One of the things I love about herbal medicine is the many different ways it can be administered. If foul tasting brews from brown bottles are not for you, another option is a poultice. (Or try my home made herbal extracts instead of commercially manufactured herbs people tell me they arent so bad after all. There are many reasons why hand made herbal extracts taste better than machine made).

Historical novels and texts always used to fascinate me in my pre-herbalist days with their references to poultices, administered by the village wise woman / herb lady / midwife. My formal training as an herbalist didnt go into a lot of detail on poultices except about the technical difference between a poultice and a compress. (A poultice is vegetable material laid over the skin and bandaged in place. A compress is a piece of cloth saturated with oil or an herbal extract (or tea) and held in place with a bandage).

Consequently, when I commenced clinical practice I didnt quite know what to say when anyone asked if they should be poulticing. Feeling a gap in my knowledge, I took myself off to learn from the Queen of Poulticing, Margaret Wright, a retired naturopath who lived nearby.

Margaret is a beautiful old lady with great wisdom and an unerring faith in the ability of the body to heal itself. Like me, she has always seen her role as deciding what natural remedies are needed to best assist that process. Thanks to Margaret, poulticing is not a lost art in these parts. One of her many pearls of wisdom is that poultices are a wonderful tool when treating children as they involve TLC in their application and feel so soothing from the moment they go on.

Most old herb books talk about a poultice of herbs which is covered with a piece of bread, then held in place with a bandage, and left for a few days before being changed. While the effectiveness of this has been dismissed as old wives tales by science, it is worth noting that old fashioned bread (preservative free), made with organic ingredients (what else was there in the old days), goes mouldy in a few days. By some wild coincidence, Penicillin was first made from mould.

Probably the most widely used poultice today is made from grated raw potato. Its hard to find anything better for drawing out infection and foreign material. Applied each night, it is amazing to watch. One of my young clients had two huge mystery boils appear on her leg which even the doctor couldnt explain nor antibiotics clear. Her worried mother came to me for help and I suggested a potato poultice at night and a castor oil compress during the day. This was applied for several months until a piece of stick about 1cm long appeared at the skin surface one morning. Several slightly smaller pieces appeared over the following days. The inflammation then rapidly went and the wound stopped oozing. A fortnight later the girls leg looked completely normal. There was no scarring. As is so often the case with natural remedies, patience, perseverance and the correct remedy were rewarded with complete healing of the body as if the problem had never been.

Garlic poultices are also very popular. These are great for any chest infections and even asthma attacks especially those that come on at three oclock in the morning or when you are miles from nowhere. Garlic is one of natures miracle workers. In a test tube it kills staphylococcal and tuberculosis bacteria as well as parasites and cancer cells. Finely chopped and applied to the feet in a base of olive oil, it will be smelt on the breath within fifteen minutes, hence why a garlic poultice is so good for lung complaints.It is a good alternative for those who do not like the taste of garlic, or who get indigestion from eating garlic.

More posts will follow on speciifc poultices over time, so check back again from time to time for updates. You may even find a video demo on how to apply one!

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Coughs are sometimes viral in origin in which case you can use the information in Colds with good effect.

However most common coughs are the result of a bacterial infection, often from the Staphlococcal family of bacteria. Garlic has been used for thousands of years for chest infections and its beneficial action is thought to be due to the large amount of Sulphur it contains. Sulphur is the bit that makes it smell, so odourless garlic (which has the sulphur removed) is not necessarily going to work on infections. Pharmaceutical companies know all about Sulphur there is a whole class of antibiotics based on it the Sulphonamides.

Honey helps make Garlic more palatable and is very soothing to a throat made sore from too much coughing, so Garlic Honey has been on the herbalist’s shelf for many thousands of years. My home always has a big jar of unheated honey and organic garlic sitting by the window in the sun, steeping all through spring and summer, so it it is ready for the coughs that many of my clients experience with the change of season in Autumn.

Coughs can occur by themselves as a bacterial infection, or as a secondary infection following a cold or flu. There are generally two types of cough dry and moist. They can also be a symptom of a more serious underlying condition including whooping cough, tuberculosis, pneumonia, emphysema or lung cancer, so if a cough persists or rapidly worsens you need to seek urgent medical advice.

Dry coughs are usually rasping and tickly and paroxysmal, so that one cough sparks yet more coughing. There are a number of herbs which are excellent for this sort of cough Pulsatilla and Mullein are two of my favourites. For the dryness in the airways, herbs such as marshmallow root can also bring relief. All of these can be taken as teas. If this sort of cough persists or is accompaned by shortness of breathe it is very important to seek immediate medical aid as it may be a sign of a serious condition such as asthma or choking.

Wet coughs are when phlegm is produced. Hopefully you are able to bring this up if not you would benefit form some expectorant herbs. These assist your lungs with their natural healing process of eliminating the phlegm. Liqourice tea is a good home remedy for milder coughs of this nature. It is very important to cough the phlegm out otherwise it can become hardened and stuck and can cause a longer term, deeper infection – including bronchitis, pleurisy and pneumonia, all of which are potentially very serious and sometimes fatal. A qualified herbalist can assist you with expectorant herbs, which loosen and soften the phlegm and give your lungs the energy they need to cough it out.

As with colds, other supportive measures include:

• Vitamin C either in tablet or powder form as per the recommended dosage or in the form of Rosehips tea, freshly squeezed orange juice, or a hot lemon drink (add some honey to soothe your throat and for its antiseptic effect).
• Keep warm, especially if its windy, paying particular attention to your chest and feet.
• Rest. Winter is a time of slowing down, going within, and restinganimals hibernate and plants go dormantthere is a good reason for this. Copy them.
• Slow cooked soups and casseroles, hot teas and warm lemon and honey drinks are perfect comfort and soul food to keep you healthy during winter.
• Eat orange foods. Mother Earth colour codes her plants so you can know at a glance what nutrition they contain. Orange indicates beta carotene and/or vitamin A both tonics for the mucous membranes. Vitamin A is also present in high quantities in fish and fish oilespecially Cod Liver & Halibut Oils.

A good herbal extract for a broad spectrum of coughs is available through my clinic if you live locally to me. THis is good to have on hand through the cough season so you can take it at the first sign. As with all natural remedies, the sooner you start using them after the onset of symptoms, the better and more rapid the result. I can also customise a mixture to suit you individual needs if you already have a cough.

In Traditional Chinese Medicine the lungs are associated with grief. Take some time to ponder whether you are holding any sadness or grief either from recently or from the past. Flower Essences can help balance your emotions. Sturt Desert Pea is used for long held grief and sadness. Red Suva Frangipani is more for fresh grief, while Illawarra Flame Tree helps to energetically support immunity.

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