Path: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!news2.telebyte.nl!newsfeed.stueberl.de!feed.news.tiscali.de!uio.no!newsfeed.kolumbus.fi!not-for-mail From: Henriette Kress Newsgroups: alt.folklore.herbs,alt.answers,news.answers Subject: Medicinal herbFAQ Part 2/7 Followup-To: alt.folklore.herbs Date: Sun, 25 Apr 2004 13:28:09 +0300 Organization: Yrtit ja yrttiterapiaa Lines: 1083 Approved: news-answers-request@MIT.EDU Expires: Sun, 30 May 2004 23:59:00 GMT Message-ID: Reply-To: hetta @ spamcop.net (no blanks) NNTP-Posting-Host: a80-186-14-229.elisa-laajakaista.fi Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: phys-news1.kolumbus.fi 1082888683 9475 80.186.14.229 (25 Apr 2004 10:24:43 GMT) X-Complaints-To: abuse@kolumbus.fi NNTP-Posting-Date: Sun, 25 Apr 2004 10:24:43 +0000 (UTC) Summary: What you have always wanted to know (and ask on a newsgroup)(more often than once a month) about medicinal herbs X-Newsreader: Forte Agent 1.8/32.548 Xref: senator-bedfellow.mit.edu alt.folklore.herbs:97202 alt.answers:72623 news.answers:270423 Archive-name: medicinal-herbs/part2 Posting-Frequency: monthly (on or about 20th) Last-modified: 25Apr03 Version: 1.38k URL: http://ibiblio.org/herbmed/faqs/medi-cont.html ---------------------------------------------- 2.5 Ginseng ---------------------------------------------- There are a number of plants called ginseng; a websearch (I don't recommend it, you'll get from 16000 to 90000 pages to wade through) will turn up a lot of different plants, not always correctly named: * Ginseng, Asian (Panax ginseng) o also including Korean Red Ginseng, which is processed, making the root red and giving it a bit differing properties from the unprocessed yellowish-white ginseng root * Ginseng, American (Panax quinquefolius) * Ginseng, "Siberian" (Eleutherococcus senticosus) - better to call this Eleuthero, as it isn't a true ginseng. * Ginseng, "Brazilian" (Pfaffia paniculata) - better to call this Suma, as it isn't a true ginseng. * Ginseng, "Indian" (Withania somnifera) - better called Ashwagandha, as it isn't a true ginseng While not all of these are ginsengs, they are all adaptogens. Adaptogens help you with your general stress response. The definition of an adaptogen is that it lets mice swim for longer in their bucket of water before they drown; it will also give you more stamina. Further adaptogens are for example: * Reishi mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum) * Gotu kola (Centella asiatica) * Rose root, gold root (Rhodiola rosea or Sedum roseum) * Maral root (Leuzea carthamoides, Leuzea rhapontica, or Rhaponticum carthamoides), a Russian plant - you use the root and/or seeds. This is only a partial list. In any list of adaptogens you will find at least one plant that isn't found in any other adaptogen list. A couple of good webpages on ginsengs and adaptogens can be found here: * http://www.healthy.net/search/content/art/articles603.htm * http://www.healthy.net/search/content/art/articles628.htm ---------------------------------------------- There are some practical considerations: On the herblist Aug. 1994: >Could someone be kind enough to summarize the possible adverse effects of ginseng? I've been taking a popular brand for a month now and am generally happy with the effect on a chronic sinus problem and energy levels, but beginning to feel kind of strung out ... I am drinking caffeine and wonder if this could be a problem. Also need to know about possible adverse interactions with prescription drugs such as blood pressure medications. From Jonathan Treasure : Woah...."Ginseng Abuse Syndrome" is even recognised by the AMA. You do not mention what kind of Ginseng or how much. I will defer to the TCM people on this list to give wither you from the Chinese view but ... surely you're not really doing coffee and ginseng? Oh dear oh dear ... tut tut. 1. It is nonsensical to take caffeine and ginseng together regularly. You will stress your adrenals (*get strung out*) and possibly raise your *stress threshold* to a danger point. 2. Ginseng should be used with extreme caution in hypertensive situations especially if under medication. 3. Sinusitis? Not the *usual* prescription. Pass. 4. Toxic signs - not uniformly predictable but can include hypertension, euphoria, nervousness, skin eruptions, morning diarrhea. 5. Contraindications - nervous anxiety, nervous tension, hypertension, disturbed menstruation, stimulant or rec. drug abuse, good vitality in younger persons. Most recommend taking as a tonic for a period then alternating without e.g. 3 weeks on 2 weeks off. ---------------------------------------------- > the Peterson guide I have on edible wild plants recommends wild American ginseng as a trail nibble... If you did happen to find a Wild American ginseng, you should leave it right where it is! Shame on Peterson. The plant is rare, and probably endangered throughout its range. Paul Iannone ---------------------------------------------- On alt.folklore.herbs June 1995: > I've heard the ads for ginseng pills - are they worth the money? If so, are all brands the same? You definitely want to buy from a reputable company. According to Professor Wang at the University of Alberta, researchers found that many prepackaged ginseng products had a major shortcoming designed to fool the consumer. You guessed it ... no ginseng. Elizabeth Toews ---------------------------------------------- The UP side of poison ivy Rarely mentioned but soon enough found out, ginseng and poison ivy are childhood sweethearts: they grow up in the same neck of the woods. If you go digging ginseng in the Cumberlands of Tennessee, you will get poison ivy -- all over your fingers. With common roots in the forest loam, the one looks out for the other. But if that's not sufficient protection, the 'sang has yet another look-out in the plant kingdom: Virginia creeper. A master of disguise, ginseng sets up housekeeping in the thick of creeper beds. Takes a covite to tell them apart; the untutored need not apply. Cumberland ginseng endangered? Don't think so. Most of the knowledgeable diggers have sense enough to harvest after the seeds have matured, and don't have to be told to replant from what they've dug. If there's to be "more where that came from" (talking car payments), they know they have to replant. It's city slickers, out for a test drive of their bean boots, we got to look out for. For their advancement, thank we heavens, there is poison ivy. Alex Standefer (astandef.seraph1.sewanee.edu) ---------------------------------------------- > I had read somewhere that women should not take ginseng on a regular basis (I'm cutting back from six capsules to two per day), but was told by a friend that Siberian ginseng is suitable for women to take. Ginseng shouldn't be used as a stimulant, but where needed it can be taken for comparatively long periods by children, women, old people, anyone. I have many female clients who take ginseng on a regular basis, in formulas appropriate to their health pattern. As a general