Herbal Legacy Articles

by Kurt King, Master Herbalist

Shock is a serious condition of a severe circulatory collapse.  Most often it is caused by extreme blood loss, or traumatic injury without any blood loss.

The symptoms of shock to watch for are clamminess of skin, washed-out look, rapid weak pulse, low blood pressure, shallow rapid breathing, nausea and vomiting.  Also watch for partial or complete loss of consciousness.

A state of shock can be induced by people with fear in a minor injury.  In every accident follow as if shock could occur and treat as if it could occur even up to several hours later.  Shock can be more serious than the injury.

If a person is conscious or unconscious:

1) Administer 1 dropperful of Cayenne Tincture under the tongue, followed by Shepherd’s Purse tincture, 1 dropperful under tongue (to normalize circulation).

2) Lie the person flat on their back, with legs and thighs elevated.

3) Make sure the person is warm – replace any wet clothing.  A person in mild shock can still produce body heat.  A person in severe shock loses the ability to produce any body heat.  When this happens, no amount of clothing will help to restore body heat.  Hypothermia and irreversible shock then takes place, and the person can die.  In severe shock, external heat needs to be applied.  The best heat source is from another person, one or more, to come in contact skin to skin in sleeping bags (like a cocoon) with the person in shock.  Internally, keep administering Cayenne Tincture and Nettle Tincture to improve circulation and produce internal heat.  All future heat loss to the person in extreme shock should be avoided.

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How do you know what you need to have in a basic herbal first aid kit?

The following list is not a comprehensive list – just a few of the basics!

X-Ceptic – Alcohol Extract
Complete Tissue & Bone Ointment
Valerian Nerve Formula
Cramp bark
Slippery Elm Bark
Herbal Eye Bright
Eye Cup
Distilled Water packet
Red Raspberry leaves
Echinacea
Cayenne Pepper
Tincture of cayenne
Cayenne Deep Heating Balm
Plantain Ointment (Stings & Bites)
Black Ointment
Sen-Sei Ointment
Ginger Root
Tweezers
Bandaids
Scissors
Ace bandage
Herbs to the Rescue – by Kurt King

Next week we will cover how to use some of these herbs in a few first aid situations.

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by Kurt King, Master Herbalist, author of Herbs to the Rescue

There are six basic steps that apply in any first aid situation.  They are:

1) Stay calm and think first before you act.

2) Check if person is breathing and if there is a heartbeat.  (Pulse check on wrist or neck arteries.  Visually notice chest action for breathing.)  If person is not breathing or pulse cannot be found, administer emergency CPR immediately.

3) Check for severe bleeding (hemorrhage).

4) The next priority is to examine for shock (Shock is a serious condition of acute circulatory collapse, usually brought on by severe blood loss or trauma).  Then examine for head injuries, fractures, lacerations and dislocations.

5) Begin treating person accordingly using a good “bed-side manner,” calming and reassuring the person to help prevent shock or hysteria.

6) Find adequate shelter for the injured person, out of the harsh elements.  Keep person warm, calm and reassured that all is going well.

WHERE YOU SHOULD HAVE FIRST AID KITS:

1. Keep a kit in the trunk of each of your vehicles
2. Take a smaller kit with you when you travel by plane or train
3. In your home

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You never know when you will need first aid: 

“What if there was no electricity?  What is food distribution is shut down?  What if there is a national disaster?  What if you had to survive in the woods?  What if you were attacked by an enemy and had to flee?” (Kurt King, Master Herbalist and author of Herbs to the Rescue).  Herbal first aid helps you be prepared for the “what if’s.”  It doesn’t have to be as drastic as a national disaster or having to survive in the woods, though.  What if you are walking in a parking lot and your daughter falls down and skins her knees badly?  What if one of your children runs through the neighbor’s yard (that has been sprayed for weeds) barefoot and gets poison running up her leg?  What if you slice your leg open while plowing the snow?  What if you are on a trip and someone gets hypothermia?  By knowing basic first aid and having some basic supplies on hand, you can treat each of these “what if’s” (by the way – each of these experiences has happened to David and Fawn Christopher and their family – and they knew how to take care of them using herbal first aid).

Why Herbs?

