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African dream root, African dream seed and uvuma-omhlophe are three unrelated plants. What the labels mean, what the sources say and where research stops.

Wellness

Oct 12, 20269 min read

Buying in the Netherlands and EU: check the product and the country

There is no single EU legal status for smartshop products. Five questions to check any product, plus dated Dutch and EU notes on truffles, kratom and more.

Smartshop exploration

Oct 12, 2026

10 min read

Start here: what is a smartshop?

What a Dutch smartshop is, how the idea grew, what sits on the shelves, how Dutch rules differ from the rest of the EU, and how to read a label.

Smartshop exploration

Oct 12, 202616 min read

Kanna: meet the plant behind the extracts

Kanna turns up on smartshop shelves as leaf, powder and extracts. Here is what the plant is, why the products differ, and what small studies found.

Editorial illustration of medicine and supplement bottles beside a crossroads.

Wellness

Oct 6, 202611 min read

Supplements, herbs and medication: how to check a combination

Why 'natural' is not a safety category, the main ways interactions happen, sourced examples, a note on kratom, and what to bring to a pharmacist.