EP #31 - Kristen Smith on Faith, Family, and Natural Health
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Show Notes
In this episode of The Plain Values Podcast …
Kristen Smith never planned on becoming an herbalist.
As the oldest of three, she grew up surrounded by farmland in northwest Ohio, helping grandparents with conventional crops and meat chickens.
But life shifted after marriage, college, and her first baby. A routine blood test at 22 revealed severe hypothyroidism. The doctor offered medication for life with little explanation. That moment sparked questions: Why did this happen? Could food help?
With no home internet and young kids, Kristen loaded her children into a stroller and walked miles to the library, checking out every book on nutrition and health she could find.
Changes came slowly… first toothpaste and deodorant, then deeper shifts toward whole foods and away from processed items. Her thyroid still requires medication, but the journey opened a world of natural remedies.
Years (and nine children) later, Kristen turned her one-acre yard into a “backyard medicine cabinet.”
She grows medicinal plants, keeps chickens, and experiments with herbs. Her faith anchors everything. With a large family on limited land, she relies on God’s strength daily.
Kristen’s story shows how one health crisis, met with curiosity and grace, can grow into a life of stewardship, healing, and passing natural wisdom to the next generation.
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Learn more about Kristen’s work at https://abetterwaytothrive.com
Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com