Getting To Know Herbs

Don't wait until you're sick to use herbs. The best way to cure illness is not to become ill, and there is a wonderful variety of longevity, nutritive, and tonic herbs that can and should be used daily to enhance wellness.

Nutritive herbs to make a regular part of your diet include horsetail, passionflower, cleavers, chickweed, red clover, and lemon balm.

Tonic herbs feed, tone rehabilitate, and strengthen particular body systems. Tonics for particular systems are listed in the chart below.

Longevity herbs are not life extenders; what they will do is increase quality of life, so that you feel better and better as you grow older. Our very common weeds are the most vital healing plants. They are powerful and abundant, and the more you try to run over them and dig them out, the happier they are. It is the weeds, those vulgar plants that grow everywhere, challenging us, that espouse true vitality and a passion for life. These are the longevity herbs. When their hardy spirits come into you, they feed you and make you stronger.

This is a quick look at the herbs and supplements that are used to maintain the health and vitality of various parts of the body. Use these herbs on a regular basis for best effect.

Body Part or System              Herb or Supplement

Blood                                        Burdock, dandelion

Bones                                       Nettle, oats

Brain                                        Ginkgo, gotu kola

Eyes                                         Bilberry, lutein

Heart (cardiovascular system)     Cayenne, garlic, hawthorn

Kidneys                                    Dandelion leaf, nettle

Liver                                         Burdock root, dandelion root

Muscles                                    Fo-ti, glucosamine sulfate

Nerves                                      Ginseng, nettle, oats

Nervous system (endurance        Fo-ti, American ginseng, Siberian ginseng

and stamina)                  

Spirit                                        Flower essences, kava-kava        

These weedy wonders are both versatile and effective medicinal herbs. Make friends with them!

• Burdock-Rich in vitamins and minerals, burdock is excellent for the skin and is a superior blood purifier.
• Chickweed-Chickweed is rich in calcium, potassium, and iron. With its emollient and demulcent actions, it is an exceptional poultice herb and is excellent for skin irritations and eye inflammation. Chickweed is also a mild and safe diuretic.
• Cleavers-Another mild, safe diuretic, cleavers is used to tone and soothe irriattions of the kidneys and urinary tract. It is also an excellent lymphatic cleanser.
• Coltsfoot-An antiasthmatic and expectorant, coltsfoot is excellent for coughs, colds, and brochial congetsion, helpnig dilate the bronchiaoles and expel mucus.
• Dandelion-This common weed is an excellent tonic herb, a prized digestive bitter, one of the safest and most effective diuretics, and an excellent source of vitamins and minerals, including calcium, magnesium, iron, and vitamins A and C.

Herbs like burdock root and others can be purchased by the ounce at: http://www.thegreeneyedowl.org/apps/webstore/products
or
www.mountainroseherbs.com