Shouldn’t you just go to a hospital?  Can’t you just use the first aid kit that has been under your bathroom sink for 20 years?  Here is what David Christopher, Master Herbalist and Director of The School of Natural Healing, said:

“Herbs are the safest, most effective tool available for health care.  Unlike drugs, which have a myriad of side effects that can and do cause harm, herbs can be used with confidence and you will do no harm.  Many people are aware of the wonderful tonic effect of herbs that, when taken in small quantities over a long period of time, miraculously correct old chronic conditions; but…herbs can work just as fast and even more effective than patented, synthetic drugs in dealing with acute emergencies” (Herbs to the Rescue, Forward).

Please note that we are not saying to never go to the emergency room – doctors are great for certain situations – only you can make that decision.  You should be prepared, though – to handle any emergency – as Kurt King points out, “What if?”  What if you can’t get to an emergency room?  What if the situation required immediate care – before you could get to the hospital?  What if you are camping and are many miles from help?  You can feel confident knowing that you could handle almost any situation.

This newsletter, over the next few weeks, will cover a few basics (Herbal First Aid could be an entire class).  We can’t possibly teach you all you should know! But we will help you know what herbs should go in a first aid kit, what resources you should have, and how to handle a few emergencies.  We will give you resources for other herbal first aid situations.

Your primary weapon is knowledge.  For example – if you get into some Poison Ivy in the woods, did you know that the cure is always growing nearby?  If you have educated yourself then you will be able to find the plantain nearby, know how to use it, and get on with your day.  Without making this sound too much like an advertisement, we are confident that your very best source of education is The School of Natural Healing.  Dr. John R. Christopher had the vision to see a Family Herbalist in every home and a Master Herbalist in every community.  The Family Herbalist course will teach you how to handle most medical situations at home.  You won’t find a Family Herbalist who doesn’t feel like they got much more out of the course than they paid for it.  For more details please visit The School of Natural Healing at http://www.snh.cc.

We also encourage you to go on an herb walk in your area.  Check with your local health food or herb store to see if they are aware of any.  If you hear of one, please let us know so that we can send it out to everyone on the list!  Your fellow subscribers in your area would greatly appreciate it!  Take a camera, a notebook, good hiking boots and a hat with you and enjoy an herb walk.  After doing an herb walk (as long as it is led by someone qualified) you will be able to identify many different herbs in your area.

To get you started, there is one herb you shouldn’t be without - cayenne.  Why cayenne? “Cayenne helps restore normal body functions, relieves rheumatism, counteracts putrefaction and infection, relieves nervous irritability and spasms, condenses and firms the tissues, excites intestinal peristalsis, relieves spasms, promotes expulsion of gas from the gastrointestinal tract, seasons and flavors foods, induces vomiting (in large doses), is hot and penetrating, stimulates local circulation and skin redness, increases saliva and aids digestion, causes profuse perspiration, stops bleeding, is a general all around stimulant to activity and energy, and heals wounds” (information from Dean Alter, Master Herbalist).

Next week we will go over the first six things you should do in an emergency.  Then we will discuss what herbs you should have in your first aid kit.  After that we will discuss several common situations and how to use herbs to treat those.

“Kurt and I [David Christopher] sat down together recently, swapping herb stories, discussing case histories, and exchanging remedies.  In the course of our reunion, and after much discussion, we decided that a usable book on herbal first aid was greatly needed.

“Because of time restraints, I bowed out of the project and encouraged Kurt to write the book.  After reviewing the book I can say that he’s put together a wonderful guide to not only first aid but health care in general.

“At the risk of sounding trite, let me say, study this book, use this book, and please ‘don’t leave home without it.’” (Herbs to the Rescue – Introduction by David Christopher).

Kurt King’s excellent book, “Herbs to the Rescue: Herbal First Aid Handbook” is a book that you need a copy of with every herbal first aid kit you have.   While only 90 pages long, you would be hard-pressed to come across an emergency that this book doesn’t cover.  And for only $7.95, you can’t afford to be without a few copies!

To learn more or purchase a copy, please visit:
http://www.christopherpublications.com/King_Herbs_Rescue.html

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Today’s article comes as a follow-up to some questions asked by readers after reading last week’s article about parsley. 

