale at Think Natural in Berkhamsted. Some of you may know of www.thinknatural.com, a great alternative health and beauty products site, and from my membership with them I received a flyer telling me about their warehouse sale. Being lucky enough to live fairly near Berkhamsted, I popped along one morning with my Mum and spent a considerable amount on a big basket of stuff.

One gem that I picked ...
...recommended for painful menstrual cramps. Raspberry Leaf is an astringent herb, which acts specifically on the muscles of the uterus. I have never suffered from horrendously bad period pains, but mine run the rather uncomfortable course of being dull, never-ending aches in the small of my back, occasionally accompanied by a sporadic knifing through my uterus area (sorry to the men who are reading this!). Seeing as this was a sale, and they were half ... more

A few months ago I visited a warehouse sale at Think Natural in Berkhamsted. Some of you may know of www.thinknatural.com, a great alternative health and beauty products site, and from my membership with them I received a flyer telling me about their warehouse sale. Being lucky enough to live fairly near Berkhamsted, I popped along one morning with my Mum and spent a considerable amount on a big basket of stuff.

One gem that I picked up was a little tub of Potter’s Raspberry Leaf tablets, recommended for painful menstrual cramps. Raspberry Leaf is an astringent herb, which acts specifically on the muscles of the uterus. I have never suffered from horrendously bad period pains, but mine run the rather uncomfortable course of being dull, never-ending aches in the small of my back, occasionally accompanied by a sporadic knifing through my uterus area (sorry to the men who are reading this!). Seeing as this was a sale, and they were half price, I picked them up. I can’t live without them now. They work wonders for me and the fact they are a natural herbal remedy only increases my appreciation of them.

My tub is a little one, about egg cup size, and holds 30 tablets. The lid is green and the label is prettily illustrated, giving the name of the manufacturer (Potter’s), the name of the product (Raspberry Leaf), the purpose of the tablets (“traditionally used for the symptomatic relief of painful menstrual cramps”) and some little curlicued writing that affirms the tablets are a herbal remedy. The dosage is two tablets after each meal and the usual warnings are given (not for children, ask your doctor before taking if in doubt, do not take if pregnant or breastfeeding, if symptoms persist seek medical advice and so on). It also tells you that there are no cases known of overdose and says that it has no harmful interactions with other medicines. Great for me, with my whole penicillin deal!

There’s a seal on the tub, so you know not to use it if it’s already broken. The use by date on my tub, which I bought in May, is August 2003 so they last quite a long time (though I expect I’ll use mine up well before then!).

So what do the tablets actually do? Well, you take two as recommended on the tub. The tablets are a reasonable size but I recommend swallowing them with a drink because they’re not overly small. They’re a speckled beige colour and smell oaty with a vaguely sweet tinge. Unlike other tablets, if they stick on your tongue before or while you swallow, they actually don’t taste too bad – pretty much like they smell. They work VERY quickly. They worked so well for me that I only noticed my cramps had gone when my Mum asked me how I was feeling after taking them. Then I took stock, concentrated on my uterus area (sorry!) and noticed that it felt fine! The effects last for a good few hours and the tub says to take them as the symptoms persist – so just when you need them, not regularly every morning or anything.

You can buy Potter’s Raspberry Leaf tablets at www.thinknatural.com or in some pharmacies and health food stores. Potter’s also have a website at www.pottersherbals.co.uk where you can buy online. I bought my second supply here, where the 30 tablet tub costed £2.49, and I was also sent a catalogue with my order. Potter’s do lots of other natural remedies for pretty much anything you can think of and some skin care products too, all in little tubs and bottles with pretty labels. Their range includes ‘Out of Sorts’ (tablets for bloating), ‘Peerless Composition Essence’ (for the onset of colds and flu), ‘Nod Off Mixture’ (for sleeping trouble) and ‘New Relax’ (for tenseness, irritability, agitation and the stresses and strains of modern life)!

I realise I might have spent some time talking about Potter’s rather than the Raspberry Leaf in particular, but it was these tablets that led me to discover Potter’s. As I have described, the Raspberry Leaf tablets are a godsend and sell at a good price and the fact that they are a herbal remedy can only be huge bonuses in my opinion. If you want some relief ‘in utero’ when your time of the month rears its ugly head (or, as so wonderfully put in Clueless, when you’re ‘riding the crimson wave’!) then these tablets are definitely the way to go.

PS) I’ve also read that drinking Raspberry Leaf tea during labour can ease contraction pains. The other op in this section by 3boyz explains a bit more about that.
 

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