natural health

Alzheimer’s Docuseries

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Here is the link to a docuseries about Alzheimer’s and how to help protect your brain health and longevity: https://scienceofprevention.com/?inf_contact_key=608657a0885e84596696bb3f1088c6851f2ce51ec8bc6ace203deddd90c8fcdf (I have no affiliation.)

It’s on day 8 with 5 more days to go, and I waited to share the link until I’d managed to watch a few to make sure they were saying informative, sound things, and they are. It’s been very reasonable and enlightening so far and I haven’t heard anything questionable or outlandish, so feel comfortable sharing the link.

Even though it’s day 8 already, the format of these docuseries is usually that they release one per day for how many episodes they have, and then after the last one airs, they release all of them for 24 to 48 hours so you can catch the ones you missed. I recommend watching the earlier episodes when that occurs because the newest to me information was the link that Alzheimer’s has with diabetes. That was explained quite well. The episode about the best diets for preventing brain decline was good too.

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Natural Health Coaching

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My blogging friend in France is offering her natural health coaching services online now! She is English so speaks both French and English fluently, and her philosophy is very balanced with there is a time for modern medicine (vaccines, antibiotics, etc), and a time for self-advocacy and getting to the root (naturally!) of problems instead of accepting the pharmaceutical band aids that are generally offered in doctors’ offices. I can tell you she’s brilliant and also has a great sense of humor with a sound perspective on all things health related. Check out her site and let me know if you end up working with her! Her blog post is below and you can find more info on contacting her and what to expect here: https://thehealthyepicurean.eu/natural-health-coaching/.

Natural health coaching

Just under 20 years ago, I visited an endocrinologist because I was suffering terrible palpitations. He did some blood tests and, seeing that my thyroid, iron levels, etc were normal, prescribed beta blockers. He seemed extremely taken aback when I wanted to know the cause of the palpitations, instead of just accepting his ‘bandaid’. The beta blockers worked well, but I was concerned that it seemed as though I might be beta blockered for life; there had to be a reason – my heart hadn’t just made a unilateral decision to ‘rave’ 24/7.

After some research, and a visit to a naturopathic doctor, it turned out I was very deficient in magnesium. This also explained the terrible muscle and joint pain I had been having. It sometimes really is that simple. I happily replaced my beta blockers, muscle relaxants and ibuprofen with magnesium-rich food, and a good magnesium supplement and haven’t looked back.

From birth to eight months, my son, Léo, slept in stretches of about an hour, when he would wake up screaming. The local doctor said he was ‘capricious’, and was doing his best ironing board impression at hourly intervals throughout the night for fun. After numerous pitiful attempts, I eventually found a wonderfully understanding pediatrician, with a forensic attention to detail and a sympathetic ear, who immediately diagnosed silent reflux. She prescribed the necessary medication, as well as changes to his eating and sleeping arrangements. That night my ‘capricious’ baby slept for 12 hours straight.

The other doctors had missed this diagnosis because it was ‘silent’ (he wasn’t vomiting or even regurgitating). I returned to see the local doctor because I thought she might be interested to hear the conclusion, perhaps for other patients. She flat-out refused to believe he had silent reflux on the basis that if you can’t see it, touch it, or test it, it doesn’t exist. She had made her helpful diagnosis of ‘capricious’ and she was sticking to it.

We still visit the doctor from time-to-time and, as you will read here, I am eternally grateful for many aspects of modern medicine. We are mostly vaccinated, and take things like antibiotics or cortisone when necessary. But there is a time and place for everything, and these two experiences turned out to be salutary: I learnt that in order to stay healthy, I had to advocate, sometimes forcefully, for my family’s health.

I started to study naturopathy 15 years ago, and I am a certified Natural Health Consultant and Educator. A number of people have contacted me to ask whether I provide online consultations. Over the years I have been consulting on an informal basis, but I would now like to offer this to everyone that might be interested. Please see this page for further information.

