7804 MEN Guide to Healing Herbs

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47 “(Scare tactics are) unfortunate when we consider the boon to wellness herbal medicines can be especially when our mainstream medical system focuses more on treating symptoms than on promoting health.”

THE TRUTH ABOUT HERBS 8 Herbal medicine is alternately portrayed as useless and dangerous.

Use this guide to become a savvy natural-health consumer, and learn how to decipher herb safety for yourself.

ON THE COVER Household Uses for Mint & More 16 Build an Apothecary for Your Home 21 Winter’s Best Herbal Remedies 38 Take Care of Your Mouth 46 More on Culinary Herbs 64 Grow Medicinal Herbs 78

HOUSEHOLD USES FOR MINT 16 Discover 12 handy household uses for this easy-to-grow herb.

—DAWN COMBS, PAGE 8

Cover Photograph: Fotolia/bit24

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THE NATURALLY AROMATIC HOME 14 Check out these natural blends— with options for any mood and personality—to freshen your living spaces without toxic chemicals.

HOUSEHOLD USES FOR LAVENDER 17 The clean, flowery scent of lavender is good for more than smelling nice.

HOUSEHOLD USES FOR ALOE 18 Not only is aloe a low-maintenance plant to grow at home near a windowsill, it has a multitude of handy uses.

HOUSEHOLD USES FOR GINGER 19 This pungent spice is bursting with myriad health benefits and can help out with various seasonal tasks.

BUILD YOUR HOME APOTHECARY 21 Explore practical steps to make herbal health care just as convenient and approachable as over-the-counter medication.

MAKE YOUR OWN HERBAL MEDICINES 24 Make health simple with homemade herbal medicines, including capsules, poultices, tinctures, salves and teas.

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36 WINTER’S BEST HERBAL REMEDIES 28 Improve your health with bitters, elixirs, syrups and vinegars—traditional herbal remedies perfect for winter.

HEALING HERBS AROUND THE WORLD 32 Take a tour of some of the most ancient medicinal plants across the globe.

THE BEST HERBAL REMEDIES YOU’VE NEVER HEARD OF 36 Learn about the potential medicinal benefits of four largely unknown plants that are attracting the attention of researchers.

NATURAL ANTIVIRALS 38 Foods and herbs can be our most powerful allies in the fight against viruses.

DENTAL HERBALISM: SMART, NATURAL CARE FOR YOUR MOUTH 47 Turn to safe and effective herbal remedies for modern-day dental care, from ancient herbal rinses to easy toothpaste.

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58 NATURALLY CLEANSE YOUR LIVER 50 Detoxify your body naturally with these foods and liver-loving herbs.

GROW HORMONE HEALTH 55 Grow these herbs in your garden to support balanced hormones every day.

HERBAL SKIN HEALERS 58 Scientifically backed first-aid herbs can often heal wounds and relieve pain better than pharmaceutical alternatives.

Learn what to stock in your natural firstaid kit.

WORLD’S HEALTHIEST CULINARY HERBS & SPICES 64 These five flavorful ingredients are standouts not just for taste, but for their many well-documented health benefits.

5 DELICIOUS HERBS MISSING FROM YOUR KITCHEN 71 Add interest to your diet and new tricks to your cooking techniques with these oft-neglected culinary treasures.

HOW TO MAKE HERBAL OILS & BUTTERS These easy, herb-infused delicacies make great (and inexpensive) gifts.

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THE MEDICINAL HERB GARDEN 78 Grow these 10 medicinal herbs in your garden, and enjoy having the keys to natural wellness just outside your door.

GROWING, HARVESTING AND USING THYME 84 Easy to grow indoors or out, thyme is the perfect addition to your garden and medicine cabinet.

GROWING, HARVESTING AND USING CILANTRO 86 Make good use of this delicious, healthful and underutilized herb.

GROWING, HARVESTING AND USING PARSLEY 88 It’s easy to enjoy the many health-promoting properties of parsley: The plant is a cinch to grow and is one of the world’s most versatile culinary herbs.

GROWING, HARVESTING AND USING LEMON BALM 90 If more people knew about lemon balm’s impressive array of health benefits, this lovely, fragrant and versatile herb would be popping up in gardens and kitchens everywhere.

AN INDOOR WINTER HERB GARDEN 92 Keep eating healthful fresh herbs throughout the colder months with this advice for indoor success with culinary herbs.

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The Naturally Aromatic Home Check out these natural blends—with options for any mood and personality— to freshen your living spaces without toxic chemicals.