rule Chinese herbalists don't use ginseng by itself. --Paul Iannone ---------------------------------------------- 2.6 Stevia Leaf - Too Good To Be Legal? ---------------------------------------------- by Rob McCaleb, Herb Research Foundation For hundreds of years, people in Paraguay and Brazil have used a sweet leaf to sweeten bitter herbal teas including mate. For nearly 20 years, Japanese consumers by the millions have used extracts of the same plant as a safe, natural, non-caloric sweetener. The plant is stevia, formally known as Stevia rebaudiana, and today it is under wholesale attack by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Stevia is a fairly unassuming perennial shrub of the aster family (Asteraceae), native to the northern regions of South America. It has now been grown commercially in Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Central America, the United States, Israel, Thailand and China. The leaves contain several chemicals called glycosides, which taste sweet, but do not provide calories. The major glycoside is called stevioside, and is one of the major sweeteners in use in Japan and Korea. Stevia and its extracts have captured over 40% of the Japanese market. Major multinational food companies like Coca Cola and Beatrice foods, convinced of its safety, use stevia extracts to sweeten foods for sale in Japan, Brazil, and other countries where it is approved. Europeans first learned of stevia when the Spanish Conquistadors of the Sixteenth Century sent word to Spain that the natives of South America had used the plant to sweeten herbal tea since "ancient times". The saga of American interest in stevia began around the turn of the Twentieth Century when researchers in Brazil started hearing about "a plant with leaves so sweet that a part of one would sweeten a whole gourd full of mate." The plant had been described in 1899 by Dr. M. S. Bertoni. In 1921 the American Trade Commissioner to Paraguay commented in a letter "Although known to science for thirty years and used by the Indians for a much longer period nothing has been done commercially with the plant. This has been due to a lack of interest on the part of capital and to the difficulty of cultivation." Dr. Bertoni wrote some of the earliest articles on the plant in 1905 and 1918. In the latter article he notes: "The principal importance of Ka he'e (stevia) is due to the possibility of substituting it for saccharine. It presents these great advantages over saccharine: 1. It is not toxic but, on the contrary, it is healthful, as shown by long experience and according to the studies of Dr. Rebaudi. 2. It is a sweetening agent of great power. 3. It can be employed directly in its natural state, (pulverized leaves). 4. It is much cheaper than saccharine." Unfortunately, this last point may have been the undoing of stevia. Noncaloric sweeteners are a big business in the U.S., as are caloric sweeteners like sugar and the sugar-alcohols, sorbitol, mannitol and xylitol. It is small wonder that the powerful sweetener interests here, do not want the natural, inexpensive, and non-patentable stevia approved in the U.S. In the 1970s, the Japanese government approved the plant, and food manufacturers began using stevia extracts to sweeten everything from sweet soy sauce and pickles to diet Coke. Researchers found the extract interesting, resulting in dozens of well-designed studies of its safety, chemistry and stability for use in different food products. Various writers have praised the taste of the extracts, which has much less of the bitter aftertaste prevalent in most noncaloric sweeteners. In addition to Japan, other governments have approved stevia and stevioside, including those of Brazil, China and South Korea, among others. Unfortunately, the US was destined to be a different story. Stevia has been safely used in this country for over ten years, but a few years ago, the trouble began. FDA ATTACK ON STEVIA Around 1987, FDA inspectors began visiting herb companies who were selling stevia, telling them to stop using it because it is an "unapproved food additive". By mid 1990 several companies had been visited. In one case FDA's inspector reportedly told a company president they were trying to get people to stop using stevia "because Nutra Sweet complained to FDA." The Herb Research Foundation(HRF), which has extensive scientific files on stevia, became concerned and filed a Freedom of Information Act request with FDA for information about contacts between Nutra Sweet and FDA about stevia. It took over a year to get any information from the FDA, but the identity of the company who prompted the FDA action was masked by the agency. In May, 1991 FDA acted by imposing an import alert on stevia to prevent it from being imported into the US. They also began formally warning companies to stop using the "illegal" herb. By the beginning of 1991, the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) was working to defend stevia. At their general meeting at Natural Products Expo West, members of the industry pledged most of the needed funds to support work to convince FDA of the safety of stevia. AHPA contracted HRF to produce a professional review of the stevia literature. The review was conducted by Doug Kinghorn, Ph.D., one of the world's leading authorities on stevia and other natural non-nutritive sweeteners. Dr. Kinghorn's report was peer-reviewed by several other plant safety experts and concluded that historical and current common use of stevia, and the scientific evidence all support the safety of this plant for use in foods. Based on this report, and other evidence, AHPA filed a petition with FDA in late October asking FDA's "acquiescence and concurrence" that stevia leaf is exempt from food additive regulations and can be used in foods. FDA, apparently attempting to regulate this herb as they would a new food additive, contends that there is inadequate evidence to approve stevia. However, because of its use in Japan, there is much more scientific evidence of stevia's safety than for most foods and additives. The extent of evidence FDA is demanding for the approval of stevia, far exceeds that which has been required to approve even new synthetic food chemicals like aspartame (Nutra Sweet). AHPA's petition points out that FDA's food additive laws were meant to protect consumers from synthetic chemicals added to food. FDA is trying, in the case of stevia to claim that stevia is the same as a chemical food additive. But as the AHPA petition points out, Congress did not intend food additive legislation to regulate natural constituents of food itself. In fact, Congressman Delaney said in 1956, "There is hardly a food sold in the market today which has not had some chemicals used on or in it at some stage in its production, processing, packaging, transportation or storage." He stressed that his proposed bill was to assure the safety of "new chemicals that are being used in our daily food supply," and when asked if the regulations would apply to whole