The first part of our article comes from a question about how to grow parsley in your yard.  The following is from The School of Natural Healing’s 100-Herb Syllabus:

“The best type of soil for Parsley is a fertile humus with good moisture holding capacity. Well-rotted compost is excellent for fertilizer, worked into the soil with a hoe or by roto-tilling. Avoid manure however as this attracts flies and could result in an infestation of maggots.

“You can sow Parsley as early as February although it takes as much as a month to germinate in cold conditions. The largest sowing is usually done in April and this provides lots of plant material for late-summer gathering. You can sow in August for plants to be taken indoors or to be put into cold frames for winter use. An even broadcast sowing is preferred and the ground can be raked smooth and then lightly trodden to keep the seed in place during the often long germination period. The seed should be only slightly covered, not more than 1/4 inch deep. Be sure that your young chickens don’t scratch out your seed (ours did). It is generally said that you mustn’t disturb Parsley once it is sown but we have transplanted it and it really can be done with ease. You can also thin plants if desired. A well-grown plant will cover a foot in area. Keep your plants well watered, as the hot summer sun can dry them right up. Be sure to keep the area free of weeds especially at first. Later, when the plants are well-established you can apply a hay or straw mulch to conserve moisture and keep the weeds down.

“Parsley is primarily used fresh and you can pick it every day when the plant is mature. It is a biannual which means that it will make good growth the first year and then die back with the frost. The second year it makes spectacular growth and can be used freely in the spring if it is growing in a sheltered place. However, it quickly goes to seed which can be avoided by cutting the plants back as soon as they seem to begin to shoot. You can cut the plants back if their growth gets coarse as well, watering well afterwards to encourage much fine growth after. We like planting Parsley in a sheltered place in the fall to enjoy an early-spring growth.

“The harvested plant to be dried should be placed on screens and quickly dried in an airy, warm place. Oven-drying may be necessary to complete the process. Sometimes the herb loses a little of its intense green color during the drying process but the flavor and nutritional value should remain the same. Home-grown and dried Parsley is much preferable to the store-bought type which is quite expensive and might have been grown with chemicals.

“You can use the dried Parsley freely as you would the minced fresh Parsley.

“The curly-leaved Parsley is generally preferred in gardens. It is also preferred because Fool’s Parsley, which looks a lot like plain-leaved Parsley but which is extremely poisonous, can be mistaken for it. The Fool’s Parsley however doesn’t smell like genuine Parsley and doesn’t taste like it, either, should a person dare to try it. However, plain-leaved Parsley winters better than the curly-leaf variety. We live in a rather severe climate, yet our Parsley plants sheltered in a moist place by the side of our house put out new shoots during warm spells in the wintertime!”

Someone else asked about the roots and if you can get the roots at the grocery store.  The answer to that question is no - you generally cannot get the roots at a regular grocery store.  They generally sell the stem and leaves.  To get parsley root you can check at your local health food store or, even better, grow your own as instructed above.

The final part of today’s article answers the question: “What is a fomentation and how do you make one?”  (A parsley tea fomentation is mentioned in last week’s article.)

Fomentations are used often in natural healing, and being able to make a fomentation is a basic herbalist skill that you need to know how to do.

We have created a website with a simple, three-minute video of Master Herbalists David & Fawn Christopher where they will teach you how to make a fomentation.

The video can be found at:

http://www.herballegacy.com/Fomentations.html

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by Dr. John R. Christopher

The next time you use Parsley in one of your vegetable or meat dishes remember that it has important medicinal actions also, When nature gave us parsley she gave an amazing and extremely versatile plant to aid the body in regaining its health.  Parsley is chiefly used for renal congestion, inflammation of the kidneys and bladder, gravel, stones, and urine retention.  The root and leaves are excellent for the liver and spleen when jaundice and venereal diseases are present.  It is also one of the best reliefs for edema, helping when other remedies have failed.  Parsley root contains ingredients that help produce a pain relieving benefit to relax stiff joints.  Many have used parsley root tea to make stiff and unmanageable fingers work again.  The root contains calcium, B-complex vitamins, and iron all of which nourish the parathyroid glands which are concerned with the regulation of calcium in the body.  Pour a quart of boiling water over a cup of firmly packed fresh parsley and allow to steep for 15 minutes.  Strain and then refrigerate.

