Crones
Corner
Incense,
Oils, Herbs & Brews
Welcome to the Crone's
Corner. This page is dedicated to the Crone's art of herbalism.
Recipes may be either healing or magikal in nature. However, none
of the recipes are to be taken as a prescription or used in the place of
proper medical treatment. If you have a favorite recipe or are looking
for one, email
me. _________________________________________________________________
Cold
and Flu Herbs
It's nice
to see that herbal remedies are becoming so popular and more accepted by
the population at large. The one thing some people forget is that
herbs, while natural, are drugs. Therefore, it is a good thing to
learn as much as you can about an herb before taking it, and remember to
mention ANY herbal supplements that you are taking to your doctor.
Herbal remedies can combine with prescription and over the counter drugs
in harmful ways too.
One of
the most popular herbal supplements to use during this time of year is
Echinacea. Whether it's pills, capsules, tea or tinctures, this herb
has been shown to have some effectiveness in boosting the immune system.
However, what most people don't know is that echinacea is somewhat like
an antibiotic in that it loses it's effectiveness if you take it for too
long or if you take too much. The optimum doses are taken for 3 weeks
on (at maximum) and 2 weeks off. Otherwise, your immune system gets
"used to" operating at a certain level with the aid of the echinacea and
you need more and more to fight off acute illnesses. Follow the directions
for dosage on the bottle, though you may double the dose for a few days
if you have been exposed to something nasty, like strep, or are beginning
to get sick.
Goldenseal
is a common additive or adjunct to echinacea. While it can augment
the properties of echinacea, people with hay fever or allergies to grasses/flowers
should steer clear! Goldenseal can cause an allergic reaction in
these people and they will wind up feeling much sicker.
Vitamin
C is water soluble and you can take as much as you like to help ward off
or cure colds and flu. Be aware though that some women can become
susceptible to yeast infections if they take too much as it alters the
Ph balance in the body at high doses.
Zinc is
now a very common thing to find in your cough drops as well as in pill
form. It has shown some effectiveness, especially in soothing throat
tissues. However, it is a metal and should not be ingested in large
quantities, so READ the label.
Slippery
elm bark has been used for ages in throat remedies and cough drops.
While somewhat harder to find than zinc, I've found it very effective in
cases of laryngitis.
Pleurisy
root is not common at all, but can be used to make a tea that will really
help if you have a dry, hacking cough or tight chest. It seems
to help moisturize the lung lining (pleural membrane), and this can only
help
As ever,
if your cough last longer than 10 days or if you are running a high fever,
see your doctor. The flu this year seems to be quite virulent, and
your best protection is probably the vaccination if you can take it.
Katya
Kuchner
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