Prevention Magazine
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 When you're using herbs for long-term protection—to strengthen the immune system, for example—it doesn't matter how quickly they work. What does count is convenience, since you're going to be using them almost every day. Nothing's easier than taking herbs in pill or capsule form. Just be sure to check the label before buying them, Dr. Keller adds. Herbal pills should be standardized, which means that they contain a precise amount of the healing herb. Products that aren't standardized may contain little or none of the herb's active compounds. |
Lesley Tierra
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 Our split from using herbs in our lives is not that far gone yet. My mother still tells me of folk remedies my grandmother used on her, and my husband remembers several natural therapies his mother gave him!
Once you find your herbal source, knowing what form you want to use is the next step. Entering an herb or health food store for the first time can be rather bewildering. All your senses are immediately greeted with jars, bottles of all sizes, containers filled with different supplements, smells of strange herbs, pretty potpourris, rows and rows of vitamins and much more. |
Prevention Magazine
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| But the main reason that people are using herbs such as garlic, echinacea, and feverfew is that they work—which is why, in just one year, German physicians wrote 5.4 million prescriptions for ginkgo, an herb that has been shown to improve blood flow to the brain. They also wrote over 2 million prescriptions for echinacea, an immunity-boosting herb that's often used for treating colds and flu.
"Studies have shown that taking echinacea as soon as you start feeling ill shortens the duration of the infection," says Donald J. |
Simon Mills and Kerry Bone
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 There are also undeniable advantages in using herbs individually, for whatever rationale, in learning more about their effects on the human body: it is an approach that can sometimes be recommended to first-time practitioners.
The great majority of 'gentle drug' herbal use relates to the production of OTC goods by herbal manufacturers. These may have legally- permitted labelled claims but these are highly conservative and most often the patient makes a personal choice, based on recommendations or articles in the popular health press. |
Maesimund B. Panos, M.D. and Jane Heimlich
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 This route can be dangerous in view of the absence of scientific information about using herbs as medicine. Others are turning to home remedies and discovering that Aunt Agatha's spring tonic owed its curative powers to a generous helping of whiskey.
Faced with these dismal alternatives, it's understandable why persons like yourself are interested in homeopathy and are eager to learn more about it.
Homeopathy is a system of medicine that uses "natural" remedies made from animal, vegetable, and mineral substances. |
Kathi Keville
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 Instant tea is made using herbs that have been quickly dried in a high-heat chamber. This removes their water but retains most of their properties and flavor, making the tea very concentrated. Instant tea is then added to a substance that dissolves easily, such as lactose or dextrin, to increase its bulk. tinctures
Tinctures, also called herbal extracts, are a concentrated liquid form of herbal medicine. A tincture is easy to carry easily assimilated and needs no refrigeration. It will keep for years, another important consideration for anyone with an on-the-go lifestyle. |
| You should also consider using herbs known to reduce stress (see "Stress" on page 52)—these may take care of your stress headaches.
In a 1994 study on headaches, the essential oils of peppermint and eucalyptus relaxed both mind and muscles. When these herbs were diluted in alcohol, then sponged on the foreheads of study participants, both greatly reduced sensitivity to headaches. My own favorite headache herb is lavender. A tincture of lavender called Palsy Drops was recognized as an effective herbal treatment in the British Pharmacopoeia for more than 200 years. |
| Then I started getting regular massages with relaxing aromatherapy oils and using herbs inside and out. I took the Nerve Pain Tincture (see page 51) with an extra dose of Saint-John's-wort. I also slathered liberal amounts of Saint-John's Strain and Sprain Oil (see page 268) on my wrists throughout the day. It paid off, although it took months before I was back to normal. As I sit here typing these words, I am thankful for the herbs—and the people—that allow me to be pain-free today without surgery. |
| Since stress takes a big toll on your adrenal glands, consider using herbs such as licorice, bupleurum and ligus-trum to support those glands. In China, all three of these herbs are commonly prescribed for people operating under a lot of stress. In China, in fact, herbal treatments are regularly incorporated with conventional methods. One report from that country details the herbal treatment of a woman suffering adrenal deficiency from extreme stress. She had undergone a lot of emotional stress in her life and had just had a very hard pregnancy and labor. |
| However, rather than going through life shunning potlucks and Thai restaurants in fear of what you might accidentally eat, try using herbs to treat this condition.
By the way, if you have not heard already, doctors no longer recommend drinking milk to ease heartburn. This is because it has been discovered that milk only temporarily neutralizes the acidity, then provokes the stomach into secreting even more acid. Antacids containing baking soda are not much help, either. They eventually hinder nutrient absorption, elevate blood pressure and acidity and upset kidney functions. |
Lesley Tierra
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| While it is ideal to learn plant identification and the use of fresh herbs, most people beginning, or even well into the knowledge of using herbs, depend on stores for their herbal sources.