Although parsley is a very reliable and old diuretic remedy it is very much ignored today.  Parsley will work on the gall bladder and will remove gallstones if used properly by taking a pint of the tea daily.  Parsley is a specific for the adrenal glands, is powerfully therapeutic for the optic nerves, the brain nerves and the whole sympathetic nervous system.  Parsley juice is an excellent tonic for the blood vessels, particularly the capillaries and arterioles.  But remember that raw parsley juice is a most potent juice and should never be taken alone in quantities of more than one or two ounces at a time unless it is mixed into a sufficient quantity of carrot or other juices.  Parsley is remarkable for its ability to expel watery poisons, excess mucoid matter, flatulence, reducing swollen and enlarged glands.

The usual remedy for kidney, bladder, and edema is to make at least two quarts of a strong parsley tea and drink copiously.  If the urine is suppressed drink one half to one teacupful, hot, every hour.

We have had several students testify in herbology classes as to the value of parsley, among which is the following: “I talked to a man who went into the hospital for infection.  He was there six weeks and it was costing $45.00 a day for the drugs they gave him.  Then someone told his wife to take him some parsley.  The doctor said, ‘Well, it won’t hurt him, but it won’t help him.’  He was released from the hospital after he had taken it for one day; it had started to drain the infection he had.”

Dr. Christopher tells of a personal acquaintance who came here from England in her twenties.  She was very sickly; at the time had no children, so her husband told her to go to the doctor.  She did, and when she returned home she was very discouraged and very unhappy, because he told her, “You have a kidney infection which is a very progressive type and there is nothing we can do to heal it; you will have possible six months to live.”

So she was at home meditating when she heard a knock at the front door.  There stood a bearded man in a grey suit; he said: “Sister Hanger, may I have a glass of water?”  to which she replied “Certainly,” although she didn’t know him.  She gave him the glass of water, and he said: “Sit down, I want to talk to you a minute, Sister Hanger,” and she wondered then how he knew her name.  He continued: “I would like to help you if you would like me to.  You have just come from the doctor’s and he told you that you have a bad kidney condition.  Well, you are from England.  You have brought your herbs with you, and you have a little herb garden out in the back in which you have a nice stand of parsley.  Now, if you will take a handful of parsley each day and put it into a pint of water, cover and steep it, and drink it in regular doses during the day, it will heal this condition.  The doctor told you that you have only six months to live, but I will tell you what you will see; you will see another depression” - and he went on and told her all the things she would see.  When he had finished the short interview, something momentarily distracted her attention and in that instant he disappeared.  She lived to be eighty-six years old and had raised a number of wonderful children.

One of our students had been called by her brother-in-law that her favorite sister was near death.  He said if she wanted to see her while she was still alive to come quickly to Chicago, Illinois.  Her sister had been suffering for months from dropsy and was now helpless and blacking out from the pain.  She was only expected to live a day or two longer.

Our student flew to Chicago on Saturday and was shocked at the sight of her sister.  She was so swollen that she was hardly recognizable, and did not even realize her visitor was there.  Our friend told her brother-in-law that she had recently heard a lecture about an herbal aid for dropsy and asked if she might use it. He said.  “My wife is supposed to be dead shortly.  Please do anything you can.”

She got in a cab, went to the health stores in downtown Chicago, and bought all the parsley root she could find, along with some glycerine.  She returned and quickly made and administered parsley tea.

Our student applied the fomentations and had her sick sister drink one half cup of tea each hour.  She had to return home because of her job, but left instructions to continue the parsley procedure.

She later received a phone call from her brother-in-law in Chicago who said.  “I have someone who would like to say hello to you.”  It was her sister.  The swelling of months was all gone; she was out of bed for the first time in months - happy to be alive and full of vitality and hope.

Parsley is such a precious herb and so easy to grow in most any little corner of your garden or a flower pot - why ever be without it?

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by Dr. John R. Christopher

Rembert Dodens, Dutch physician to the Emperors Maximilian II and Rudolph, wrote in 1557 in his ‘History of Plants’:

“The juice of the cabbage softens the belly and makes one go to stool.  It cleans and cures old ulcers.  Cabbage juice mixed with honey makes a syrup that heals hoarseness and coughing.  The leaves, when cooked and applied to chronic ulcers, modify and heal them, and aid the resolution of tumors and wounds.”