Mission Possible Challenge

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This post is part of a blogging challenge called: Divine Mission~ Possible, created by fellow blogger litebeing chronicles. The idea is for people to write about what their mission is, where they are on it, and really anything that relates to that. If you would like to join the challenge, please do! The challenge lasts through November and I did last year’s and found it to be quite inspiring to read the other bloggers posts and have to think through my own (Sense-ational Scents).

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I believe we are all here for a reason, or rather reasons, and that we all have special attributes, unique characteristics, and specific experiences that make up our paths and passions. Whether we fully enact these missions is up to us, though it is my belief that how we show up in the world on a daily basis is part of our mission, and every single day our missions leak out of us whether we like it or not. If we are on a path that resonates with our passions and values, then the ‘leaking’ is going to be mostly light-filled and uplifting. If we are not, then the leaking will come out as confused, inconsistent, and disembodied, though it may still be beautiful, but lacking clear energy behind it. (By the way, have you ever noticed how similarly spelled mission and passion are~ there must be something there!)

My mission relates to herbs, ecology, natural health, green beauty, and educating. 6E725201-6137-4617-B2DF-7FFBFFC0C674[1]The state of the environment is deeply concerning to me and specifically the state of our collective relationship to the environment. We (including myself) are not in flow with nature, giving and taking in a balanced way, but instead taking and taking with little regard for sustainability. It is my belief that the more people engage with nature in all ways, understanding nutrition beyond trendy diets, how herbs can help create and maintain health, how what we put on our bodies and the chemicals we surround ourselves with impact our moods, hormones, overall health, beauty, and aging, then that relationship with nature will start to be repaired. We have the ability to turn around humanity’s destructive ways, but it will take individual relationships to do that.

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Personally I love to create with herbs and building community through bringing people together to learn about herbs and making products with them. That is the next step in my mission and one that I’ve begun through the online courses I created, but creating with people in real life is something that I feel is an important step in this digital, often lonely era in which we live. I’ve actually been engaging in Facebook groups lately (although FB is not my favorite place to hang out!) trying to get a feel for what people need/want/are missing in terms of natural health and herbs and wow, there is quite a lot of misinformation out there. I’m hoping to provide people with reliable resources and inspire others to always seek out herbs and other natural products to help create and maintain optimal health and well-being. Even if it seems like something that seems just genetic, like hair loss, or there’s nothing to be done about it, like food intolerances or gum recession, or something that requires pharmaceuticals, like high blood pressure, there are always natural options to try, even if just as complimentary therapy to whatever pharmaceutical is needed.

How we treat ourselves is also how we treat others, including the non-human beings we share the earth with such as plants and animals, and earth itself. The more we take care of ourselves in natural, holistic ways, the more it reflects in our our overall wellness and longevity, and in every relationship we have. It’s a microcosm of the macrocosm and interconnected on every single layer. For me, I want to help make it a joyful, beautiful experience, because healthy food isn’t about deprivation, it’s about enjoyment and long-term goals, and green beauty isn’t basic, it’s luxurious, and herbs and other natural remedies are not folk tales, they are effective and our birthright. I’ll admit, being ecologically aware can sometimes be depressing, but I truly think if we focus on the beauty and joy of the natural world and how we interact with it, then we can collectively create positive change.

These values, passions, and missions have been a part of my life since childhood, and if you want to read more about how they have manifested in my life, I wrote about that here: Herbal Journey.  I would love to hear about your life missions and where you feel you are on that path. If you want to read more of these, you can find links to others on litebeing chronicle’s page.

I’m inviting energy healer, Nicole, to join in on this challenge and anyone else who would like to give this some thought and share. Good Luck on wherever your mission takes you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brain Health

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While creating a mini-course on adaptogens, I’ve been thinking about putting together a blend focused on brain health for my sons who are students and will be for many more years. The adaptogenic herbs I’m thinking of including are Ashwagandha, Tulsi, Gotu Kola, and Rhodiola. This would be a great mix for long-term energy and stamina, with herbs specifically targeting brain health, focus, and stress management, with anti-depressant and anti-anxiety action. This seems like an optimal mix for a student, or for anyone looking for long-term brain support. As we age it is especially important to make sure our brains get the best nutrition and care we can provide. No one else can do it for you~ this is self care at a fundamental level.