foods, he replied "No, to food chemicals only." AHPA contends that stevia is a food, which is already recognized as safe because of its long history of food use. Foods which have a long history of safe use are exempted by law from the extensive laboratory tests required of new food chemicals. The AHPA petition, however, supports the safe use of stevia with both the historical record, and references to the numerous toxicology studies conducted during the approval process in Japan, and studies by interested researchers in other countries. To date, the FDA still refuses to allow stevia to be sold in the U.S. but the recently-enacted Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 may prevent the FDA from treating stevia and other natural herbs as "food additives." rmccaleb.herbs.org -- [also herbal.netcom.com] ---------------------------------------------- 2.6.1 Changed legal status of Stevia Leaf ---------------------------------------------- > Where do you get your stevia? No one here in RI will sell it. From: Mark D. Gold (mgold.holisticmed.com): You should suggest to your local natural food stores and herb stores in RI that the legal status of stevia has changed recently. While importation of stevia was banned to protect Monsanto's NutraSweet sales and the future sales of other artificial sweeteners a few years ago, stevia can now be sold as a "dietary supplement." I have a copy of the FDA's new "Import Alert" on my Web page (or I can email it to you). Stevia products can and have been sold over the last few years as skin treatment products. Therefore, your local natural foods store should be able to get stevia skin treatment products and supplements from their distributor (or they should find a distributor who does sell it). Stevia still cannot be legally sold as a "sweetener" by itself or in another product. This will help protect companies such as Monsanto (selling a dangerous artificial sweetener - aspartame) from having to compete against a safe, natural sweetener on a large-scale basis. But at least individuals can now use stevia as a supplement. I have a list of stevia resources on my web page which you can use and give to your local natural foods store. Hope this helps. http://www.holisticmed.com/sweet/ ---------------------------------------------- 2.7 Poison Ivy / Oak / Sumac ---------------------------------------------- We're lucky in Finland in that we don't have any of these problem plants. But since it's asked every week in season it has to be in the FAQ, so what's in here is mostly pulled from rec.gardens archives 1992 - 1994, or from alt.folklore.herbs archives 1993 -, or taken off bionet.plants June 1995. If you wrote some text I've included here but you aren't mentioned please email - I'll be happy to mention you in the next posting. ---------------------------------------------- 2.7.1 How to recognize PI/PS/PO ---------------------------------------------- From Kay Klier (klier.fern.com): POISON IVY (Toxicodendron radicans = Rhus radicans = Rhus toxicodendron) Found in a wide range of habitats, but in the midwest often seen in disturbed woods, roadsides, and flood plains. Most widespread of PI, PS, and PO. Small, slightly woody plant, or shrubby, or vining. LEAVES ALTERNATE (= 1 leaf per node), TRIFOLIATE (= 3 leaflets), with pedicel (leafstalk) and the CENTRAL LEAFLET WITH PETIOLULE (= leaflet stalk). The lateral two leaflets are not distinctly stalked. Leaflets are a variety of shapes, but generally ovate or obovate (roughly apple-leaf shaped). Leaflets may be smooth-edged (entire), irregularly toothed, or shallowly lobed. Leaves of one variant look like small oak-leaves (but look again!). Leaves apple-green and shiny in the spring, deep green and often dusty in the summer, turning a glorious reddish orange in the fall. Flowers tiny, whitish, in clusters; fruits white berries in late summer or fall. Closest look-alike: Box-elder seedlings (Acer negundo), which has OPPOSITE, trifoliate leaves; the lateral two leaflets are often slightly stalked. Older box-elders generally have 5 leaflets per leaf. POISON SUMAC (Toxicodendron vernix = Rhus vernix) Shrub, to perhaps 15-20 ft tall, often branched from the base. LEAVES ALTERNATE WITH 7-13 LEAFLETS, lateral leaflets without a petiolule (leaflet stalk), TERMINAL LEAFLET WITH A STALK. MIDRIB OF THE LEAF WITHOUT A PAIR OF WINGS OF TISSUE THAT RUN BETWEEN LEAFLET PAIRS. More small, whitish berries in a long cluster. Usually in wetlands, Maine to Minnesota, south to Texas and Florida. Closest look-alikes: Staghorn sumac, Rhus typhina, which has clusters of fuzzy, red fruits and toothed leaflets, and likes dry soils; Smooth sumac, Rhus glabra, with bright red fruits and slightly toothed leaves; much drier soil than PS. POISON OAK (Toxicodendron diversiloba = Rhus diversiloba). Reputedly the worst of the bunch. Erect shrub, usually about 3-6 ft tall (to 12 ft!), bushy, with ALTERNATE LEAVES OF THREE LEAFLETS, the LEAFLETS generally lobed slightly or as much as an oak leaf; CENTRAL LEAFLET STALKED. Leaves generally bright, shiny green above, paler below. Fruits are small whitish berries. Common on the west coast, esp. low places, thickets and wooded slopes. Occasionally a 5-leafleted form is found. ---------------------------------------------- Steve Hix (fiddler.concertina.Eng.Sun.COM), in response to above: >POISON OAK description... If it were only that simple! In addition to that form, you can find poison oak growing as a vine (very like wild grape, but with smooth bark) up to six inches in diameter disappearing up into the tree tops near streams, or in thickets that look a *lot* like blackberry without spines, or sometimes as collections of leafless single branches (later the leaves appear, shiny and red, changing to oily green, and so on). Fortunately, it doesn't seem to grow much above 5000' elevation. ---------------------------------------------- 2.7.2 How to avoid the rash ---------------------------------------------- Difficult if you live near PO/PI/PS... ... the best way not to get the rash is to learn to recognize the plant(s) and avoid it (them) after that. But: - You can even get a dose if a bunch of the leaves get dumped into a stream or pond ... the oil ends up floating on the surface of the water. - Dogs / cats / horses can get it on their coats and you'll get it from them when you pet them barehanded. - If you burn these plants and inhale the smoke you'll get a bad case of internal PI. ---------------------------------------------- 2.7.3 Why does it give you a rash? / Spreading the oil about ---------------------------------------------- From Ron Rushing (f_rushingrg.ccsvax.sfasu.edu): The irritant in poison ivy, poison sumac, and poison oak is urushiol. The rash you get is an allergic reaction. Everything I say below about poison ivy should also apply to poison oak and sumac. If you brush up against a healthy undamaged plant, you won't usually get urushiol on you. You usually have to come in contact with a damaged leaf. Almost all plants have damaged