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Blood Pressure, High and Low

Hawthorn, Cayenne and Garlic are well known for their effectiveness in treating both high and low blood pressure. Taken regularly for extended periods, they function as heart and circulation tonics, and will tend to stabilize blood pressure closer to normal.

6 parts Hawthorn berries

1 part Cayenne Pepper

8 parts Garlic cloves

Tincture: 2-4 ml (1/2-l teaspoon) in a small glass of water 3 times per day — may be continued for an extended period with suitable breaks in treatment

Note, however, that heart and circulation disorders are matters for which professional advice should be sought.

Chilblains

For unbroken chilblains:

Cayenne Pepper (powdered)

Poultice, compress or ointment: apply directly to affected areas

Essential oils with warming/analgesic properties such as Peppermint, Rosemary and Thyme are also used, a few drops mixed with a small teaspoon of olive oil and gently applied to the affected areas.

For ulcerated or broken chilblains:

Mullein leaves

Oil: apply directly to affected areas

1 part Witch Hazel leaves

1 part Plantain leaves

1 part Marigold flowers

1 part St John’s Wort herb

1 part Comfrey root

Ointment or oil: apply locally, renewing several times per day

Marigold flowers

Poultice, compress, ointment or oil: apply locally as required

Chilblains usually only develop where poor circulation is found.

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Hamamelis virginiana

Action: Astringent, haemostatic.

Systems Affected: Skin, stomach, intestines.

Preparation and Dosage (thrice daily): Dried leaves, bark or flowering twigs, dose 1-4 grams by infusion. Distilled Witch Hazel (Hamamelis Water) recommended for general external use.

Native to North America, Witch Hazel was greatly revered by the Indians for its healing properties. Used by the American settlers, Europeans and others since, it is official in various national pharmacopoeias. A small tree or spreading shrub growing up to 2 meters or so in height, it is now widely cultivated as a garden ornamental.

Witch Hazel is mostly used externally for its astringent and haemostatic properties. It is applied as a soothing and healing lotion to varicose veins, haemorrhoids, insect bites, bruises, sprains and burns, and as a cleansing haemostatic to stop bleeding from cuts and wounds. It is useful as a mouthwash for inflamed gums and as a gargle for sore throats. Well diluted, it is soothing to tired and inflamed eyes. It is also used internally to help stop bleeding from the lungs, uterus and other organs, and in the treatment of diarrhoea, dysentery and mucous discharge.

The flowering twigs, leaves and bark of the plant are used to make various preparations, several of which are commercially available (from chemists, health food stores, etc.). Distilled Witch Hazel (also known as Hamamelis Water) is a highly-favoured form of preparation for general household use. The ointment has particular use as a local application to haemorrhoids.

Cautionary Notes: Witch Hazel is extremely astringent and should be used with care. When applied to sensitive or inflamed areas (as in sunburn etc.) it should be diluted 50/50 with water before use. Only very diluted Witch Hazel should be used in eye lotions. Distilled Witch Hazel should not be confused with a tincture made from the bark or leaves. The latter can be extremely astringent and may cause disfigurement to the skin unless diluted before use.

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Verbascum thapsus

Action: Pectoral, demulcent, astringent, expectorant, alterative, sedative, analgesic, antispasmodic, antiseptic, diuretic.

Systems Affected: Lungs, glands and lymphatic system, nerves.

Preparation and Dosage (thrice daily): Dried leaves and flowers, dose 2-5 grams by infusion.

Mullein is a Eurasian native now naturalized in some temperate zones. In the first year’s growth there appears a rosette of large leaves somewhat like those of foxglove. In the following year the plant develops a tall spire-like flowering stem clustered with yellow flowers often reaching 2 meters or more in height.

Both in Europe and Asia the power of driving off evil spirits was ascribed to Mullein, and according to the classics it was the plant which Ulysses took to protect himself against the wiles of Circe. The Romans used the dried stem dipped in tallow as a torch.

Mullein has a special affinity for the lungs and is regarded as one of the outstanding pectoral herbs. It is useful in all pulmonary complaints, especially those characterized by lung weakness and/or congestion. It has a long history as a specific treatment for tuberculosis, for which purpose it is often combined with Garlic and Comfrey.

It is prescribed for pneumonia, pleurisy, bronchitis, colds, asthma and dry coughs, its action being demulcent, astringent, antiseptic, expectorant, tonic and sedative (slightly narcotic in effect, it allays pain and calms the nervous system but without any adverse or toxic effects).

The dried leaves are sometimes smoked as a cigarette to relieve lung congestion, asthma and spasmodic coughs. An infusion of the leaves prepared as an inhalant in a bowl of water (keeping the head beneath a towel) is effective for asthma, hayfever and sinus congestion; as a gargle it is useful for throat complaints, especially laryngitis.

The herb exerts a beneficial effect on the glands and lymphatic system. A poultice or compress is applied locally for treating lymphatic congestion, mumps and swollen glands.

A strong infusion of the leaves is used as a remedy for bleeding from the nose, mouth, lungs, bowels and urinary organs. Its diuretic action is tonic to the kidneys, and is useful in fluid retention, especially when combined with local application of the herb as a compress to dropsied limbs.