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14 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO HEALING HERBS

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OVEN-FRESH COOKIE This sweet and spicy blend will rid your home of even the most unpleasant odors while infusing it with a scent that is both inviting and gently invigorating.

Make Your Own

⁄2 cup purified water 6 drops cinnamon bark essential oil 6 drops clove bud essential oil 6 drops sweet orange essential oil 6 drops rosemary essential oil

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Exotic

WOODSY SPICE If fragrances that are warm, deep, rich, round, pungent, earthy and penetrating appeal to you, then this is your go-to blend. The comforting, slightly masculine scent is perfect for the bedroom, den or living room. It tends to gently linger for quite some time, which is really nice. ⁄2 cup purified water 5 drops cedarwood essential oil 5 drops geranium essential oil 4 drops patchouli essential oil 4 drops lemon essential oil 3 drops sweet orange essential oil

Green

STIMULATING EUCALYPTUS-MINT Bright, sharp and ultra-fresh, this potent, green herbal combination is incredibly stimulating to the senses. It acts as a powerful deodorizer and works wonderfully well at eliminating strong household odors in the kitchen, bathroom, garage, mud room, as well as in Fluffy’s litter box area. ⁄2 cup purified water 6 drops lemon essential oil 10 drops eucalyptus essential oil 8 drops peppermint essential oil

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Floral

SOOTHING SUMMER BOUQUET Reminiscent of an early summer flower garden, this light, lavender-rose essence delivers a pleasing, gently fresh and soothing fragrance that’s lovely when spritzed throughout the house. If you’ve had a particularly stressful day, this aromatic blend will naturally bring your anxiety level down a notch or two.

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RAYA CARLISLE

Blending our own room sprays circumvents the shelf-life issue, as we don’t need to plan for complex distribution logistics. As for expense, some essential oils are pricey, but they are used in sparing amounts and are incredibly useful around the house.

Besides smelling lovely, essential oils can affect our mood. When we breathe in an odor, scent molecules enter the bloodstream and are carried to other parts of the body. Depending on the chemical makeup of the plant, we can soothe or boost our spirits.

Another upside to air fresheners made with botanical oils is the germ-fighting power of many essential oils. All the blends in this article contain mild antibacterial and antiviral properties.

To make these air fresheners, you will need a 4-ounce spray bottle for each blend. Glass will be prettier sitting on your kitchen table or in your powder room—plus, you avoid plastic chemicals. You can find glass bottles at Wyndmere Naturals Aromatherapy (www.wyndmerenaturals.com). If you want to use plastic, look for a bottle made of hardy polypropylene.

To make each blend, add the water and essential oils in the amounts given for each recipe to the spray bottle.

Then shake vigorously to blend. Label and date the bottle, and use within one year for maximum potency.

The ingredients will naturally separate, so shake well before each use. To deodorize your home, lightly mist the air several times a day. Follow common-sense safety precautions, and avoid spraying it into eyes, nose and mouth. Essential oils can smell delicious—keep them away from pets and children, and only use externally.

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Spicy

BY S T E P H A N I E TO U R L E S FEW THINGS ARE MORE PLEASANT than walking into a beautifully scented home, but most commercial air-freshening products contain synthetic ingredients that can release a deluge of potentially hazardous chemicals. In fact, 95 percent of the chemicals in synthetic fragrances, listed on ingredient labels as “fragrance,” are derived from petrochemicals.

Artificial fragrance is one of the most sensitizing and toxic of all ingredients used in personal- and home-care products today. The 3,000-plus chemicals used in the manufacture of commercial air-freshener ingredients can include volatile organic compounds, or VOCs; carcinogens such as benzene and formaldehyde; as well as a group of hormone-disrupting chemicals called phthalates. (For more in-depth information about phthalates and hormone-disrupting chemicals, visit www.motherearthliving.com/hormone-haywire.)

When the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) tested 14 air fresheners, it found that 12 contained phthalates, which can cause hormonal abnormalities, birth defects and reproductive problems. In the study, even air fresheners marketed as “all-natural” or “unscented” contained the hazardous chemicals, which also can cause allergic reactions, asthma attacks, eczema and a host of other sensitivities.

Manufacturers use these chemicals because they generally last longer and are cheaper than essential oils.

DIY SCENTS

⁄2 cup purified water 16 drops lavender essential oil 8 drops geranium essential oil

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Clean & Uplifting

ROSEMARY CITRUS If you love the aroma of rosemary and citrus peels then you’ll appreciate this bright, cheerful, emotionally uplifting blend. This spray effectively clears the air of most disagreeable household odors, leaving a light and energizing aroma.

