Brett Elliott takes his healthy detox expertise on the road

A book that came from a passion to share the message of self healing will be the subject of a talk at Te Puke Library next week.

Cleansed and Cured, written by Tauranga's Brett Elliott, was published around a year ago. Brett began his journey into natural medicine in the early 1990s when his own health began to deteriorate.

He'd spent 10 years in hard manual work and severe spinal injuries required major surgery, which he declined. His search for alternatives led him to herbal medicine which became his life.

''Talking from personal experience, it pointed me toward finding natural health solutions and it developed into a career as a medical herbalist,'' he says.

''The book has come about after 20 years of my own practice and research and it's all summarised in the book.''

The talk on May 21 will be a taster of what is in the book and is one of a series being held in local libraries.

''I think people will find this breaks new ground for them in realising what they can actually do - it's really empowering. I think that's a key word.

''I will take people through what we think is a simple solution to a lot of today's health problems.''

He says the talk will appeal to people whatever their age, who are interested in doing something about their health.

Brett has taken seminars and talks in a range of places, and over 100,000 people have been through the programme, but a library is a new environment.

''For a lot of people it's like a revelation. People see something they haven't really thought of before in terms of how they can help themselves.

''A lot of us turn to doctors, the medical system and health practitioners and so on for solutions, when in fact there's quite a simple solution for most health conditions that we can do at home.

He says he thinks the use of herbs and food to provide health solutions is often underestimated.

''A lot of conditions didn't even exist before to the modern age of pharmaceuticals and processed food so this is taking people back to the days of keeping it really simple and pure and encouraging the body to heal itself naturally,'' he says.

The presentation at Te Puke Library is on May 21 at 5.30pm. There are also presentations at 6pm at Pāpāmoa Library on May 29 and Greerton Library at 11am on June 1.