The demulcent and astringent action of Mullein is useful in diarrhoea and dysentery. In diarrhoea the ordinary infusion is given, but where any bleeding of the bowels is present, a decoction prepared with milk is preferred, taken in small frequent doses.

Mullein oil is produced by placing 50 grams or so of the dried leaves in a wide-mouthed jar with enough olive oil to cover. Seal the jar and keep in a warm place for a fortnight or so, shaking daily. Strained and bottled for storage, it is used as local application to haemorrhoids, frost bite, bruises and nappy rash. In Europe it is valued as one of the best possible remedies for all ear complaints, a few drops placed in the ear overnight.

For rheumatism and painful, stiff or swollen joints, place 50 to 60 grams of dried leaves in 500 ml of vinegar, cover and simmer slowly for half an hour. Applied directly as a compress it will ease the pain and, in almost every case, reduce the swelling.

Concerning storage and preparation: the flowers must be dried in a dark place and stored in tins or light-proof containers. They turn a dark brown/black in a bright light once they have been removed from the plant, and should not be used if they are in this condition. The infusion should always be strained before use through a filter of fine cloth or cotton wool to eliminate the fine hairs which cover the whole plant and which otherwise would irritate the throat.

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Symphytum officinale

Action: Vulnerary, cell-proliferant, demulcent, emollient, astringent, anti-haemorrhagic.

Systems Affected: Bones, muscles, lungs, digestive system, general effects on the whole body. Preparation and Dosage (thrice daily): Dried roots or leaves, dose 2-5 grams by decoction. Fresh or dried roots and leaves used externally.

Comfrey is native to Europe and Asia, and has been introduced and naturalized elsewhere. As an ornamental, the plant is often introduced into gardens, from which it is difficult to eradicate once established, as a new plant develops from any severed portion of the root.

Comfrey is known for its healing properties and the herb has several uses:

For internal haemorrhage, whether from the lungs, stomach, bowels, bladder or haemorrhoids, a strong decoction of the root is taken every two hours until the bleeding ceases.

The plant has the highest mucilage content of any herb and its demulcent action, similar to that of Marshmallow root, is utilized for digestive problems such as gastric and duodenal ulcers, colitis, diarrhoea and dysentery.

The plant is also employed in respiratory conditions (particularly for those complaints which benefit from an astringent mucilage): coughs, pleurisy, bronchitis, lung congestion and bleeding, quinsy and whooping cough. The root is more effective than the leaf and is the part usually employed for coughs.

Comfrey is used externally to reduce pain and inflammation and for its vulnerary action. The plant contains allantoin, a cell-proliferant which promotes rapid healing of wounds.

For bruises, inflammation, sprains, burns, cuts and wounds, to promote suppuration of boils and abscesses, and for skin complaints in general, the fresh leaves or macerated roots are applied as a poultice, compress or ointment.

The whole plant, pounded and applied hot as a poultice, has been used traditionally to soothe pain in any tender, inflamed or suppurating part. It is considered of benefit in neuralgia and rheumatism, and is sometimes used for the treatment of varicose veins.

Comfrey has a long history of use in treating fractures, sprains and hernias — hence one of its old names, Knitbone. The fresh root pounded to a mucilaginous mass and applied as a poultice, compress or ointment, promotes rapid healing of fractured bones and torn muscles or ligaments.

Cautionary Notes: Some research findings have indicated possible adverse effects from the internal use of Comfrey in prolonged high doses. For this reason it is suggested that general use of the herb is best confined to external application.

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A tincture is a concentrated herbal extract prepared with alcohol which can be kept for long periods of time. The alcohol acts as a preservative, and its final concentration in the tincture should not be less than about 30% — hence, for home preparation, spirits such as brandy, vodka, gin or rum are normally employed. Because of its concentrated strength only small doses of a tincture are required, and it is a particularly useful form of preparation where herbs are to be taken over an extended period of time.

A tincture is prepared by combining 100 grams of powdered or finely cut dried herbs with 500 ml of alcohol such as brandy, vodka, gin or rum. Kept in a sealed bottle and shaken daily, the herbs are left to extract for about two weeks. The mixture is then strained through a fine cloth or filter. The herbal residue is discarded and the liquid bottled, preferably in dark glass.

The amount of tincture to be taken in a single dose varies from just a few drops to around two teaspoons. Generally speaking, where the dose for dried herbs prepared as an infusion or decoction is given as, say, ’2-5 grams’, the equivalent dose for a tincture would be 2-5 ml (a half to one teaspoonful). In other words the dose for dried herbs in grams is converted to milliliters for a tincture.

The amount of alcohol consumed in this way is quite small and does not present a problem to most people. But if the use of alcohol must be restricted even at this level, the extract may be prepared with vinegar instead.

Tinctures normally have a storage life of several years. Administered orally, they are usually taken in diluted form, the required dose added to a small glass of water. Sometimes used externally, they may be diluted to form a mouthwash, skin lotion or compress.

Tinctures should not be confused with fluid extracts. These are highly concentrated commercial preparations requiring precise dosage and are several times more potent than tinctures.

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