Living in Jamaica on and off since 1987 ? including once for a five-year stretch ? has given Bermudian Marion Simons an appreciation for anything natural.

Her interest in natural remedies started when she was in her early twenties and used to listen to her grandmother, Florence Smith, talk about the healing powers of various plants around the Island.

It seemed only natural for Ms Simons that she would take her interest further and during the summer she became a certified herbalist, passing a two-year correspondence course with a grade A earlier this year. Now she wants to help those who seek an alternative to traditional medicines.

"Everybody's remedy isn't the same and sometimes I pray to the high creator to help me pick the right herbs to benefit that person's illness," said Ms Simons.

"I've been a herbalist for 23 years, I've always been interested in herbs and have made tonics for people in Bermuda as well as abroad. I have a hair tonic (Panacea Herbal Hair Tonic) that I invented and is a registered product in Bermuda.

"When I was younger I never liked to take pills, they always seemed to get stuck in my throat. When I talked to my grandmother she would guide me about different herbs that she knew about. I started doing research, buying herbal books and going to libraries, always searching for remedies that can help people."

She admits that there are a lot of old-fashioned cures around us, growing wild out of the earth ? things like fennel, dandelion, plantain, rosemary and dog grass, which dogs will eat when they are not feeling well.

"It's a good medicine for human beings, too," she stated.

"Bermuda is rich with herbs for many illnesses. I like to go about the Island and pick wild herbs but I never pick them from the roadside because the carbon monoxide settles on the leaves.

"My grandmother would lead me to the herbal remedies rather than the traditional medicines you buy out of the store. I think if more people were to use herbs they would be healthier.

"In Jamaica a guy came to me with a rash on his back and said he had been going to a doctor for a year and couldn't get it off. Within a week the guy came back to me in my store, took off his shirt and showed me his back and it was clear."

Ms Simons lived in the hills in Hanover where the vegetation was lush.

"The roots, barks, you'd be surprised what different skins from vegetables can do," said the herbalist of the tools of her trade.

"You don't get this knowledge unless you seek it. I'm a person who seeks because herbs are what I love. I've seen people go to doctors, spend a lot of money and when the money is finished they turn to the herbalist.

Ms Simons outlined a few natural remedies for .

"Turmeric doesn't grow in Bermuda but you boil it and drink it for blood clots," she said.

"Comfrey is a good one for wounds that you mix with aloe. People should use more aloe, especially menopausal women, to soak in water and drink.

"Parsley that grows wild around the seashore of Bermuda is good for high blood pressure and is high in Vitamin C."

Ms Simons also spoke of the benefits of wild sage, green pepper, cucumber juice and maiden hair fern.

"Maiden hair fern grows a bit in Bermuda but not on a large scale and it is very good, they make cough medicine out of that," she revealed. "It is found in Jamaica around the river banks.

"I was in my element in Jamaica, it brought out the best in me. That was where I came to create the hair tonic. I may buy a vitamin or two because sometimes I don't eat as good as I should when in Bermuda, but otherwise, I use strictly herbs."

She added: "When I went to Jamaica I already knew a lot about herbs but learned more about their herbs and what they have to offer. I sat with the elders and they taught me a lot about what they used to do for things like cuts and stomach aches.

"Plus I experiment on different herbs. With the hair tonic, before I got it right, I used to blend three of the best herbs and then decided to do more research and came up with eight of the best herbs. A German girl living in Jamaica whose hair was coming out on the sides used it and said 'Marion, you've got to put this stuff on the market, my hair has come back'."

The product is registered, bottled in Jamaica and is sold in Bermuda.

"I consider myself a naturalist, with roots stemming from Africa," said Ms Simons whose black book contains many entries about remedies.

"I have two children who were brought up on herbs and they are never sick. We walk on herbs every day, in fact we walk on them to go to the doctor."

Her trained eye helps her recognise many herbs, and despite the ongoing development of the country she still has favourite places in Bermuda to find herbs... Somerset, Dockyard and on the shoreline in Hamilton Parish.

"A lot of us are sick today because of our diet of processed food," she said.

"Remember diabetes starts from an unhealthy diet. If we would ask ourselves 'what is this doing for my body' when we put something in our mouth. If it is doing nothing why put it in?

"One of the things we should try to keep alive in Bermuda is dealing with the natural resources that the earth gives us. People don't want to do those things anymore, but those are the things that keep you healthy."

Ms Simons can be contacted at empressgeorgesyahoo.com or on 732-7418.