At this point some of you may think, "I live in a rural area. There's not an herb store here, there's not even a health food store around!" You don't need to let this stop you. When I lived in Jackson, Wyoming, local often meant driving five hours to Bozeman, Montana, for what I needed.
Herbs and health food products can be obtained in many ways. |
Ralph W. Moss PhD
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 In recent years, researcher John Boik has issued a sober and rather pessimistic judgment on the potential of using herbs against cancer. He believes that the efficacy of complementary treatments is "largely unknown" (47). In an unpublished article he has written:
"In the end, two things are clear to me. First, no alternative/complementary therapy has as yet been proven to cure or significantly affect cancer in humans. And, second, few, if any, individual natural agents appear to have the potential to produce dramatic clinical effects.... |
Michael Tierra
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 I believe that without using herbs from this energetic perspective, we will be no different than those who use Western drug medicine, which tends to treat symptoms without addressing the underlying causes. Symptomatic medicine is undoubtedly useful in providing immediate relief of acute symptoms but it is the unique power of nature's herbs and foods when used according to traditional bipolar principles that can effect deeper levels of true healing. In fact, without considering the unifying principles of hot and cold, Yin and Yang, etc., to herbal therapy, we increase our potential for failure. |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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 In addition to using herbs that treat bronchitis, I'd also suggest using echinacea, which enhances immunity.
As a snack to munch along with your herbal formula of choice, you can mix up some of my Burning Broncho-Buster Spread. To make it, mix garlic, ginger, mustard, turmeric, chili peppers and horseradish or wasabi. Start with just a little of each and experiment until you find a combination you can live with. I must warn you, however, that this herbal formula is very hot. It will open your sinuses as well as your bronchial tubes.
I'm serious about it, though. |
Elson M. Haas, M.D.
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 Water, diluted fruit and vegetable juices, warm broths and soups, and teas using herbs, such as chamomile, skullcap (a nervine), or valerian root all will serve the needs. Some other herbs that may be helpful during withdrawal are white willow bark to reduce pain and inflammation, ginseng, cayenne, and peppermint. Small amounts of light proteins, such as nonfatty poultry, fish, or even chicken soup, will provide more nourishment. Amino acid powder can also be supportive. Up to 2-3 grams of L-tryptophan can be taken for sleep. |
Mark Stengler, N.D.
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 When men are using herbs like nettle root or saw palmetto, I always recommend that they continue on regular dosages for at least 6 to 8 weeks. It takes at least that long to see whether these herbs are having a positive effect.
Nux Vomica
Nux vomica is a homeopathic remedy required by tens of thousands of people every day in the United States. This remarkable remedy is the diluted extract of poison-nut. While the nut is very toxic and causes a multitude of symptoms that range from vomiting, cramps, and nerve reactions, the homeopathic remedy is completely safe. |
John Heinerman
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 Like his other medical colleagues, he was at one time averse to using herbs, but eventually came around to considering a few medicinal plants for some of his more serious cases.
One of the plants with which he has experimented has been baby's breath. In stubborn cases of bronchitis, he found that nothing else works quite as well as a hot tea made from the roots of this garden ornamental. His usual method of preparation is to have the patient boil two heaping tablespoons of the chopped fresh or dried roots in one quart of water on medium heat, covered, for 20 minutes. |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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| Be Careful with MAO Inhibitors
People who are taking MAO inhibitors, or using herbs that contain MAO inhibitors, on a regular basis need to avoid certain foods and medications. The foods to avoid are alcoholic beverages and anything that is smoked or pickled. The medications to stay away from are cold and hay fever remedies, amphetamines, narcotics, tryptophan and tyrosine.
\VV Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra). No plant in my database has more antidepressant compounds than licorice, but it does not have St.-John's-wort's folk history of use as an antidepressant. Strange. |
Ralph W. Moss PhD
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| They continue to caution patients against using herbs as anticancer agents.)
• Primary prevention. There is evidence that herbs (or special "designer" foods) may actually be able to help prevent cancer from occurring. Wouldn't that be wonderful! Really fine scientists are deep at work isolating compounds from soy, broccoli, grapes, etc. that have powerful cancer-preventing effects.
• Secondary prevention. Herbs may help prevent a recurrence of disease, once a tumor has been removed and the treatment period is over.
• Watchful waiting. |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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| To benefit from using herbs, you need to have some basic background information. Then you need to have confidence in the herbs you use and in any herbal practitioner you consult. This is no different from conventional medicine, where you need to have confidence in your physician and any pharmaceutical you take.
As a rule, however, rational herbal medicine is safer than conventional medicine because the medicines are more dilute and side effects tend to be less severe.
But you still have to exercise caution when using herbal medicines. You also need to understand that things can go wrong. |
Ralph W. Moss, Ph.D.
