Mouth and Gum Problems
For mouth ulcers, dental abscesses and sore or bleeding gums:
1 part Sage leaves
1 part Marigold flowers
Infusion: gargle frequently (3 or more times per day)
2 parts Blackberry leaves
1 part Marigold flowers
1 part Sage leaves
1 part Thyme herb
Infusion: gargle frequently
2 parts Sage leaves
2 parts Thyme herb
1 part Peppermint leaves
Infusion: gargle frequently
Marshmallow root
Infusion: gargle frequently
Nosebleed
Soak a wad of cotton wool with the fresh juice or a strong decoction of Shepherd’s Purse and insert in the nostril. Bleeding is soon stopped.
The fresh juice is often quicker to apply, but to make a ‘strong decoction’ for urgent treatment: add 5-10 grams of the fresh or dried herb to 100 ml of water and allow it to boil in a covered vessel for a few minutes. The cotton wool can be soaked in the hot decoction and then air-cooled before application to the nose.
Stinging Nettle and Marigold, also highly effective, can be used in the same way.
Sore Throat and Tonsillitis
1 part Sage leaves
1 part Thyme herb
Infusion: gargle frequently (3 or more times per day)
Garlic: fresh cloves, peeled and chopped, then mixed in equal parts with honey — I teaspoon every 2-4 hours for acute conditions, otherwise 3 teaspoons per day
Sage and Thyme have an antiseptic/astringent action, and Garlic has definite antibacterial properties. For minor cases, use either remedy; for best results in more serious cases, combine both treatments.
Toothache
Clove Oil (essential oil)
Apply a few drops to tooth cavity, but avoid gums
1 part St John’s Wort herb
1 part Chamomile flowers
Rinse mouth repeatedly with a strong infusion
Yarrow herb
Chew the fresh leaf
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Nausea and Vomiting
4 parts Spearmint leaves
4 parts Chamomile flowers
4 parts Skullcap herb
4 parts Cinnamon bark (cut or powdered)
1 part Clove buds (crushed or powdered)
Infusion: 1/2 cup every 30 minutes for acute conditions, otherwise up to 3 cups per day
Cinnamon bark (cut or powdered)
Infusion: 1/2 cup every 30 minutes for acute conditions, not to exceed 3 cups per day
2 parts Spearmint leaves
2 parts Lemon Balm leaves
2 parts Fennel seed
1 part Ginger root
Infusion: as required
Travel Sickness
Ginger root (powdered)
Cinnamon bark (powdered)
Mix equal parts of the above with a small amount of honey to form a paste-like consistency: 1/2-1 teaspoon as required
1 part Chamomile flowers
1 part Lemon Balm leaves
1 part Skullcap herb
1 part Valerian root
1 part Alfalfa herb
Infusion: 1/2-1 ñèð as required, not to exceed 4 cups per day
Ulcers, Gastric and Duodenal
The following herbs, taken for an extended period, are used as a specific treatment for both gastric and duodenal ulcers.
10 parts Marshmallow root
2 parts Marigold flowers
2 parts Meadowsweet herb
1 part Lemon Balm leaves
Infusion: 3 cups per day
3 parts Marshmallow root
1 part Marigold flowers
Infusion: 3 cups per day
Weight Reduction
The following formula contains herbs with diuretic, laxative and alterative properties, the combined action of which appears to produce weight loss in many cases:
4 parts Chickweed herb
1 part Cinnamon bark
4 parts Cleavers herb
6 parts Dandelion root
4 parts Fennel seed
1 part Vervain leaves
Infusion: 3 cups daily, before meals
While the use of herbs may help with weight reduction, it should be noted that the most successful and lasting approach to weight loss is based on fairly frequent (i.e. at least 3 or 4 times a week) aerobic exercise and a well-balanced diet. Dieting and inactivity, because of their metabolic consequences, tend ultimately only to compound the problem, and there seems little sense in eagerly pursuing any form of treatment while at the same time ignoring the body’s natural function of movement and activity.