Here is an infographic from Delicious Living that has other ways to improve brain health on a daily basis. These tips are not only good for brain health but overall health and wellness in general, and they really aren’t hard. It’s a nice reminder of how eating more fruits and vegetables, reducing stress, exercising, and consciously limiting toxins improve every part of daily life. I’ve been thinking lately how the ripple effects of our thoughts and actions can be either be beneficial and building a better future, or damaging. It’s hard to always choose wisely, but self care can never be detrimental.

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Nutritious foods don’t have to be boring. The New Hope Blogger Box has some foods this time around that make superfoods snackable and drinkable. This Beet Latte from Raw and Root has goji and maqui berries along with the beet root to make this a deeply nourishing addition to any daily diet. This combination offers support for energy, heart health, weight loss, and more. Check out their website to see all the benefits of these three superfoods. This powder is going in my morning smoothies.

This dried Dragon Fruit from Jungle Orchards  has only 6g of sugars per package, plus 2g of protein. Dragon fruit is considered a superfood for its many benefits without the excessive sugar that many fruits have, especially dried fruits. This would make a great healthy snack for kids’ lunch bags when you want to send them off with extra fruit but not extra sugar. To learn more about the many benefits of dragon fruit (it was all new to me!) then check out this article which talks about weight loss, lowering cholesterol, improving energy, and more.

Avocado is delicious but has the one overwhelming flaw of being seriously high maintenance when it comes to catching its perfect ripeness, and also you can’t take an avocado anywhere without bruising. These freeze-dried avocados from Senor Avocado take the guesswork out of avocado ripening and they are fully transportable so lunch boxes can carry them. The healthy fats are still there, and the taste is the same as a fresh, but the texture is slightly different so no avocado toast with these. Instead, throw them on salads or soups, or just eat them as a snack or as part of healthy meal. There are different flavors but I really liked these Peruvian Pink Salt ones.

Enjoy the upcoming Memorial weekend (for those here in the U.S.) and be sure to take good care of yourself with some healthy delicious foods, some fun activities, and plenty of rest. Your body and brain will thank you for it. Please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty, and please share with anyone who might benefit from this article.

Natural Supplements for Bruises

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Homeopathic Arnica is one of the few first aid items I always carry around with me. Especially when my kids were younger and constantly falling and bumping into things, Arnica pellets offered instant pain relief and help with the healing process. I heard a mom tell her son the other day, “That’s a bruise. There’s nothing I can do for a bruise,” and I was torn on whether I should show her all the Arnica gels and creams that can be used on the skin, and the pellets and tablets that could be taken internally, or not. I decided it was not the right scenario to go on an Arnica educational tour, so I’m putting the information out into the world here instead, in case someone else has ever thought there is nothing to do for a bruise.

Arnica works great on minor bumps and bruises both in the immediate aftermath of the trauma and also as part of the longer term healing. It is also used to relieve pain due to muscle aches, overexertion, arthritis, and any kind of trauma. People often take 30c daily for a week before undergoing surgery, then resume taking it afterward, but the data on the efficacy of this is mixed. Taking any supplements leading up to surgery should always be discussed with your doctor.

Arnica is best known for helping with swelling and the discoloration associated with bruising. Taking the pellet or tablet form as well as using a cream or gel externally means double the healing action on the injury.

Dosages for homeopathy is a little strange and counter intuitive, but usually the higher the number on the container, the more diluted it is, and the more effective it is. The most common dosage recommendation for general use applications is 30C, but for immediate trauma, a 6C or 12C can be used. Boiron has this quick finder visual to see common dosing for using the pellets, Arnica Pellets, and a lot of other useful information as well.

If deciding on the right dose of pellets sounds daunting, stick to the tablets which tell you on the packaging how to take them, when, and why. There are tablets specific to arthritis, and ones for muscle strain, pain, and bruising.

Hylands has a whole website dedicated to Arnica information and considering Arnica is the most popular homeopathic medicine out there, it makes sense.