leaves - either from insects, weather, or from your stepping on them. The oil is easily transferred from one place to another. For example, I got some on my shoelaces once, and I kept getting poison ivy on my hands for a couple of months. Once it is on your hands, it can, and will, end up anywhere on your body. The rash from poison ivy can take up to 72 hours to appear after exposure, and is often spread on the body by taking showers while the oils are still on the skin. Once you get the oil on clothing, it can sit for months and still cause a rash upon contact with your skin. For example, lets say you get some poison ivy oil on your boots, then put the boots away for the winter. Next spring you get out the boots and go for a walk - but not in the woods. A few days later, voila - your hands are breaking out from putting on your boots and tying the laces. As long as you've washed the original oil off your skin, the exudate from the blisters should not re-infect your skin. It's just exudate, and does not contain urushiol. ---------------------------------------------- From krrobert.uiuc.edu (K. R. Robertson): Washing with strong soap merely removes excess poison from the skin, but will not remove any which has already reacted, because the poison is believed to form a complex with skin proteins and therefore is not removable short of removing the skin! Even so, it is difficult to wash off this insoluble poison completely. Eating a leaf of poison-ivy may have disastrous results. One may surpass the normal level of immunity by the first bite; in this case one is in for an internal case of poison-ivy, occasionally known to be fatal. The mechanism of sensitivity is not thoroughly understood. It does not behave like protein sensitivities such as hay fever. It is a hypersensitivity of the delayed type, whose mechanism is related to that of organ transplant rejection. (Originally prepared by William T. Gillis, 1973, Revised by Kenneth R. Robertson, 1993, Illinois Natural History) ---------------------------------------------- Poison Ivy, oak, sumac: Clothes contamination From: Gerry Creager One thing a lot of folks don't seem to understand, especially now that a lot of laundry detergents are available for cold water use, is that HOT water is a good element for elimination of the oily residue that causes the allergic reaction. I noted several anectdotal comments about reinnoculation that could have been prevented if the contaminated clothes were washed in hot water (not warm, not warm/cold, HOT!) and alone so as to avoid cross contamination to other clothing. I've had good result with this in our family as well as in the folks I have advised with the problem. Me? I'm one of those who so far has not manifested an allergy despite a lot fo time in the woods! ---------------------------------------------- From ab282.detroit.freenet.org (Robert Gault): The active ingredient in poison ivy and other plants in the same family is 3-n-Pentadecylcatechol, common name urushiol, which is a chemical in the phenol family. Dermatitis (skin inflammation and blistering) is spread by the act of scratching which redistributes the urushiol over the body. While the normal treatment for poison ivy does not include the suggestion below, a reasonable approach would be to convert the urushiol into a water soluble material. Phenols are acids so washing with a weak base like diluted house hold ammonia or a paste of baking soda should do the trick. ---------------------------------------------- From Kay Klier (klier.fern.com): People who react to any of the species of PI/PO/PS will undoubtedly react to the others; further, they may cross-react with mango (Mangifera indica), cashew (Anacardium occidentale), and Chinese or Japanese Lacquer (Rhus verniciflua). (the cellulose-based spray paint that is called lacquer is not involved in this... just "real" lacquer, like carved lacquer boxes, etc.). Generally speaking, it's not a good idea to sit under any member of the Anacardiaceae in the rain... they all tend to have a leaf toxin that falls on innocent bystanders below. Most people are NOT sensitive to PI/PO/PS at birth, but become sensitized through repeated exposures. Some people are apparently immune throughout their lives, but I really don't know how to test that claim... ;-) There is a barrier cream and a cleanup wash called Technu commonly used by those who are sensitized to PI/PO/PS. Works quite well. ---------------------------------------------- 2.7.4 What helps ---------------------------------------------- First a word of caution: The recommendations listed here are without medical foundation and, if actually used, are at the sole risk of the reader. * Jewelweed, Impatiens pallida, I. capensis, I. biflora, or similar species. AKA Touch-me-not, silverweed. The plant produces both cleitogamous (self-fertilized), and chasmogamous (cross- fertilized) flowers. Mature seed pods will build tension as they dry, and can "shoot" seeds 5 feet away when activated by a slight disturbance. o Jewelweed, fresh: crush some leaves and a bit of the stem and rub the resulting juice on the rashy area. Repeat frequently. o Jewelweed decoction: take one part Jewelweed (or stronger as needed), and twenty parts water. Boil water in non-metallic container, add jewelweed, boil for fifteen minutes, strain and store in jar in fridge or freeze as ice cubes. Apply frequently. o Jewelweed juice: From YE71.MUSIC.FERRIS.EDU (Robert King): + Gather the entire plant, leaves, stems, and all; the plant is very succulent and juicy... I have never had a need to add extra water, but if you do, use distilled. Don't be greedy, either trim tops & outer branches, or selectively take entire plants from the center of a crowded stand. One large (4-foot) plant should be adequate for the largest rash on one person. Plants will lose turgor and wilt quickly after cutting, this is OK, just makes it easier to emulsify. + Liquefy the plants in a blender at the highest speed possible. Then extract the juice by filtering thru cloth, common strainer, or fruit press... a little pulp in the mix won't hurt, this will settle out after a couple hours, anyway. Use immediately, or refrigerate... this stuff spoils rapidly at room temperature..!! + Apply the juice to the infected area with a common paint brush... I've found 1 to 2" size works best. Blow-dry the area as you apply it with a hair dryer on low heat... after several coats of 'paint,' an orange-colored "skin" will develop. This "skin" will protect uninfected areas against the poison ivy allergen. + Repeat this procedure as needed, especially first thing in the morning, and before bedtime. Be sure to use common sense in keeping any fluid that happens to come from blisters away from unprotected areas... yourself AND others. Keeping the infected area as dry as possible will hasten the healing; continue application until no more blisters are present... usually about 3 days. + Ironically, jewelweed favors growing in areas of similar habitat as poison ivy, therefore it can