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Urtica dioica, U. urens
Action: Alterative, haemostatic, diuretic, astringent, galactagogue.
Systems Affected: Lungs, liver, kidneys, bladder, blood.
Preparation and Dosage (thrice daily): Dried flowering plant, dose 2-5 grams by infusion.
The term Stinging Nettle is often used of three distinct species: the Greater Nettle (Urtica dioica), the Lesser or Smaller Nettle (U. urens) and the Roman Nettle (U. pilulifera). The former is a tall perennial whereas the latter two are shorter annuals, but all have similar properties.
These species of Nettle are native to Eurasia but have been introduced and naturalized elsewhere, especially on moist fertile wasteland. The botanist J. H. Willis states that U. urens is common in Australia but U. dioica is rare or non-existent as a naturalized plant (examples of the plant supplied for botanical identification usually turn out to be U. urens, more vigorous in growth because of the warmer climate).
Nettle is valued for its haemostatic properties, regular doses of the infusion being used as a treatment for frequent nose bleeds and for haemorrhaging from the nose, lungs, stomach, uterus and haemorrhoids. To stop nose bleeds the dried powdered leaf is used as a snuff or a piece of cotton wool soaked with the expressed juice of the plant is inserted in the nostril.
Rich in chlorophyll, containing vitamins A and C, mineral salts such as calcium, potassium, silicon, iron, manganese and sulphur, plus other substances, Nettle is sometimes used in anaemia and for its alterative or tonic effects on the blood and, especially when combined with Burdock, is of great benefit in skin eruptions and eczema, being specific for eczema of nervous origin.
Nettle is considered of some benefit as an anti-asthmatic: the juice of the plant, mixed with honey or sugar, is used to relieve bronchial and asthmatic troubles and the dried leaves are smoked as a cigarette to the same effect.
The plant is sometimes used to treat rheumatism and gout, internally as a tonic and externally as an application where the affected parts are beaten with the fresh plant! (This painful form of treatment, used by the ancient Romans and by many others since, is regarded by those who employ it as being highly effective in relieving chronic rheumatism.)
Nettle is used for its galactagogue properties and as a treatment for bedwetting in children. It is reported to have hypoglycaemic properties (i.e. to lower the blood sugar level). The infusion provides a soothing and healing lotion for burns.
It is a highly-esteemed tonic for the hair and scalp. To stimulate hair growth, rendering it soft and glossy, and to prevent falling hair and eliminate dandruff, a strong decoction of the plant is used every other day as a shampoo or Nettle juice is combed through the hair daily.
Nettle has been variously used in cloth and paper manufacture, as a food, a medicine, a dyestuff and livestock feed. Nettle fibre, similar to flax, was used at different times, particularly in northern Europe, to make sheets, tablecloths and linen, sailcloth, sacking, ropes and nets. (The fine cloth resembles silky linen in feel and appearance.)
Cut and dried, Nettle is given as a supplementary feed to livestock: it increases milk production in cows and egg production in poultry, and imparts condition and sleek coats to run-down horses.
A decoction of the plant yields a permanent green dye and the roots, boiled with salt or alum, produce a beautiful yellow colour.
The young plants, 15 to 20 centimeters high, are eaten as a cooked vegetable in many cultures. A strong decoction of the plant can be used as a substitute for rennet. Strained, cooled and added to warm milk, it will curdle it without imparting any strong flavour.
Flies have a distaste for the plant and a fresh bunch of Stinging Nettles helps to keep a kitchen or pantry free of them.
The whole plant is downy and covered with stinging hairs that cause severe pain on even slight contact. The carbonic and formic acids that cause the stinging are broken down into harmless compounds within a few days when the plant is cut and dried, and are immediately rendered inactive when exposed to heat. Thus the dried herb may be safely handled and consumed, and the fresh plant is readily used when cooked or boiled. The expressed juice is made by bruising the leaves and subjecting them to low heat for thirty minutes, then wringing them out in a cloth.