Bromelain is often recommended as well for bruising (and joint support), and believe it or not, probiotics play a role in controlling bruising as well as everything else they do. This is because you have to have a healthy microbiome in order to properly process vitamin K which is essential in proper blood clotting mechanisms. Another reason, as if we needed one, to take a good probiotic.

As we get older our skin thins, which is why older people are more prone to bruising. Building the skin up with vitamin C and Collagen are two ways to increase the health and appearance of the skin, while also combatting the tendency to bruise at the slightest provocation. Vitamin C should be increased in small doses over time because too big of an increase at once can cause diarrhea. Collagen can be taken as a powder, in a capsule, liquid, or even in tasty chews. There are several products now that target skin health in an anti-aging way that have both vitamin C and Collagen in them, so that makes it even more convenient to supplement your skin.

Bruising for no reason can be a sign of something more serious going on in your body, so if you have any concerns or things change drastically in a short amount of time, it’s always best to talk to your naturopath or doctor.

Arnica represents what I like most about natural supplements in the way that they offer help where modern medicine does not have anything to give. Plus, that help comes almost completely without negative side effects such as tiredness, hyper-ness, blood pressure manipulation, and on and on that normally go hand in hand with over-the-counter medications and prescriptions. Whatever ails you, if you think you have no options, or even if you just don’t like your current options, look again at what the natural world has to offer. You just might find the secret ingredient to your optimal health and wellness.

Be well and please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty, and please share with anyone who might benefit from this article.

 

People and Plants

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This e-guide from Delicious Living speaks to my heart. Delicious Living made it in partnership with the company Gaia Herbs which is one of  my go-to herbal supplement brands. I have taken their extra-strength turmeric daily for years and it has made a huge impact in my life (and my aching feet). Plants have been our friends, healers, and joy givers for all of our human existence and it’s a mission of mine to keep that relationship alive and thriving. This guide not only reminds us how many ways plants are part of our lives and part of our health, it also gives some suggestions for herbs that can enhance your daily life and if you think about it, our lifelong health is nothing more than our daily habits so adding small positive actions, supplements, and wellness practices are what make the biggest impact on health, aging, and quality of life. Check out the e-guide and enjoy being reminded of how integral plants are to our lives, and how entwined their health is with our own.

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Please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty, and please share this with anyone who might be interested.

 

How to Make a Body Butter

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Making a body butter or cream is an especially magical process because the mere act of whipping the concoction creates the luxurious feel of the product and also the opaqueness. It’s really easy to do and there are so many ways to do it that I very rarely repeat the same process twice in the exact same way. That being said, I don’t always get the proportions exactly right for a proper whip to the recipe so do follow the ingredient recommendations closely of whatever recipe you choose at least for the first time or two. Even if the whipping doesn’t make your butter quite creamy, you will still end up with a soft balm that is just as good for moisturizing, and considering all these ingredients are natural, healthy, and non-toxic, you can use them on any part of your body that needs a little lotion-y love. Use whatever essential oils you like, but just know if you are using the recipe below the cocoa butter gives the finished product a decidedly chocolate-y scent, so figure that into your scent profile. For example, orange and chocolate might be good, cedarwood and chocolate though….maybe not.) I used vanilla absolute to round out the chocolate scent and the lavender to make sure it didn’t smell completely like food, plus lavender has so many skin benefits.

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Body Butter

1/2 C Cocoa Butter

1/4 C Coconut Oil

1/8 C Shea Butter

1/8 C Rose Oil (Olive Oil based)

20 drops Lavender

10 drops Vanilla Absolute

Put all the ingredients, except for the essential oils, into a measuring cup that can go into a pot of water that will heat up to a simmer. 3756C7C8-FDB6-4FEB-B5E5-051F1F1C9E5A[1]Let the solids completely melt, then take the measuring cup out of the water and let the liquid cool. You can put the measuring cup on ice, or put it in the fridge or freezer with a clean towel on top of it. It takes a while to cool, anywhere between a half hour to an hour depending on how it is cooling (freezer or on ice or just sitting out or whatnot). If you lose track of time and find the measuring cup hours later rock solid, don’t worry, just melt it again. When the liquid feels room temperature to the touch, add the essential oils and start whipping it with an electric mixer or in a blender until it turns creamy and opaque. This could take 5-10 minutes, depending on how cool the liquid is upon starting. Pour the butter into a clean jar and keep it out of heat and light for storage. This is a very emollient body butter, good for hand or foot cream, elbows, or any part of the body that is very dry. It isn’t recommended for the face though because those hard oils and butter can be pore clogging. It smells decadent and it is really fun to make something that starts off mostly solid, melts into a liquid, then whips into a totally new texture.