⁄2 cup purified water 12 drops rosemary essential oil 6 drops lemon essential oil 6 drops grapefruit essential oil 1

Fruity Floral

TRANQUILITY This gentle blend of old-fashioned lavender combined with the essence of sweet orange peel lends a lovely, light, floral and fruity note to the air that promotes serenity and relaxation. It’s especially nice when spritzed in young children’s bedrooms. ⁄2 cup purified water 16 drops lavender essential oil 8 drops sweet orange or bergamot essential oil 3 drops ginger root essential oil

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STEPHANIE TOURLES is the best-selling author of several books on healthy living, including Raw Energy, Hands-On Healing Remedies and Organic Body Care Recipes, all available at www.motherearthliving.com/shopping.

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Winter’s Best Herbal Remedies

Note: Herbal medicines are used for their potential effects in the body; discuss any new remedy with your doctor to make sure it’s a good fit for you.

Always consult your health-care provider when considering treatments for children younger than 2.

Syrups Some of the best herbal remedies for colds and sore throats are medicinal syrups. These simple remedies are a wonderful way to administer bitter-tasting medicinal herbs to reluctant children and adults alike. Sweet and delicious, syrups can be taken by the spoonful and make a lovely addition to teas, desserts and bubbly beverages.

All syrups begin with a concentrated decoction, which is then cooked down and sweetened with either sugar or honey to help preserve the mix and add flavor. This process perfectly concentrates an herb’s active constituents, making it great for treating upper respiratory infections.

Syrups prepared with honey are usually preferable to syrups prepared with sugar, as honey is naturally antibacterial and effective at soothing and coating sore throats.

(Don’t give honey to children younger than 2.)

If no preservatives are added to your syrup, it should last about two to three weeks. Add a few pinches of vitamin C powder to increase its refrigerated shelf life by one to two weeks.

GREAT FOR: Sore throats, upper respiratory infections, preventing and fighting colds

and flu

BEST HERBS FOR SYRUPS: Elderberry, echinacea, ginger, garlic, licorice, marshmallow root, peppermint, sage, thyme Most herbal remedies can be prepared with fresh or dried herbs.

Improve your health with bitters, elixirs, syrups and vinegars—traditional herbal remedies perfect for winter.

BY G I N A D E B AC K E R

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ALONG WITH THE BEAUTY of snow-glistened trees and the festivity of holiday parties, winter also brings the onset of colds, flu, sore throats and other ailments. Stocking our homes with time-tested, tried-and-true homemade remedies (and potent preventives) is a smart solution. These winter favorites come straight from Grandma’s cupboard—from medicinal syrups and vinegars to sweet elixirs and old-fashioned bitters.

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REMEDY

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ELDERBERRY SYRUP This may be one of the better elderberry syrup recipes on the planet, according to herbalist Rosemary Gladstar. It’s delicious enough to use for its flavor alone, but it’s also helpful for warding off or speeding recovery from colds and flu, as elderberry has antiviral properties.

2 quarts fresh ripe elderberries 1 ⁄4 cup warm water 1 ⁄4 ounce freshly grated ginger root 1 ⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves Honey

1 . Combine elderberries with water in a large soup pot and simmer until soft. Strain out pulp, reserving liquid.

Discard solids and return liquid to pot.

2 . Add ginger and cloves, and simmer uncovered until liquid reduces by about half. Pour juice into a measuring cup and note its volume, then return to pot. Add the same amount of honey as you have juice, and stir until thoroughly combined.

3. Let cool, then bottle. Store in the refrigerator and use within 12 weeks.

Take 1 to 2 tablespoons several times a day.

Note: Be sure to cook elderberries thoroughly. Raw elderberry fruit, flowers and leaves contain a chemical that produces cyanide, which can cause nausea and vomiting at high doses.

Recipe excerpted from Rosemary Gladstar’s Medicinal Herbs: A Beginner’s Guide; used with permission of Storey Publishing.

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Healing Herbs Around the World Central to all of these events, of course, are the herbs themselves. Although the people of ancient cultures—those who discovered and passed their herbal knowledge on to scores of succeeding generations—no longer survive, many of the plants do. Here are descriptions of some key medicinal herbs of the world, with their past and present uses.

Note: Many of the herbs listed here are toxic if not used properly. We don’t recommend home use of these herbs without supervision by a medical professional.

