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What is it?

The leaves of Raspberry, a medicine that fits well into the analogy of a ‘mother herb’, as it is remarkably good for mothers on a number of levels. It's also interesting to observe how Raspberry grows in that it has central ‘mother’ plants which shield and protect its ‘babies’ as they grow up around her.

How has it been used?

Raspberry leaf is most famous as a pregnancy herb. This is primarily directed at the last 2 or 3 months of pregnancy where it is used to strengthen the uterus prior to giving birth but there are also historical recommendations for Raspberry leaf in the first months of pregnancy to help prevent miscarriage and to reduce morning sickness.

Raspberry leaf has also been traditionally used as an eyewash or a mouthwash when there is inflammation or infection present or when there are sores that are slow to heal.

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Personal experiences

I think I rather side-lined Raspberry in my early years of practice. I would include some Raspberry leaf in a herbal formula if a woman came to me in pregnancy but that was about as far as I went with it.

Increasingly, as the years have gone by and one learns by actual practice what works rather than by theory, I have found myself prescribing Raspberry for more and more problems with more and more women. I think it is a superb uterine tonic all round. This is not just a personal view by the way. I have talked with other herbalists, especially those who work extensively with women’s health problems, and they have very much come to the same kind of high regard for Raspberry leaf in their own work.

You can often see women who have become depleted through the extraordinary demands of child making and child-raising. Their symptoms may be many and varied but there is an underlying theme of exhaustion that reaches far into the mental as much as it does into the physical. Raspberry is an uplifting herb; these words ‘tone and strengthen’ are often used when people describe Raspberry.

Raspberry leaf combines perfectly with Lady's mantle and Shepherd's purse for heavy periods and excessive bleeding. It works as a fertility tonic with Vitex and Shatavari and a uterine tonic with Cramp bark.

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Raspberry leaf and pregnancy

Historically women have taken raspberry leaf tea throughout their pregnancies up to and including childbirth. Many mothers extol this herb's ability to make childbirth easier and less painful. In a letter to the editor of the medical journal The Lancet, Dr. Violet Russel wrote " I have encouraged expectant mothers to drink this infusion and in a great many cases labour has been free and easy from muscular spasm." Some women also drink the tea throughout their labour, or suck on frozen cubes made beforehand. It reportedly helps expel the placenta, and its nutritional value is thought to be responsible for encouraging and enriching the mother's breastmilk. Many women continue to drink the tea long after childbirth as it is thought to help restore the reproductive system and continue to help nourish the new mother.

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