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Store in a clean glass jar with a tight fitting top, in a cool, dark place. Preferably a cool, dark place up out of nosey doggie territory. I was going to give this body butter to a friend so I had it down on the bottom of my shelf of herbal things where I knew I wouldn’t forget about it, but see that cork there…? My dog took the cork out of the jar (it does smell heavenly, and very much like food despite the lavender, I have to admit) and the jar hardened to a decidedly non-butter state. Definitely not gift-worthy anymore although I’ll still use it. Now it’s back to the stove top to make another batch, this time with a screw-lid jar.

This does harden a bit over a couple of days even with a properly closed container, so don’t be surprised if that happens. It still melts right onto (and into) your skin. We have all heard how skin is our largest organ and whatever we put on it goes into the body, so make sure you are only using the best, purest, products. You are worth it and your body will thank you. Please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty, and please share this with anyone who might be interested.

 

 

 

Natural Support in a Classroom Setting

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My friend suggested I write about what, if anything, a teacher could do in his or her classroom to help students learn. There are definitely things one can do in a classroom, but what exactly can be done has a lot to do with who and where you are teaching. This friend of mine is actually in her home country of South Africa right now but we lived in Prague together as English teachers many moons ago, so that got me thinking about the differences in cultural classrooms and also the differences in ages being taught. We taught adults in Prague but we both have experience with kids too, both as teachers and parents.

DB4A47C5-BB47-4296-ACC9-D268FC499839[1]One thing just about anyone can do is to bring in fresh plants. This is something parents or students themselves can actually take the initiative on to freshen up the air in a classroom and depending on the plant, actually have added benefits. There are certain plants that cleanse the space of specific toxins, and the fragrance of herbs and flowers can actually benefit the moods and brain functioning of people. One year when my two kids were still in elementary school, I gave their classroom teachers each a pot of Rosemary before the state testing began, thinking the teachers would already know that Rosemary is great for brains, benefiting focus, clarity, and memory.  The teachers were surprised to hear that Rosemary was traditionally used in such a way and I’m not really sure if they believed me or not, but the plants stayed in my boys’ classrooms for the rest of that year.

If you travel from classroom to classroom, then plants might not be practical. Luckily, essential oils are portable and can be used in a couple of different ways. Diffusing essential oils in the classroom can help promote positive mental and emotional health. There are different options when it comes to diffusing, including plug-in ones, light bulbA59AF0A5-9A2C-4D76-B61A-3D62814D9DC0[1] rings, ceramic discs, and candle fueled ceramics. Orange or Bergamot essential oils would be good uplifting choices for returning to school after a long break. When it might be necessary to keep a class calm, Lavender is the obvious choice. When taking a big test, nothing beats Rosemary essential oil for clarity, focus, and memory help. When going through a study guide, if you have any essential oil scenting the room, it will help to have that same scent in the room during the actual test. (Just as at home studying can be amplified with essential oils and then the brain triggered during the assessment with the same scent.) It’s important to switch up the essential oils if used in this way, so assigning certain subjects with certain essential oils can help the brain function best. Also, doing blends might be the best option of all so the scents will be truly unique to a certain class and its specific material, so that way students won’t automatically think of the pythagorean theorem every time they smell Cedarwood for the rest of their lives, or whatever scent has been married to whatever subject. It’s truly something to consider! The role scent plays in memory cannot be overstated, due to the construction of the brain, so making use of it is wise, but being thoughtful about it is kind.