often be found nearby, preferring moist ground, near water, or often, even in shallow water. It grows rapidly in ideal environs, but usually doesn't reach significant size until mid-summer; therefore, it might pay to keep a bit frozen in the fridge from the previous year for early-season use. The extract tends to spoil rapidly, even at cooler temperatures, so I wouldn't recommend keeping it for much more than a week without freezing... the fresh solution works best, anyway. * Catnip: rub fresh catnip leaves on the affected area. * Mugwort (Jilara [jane.swdc.stratus.com]) Pick two large handfuls of fresh mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) and let infuse in 1 cup alcohol for overnight. Apply to affected area with a clean sponge/washcloth/q-tips/whatever every four hours. Dries it up quickly. Robert Gault reminded me that mugwort is a strong allergen (have I told you they keep track of mugwort pollen in the air over here?). To quote Robert Gault: 'Can you imagine the result if the poison ivy sufferer is also allergic to Mugwort?!' Ouch - yes, I can. * Aloe vera (Jilara [jane.swdc.stratus.com]) Take a large leaf from the aloe vera plant you keep on your windowsill for burns. (If you don't have one, get one!) (NOTE: "aloe vera gel" sold commercially does NOT work!) Slice lengthwise to expose the juicy interior of the leaf. (This will give you an upper and lower leaf, with a juicy side to each.) Trim off leaf edges. Apply directly to affected area, juicy side against the sores. Bandage in place. Apply a new leaf every day until healed. This works phenomenally well, but you have to put up with bulky slabs of aloe vera leaf against the area. Which would you rather have: oozing sores or a succulent slab of leaf? Thought so. ;-) I can't laude this one enough! It works faster than any other remedy! And relieves the dreadful *itching*, too! * Gumweed Plant (Grindelia) Native Americans used the resin from the gumweed plant to treat poison ivy. * Baking Soda I swear by baking soda paste for poison oak. It not only soaks up the oozing mess, it completely stops the itching throughout the day. * Mixed alcohol liniment Take sweetfern, jewelweed, witch hazel, rubbing alcohol... Zip it all up in a blender until it's green and mushed, let it sit for two weeks (ouch! I know...not for THIS outbreak, sorry), strain it and voila, a marvy liniment. * Poison Ivy leaf From: bear.helium.Gas.UUG.Arizona.EDU (Soaring Bear), May 1994: Actually, this is just the time of the year to build up your immunity by nipping off a very tiny piece of poison ivy leaf (size of a head of a pin) and put in a capsule and swallow. Do 1-2 times a week. Stop if you start breaking out. Caution from krrobert.uiuc.edu (K. R. Robertson): Eating a leaf of poison ivy may have disastrous results. One may surpass his normal level of immunity by the first bite; in this case he is in for an internal case of poison-ivy, occasionally known to be fatal. * Salt (from bss8n.galen.med.virginia.edu) For the little initial blisters, I rub salt and burst them and leave the salt on to dry. They're history. Also salt worked on the moist areas of my face and under my nose where lye soap lather couldn't stay dried out long enough to dry out the rash. Works well on large surface rashes in case the blister stage grew untreated (but it didn't work on the "mini-mountain" reaction to p.i. that my mom got). MOST essential, leave the salt on to dry, adding more salt moistened with water to help create a paste that will stick as it dries, thus drying out that nasty, annoying p.i. The worse the spread, the longer the duration of salt/soap treatment alternated 12 hours to 1) dry out the present fresh redness, and 2) dry out *new* fresh red. Yep, you guessed it... the salt falls off everywhere. That's one reason I used the lye soap during bed hours. The other reason was that neither treatment, in a prolonged battle (1 1/2 wks) stayed effective by itself, i.e. continuous dry-out, but alternating them did it. I've wondered why? * Lye soap (bss8n.galen.med.virginia.edu) - initially from a pioneer reenactment lady. The older/yellower the bar got, the less effective it seemed. Now, I've found it at the grungiest grocery store in town, a soap called Oxygon. Wet the bar and lather it up on the rash into a paste and let dry. Easier than the salt but since discovering salt, I tend to believe salt is more effective for me, at least with my initial tiny blisters, which is all I ever have to deal with now. ---------------------------------------------- 2.7.5 Jewelweed, Impatiens ---------------------------------------------- From Elizabeth Perdomo, ElizPer.aol.com: Jewelweed is a plant I wouldn't be without here in the South, any time of the year! It works so remarkably well for Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac, and for Fungal Infections, as well (try it on athlete's feet!). People are always getting inspired to rake up leaves in the middle of winter, and get into the roots or old leaves, producing the nasty itch. However, since the plant only grows in mid-late summer, this is what I do to keep a supply around... Harvesting: Jewelweed is an annual, which means it flowers, produces seeds and then dies all in one year. Thus, I try to harvest Jewelweed well before flowering time, so it has a chance to regroup, flower and seed before frosts. To do so, I cut off (with knife or pruner) the top 1/3 of some of the plants, leaving many untouched. I don't pull or pinch the tops, as this often dislodges or pulls up the plant. If you take more than about the top 1/3, the plant may not have enough time to sprout side shoots and go to seed, thus diminishing future supply for you, others & the earth... Preparing: Jewelweed is one of those plants which just doesn't dry well. It's too fleshy and juicy, and loses it's good qualities when dried. I make a strong infusion, by adding LOTS of the plant to a pot (non-aluminium) of boiling water. Then, I cover the pot, and allow it to simmer for at least 30 minutes. After simmering, covered, I put it into a blender or food processor and blend. Then, I cover the mixture again and allow it to cool to room temp. After cooling, I strain the mixture through a stainless steel strainer and/or cheesecloth. Then, if needed right away, I label and store part of the mixture in a jar in the refrigerator. The remainder, I freeze in ice cube trays. After frozen, pop the cubes into a zip lock bag and LABEL WELL with herb name/date before returning to freezer. Then, I have a winter's supply. The cubes also feel really good on especially sensitive areas, like on the face, between fingers, under arms and in private parts... I also use the fresh Jewelweed and make it into a tincture by filling a jar with the plant, and then covering it with 100 proof vodka. If you are going to use it exclusively for EXTERNAL use, it could be "tinctured" in rubbing alcohol. Administering: Whether fresh, infused, tinctured or in ice cube form, apply Frequently!!! Cotton balls work well to apply