Doctors Merat and Lens of the Faculty of Medicine of Paris wrote in 1829 (Universal Dictionary of Materia Medica): “The cabbage is one of the most valuable acquisitions of man.  It combats scurvy, it prevents gout, the tender leaves are applied to wounds, and seeds are indicated for worms.”

A Doctor Roques of the eighteen hundreds protected himself and his family for many years against the epidemic winter diseases by eating a daily salad of cooked cabbage.  He recommended the following treatment for cold and laryngitis; One pound of strained red cabbage juice, 3 grams of saffron, 1/2 pound of honey and sugar, the whole boiled to a syrup; 1 tablespoonful is taken in a cup of tea 3 or 4 times daily.

A Doctor Blanc wrote: “Cabbage is the bread and butter of therapeutics.  It is the doctor of the poor - the providential physician.  Let the incredulous experiment, nothing is simpler (than cabbage); the application is external and easy, the action is prompt and innocuous.  One can see it with the naked eye.  The virtues of this plant are numerous, and I defy anyone to present a good reason why cabbage should not be used therapeutically.”

The preparation of cabbage for various disorders is as follows: Wash the leaves or soak them for a few minutes in water to which lemon juice has been added.  Wipe dry, then use a knife or scissors to remove the central rib and, if the application is planned for an ulcer or sensitive wound, the secondary ribs.  Crush the leaves, one by one - with a rolling pin or bottle.  The juice appears at the surface of the leaves, ready for application.  One, two, or three applications will be required according to the severity of the disease.  Cover with a thick cloth and continue the application for several hours, generally overnight, or during the day if pain prevents sleep.

For a very sensitive wound, plunge the leaves for one or two seconds into boiling water, softening them, and reducing the possibility of irritation,

If cabbage leaves are applied to ulcers with swollen irritated margins, soak the leaves first for one-half hour in olive oil.  The resulting preparation will soothe inflamed tissues as well as combating infection and aiding healing.

Cabbage leaves applied to an infected wound, ulcer, or oozing eczema should be layered like roof shingles, allowing secretions to drain between the layers.  When treating lumbago, joint pain, or various afflictions of the nerve or bladder, poultices of cabbage leaves bring rapid relief.  A poultice is prepared as follows: Boil for 20 minutes 2 to 4 cabbage leaves and two whole chopped onions with 3 or 4 handfuls of bran and a little water.  After evaporation of the water, place the poultice on gauze and apply hot for one or two hours, or even for the whole night. (Never apply heat to a painful abdomen.  Only the physician can properly diagnose the cause of abdominal pain, and the application of heat to appendicitis or infection of the ovary may be harmful.)

Doctor Garnett-Cheney, Professor at the Medical School of Stanford, published a report concerning the use of cabbage juice in the treatment of gastric ulcers.  Of 65 cases reported in his series, 62 were cured at the end of three weeks.  Cabbage has been recommended to correct anemia of experimental animals induced by an all-milk diet.

In research at the University of Texas.  Dr. W. Shive extracted from cabbage a substance he calls Glutamine, useful in the treatment of alcoholism and peptic ulcer.

Cabbage has been found to be of infinite value for pregnant women, and for patients with anemia, fatigue, infections, intestinal parasites, stones, and arthritis.

We list now some of the afflictions for which the cabbage has been used over the centuries to bring relief:

Acne:  Apply a  lotion  of  freshly  prepared cabbage juice preceded, if desired, by the application of leaves.  The eating of cabbage leaves or juice is also helpful.

Alcoholism:  Eat cabbage,  steamed  or  raw  and  drink  the  juice.

Anemia:  Drink one or two glasses of cabbage juice daily.

Burns:  Apply mashed cabbage leaves to the burn area to  relieve pain and speed healing.

Cirrhosis of the liver:  Drink cabbage juice and eat raw or steamed cabbage.

Colitis:  Apply 3 or 4 layers of cabbage leaves over the abdomen each evening and secure in place to be left on overnight.  Drink also the juice between meals.

Constipation:  Several glasses a day of cabbage broth.

Diarrhea:  Apply cabbage leaves to the abdominal region during the day and a fresh application for overnight and drink a cabbage broth.

