The Natural Apothecary: Apple Cider Vinegar by Dr Penny Stanway

The Natural Apothecary: Apple Cider Vinegar (Nature's Apothecary, #1)

by Dr Penny Stanway

Derived from the world’s most popular fruit, apple cider vinegar has long been revered for its health giving benefits. Linked with weight loss, regulating blood sugar and gut health, as well as its many beauty benefits and practical uses around the home, this super ingredient is a must-have in homes the world over.

With our increasing awareness of reducing exposure to chemicals and the importance of keeping things natural, as well as the ever-growing realization of the environmental impact of disposable plastic packaging, there has never been a better time to go back to basics, embrace natural ingredients and regain control of what we are putting in and on our bodies. The Natural Apothecary: Apple Cider Vinegar opens by exploring the different types of apple cider vinegar and the importance of using natural, unfiltered varieties ‘with the mother’. The following pages are broken into sections on home, health and beauty, containing over 40 simple recipes for all-natural, home-made products that allow you to utilize the power of apple cider vinegar with ease; make a soothing balm to ease sunburn, an astringent blemish cream for a clear complexion, or make your own wax polish infused with apple cider vinegar to leave your home sparkling.

Reviewed by annieb123 on

3 of 5 stars

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Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

The Natural Apothecary: Apple Cider Vinegar is a short booklet on the properties and uses of apple cider vinegar. Released 19th March 2019 by Nourish books, it's 128 pages and available in paperback format.

I work in the public healthcare sector as a bioengineer in the histopathology department at a large hospital. This means the biopsies and tissue samples and larger organs I look at on a daily basis are often the result of (literally) years of bad lifestyle habits. Anyone who's read a newspaper or listened to a news report in the last 25 years knows we all need to improve our lifestyles and try to allow our bodies the materials needed for healing/repairing the damage we incur on a daily basis. Undoubtedly many natural substances can be useful non-invasive tools to that end. That being said there's been a phenomenal explosion of hype around apple cider vinegar and mother of vinegar which isn't all true.

I'm not entirely sure who the book is meant for. The author has a folksy, informal style of writing which will appeal to laypeople, but she also includes a fair bit of jargon which could be off-putting to people without a chemistry/biochem background. When I was reading, I honestly felt like a significant portion of the chemistry information was included for scientific verisimilitude and not much else.

There are a number of recipes included for home cleaning supplies, food, health and beauty treatments etc. They are likely worth the price of the book.

Three stars, useful but alternately too much and too little info.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes

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  • 20 March, 2019: Reviewed