The Complete Herbal Guide: A Natural Approach to Healing the Body - Heal Your Body Naturally and Maintain Optimal Health Using Alternative Medicine, Herbals, Vitamins, Fruits and Vegetables (73 page)

History:

Prunella does not appear to have been known to the ancient Romans or Greeks, but it was mentioned in Chinese medical literature during the Han Dynasty (206 B.C.- A. D. 23) as an important herb in the treatment of complaints associated with a disturbed liver, high blood pressure, and conjunctivitis.

In Western medicine, it has always been regarded primarily as a wound herb, giving rise to many of its common names, Woundwort, etc. Its botanical name,
Prunella
, is derived from Brunellen, a name given to it by the Germans, because it rose to prominence when military physicians used it to treat a contagious fever that raged among the German imperial troops in 1547 and 1566, that was characterized by a sore throat and a brown-coated tongue. The fever was called "the browns" (
brun
is the German word for "brown").

In John Gerard's
Herball
of 1597, he claimed there was no "better wound herb[e]" in the world than Self Heal" (another common name) and said it would "heal any green wound[e]." In 1653, the great English herbalist, Nicholas Culpepper, wrote that "Self Heal" would be good taken both "inwardly or outwardly for wounds and bleeding" and would "cleanse the foulness of sores and speedily heal them." Prunella is an astringent, slightly bitter, saline herb that is harvested when in optimum condition (and the plant is in bloom). Although the plant is a member of the mint family, no mint fragrance or flavor is present, and all the aerial (above-ground) parts of the plant are used in herbal medicine. Some of the constituents included in Prunella are volatile oil, a bitter principle, tannin, rutin, beta-carotene, sugar, cellulose, vitamins B-1, C, and K.

Medical Uses:

Prunella is an astringent that has been effective in controlling both internal and external bleeding. It has been used as a styptic that has been used internally in Western medicine to stop hemorrhage, internal bleeding ulcers, and excessive menstruation, and its gentle astringency also helps to control chronic and sudden diarrhea (although it is recommended that this application be used under the aegis of a health care provider). For external treatment, those astringent qualities may be applied to relieve hemorrhoids and decrease the bleeding of wounds and cuts.

As an antiviral, Prunella is said to be useful for treating herpes virus infection in two ways. It is thought to stop the virus from growing within cells and also by preventing it from binding to cells. Moreover, recent and very hopeful research has shown very interesting results with respect to HIV and AIDS. In Japan, studies showed strong anti-HIV effects in laboratory conditions and Canadian scientists claim that Prunella blocks cell-to-cell transmission of the HIV virus and also interferes with the virus's ability to bind with T cells, the immune cells that are destroyed by HIV infection. At the University of California at Davis, scientists have identified a complex sugar in the herb that accounts for its actions against HIV.

Treatment:

Prunella is considered an antibiotic and antiseptic (which supports its historical use to help ease sore throats and heal "green" wounds). It is still used externally in gargles to relieve sore throat and ulcerated mouth, in addition to stopping infection from spreading and speeding up the healing of wounds, cuts, bruises, burns, ulcers, and sores. It is also believed to reduce scarring.

Prunella is reported to reduce lymphatic congestion and has been used to relieve swollen glands, mumps, and mastitis.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Prunella was used as a liver and gallbladder stimulant and was used to treat conjunctivitis, hypertension, and headaches, among other disorders.

Precautions:

Those with diarrhea, nausea, stomachache, or vomiting should consult a physician before using Prunella. This herb could potentially interfere with actions of prescription blood thinners (Plavix, Coumadin, etc.).

Dosages:

Take one (1) to two (2) capsules, three (3) times each day with water at mealtimes.

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Psyllium
is Nature's way to help irritable bowel syndrome. One of the highest sources of dietary fiber to be found in any food, this natural laxative will promote a clean, clear intestinal tract and colon that will give you more energy and a healthier life. It has been used to treat ulcers, colitis, diverticulosis and constipation.

Plant Description:

Psyllium
is a low-growing annual that is native to the Mediterranean area, northern Africa, and southern Asia and has been cultivated for thousands of years in those regions, as well as Europe and North America. Psyllium is an annual herb that may grow in waste places in full sun to about sixteen inches in height, and it has long occupied an important place among medicinal plants. Its tiny seeds give the herb its name from the Greek,
psylla,
which means "flea," and those tiny seeds contain a high mucilage content that, when combined with water, swell tremendously. The species
Plantago ovata
and
Plantago Psyllium
may be used interchangeably.

History:

The enlarged mass is highly gelatinous, and has been used since ancient times as an effective laxative. For centuries, traditional Chinese and Ayurvedic physicians have used Psyllium to treat constipation, diarrhea and hemorrhoids, and it was one of the first medicinal plants to be carried to the Americas from Europe, where it had been used for good intestinal health since the sixteenth century.

Psyllium did not become popular in the United States until early in the twentieth century, but it is now used extensively for effective intestinal and colon health. The seeds and husks are used for medicinal purposes. Its special asset is that, being a vegetable substance, it has a purely mechanical action, lubricating and cleansing the intestines simultaneously with no harmful side effects. Constituents include mucilage, glycosides, tannins, minerals, polysaccharides, proteins, essential oils, sterol and flavonoids.

Medical Uses:

Psyllium
has long been used as one of nature's most effective laxatives that relieves chronic constipation and promotes a free and regular bowel movement. It increases the volume of the intestinal contents that encourages defecation, and the mucilage acts as an intestinal lubricant softening the stool for easier passage.