the infusion or tincture. Yes, the tincture burns some, so I dampen the cotton ball 1st with water, then add the tincture. The alcohol also helps to dry out the ooze... If someone has a really bad, "systemic" case (not just a few bumps on their ankles or hands), I recommend that folks take the (vodka) tincture INTERNALLY, about 1/2 dropper 2-4 x Daily, in liquid, But for only 2-3 Days! (I don't recommend using this orally if pregnant or nursing.) It seems that the oral use in conjunction with frequent, liberal external use, can really turn a bad case of poison ivy around fast! Also, for "oozy" spots, cosmetic grade (French) clay can be sprinkled on as often as desired to help dry the spots out. Sometimes, I mix the clay with powdered oatmeal, and apply the mixture to absorb and sooth. Elizabeth Perdomo ---------------------------------------------- From: Peter Gail Re: the post about jewelweed tincture: Be extremely careful in applying an alcohol extract of jewelweed on anybody. Over the past 8 years Steven Foster has reported one and I have observed 3 extremely severe skin reactions from such applications, in each case landing the person in hospital. Euell Gibbons also referred to the possiblity of allergic reactions to jewelweed tinctures. Comment from Henriette: the frozen cubes don't have these risks. ---------------------------------------------- 2.7.6 How to get rid of poison ivy in your yard ---------------------------------------------- Suggestions from rec.gardens/alt.folklore.herbs: 1. Planting catnip should get rid of poison ivy. 2. Goats. They are very effective, but in the end will be a bigger bother than the poison ivy. (Be suspicious if someone offers you free goats!) 3. Poison ivy again: buy the super concentrated form of Round-Up and dilute to 3 times the recommended strength. (Well, hot damn! It killed off nearly every piece of PI in one application and only a few (about a dozen) plants returned a year later.) 4. Pull it, but protect yourself (big plastic bag, disposable suit...) Immediately wash all clothes you used two-three times. Do not touch the plastic bag / disposable suit from the outside. Do not touch your clothes / boots / whatever from the outside before washing. ---------------------------------------------- 2.8 Echinacea ---------------------------------------------- 2.8.1 Using Echinacea (also see King's dispensatory, here: http://www.ibiblio.org/herbmed/eclectic/kings/echinacea.html) ---------------------------------------------- From Todd Caldecott (toddius.netidea.com): In my training with NA's I learned that Echinacea (blood purifier and antibiotic) can be used as long as two weeks. The German research branch of their equivalent of FDA (called Komission E) Drs. Wagoner and Bauer demonstrated this fact. Their studies also showed that tinctured extract of this plant could be chemically potent or not depending on how it was grown, harvested and extracted. In their studies, the extracts available on the commercial market were far less potent than their own prepared version. So their conclusion was 2 weeks on then off for a week, then one could use it for another two weeks at diminished activity. Also the plant varieties of Echinacea angustifolia, E. purpurea and to a lesser extent E. pallida all had medicinal chemical activity. The whole plant is medicinal but needs to be at least 3 years old before you should harvest. There is no evidence to suggest that Echinacea cannot be used longer than 2 weeks. In the original study (and please be patient I'm doing this from memory) Echinacea was found to be increasingly effective for 5 days, after which the study ceased. This paper, originally written in German, was mistranslated, leading one to believe that Echinacea's effects plateaued after five days. Echinacea is being used by several professionals long term. Typically though, it is used as a surface immune tonic, useful in chronically immunodepressed patients who suffer from chronic colds etc. (although its use in AIDS is still a matter of some controversy). For most of us who take it seasonally for colds etc. it is most effective when taken in combination with other herbs i.e. garlic, Baptisia, Thymus, Astragalus etc. ---------------------------------------------- 2.8.2 Echinacea - poaching and extinction ---------------------------------------------- Thread on the phytopharmacognosy list: > Over 90% of all Echinacea material in the U.S. and Europe comes from cultivated species. There is very little wild harvested ech. on the market. The claim that the use of ech. preparations contributes to the extinction of this plant species is nonsense. Such claims may apply to other medicinal plants but not to the easy to cultivate Ech. spp.. From P. Mick Richardson , to above: Disappearance of the plant in the wild may be nonsense to you but it is reality to those of us who live in areas where the plant is native. Several points. The plant is easy to grow in cultivation but if you have no land on which to grow it you can get ready cash by collecting it in the wild. Even if 90% comes from cultivated sources, the remaining 10% is still a massive amount in relation to the ever decreasing number of plants in the wild, especially when consumption rises each year and the 10% translates into an ever increasing number of plants to be sought. After receiving your message, I sought out a local person who collects seeds of Echinacea from wild plants in Missouri for cultivation of the plant. He confirmed my suspicions that the plant is becoming non-existent in many parts of Missouri as local populations are exterminated. So the nonsense is in fact reality to the people who see the plants. I suggest greater cultivation of the plant would decrease the demand for wild-harvested material. After all, no-one would be killing rhinos and elephants for sale if there was not a market for them. Let's stop before Echinacea becomes a great auk or a passenger pigeon example for textbooks. Sorry to ramble on, but extinction is for ever and it would be shameful for herbalists to contribute to it. ---------------------------------------------- ... and more in the same thread: From: P. Mick Richardson : It is illegal to collect Echinacea unless it is on your own property in Missouri. However, if someone offers cash for echinacea plants, then the demand will be met by poaching. Although on a lesser scale, it is no different to the situation with rhino horm and elephant ivory. If there is a cash market, people will provide the product. I could give descriptions of the nationalities of the buyers but this is probably unnecessary. The plants end up in Europe, presumably the site of greatest demand. Hopefully, there will soon be enough Echinacea in cultivation that the price will fall and this may remove the demand for wild-collected plants. Until then, if you encourage the use of Echinacea, you endanger the plants growing wild in Missouri. Admittedly Echinacea is being poached on a lesser scale than Panax or Hydrastis, but it is still disappearing. Let's