Besides diffusing essential oils, making sprays can be another way to scent the room, and also to combat germs. Thieves oil is the classic germ buster, but many essential oils have anti-bacterial properties, and some are even anti-viral. Thyme is especially good for cold and flu time of year, and besides being antiseptic, antibacterial, and antiviral, it is antifungal too. You can use the spray you make not only as an air freshener, but also to wipe down desks and tabletops. You can also use sprays made from distilled water and essential oils as a body spray to help keep yourself or your student healthy. Just diffusing the essential oils into the air will help keep down the germs, and almost all the essential oils have some antiseptic properties so you can’t really choose badly in that respect. While more essential oils are antibacterial than antiviral, the following have both antibacterial and antiviral properties: Cinnamon, Clove, Lemon Eucalyptus, Garlic, Lavender, Onion, Oregano, Tea Tree, and Thyme. (Reference: Valerie Ann Wormwood’s The Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy.)

For more about what students and parents of students can do to combat anxiety and increase their study power, click the links, and here are two more posts on immune boosters for winter.

Although winter is an especially good time for bringing plants and essential oils into the classroom, students and teachers can benefit year round from a bit of nature in their shared space. Instead of gifting teachers apples, a potted plant or a bottle of essential oils might be the healthier option for all. Wishing you all the best in health and happiness~ do what it takes. You are worth it. Please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty, and please share this with anyone who might be interested.

 

 

 

Cold and Flu Season

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A few posts back I wrote about some great immune boosters that had recently been sent my way in the new hope blogger box. Now that we are in the thick of cold and flu season, I thought I’d also post some other natural products that help us fight the good fight against those nasty viruses and bacteria that like to get social this time of year.

Essential Oils:

Essential oils are great germ fighters and immune helpers with some more potent than others in their anti-bacterial and/or anti-viral properties. If you just want to have one go-to blend for fighting all the winter sicknesses that get around, then Thieves oil is what you want. Thieves oil has a great story to it, though whether it is more history or mythology is anyone’s guess. I like to think the story had to start somewhere, so why not in an actual event? The story has several variations, but basically they all say something along the lines of this: During the Middle Ages there were four thieves in France who used to rob the graves (or the houses) of those who had died of the Plague and managed to not get ill themselves. When they were eventually caught, they were given a lighter punishment in return for telling how they did it. The four thieves admitted they used herbs (most likely soaked in vinegar at that time) to keep themselves from getting the disease. They knew how to do this because among them were perfumers and spice traders who at the time understood the anti-biotic and anti-viral properties of their goods. Their blend has passed down to us through all these centuries, though the actual recipes vary depending on who’s making it. Usually the blends include: clove, lemon, eucalyptus, cinnamon and rosemary, and then different makers add in their own special favorites. You can find it as Thieves Oil, Medieval Mix Oil, Bandits Oil, and I’m sure other names as well.

Thyme oil is another great anti-germ essential oil. You can make a room spray for wiping down surfaces or use it in an diffuser for infusing the air with its strong anti-viral properties. Thyme also repels insects and combines particularly well with Lavender and Eucalyptus essential oils to kill any bacteria or viruses around, which makes it a great blend to have along for classrooms, workplaces, and travel.

If you have congestion in your nose or chest, nothing beats Eucalyptus Oil for loosening it up and helping you breathe. Putting it in a diffuser or flicking some on the back of a shower before starting the water are great ways to get the Eucalyptus into the air. If needed, I’ll put a drop right on the front of a shirt or on a pillow if it’s bedtime.

Herbs:

There are plenty of immune boosting herbs to help you avoid getting sick that also help you get well faster if you do get sick since sometimes it is just unavoidable, but there are two that almost always get center stage in any immune blend~ Echinacea and Astragalus. Tinctures and teas are a great way to take immune boosting herbs if you are already sick, and you can also add Astragalus to soup and you might be lucky enough to find it fresh in your local produce section. (It’s a root.) Herb Pharm makes quite a few immune support blends in tincture form, from a daily builder to use before getting sick, to a rapid defense once you are sick, one specifically for viruses, and one for kids. Yogi Teas has an assortment of immune boosting teas such as this one and this one. I put the powdered root of Astragalus into my adaptogen blend during the winter for daily immune system support and because it also has adaptogenic properties.