Cautionary Notes: Gloves should always be worn when handling the fresh plant. The recommended antidote to Nettle rash is fresh Aloe Vera, Yellow Dock or Plantain leaves bruised and rubbed on the affected area. Rosemary, Mint or Sage leaves, and the juice of the Nettle itself, will also provide relief.
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Calendula officinalis
Action: Vulnerary, antiseptic, haemostatic, cholagogue, anti-inflammatory, antispasmodic, emmenagogue, mild diaphoretic.
Systems Affected: Blood, lymphatic system, stomach, intestines, liver, gall-bladder, skin, uterus.
Preparation and Dosage (thrice daily): Dried flower-heads, dose 1-5 grams by infusion.
Native to the Mediterranean region, Marigold is now distributed throughout the world as a garden plant. The common name Marigold comes from the name Mary and from the flower’s golden yellow colour, once used as a dye. The botanical name is derived from the Latin calendulae, meaning ‘throughout the months’, a reference to the plant’s long flowering period. It was used as a healing herb by the ancient Greeks and was known to Arabic and Indian cultures.
It is a specific treatment for enlarged or inflamed lymphatic; nodes, duodenal ulcer, eruptive diseases such as measles and chicken pox, and acute or chronic skin problems such as boils and abscesses (for which it may be used both internally and externally).
More generally: it is used for its diaphoretic action in flu, fever, rheumatic pain and gout; its vulnerary and anti-inflammatory properties prevent inflammation and promote healing in gastritis, enteritis and ulcers of the stomach and intestines; its cholagogue action is useful in liver and gall-bladder complaints; its emmenagogue and antispasmodic action is used to treat painful or irregular menstruation and menopausal disorders.
Externally, the action of Marigold flowers is used to cleanse and disinfect cuts and wounds, to stop bleeding, to soothe pain and irritation, to reduce inflammation and to promote healing. They are recommended as a poultice, compress or ointment for the treatment of indolent leg ulcers and other poorly-healing wounds, for varicose veins, haemorrhoids, chilblains and burns.
The infusion is recommended as an eye lotion for conjunctivitis; applied on cotton wool to the nostrils, it is used to check nose-bleeds. The fresh crushed leaves (or their sap) are effective against warts and have the advantage of not being toxic. Applied morning and evening, they will also remove corns and callouses. The fresh flower, rubbed on the affected area, relieves the pain and inflammation of a wasp or bee sting.
The herb makes a good first aid remedy and is much used in treating children.
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Cinnamomum zeylanicum
Action: Stimulant, carminative, stomachic, aromatic, anti-emetic, astringent, haemostatic, antispasmodic, antiseptic, analgesic.
Systems Affected: Stomach, intestines, uterus, heart, circulation, nerves.
Preparation and Dosage (thrice daily): Dried bark (cut or powdered), dose 1-5 grams by infusion.
Cinnamon is native to Sri Lanka but is now cultivated commercially in various tropical countries. First referred to by the Arabs in the thirteenth century, it later became an important item of the spice trade for the Portuguese and then the Dutch.
Cinnamon stimulates the digestion, warms the whole body, strengthens the heart and tones the nervous system.
It stops nausea and vomiting, and is particularly useful for treating vomiting during pregnancy.
It relieves flatulence, colic and heartburn, and is recommended in cases of chronic diarrhoea. Its warming and antispasmodic properties are also useful in cramps and spasms, heart and abdominal pains, coughing, wheezing and lower back pain.
Effective in treating hemorrhaging from the uterus, a dose is given every fifteen minutes or so until the bleeding is checked (the tincture being preferred because of its quicker effects).
Simmered in milk (and sweetened with honey if desired), Cinnamon provides a simple effective remedy for indigestion, flatulence and diarrhoea.
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