North America

Europe

BLOODROOT (Sanguinaria canadensis) was used by Native Americans to treat fevers and rheumatism, and to induce vomiting. Modern herbalists use it as an emetic, too, as well as to promote coughing and clearing of the respiratory tract. They also use it cautiously because bloodroot can be toxic in large doses.

FOXGLOVE (Digitalis spp.) is native to western Europe, where folk healers used it as a diuretic and for other purposes. Today, it’s the source of the powerful heart drugs digitoxin and digoxin.

PACIFIC YEW (Taxus brevifolia) grows in the Cascade Range from Washington to northern California. It was once used to treat rheumatism, but modern herbalists avoid yew because it’s extremely toxic.

In the 1960s, National Cancer Institute researchers began examining an extract from the yew’s inner bark, thinking it held potential as a cancer treatment. By the late 1970s, they isolated Taxol from the yew extract. Taxol stops the division of cells, including cancerous ones. In 1989, the results of a trial of Taxol taken by women with ovarian cancer showed that 30 percent of the patients improved; the FDA approved Taxol’s use as a drug in 1993.

Although Pacific yew is the main source of Taxol, researchers have devised a process to manufacture Taxol from other yew species.

BELLADONNA (Atropa bella-donna), also known as deadly nightshade, was once believed to help witches fly. Its name may come from the practice by Italian women of using the herb to dilate their pupils, considered a mark of beauty. It was also used to treat colic and peptic ulcers. Today, it’s used to dilate pupils for eye examinations and to inhibit the parasympathetic nervous system, which controls involuntary actions such as saliva production.

WILD YAM (Dioscorea villosa) is native to North and Central America.

The Mayans and Aztecs used it to relieve pain, and North American pioneers used it to treat rheumatism. These cultures also used wild yam to treat painful menstruation and labor pains.

Today, we know that wild yam roots and tubers contain plant sterols, specifically diosgenin, which, when synthesized, provides progesterone.

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BOOKS

Australia EUCALYPTUS (Eucalyptus globulus) was used by the Aborigines to treat fevers and infections. Today, we know that the leaves’ essential oil contains eucalyptol, which contributes to the herb’s ability to dilate the small airways of the lungs. It often is used as an ingredient in chest rubs and balms for sore muscles and joints.

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Origins of Medicine

If you are interested in learning more about the herbs featured in this article, as well as the origins of plant medicine in general, turn to these amazing resources.

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Women Healers of the World: The Traditions, the History, and the Geography by Holly Bellebuono The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants

by Andrew Chevallier

Duke’s Handbook of Medicinal Plants of the Bible by James A. Duke Green Pharmacy: The History and Evolution of Western Herbal Medicine

by Barbara Griggs

Central and South America

Asia GINKGO (Ginkgo biloba) is very popular in the U.S., primarily because studies show that it’s effective in improving circulation to the brain and in improving the condition of some Alzheimer’s disease patients and those suffering from senile dementia. The tree is native to China, where its seeds are used in herbal medicine to relieve wheezing and to treat incontinence and its leaves are used to treat asthma.

IPECAC (Carapichea ipecacuanha) was used by

South Americans to clear the stomach and respiratory tract. European explorers took it home with them in 1672 and found it to be an effective treatment for amoebic dysentery. It’s still used for this purpose today; it also is used to treat bronchitis and whooping cough and to induce vomiting—but it can be deadly when used in large doses, so use the herb only under the guidance of a qualified health-care professional.

CURARE (Chondrodendron tomentosum) grows wild in the Amazonian rain forest. The root and stem gave early hunters a prey-paralyzing poison to use on their arrows. This poison comes from an alkaloid in the plant known as tubocurarine, a form of which is used to paralyze patients’ muscles during surgery.

CACAO (Theobroma cacao) comes from an evergreen tree native to Mexico and Central America.

The Aztec name for this tree is chócolatl, from which comes the English word chocolate. Cacao seed pulp was used to stimulate the nervous system.

QUININE (Cinchona spp.) is native to the mountainous regions of South America. Peruvians used the bark to make a treatment for fevers and infections. Today, we know that its bark contains alkaloids that provide a remedy for malaria, which was used until the early 1900s and again after the 1960s, when resistance to the synthetic antimalaria drug chloroquine developed.

The PAPAYA (Carica papaya) tree bears a sweet fruit that Mayans used, along with the tree’s latex and shoots, in their herbal medicine. We know now that the fruit contains papain, a proteindissolving enzyme that eases digestion.