aim for complete domestication. It works for Ginkgo, which is a cultivated cash crop in the U.S.A. now. ---------------------------------------------- 2.9 Feverfew and migraine ---------------------------------------------- by Eugenia Provence, Eprovence.aol.com It's not at all unusual for people interested in using herbs to replace over the counter medications with simple herbal counterparts. What has been unusual enough to generate headlines, though, is the conventional medical community's research and acceptance of a traditional European folk remedy, Feverfew, in preventing migraine headaches. Migraines are believed to be caused by an upset in serotonin metabolism, causing spasms of intracranial blood vessels, which then causes dilation of extracranial blood vessels. In the 1970s an English research group sought volunteers already using Feverfew before beginning a study of its efficacy. Their advertisement in a London newspaper brought more than 20,000 responses. Since then, several well-documented double-blind, placebo studies in England confirm its value. An interesting one reported in The Lancet (July 23, 1988; 2(8604):189- 192) followed 72 volunteers. After a one-month trial using only a placebo, half of the group received either one capsule of dried Feverfew leaves a day (or a matching placebo) for four months. Neither the group nor the researchers knew which group was receiving the Feverfew. The group kept diary cards of their migraine frequency and severity. After four months, the groups switched medications, and the trial continued for an additional four months. 60 patients completed the study, and full information was available on all but one. The study found Feverfew to be associated with reducing the number and severity of attacks (including vomiting), with the researchers concluding that there had been a significant improvement when the patients were taking Feverfew. There were no serious side effects. Feverfew is currently classified as Tanacetum parthenium, a member of the Asteracea (or Compositae) family, and was formerly named Chrysanthemum parthenium, where you'll still find it listed in some references. Feverfew is a corruption of Febrifuge, based on its tonic and fever-dispelling properties. It's been called Maid's Weed, referring to its emmenagogue qualities, which are also reflected in its Greek name, Parthenion ("girl"). Its primary actions are anti-inflammatory, bitter, emmenagogue and a vasodilator. Aside from migraine relief, long-term users report relief from depression, nausea and inflammatory arthritic pain. Drunk in cold infusion, it can relieve the cold, clammy sweats associated with migraine. Additionally, it's been used externally as an insect repellant, and topically for insect bites. Perhaps the insect-repelling quality accounts for the tradition of planting it around the house to ward off illnesses and to purify the air. The tea, drunk cold, has been used for sensitivity to pain, and for relief of face-ache or ear ache (all migraine-like symptoms). The Eclectic physicians of the 19th century called it one of the pleasantest of the tonics, influencing the whole intestinal tract, increasing the appetite, improving digestion, promoting secretion, with a decided action on kidney and skin. John Gerard's Herbal in 1663, said it to be "...good against summer headaches to inhale crushed Feverfew blossoms. Dried and taken with honey or sweet wine good for those as be melancholic, sad, pensive or without speech." Culpepper used in it poultice form for head ache. Feverfew in blossom is easily identified by its flat or convex yellow disk and numerous short, broad 2-ribbed white rays. The leaves are alternate, petiolate, flat, bi or tripinnate with ovate, dentate segments. It quickly escapes cultivation, and has become naturalized in many areas of the U.S. and Europe, in some places regarded as a nuisance weed. Among its constituents are a volatile oil, containing pinene and several pinene derivatives, bornyl acetate and angelate, costic acid, B-farnesine and spiroketal enol ethers; Sesquiterpene lactones, the major one being parthenolide); and Acetylene derivatives. Pharmacologists say it is likely that the sesquiterpene lactones in Feverfew inhibit prostaglandin and histimine released during the inflammatory process, preventing the vascular spasms that cause migraines. It appears to regulate the serotonin mechanism. To attain the maximum benefit from Feverfew, it should be taken daily as a preventive. For migraine prevention, parthenolide plays an important role. The parthenolide content in Feverfew is highly variable in different populations grown in different locations or harvested at different times of the year. Recent Canadian tests of U.S. Feverfew products found all of them to be low in parthenolide. Canada, which has recently recognized Feverfew products as official, over the counter drugs for migraine prevention and relief, will require that they contain a minimum of 0.2% parthenolide. So, this is one of the few cases where a standardized extract may be more desirable than the whole plant, with a lot to be said for fresh or freeze-dried preparations. If you want to use the fresh plant, the flowers have a higher parthenolide content than do the leaves. If you are picking the leaves, they are best just before flowering. In one of those magical bits of synergy that herbalists love, the isolated parthenolides used alone don't work on migraines, nor does the whole plant with the parthenolides removed. The parthenolide is bioavailable only in the whole plant. PRECAUTIONS: I know of nothing, whether allopathic or herbal medicine, that I would feel free in saying to have absolutely no unpleasant side effects. We're all unique individuals when it comes to body chemistry. Some unfortunate people are allergic to chamomile. They may also be allergic to Feverfew. A few recent studies of parthenolide in vitro point to toxicity involving smooth muscle tissue. However, no side effect resembling this has ever been reported in human use. Feverfew's safety and usefulness are historic. Pregnant women should never take Feverfew. Its traditional use as an emmenogogue underlines the risk here. The bitter tonic qualities, so useful for indigestion, can cause gastric pain in people with gall stones or gall-bladder problems, by making the gall bladder try to empty. Likewise, the increased production of stomach acid would make it highly aggravating to anyone with a gastric ulcer or esophogeal reflux. Some people have developed mouth ulcers from eating the fresh leaves. DOSAGE: Feverfew is most effective fresh or freeze dried. Take the equivalent of 1 fresh leaf or 125 mg. freeze-dried herb once a day (0.2% parthenolides) 1-3 times daily (don't chew the leaf). In addition to Feverfew on its own as preventive herbal therapy, one would want to look at one's individual migraine triggers or pattern and add herbs whose actions complement Feverfew's anti-inflammatory, bitter and vasodilator actions to support the affected