Neutral

Warm herbs are typically ‘hot’, ‘spicy’ or ‘pungent’ due to the presence of aromatic oils. Generally these herbs bring ‘warmth’ to the tissues by stimulating circulation and dilating the micro-capillaries thus creating an opening effect within the cardiovascular system that increases blood movement and therefore perfusion to the tissues. Warming herbs are often also diaphoretic- meaning that they stimulate the sweat reflex- this action could be seen as a contradictory as it is essentially ‘cooling’. However, the action of warming herbs remains to increase peripheral circulation and therefore is classified as warming to the body tissues. Some examples include chilli, garlic, horseradish, cinnamon and ginger. The nature of the herbs chosen depends on the affected tissues and unique presentation of the patient. Due to their potent nature, a herbalist will usually only use a small amount of aromatically hot, warming herbs in a formula.