COCA (Erythroxylum coca) is best known as the source of the illegal drug cocaine. But it’s also used in folk medicine as a treatment for toothaches and to combat the chill in mountainous, rainy areas of the eastern Andes. Cocaine and other alkaloids in the plant’s leaves have stimulant and anesthetic actions.

Africa YOHIMBE (Pausinystalia johimbe) is native to the forests of western Africa. The Bantu tribe used its bark as a male aphrodisiac, and the herb has been used in conventional medicine to treat impotence. Yohimbe contains alkaloids that stimulate the brain, but they are toxic in high doses.

The CASTOR BEAN (Ricinus communis), from which we obtain castor oil, was listed in the Ebers papyrus. The plant is believed to be native to eastern Africa and is cultivated today in hot climates around the world. The seeds are toxic, but oil from the seeds is not. Castor oil is used as a base in cosmetics and as a laxative; recently, researchers have been exploring the castor bean’s effectiveness as a contraceptive.

ALOE (Aloe vera) is native to eastern and southern Africa.

Legend has it that Cleopatra attributed her beauty to aloe vera gel, which comes from the leaves. At the base of aloe leaves, one can find a yellow sap that, when dried, yields “bitter aloes,” which are strongly laxative. Aloe gel is a powerful healer of burns and wounds, and research shows that the gel contains aloectin B, which stimulates the immune system.

SENNA (Senna alexandrina) is native to tropical Africa and was first used medicinally by Arabian physicians in the ninth century. Then, as now, its medicinal value comes from its strength as a laxative. Senna causes the muscles of the large intestine to contract and prevents fluid from being absorbed.

VISNAGA (Ammi visnaga) provided the Egyptians with a remedy for kidney stones. Today, the herb still is used to ease the pain of kidney stones and is the source of a drug used to treat asthma. Visnaga derivatives have a powerful antispasmodic action on the bronchial muscles.

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How to Make Herbal Oils

& Butters

These easy, herb-infused delicacies make great (and inexpensive) gifts.

BY PAT S Y B E L L H O B S O N P H OTO G R A P H Y BY H O WA R D L E E P U C K E T T

The price of herb-flavored oils, dipping sauces and

butters in gourmet shops might make you think they’re complicated, inherently expensive and difficult to make. Happily, this just isn’t true. You can make infused oils and butters for the cost of some good cooking oil or butter and a few herbs. In fact, you probably already have all the ingredients in your kitchen right now.

Make Your Own Herbal Oils As inexpensive as they are simple, herbal oils also make impressive gifts.

To infuse oil with rich flavor, you need only a small amount of herbs. A dab of herb-infused oil can add a gourmet touch and layers of flavor to just about any savory recipe.

Flavored oils will be only as good as the oil you select for the recipe, so buy the best you can afford. Herbs can enhance the flavor of good-quality oil, but no matter what you add to a mediocre oil, the result never will be better than the ingredients. I usually like the dark green, “olivey” flavor of extra virgin olive oil. I like to make a rich herb-flavored oil for dipping or seasoning, thereby reducing the amount of oil needed for in-depth flavors.

Using a lighter-flavored oil such as light olive or grapeseed will allow more of the herb flavor to be front and center.

SAFETY NOTE for garlic- and fresh herb-flavored oils: Always refrigerate infused oils and oil-based mixtures of garlic and other fresh herbs to prevent serious health hazards. Botulism, a potentially fatal form of food poisoning caused by bacteria, has been traced to commercial and homeprepared mixtures of garlic in oil that were not refrigerated. Flavored oils create the ideal conditions for botulism: a high-moisture, low-salt and low-acid environment in which food is stored without oxygen or refrigeration. Oil by itself cannot grow bacteria, but harmful organisms can grow in infused oils containing only trace amounts of water. The FDA recommends home-prepared mixtures of garlic in oil “be made fresh for use and not left around at room temperature.” Refrigerate and use within a week.

Refrigeration will cause olive oil to look cloudy. Before use, simply take the oil out of the refrigerator and set it on the counter—when it returns to room temperature, it will clear up again. Storing flavored oils in the refrigerator also helps keep the oils from becoming rancid. (The presence of botulism toxins and rancidity are not necessarily related. All fats and oils will become rancid given enough exposure to air, sunlight and heat.)

The safest solution is to use dried garlic and herbs, making just a little (½ cup) infused oil at a time. Botulism is of little concern when making infused or flavored oils used right away as hors d’oeuvres or for immediate 74 THE MOTHER EARTH NEWS GUIDE TO HEALING HERBS

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