body systems. ---------------------------------------------- Please also check entry 3.2, Herbs for migraine. ---------------------------------------------- From Rene Burrough : Eating feverfew leaves I learned this from a nursery woman here who grows herbs commercially & was a nurse during WW2, and has suffered from migraines from years, and it extremely sympathetic to herbal medicine. She swears that the GREEN leaf is far more efficacious than the yellow or golden version. And she takes one leaf a day for months at a time to keep the migraine at bay. What she does is to make a with the feverfew leaf inside and squished into a tiny ball with a doughy bit of bread around it as a casing. Then the pill can be swallowed without the leaf coming into contact with the lining of the digestive tract. ---------------------------------------------- Feverfew dangers, in the best of the herbal forums: http://www.ibiblio.org/herbmed/archives/Best/1995/feverfew-3.html http://www.ibiblio.org/herbmed/archives/Best/1995/feverfew-se.html ---------------------------------------------- 2.10 Kava kava ---------------------------------------------- by Dennis McClain-Furmanski (dynasor.infi.net) Kava-kava (Piper methysticum) is a plant native to the Pacific Islands, originally from the island of Vanuatu. Following the influx of missionaries over the last century, its cultivation and use has decreased but not disappeared. Several botanical houses in the US and elsewhere have begun regular cultivation. The supply remains low, as the harvest rotation period is from 1.5 to 5 years. Restrictions on import have been considered and may be imminent, meaning only locally grown supplies will be available. Indigenous growths are now being protected as endangered in some areas, but this does not preclude cultivation. Kava is more of a social and ceremonial preparation than it is medicinal. Its primary action is as a relaxant, and at high levels an intoxicant and divinitory preparation. In normal use, the kava drinker becomes relaxed and sociable, and may later drift off into revery. Large doses, as used by village chieftains and seers, induces a trance-like state with vivid dreaming. It is still used in some areas as a medicinal liniment, being prepared there as a tincture. Modern use of kava has included a preparation given to electroshock therapy patients as a muscle relaxant. The active constituents of the plant, such as the lactone resins yangonine and kawaine, are found primarily in the root rhizomes, although some preparations such as the Hawaiian liniment make use of the fresh stem. Most preparations use chopped root material. There are some commercial products in the form of tablets made from a powder, but these tend to suffer in strength, apparently due to excessive drying. Use of kava requires bringing the insoluble resins into emulsion. Traditional preparation is done by chewing the stems and spitting them with copious saliva into a bowl, to which water and coconut juice is added. The mixture is then kneaded and strained through fiber and drunk immediately. A more palatable preparation is to wrap about an ounce in a single layer of plain cotton cloth or a few layers of cheese cloth, and tied off to form a ball. This is dunked in a quart or so of water, lifted and squeezed out, repeating this until the bubbles forming from the dripping water tend to remain on the surface of the water -- about 10 to 15 minutes. As with the traditional preparation, this tastes strongly musty and not particularly pleasant. It is drunk immediately in gulps. A tablespoon of sugar helps, and my favorite additive is a tablespoon of Ovaltine or other malted mixture. Most non-traditional preparations such as herb teas and other mixtures are either too low a dosage or improperly prepared and so are ineffective, most probably due to the bad taste of effective dosages. A tincture is made by soaking the chopped root material in 3 times its volume of alcoholic liquor such as brandy or gin. This is shaken daily over 2 or 3 weeks and then strained. Internal use is 1 to 2 ounces, and external use is an ounce rubbed into sore muscles or soaked into a cloth which is laid over the affected area. Some reports have been made regarding chewing and swallowing fresh root. All the same effects are noted, with the addition of a decongestant-like opening of breathing passages. This is only in healthy individuals; there is no true decongestant effect in congested individuals. Heavy daily use of kava for years has been reported to cause dry, flaking skin, yellowing of the eyes and persistent lethargy. The doses involved are those used by local chiefs and visionaries, and normal recreational or medicinal use will not cause this. When this syndrome does appear, 2 to 3 weeks of abstinence cures it. Reports of lowered peripheral blood flow seem to be anecdotal only. The plant itself is available from some ethnobotanical houses, and seems to thrive even in non-tropical conditions, though it still requires indoor cultivation. ---------------------------------------------- 2.11 Pau D'Arco ---------------------------------------------- by Dennis McClain-Furmanski (dynasor.infi.net) Pau D'Arco (Tabebuia impetiginosa), also known as Taheebo and Lapacho colorado, is a tree native to the Andes and nearby rain forests. The bark, and in particular the inner bark lining, is scraped and turned into a tea. It has been used for centuries by the indigenous peoples as an immunofortifier. Recent pharmacologic studies have uncovered the anti-tumor agent lapachol, as well as the anti-candidas agent xylidione, and the consistent effects of both have gathered the interest of the global pharmacological community. Claims that the tea contains a large proportion of oxygen in solution have peaked the interest of the oxygen-therapy movement, and it is being considered for anti-AIDS/HIV testing. The normal preparation is a small amount of scraped bark prepared as a normal tea. The taste is reported to be heady and pleasant. ---------------------------------------------- From hrbmoore.rt66.com (Michael Moore), as a sidenote in a post on herbs and fibroids: I, frankly, have no idea why you would want to use Pau D'Arco (Tabebuia spp.). It is a useful anti-oxidant and anti-fungal. I fail to see its implication with fibroids. Besides, it is a pocket-change byproduct of rain-forest timbering...don't let anyone fool you otherwise. ---------------------------------------------- From Susan Marynowski (sumar.mail.ifas.ufl.edu): Pau d'arco is a common street and park tree of central and southern Florida. It can easily be grown in a Florida backyard where it would be protected from freezing. Because of the value of this tree, I often encourage people to grow or collect their own in Florida instead of purchasing rainforest product. ---------------------------------------------- End of part 2 of 7. ---------------------------------------------- -- Henriette Kress, AHG Helsinki, Finland Henriette's herbal homepage: http://www.ibiblio.org/herbmed