Treatment:

Psyllium
is an effective treatment for inflammatory diverticulitis, Crohn's disease and irritable bowel syndrome. It cleanses the colon and is considered the "colon broom" that allows the body to gain better health in all bodily areas as a high-fiber detergent that removes colon waste and eliminates the putrefactive toxins in the intestines and colon. By reducing the transit time through the colon, toxins and bad colon bacteria are removed, while friendly bacteria are promoted.

Reduce the risk of heart disease with
Psyllium
. Recent studies have shown that Psyllium lowered both cholesterol and triglycerides. Soluble fibers prevent cholesterol absorption, and insoluble fibers have a scrubbing action as they pass through the intestines, ridding it of excess cholesterol and old, excess intestinal debris. It could also lower cholesterol by increasing bile-acid excretion. Bile acids are digestive substances that are made from cholesterol and are normally reabsorbed from the intestine after they do their job, but when Psyllium absorbs bile and moves it through the intestines, the body has to take cholesterol out of the blood to make more. Psyllium also helps slow cholesterol productions by the liver, helping cells eliminate bad cholesterol, the kind believed to be responsible for closing arteries.

Psyllium's
lubricating action in the intestines and colon make its gentle laxative motion effective in helping hemorrhoid sufferers. The same lubricating action relaxes tones and coats mucous membranes, loosens and reduces phlegm, and is said to be effective in treating bronchitis and pneumonia.

For treating diarrhea,
Psyllium's
bowel regulating action works by forming bulk that will slow down rapid, loose stools.

Psyllium
is popular in weight loss programs, as it fills the gastrointestinal tract with a bulk that is lowin calories and helps curb the urge to eat.  Its laxative action helps to reduce excess weight by removing it.

Preliminary tests have shown
Psyllium
to help lower blood glucose levels by slowing the absorption of dietary sugar, which may be beneficial in the treatment of diabetes.

Topically,
Psyllium
has been used to treat skin irritations, insect bites and stings.

Some herbalists maintain that
Psyllium
relieves an ailment known as autointoxication, in which the body poisons itself by producing and absorbing an excess of intestinal waste. 
Psyllium
is said to remove the offending substances.

Precautions:

Pregnant women should avoid all laxatives. A possible allergic reaction could result in the use of Psyllium, and since it may affect absorption of medications and vitamins, Psyllium should be taken at least an hour after other medicines. Diabetics should discuss its use with a physician before using. Taking psyllium supplements without adequate liquids may cause it to swell, and, in extreme cases, cause choking. Do not take this product if you have difficulty swallowing. People with esophageal stricture (narrowing of the esophagus) or any other narrowing or obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract should not take Psyllium. It is important to drink at least six glasses of water daily when taking Psyllium, or constipation may result.

* * * * *

Pulsatilla
has been used by herbalists as a nervine to calm and soothe the nerves and
relieve pain, neuralgia, tension headaches and insomnia
. It is also thought to
ease ovarian and menstrual pain, premenstrual syndrome
(PMS); and the herb's antibacterial qualities are believed to be effective in
alleviating acne and other skin problems
.

Plant Description:

Pulsatilla
is an anemone and one of over two thousand species of mostly herbs and shrubs in the large
ranunculaceae
family. It is a handsome perennial with simple, erect, rounded stems, reaching about five inches in height. The leaves are downy; the segments many-parted and the solitary flowers are deep-purple or violet, blooming early in the spring, and, according to some writers, again in the latter part of summer or early in the fall.

History:

Because of the plant's early blooming period (about Eastertide), Pulsatilla was given the name, Pasque Flower, by the French.  A rich, legendary history has gained the anemone many names and attributes. It is said to have sprung from the blood of Adonis, and the Romans considered it valuable in preventing fever.

The common name, Windflower, is accounted for in several ways, one of which is Pliny's statement that anemone blossoms are opened by the wind. The plant may be found growing wild (although
Pulsatilla vulgaris
does not transplant well) in open meadows, pasture grounds and fields, thriving in dry, sandy, neutral-to-alkaline soil in full sun. Pulsatilla grows in the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere of Europe (where their medicinal uses have been recorded since antiquity by Galen and Dioscorides); with other species growing in North America (where it was considered the chief medicinal plant of the Minnesota tribes of Native Americans and
the
"great medicine" of the Northwestern tribes); as well as in Asia (where it has been in use as an antibacterial, astringent and anti-inflammatory since the days of the Han Dynasty of 206 B.C-A.D. 23). The European (Old World) and American species greatly resemble each other in appearance and some applications.

Pulsatilla
is included in the
British Pharmacopoeia
, and the North American species (the floral emblem of South Dakota) was formerly listed in the
United States Pharmacopoeia
from 1882 to 1905, as a diuretic, expectorant and uterine stimulant. It is a bitter, cooling herb that is cut when flowering, then carefully dried for use in herbal medicines. Some of the constituents in Pulsatilla include an oily principle, which decomposes into protoanemonin (the lactone of gamma-hydroxy-vinylacrylic acid), and anemonin (a highly active substance), glucose, tannin, resins, pectin, calcium compounds, magnesium compounds and sulphates. Because anemone species contain an acrid compound anemonin, it can be highly irritating to mucous membranes and must always be used under the direction of a qualified health care provider.

Medical Uses:

Pulsatilla is considered an alterative, or agent that helps to gradually and favorably alter the course of an ailment or condition, most often by altering the process of nutrition and excretion and restoring normal bodily function. It may achieve improvement by cleansing and stimulating the efficient removal of waste products from the system.