Headache:  Apply cabbage leaves to the forehead and nape of the neck and leave on overnight.  Applications of the leaves over the liver may also be necessary.

Insect Bites:  Rub a crushed cabbage leaf over the bite.

Kidney disease:  Apply cabbage leaves over the kidney areas and leave on overnight and also for a few hours during the day

Menses, painful:  Apply cabbage leaves over the lower abdomen for several hours.

Sprains:  Tie three or four thicknesses of cabbage leaves around the sprained area and leave on over night.

Next time you see the lowly cabbage plant consider that over the centuries many people have derived much relief from physical ailments through using it.

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by Dr. John R. Christopher

A Dr. Blanc in 1881 wrote the following: “About 1880, a cart driver in a small French village fell off his wagon and - a frequent accident in those times - one wheel rolled over his leg.  Two physicians agreed that amputation was necessary; a surgeon was called into consultation, he concurred, and the operation was booked for the next morning.  But at 5 p.m. that day the parish priest, Loviat of Saint-Claude, advised the patient’s mother to cover the injured leg with cabbage leaves.  Under the influence of this simple dressing, the man slept all night.  When he awoke, the family and one of the physicians who arrived to prepare the patient for surgery saw that he could move his leg.  The cabbage leaves were removed to reveal a leg without swelling and with improved color.  Eight days later, completely well, the man returned to work.”

The common cabbage has been of vital importance to mankind over the 4,000 years of its cultivation.  The medical use of cabbage, empirical for centuries, is based upon precise scientific considerations.  Hippocrates once remarked that physicians shouldn’t hesitate to borrow from folklore that which can be useful in medicine.  We now know, with sound proof, that the folklore of cabbage has stood the test of time and scientific experimentation.

Two other accounts of the medicinal use of cabbage might be of interest: A watchmaker suffered for a year with a painful eczema of both hands, preventing him from working.  The lesions were acutely inflamed, and the fingernails were separating, about to fall off.  Applications of cabbage leaves twice daily for a few days brought relief from pain, as clear fluid drained onto the dressing.  With continued treatment healing took place within two months.

In 1875 a 75 year old man suffered arteriosclerotic gangrene of the lower right leg and foot.  The skin was black and the front of the lower leg was decayed.  Following the local application of cabbage leaf dressings, the skin changed from black to brown to red, and then returned to its normal healthy color.  Three weeks later, writes doctor Blanc, there was a considerable improvement.

It has not yet been discovered why the cabbage leaf has such remarkable healing properties.  We only know that the cabbage leaf has a particular affinity for disease-causing fluids, forcing them from the tissues.  It even seems that treating small areas of extensive disease benefits the whole, as distant toxins are removed, the cabbage promotes healing and scar tissue, thus preventing complications.

The long history of cures obtained with cabbage, concern many different diseases, including simple and complicated injuries, rheumatic pains, facial neuralgia, headaches, leg ulcer, anthrax, and many others.  Cabbage - raw in salads, juiced, or steamed - has incomparable virtues in the most diverse maladies.

Hippocrates had a peculiar affection for this vegetable.  Should one of his patients be seized with a violent colic, he at once prescribed a dish of boiled cabbage with salt.  Erasistratus looked upon it as a sovereign remedy against paralysis.  Pythagoras, and other learned philosophers, composed books in which they celebrated the marvelous virtues of the cabbage.  Cato claimed that this plant infallibly cures all diseases; and that he used it as a panacea to preserve his family from the plague, which, otherwise, would not have failed to reach them.  It is to the use the Romans made of it, he adds, that they were able during six hundred years to do without the assistance of physicians, whom they had expelled from their territories.

The Romans used cabbage externally and internally for various illnesses, as a purgative, disinfectant, and poultice; Roman soldiers applied cabbage leaves to their wounds.

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by Master Herbalist Lindsay Wolsey

How Do I Use Tea Tree Oil?

