www.theblisspages.com - herbal remedies
www.theblisspages.com - herbal remedies
Today I listened to a very interesting talk on Herbal remedies from Sarah Furey, a qualified Herbalist. This was organised by the Burgess Hill & District Diabetes Support Group.
I found the talk very interesting, and Sarah emphasised how Herbal remedies could assist in the management of conditions like diabetes – though she was careful to stress that she would not advocate any change in medication without full consultation with medical practitioners.
The views expressed below are what I have gleaned from the talk, incorporating my own views and research, so if you see anything wrong, or disagree with anything, you should almost certainly blame me!
It seems that ninety percent of the world's population depend on herbal remedies, and over fifty percent of medicines in France and Germany are herbal.
Of course, many of our conventional medicines are derived from plants, but there is one great difference:
Our natural defences and bacteria can eventually adjust to one substance, but 150 is a different matter entirely. It is the same in agriculture, where huge fields of one crop - monoculture - are more likely to be targeted by pests than mixed crops using more natural systems of agriculture. See this article on perennial polyculture from Conscious Choice. Companion planting uses the same principles.
Pharmaceutical companies are bio-prospecting in tropical rain forests – while they're still standing – and finding many promising plants with medicinal properties. Unfortunately, they're pulling out and synthesising the main active ingredients and just using that, while it's the synergy between all the different constituents that give each plant its unique effectiveness.
Sarah talked about the different ways of administering herbal remedies.
Tinctures are made of alcohol so they can be preserved for a couple of years.
Juices have to be kept in the fridge. Examples include Echinacea and Elderberry.
Teas can be made from flowers, leaves, or berries.
Syrups are probably best avoided by diabetics where possible due to their sugar content.
Aromatic waters like rose-water are also useful.
Infused oils can be made. For example St. Johns Wort is considered good for depression and is made from Hypericum. Lavender oil is good for burns.
They don't just look at your symptoms, but also your lifestyle, diet, temperament and your whole emotional and physical condition.
They adjust doses to the person they are treating. Traditional Chinese medicine looks at Chi to determine dosages.
When Sarah gives treatments, the first consultation takes one-and-a-half to two hours and costs £40, whilst subsequent treatments costing £25, would be after two weeks and monthly thereafter. The cost of the herbs would be around six pounds a week. Phone consultations are also available.
For something like diabetes, a combination of lifestyle and diet would be considered.
Some foods can help strengthen the pancreas, like oats, bananas, olives and sweet potatoes.
Too many stimulants can hinder it, so you should cut down on tea and coffee. They are also diuretic; so many people also get dehydrated. The cells then protect themselves by thickening the cell walls using cholesterol, and then the water cannot easily get in even if you do drink more. Sarah recommended the book “Your Bodies many Cries for Water” by F. Batmanghelidj .
Fats were also key to helping or hindering the pancreas, and she also recommended “Fats that Heal; Fats that kill” by Udo Erasmus .
Vitamin C is very good for this. Watch out for the word Ascorbate on the label. See an article on Vitamin C at howstuffworks.
Elderberry juice and Echinacea are also recommended.
This can be caused by too much protein in the diet.
Excess sugar in blood vessels can damage them. Hawthorn tea (from leaves, berries, or flowers) can minimize or even repair the damage.
Lime flowers are very popular in France, where they are used as a digestiv.
Olive leaf is also recommended.
Horse chestnut is good for the veins.
Neuropathy is a frequent side-effect of diabetes. You lose feeling in your feet - over recent months, I've lost all feeling in my heels. St. John's Wort oil can help this condition, as can chamomile tea - but don't just drink it; instead, let it cool a bit and soak your feet in it!
For problems with these, try dried bilberries. Echinacea – which has a rich purple flower - can again help.
Fungal growths, in the form of athlete's foot, nail infections or thrush, are very common complications of diabetes, and Calendula - made from pot marigold - can help.
The liver is increasingly stressed in modern times, being exposed to ever-increasing doses of pollutants and toxins. We are all also getting stressed in different ways, with mental stress levels rising, but our activity levels falling.
Fenugreek can have an important part to play in repairing the liver. The Indian spice can be added to food, and a teaspoon a day would be helpful. Turmeric is also therapeutic.
Too often, statins are added to food to lower Cholesterol, but it may be more useful to use Evening Primrose oil, which also prevents nerve damage. It contains Omega 6.
Minerals and vitamins also have a part to play.
It is better to rely on herbs rather than chemicals.
They can have fewer side effects as well, as the body doesn't see them as toxins to be fought.
Beware of 'standardized extracts'. These are not as they seem. When scientists have extracted what they think is the most important ingredients, they synthesize them, and they may bear little resemblance to the herb whose name they may still bear. See this article at planet herbs.
Interestingly, Kava-Kava was banned when two people died from side-effects. However, they had taken 'standardized extracts'. Many more people die from the side effects of conventional medicines.
Thanks, Sarah, for your interesting talk.
updated Fri 25 Feb '05 give feedback...
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: © Mike Bliss 2009