A range of uniquely African body care products
Sangoma Secrets is a range of special products that support the traditional use of imphepho and other sacred healing herbs. They are sustainably sourced or specially cultivated and incorporated into a range of body care products. This allows easy and convenient access to healing herbs like imphepho, wild sage and rosemary, eucalyptus, olive leaves and other medicinal plants. Salt also plays a key role in traditional healing. Sacred Baleni salt is hand harvested by women from the inland Limpopo river brine springs in the Northern Province. It is used for ritual cleansing and for blessing.
Traditionally, African Sangomas and Inyangas have used imphepho (helicrysum species) and other local herbs for medicine as well as protection from misfortune and evil entities for thousands of years. Such herbal remedies are still popular today, especially in our cities where over 60% of the local population prefer traditional medicine to modern pharmaceuticals!
However, burning dried Imphepho bushes as very pungent and smoky incense in a city apartment, office or car is not a very practical way to rid the area of evil entities, bad vibes and ill fortune. Neither is picking fresh Imphepho and veld herbs in a city to make a decoction for cleansing and protecting your family or new born baby. Sangoma Secrets provides a practical solution – body care products that contain impepho, sacred salt and traditional herbs.
Sangoma Secrets cater for those who embrace traditional herbal remedies – with a touch of African imphepho mystique! Imphepho or helicrysum means “immortal” in Latin, and the “yellow sun” in Greek. To us Africans it is all of the above – everlasting sunshine, muthi and a way to stay in touch with the ancestors. Thus, the imphepho effect embraces our local population, the average health shops and pharmacies as well as our gift and tourist industries. The unique charm and appeal of this proudly South African body care range can be proudly shared with the rest of the world.
Imphepho species have profound healing effects
Belief systems based on plants associated with luck, sexual attraction or protection from evil spirits, are common to people around the world and have persisted for thousands of years. Rosemary for instance, is associated with remembrance, 4 leaf clovers with luck and mistletoe with kissing. Imphepho is a very popular South African herb in this respect and all species are used for incense burning, steam baths and tea, depending on availability. For them, they just work for colds and coughs, aches and pains, wounds or evil spirits and no attention is paid to their phytochemical makeup or studied therapeutic benefits, of which there are many more.
Products are based on decoctions of the following imphepho species: Helicrysum Petiolare, – H Odoratissium and H- Nudifolium. The clean, fresh, eucalyptus / menthol / pine-like fragrance of helicrysum Gymnocarpodium adds a key note to the healing bouquet. Imphepho provides antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory insect repellent as well as soothing and skin generating benefits, especially for problem skins.
Various terpenes (fragrant components), volatile oils, flavonoids and CBD’s (phytocannabinoids) are now associated with our imphepho species. Some of the oils are said to be of great value in healing scars and acne and to stimulate cellular regeneration. Unlike Sangomas, modern science is concerned with individual species as their chemical components are definitely not all alike! Fragrance notes are different combinations of camphor, eucalyptus, menthol, pine, rosemary, lavender and mint. Components have been discovered that can help to treat cancer and cure malaria as well as HIV aids. Imphepho is rich in CBD, polyphenols and terpenes that are good for skin problems
