The life force and vitality of buds

They are made principally from the embryonic tissue of various trees and shrubs (the buds and emerging shoots) and also from the reproductive parts (the seeds and catkins) and from newly-grown tissue (the rootlets and the cortex of rootlets) when the tree or shrub’s annual germination is at its peak in order to capture the various nutrients, vitamins, plant hormones and enzymes that are released during this process, and which in some cases are only present in the plant at this time. In a small number of cases they are made from the early spring rising sap. The only exception is with the seeds which are taken in autumn.

History

In 1970, Dr Pol Henry (1918-1988), a Belgian doctor, laid the foundations of the phytoembryotherapy (treatment using embryonic vegetal tissues). His laboratory work revealed the therapeutic properties of buds and young shoots. These germinal tissues contain all the components and the genetic blueprint of the future plant (totum) because this package of ingredients and information will unfold into the final plant. Several years later, the French homeopath, Dr Max Tétau, invented the term gemmotherapy for treatment using buds and young shoots. Gemmotherapy became an accepted form of herbal medicine in France (entering the Pharmacopée Francaise in 1965). Today, it is the healthcare practitioners and general public in Italy who best know gemmotherapy, where the remedies are used as a complementary or a first-choice treatment in a variety of common conditions. Until recently it has been virtually unknown outside these two countries, with the partial exception of the UK, the USA, Germany and the Czech Republic. The first companies to introduce a product based on this technique into the cosmetic industry were Gattefossé and Greentech, but now EUK has delivered a full range that will enable a complete range of products to be developed.