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The Conversation

Dipa Kamdar, Senior Lecturer in Pharmacy Practice, Kingston University

From potion to prescription: how witches’ herbs became medical marvels

Pixel-Shot/Shutterstock

As Halloween approaches, stories of witches and their potions resurface, often featuring eerie plants like belladonna, mandrake and mugwort. These botanicals, steeped in myth and folklore, have long been linked to spells and sorcery. Yet behind their spooky reputations lies a fascinating pharmacological history, and in some cases, ongoing medical relevance.

Belladonna

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