Elderberry is another cold season herb that is a must have in your personal natural medicine cabinet. It is in a lot of cold formulas and syrups so it is an easy herb to add. Besides this kind of formula there are lozenges that one of my son sucks on all school year long, though it’s more about the yummy taste in his mind.

A few other herbs to aid the immune system are medicinal mushrooms like Reishi, Oregon Grape Root, Lomatium, and Garlic. Any time you can add any of these to your teas, daily supplement regime, and/or diet help keep your immune system in top form.

Homeopathy:

There are a couple of homeopathic medicines that can really help shorten a cold or flu and lessen the symptoms. As soon as you start to feel flu-type aches and pains, fever, and such, your best bet is to take Oscillococcinum as soon as possible. This means having it on hand at all times, just in case, because it really only works if you get it in you before the flu really takes hold. Follow the directions on the box for how much/often to take it.

Another homeopathic medicine that really should be taken at the first sign of a cold or flu is Umcka, but with this one even if you don’t get it going immediately, it’ll still lessen the duration and intensity of the cold or flu when you do start taking it. I keep a cold formula and a cold/flu formula on hand all winter long because it always seems to be nighttime when one of us starts to feel bad. There are many versions of this medicine from a hot drink to an over-the-counter-style liquid, and it’s tasty enough for kids. (Mine love it.)

Vitamins, Minerals, and Others:

Vitamin C is of course the go-to vitamin for helping the immune system fight little invaders. Be mindful that our bodies get used to the amount of vitamin C we normally take so a large, sudden increase can result in diarrhea. Vitamin D has become more well-known lately for its role in immune system support so it can be found in some wellness formulas such as this Emergen-C fizzy drink, and if you are lucky, in the sunshine. Zinc is also recognized as an important component in immune boosting and can be found in the Zand Elderberry lozenges above as well as other wellness formulas.

Probiotics are an integral part of the immune system. Taking them regularly helps keep you well, and if you go through a round of antibiotics, hit the probiotics hard afterwards, and even during the antibiotic treatment. Just make sure to take them at least two hours after taking the antibiotics.

One more thing I feel compelled to mention is drinking anywhere from a teaspoon to a tablespoon of organic apple cider vinegar in a glass of water. The bottle must say “with the mother” in order for it to be actively healing. If you feel something coming on, then drinking this three times a day will help your immune system fight it. It is strong tasting at first so starting with as small of an amount that you can get down is fine. I promise it grows on you and you can increase the amount you put in water for greater health boosting. Apple cider vinegar does a host of  good and I drink it every morning all year long (1 tablespoon in a glass of water) to prepare my digestive system for the day.

Keep well everyone and please share this with anyone who needs some immune support this winter, and please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty.

 

How to Make an Herbal Oil Part 1

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Making an herbal oil using the ‘cold method’ is very similar to making an herbal tincture. For the base oil you can use olive oil, almond oil, or grapeseed oil, but olive oil is the one most commonly used. Herbal oils are a great way to get the healing benefits of the herbs onto the skin where they can work on skin issues (Calendula or Rose), and also be absorbed into the body through the skin to work on things like sore muscles (St. John’s Wort). Herbal oils can also be added to baths or made into a healing  balm or butter, and essential oils can be added to herbal oils for added benefits as well.

The skin benefits of roses from their nutritious rose hips to the highly prized essential oil are well known. Making an herbal oil of roses is another way to make use of the healing and beauty-imparting benefits of roses. It is far more economical than the essential oil, and also less potent, but it makes a great base for any perfume blending or body butter creations. Rose oil itself is skin healing and beautifully scented enough to make a lovely gift just as is, even without added essential oils. After the oil has cured and been strained, simply add a few new rose buds or petals back into the strained oil for a luxurious look. How to video below:

Here is part 2 of this series, as well as how to make an herbal oil using The Quick Method.  Please subscribe for weekly posts about herbs, natural health, and green beauty, and please share this with anyone who might be interested.