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 Numerous examples have now surfaced of animals deliberately using herbs to solve health problems ranging from parasites to infertility. In fact, the study of non-human discoveries of medicinal herbs has emerged as the field of "zoopharmacognosy." This was even the subject of a session at the 1992 American Association for the Advancement of Sciences (AAAS) annual meeting. Many wild animals (to quote Science) have been observed "practicing medicine without a license." Some examples:
• Chimpanzees seek out a sunflower-like plant to kill nematodes and other parasites. |
James A. Duke, Ph.D.
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 If you think that less salt means less flavor, I suggest using herbs and spices as salt substitutes. Basil, red (cayenne) pepper, black pepper, rosemary, and other culinary seasonings make foods even more tasty while helping you reduce your salt consumption.
Lower Your Reading by Shaping Up
The DASH diet is just one element of a comprehensive self-care program for controlling high blood pressure. Exercise is another. And it's a biggie.
Regular physical activity helps you maintain a healthy weight and manage your stress, both of which have an impact on blood pressure. |
| This is important, because doctors need to know when their patients are using herbs. Certain herbs can interact with pharmaceuticals—sometimes beneficially, sometimes harmfully.
T Is for Touch
To borrow a line from a phone company ad, reach out and touch someone—the people around you and the world around you. Look for love, which is rejuvenating. Avoid hatred, which, like all stresses, is aging.
If you have a spouse, strive to maintain and nurture the intimacy of your relationship. Enjoy each other's company. Make love regularly. Make each other laugh. Strive for playfulness together. |
Carol Simontacchi
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 As a clinical nutritionist, I often recommend using herbs or nutrients to help relieve symptoms more rapidly while we are altering nutritional biochemistry through the diet. If you are interested in exploring the use of these products further, I recommend that you consult with your nutritionist or nutritionally trained physician.
FINAL STEP: Check back over these steps and make sure you have followed instructions carefully. Continue to work on your diet. Make little improvements each day. Encourage your family to walk with you. |
Ralph W. Moss PhD
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| Given the overall statistics, it is inevitable that many cancer patients, especially those already familiar with the use of herbs for minor ailments, will start to explore the possibility of using herbs to assist them with this most serious of health crises.
And in fact this is already happening. A 1998 study of women with breast cancer revealed that 80.9 percent were using dietary supplements of some sort in the course of their illness. This included some herb-derived products such as evening primrose oil. |
| By 1997, according to a Website called MarketFacts, it appeared that an astonishing 40 percent of the American public were using herbs regularly (www.marketfacts.com).
Because of this growing popularity, herbs are starting to wield clout in the medical marketplace. Annual sales, which were $1.0 billion in 1991, had jumped to $3.24 billion by 1997 (109).
"The interest in medicinal herbs has exploded in the last two or three years," said Kathleen Halloran, editor of the magazine Herb Companion. "Many people are amazed at the many uses of the herbs growing in their gardens. |
Dr. Mary Dan Eades
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 Accept that it usually takes longer to see results when using herbs than synthetic drugs. The upside to this is that you are allowing healing to be the process that it is, which is, for the most part, easier on your body.
• Inform your doctor of your decision to add herbs to a regimen of prescription medication. Although many mainstream physicians don't have expertise in the area of herbal medicine, they should be made aware of what you are putting into your body so that they can make the best and most accurate recommendations.
• Don't self-diagnose the big problems. |
Robyn Landis
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 Herbal Defense is not about using herbs or foods merely as a different kind of "quick fix" to replace allopathic "magic bullets." It is about creating health, and knowing how to make the body heal itself better—not just treat or manage disease. We will present ways not to get ill—or, at the very least, to get sick less often and less severely. The absence of symptoms is just a beginning point. Herbal Defense is about going beyond "normal lab results" to the exceptional health you really want. |
Donald R. Yance, j r.,C.N., M.H., A.H.G., with Arlene Valentine
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 Being mindful of them, eating wholesome organic food, using herbs as food and medicine, and living more simply will enhance your health and your life.
SUNLIGHT AND FRESH AIR
Get fresh air daily and sunshine whenever you can. However, don't expose yourself to direct sunlight for long, especially if you have fair skin. Be sure to get out of the sun if your skin begins to feel hot and starts to redden. Early morning or late afternoon is the best time to enjoy the sun because its rays are less intense. |
| Although I have successfully treated many people with cancer by solely using herbs, diet, and other natural therapies, most of the people I treat for cancer have used these approaches in conjunction with conventional therapies. This is beginning to change as more and more people consider me their primary practitioner and natural therapies their primary treatment. In many cancers (and for certain people), I am confident that natural modalities can be more effective than a combination approach; however, in some cases I am not so sure; in still others, I truly believe a combined effort is best. |
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