Even if you are not an herbalist, and don’t have any experience making your own formulas, you can easily add Tea Tree Oil (or any other essential oil, for that matter) to an ointment or a massage oil.  The massage oil is the easiest-just add a few drops of Tea Tree Oil, close the bottle, and shake it well.  Then smell it to see if you have the right amount of Tea Tree Oil-if not, add a few more drops.  To add Tea Tree Oil to an ointment, you may need to heat up the ointment a little bit, depending on its consistency.  Complete Tissue and Bone ointment is sometimes set quite well, especially if it is a new bottle.  While I personally don’t have a problem with putting the formula in the microwave for a few seconds to soften it, you could also remove it from the container, and heat it up over the stove if necessary.  I have found that it is extremely easy to add essential oils to the Beauty Facial Cream formula, as it tends to be pretty soft.  Sometimes, it is so soft you need to put it in the refrigerator for a few hours to harden up.

One of the easiest ways to use Tea Tree oil is to add it to olive oil or almond oil, and then apply to the skin.  If you are using this for a rash, add a few tablespoons of this oil combination to the bath, and have the person soak in the tub for a bit.

Tea Tree Oil doesn’t have the most pleasant odor (camphor-like), so you might want to combine it with some other essential oils to help diminish the smell.  It is best used with wood and herbal oils-it does not blend well with fruits and florals.  For example, for dandruff Tea Tree Oil could be combined with cedarwood, patchouli, rosemary and sage. 

My personal favorite is buying one of the many sprays available with Tea Tree Oil.  You could make this yourself using vodka and Tea Tree Oil-but Tea Tree Oil can be pricey, depending on the brand, and $10 for an already made up spray can be worth it.  You can also find Tea Tree Oil in soaps, shampoos, toothpastes, and other commercially available products.

For a vaginal infection, a few drops of Tea Tree Oil can be added to a douche.

Conclusion

Even if you don’t have any other essential oils in your home, Tea Tree Oil is one to add to your medicine cabinet.  I use Tea Tree Oil all the time-adding it to herbal preparations, aromatherapy preparations, and directly on the skin to deal with warts.  This is something that anyone who is interested in natural healing needs to get better acquainted with.

Printable Version: http://www.herballegacy.com/Tea_Tree_II.pdf

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by Lindsay Wolsey, MH 

It seems like there has been a rash (literally) of people lately breaking out with various skin conditions.  In addition, they’ve usually had it for several months before telling me about it – as if by ignoring it, it might go away.  Instead, it gets worse and travels to different areas of the body, and gets harder to treat.I have been telling people to think about using Tea Tree essential oil in addition to the other therapies that they are trying.  Tea Tree Oil can easily be added to ointments or oils that would be beneficial for the skin condition that needs treating.  For example, Tea Tree Oil is easily added to Complete Tissue and Bone ointment, and gives it an anti-bacterial edge.Why Tea Tree Oil?

Tea Tree Oil is the essential oil steamed distilled from the Australian plant Melaleuca alternifolia.  This oil is anti-fungal, anti-bacterial, anti-biotic, anti-microbial, anti-septic and anti-inflammatory.  This is definitely something you want to add to your first aid kit.  Tea Tree Oil seems to be one of a few essential oils that can be applied directly to the skin, although we generally recommend using a carrier with all essential oils.

Tea Tree Oil once healed a persistent infection that had been treated with conventional anti-biotics for 12 months!  It is a very potent oil.

History of Tea Tree Oil

Tea Tree Oil has been around for a long time.  Thousands of years ago, Australian aborigines were crushing the leaves and using them for medicine.  During World War II, the Australian Government commandeered all of the Tea Tree Oil for the use of the military.  The soldiers in the Pacific carried Tea Tree oil in their first aid kits.  After the war, Tea Tree Oil fell out of fashion for awhile, as everyone embraced anti-biotics.  Fortunately, in the late 70’s interest in Tea Tree Oil started up again.

What Do I Use Tea Tree Oil For?

Tea Tree Oil is an excellent alternative to topical anti-biotics that may need to be used every day.  This oil has been used with great success for psoriasis, sores, eczema, rashes, thrush, foot odors.  It is also used for cuts, stings, burns, bites, acne, vaginal infections, sore throats, cold sores, and warts.  It can be used for infected or ingrown toenails.  You can use it in shampoo to treat dandruff.  Tea Tree Oil works well for athlete’s foot.  It can be beneficial for chicken pox.  New uses are being discovered all the time.

Printable Version:  http://www.herballegacy.com/Tea_Tree_I.pdf

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