Pantry medicine for when the plague is upon us
I got a frantic call from a friend who is not a herbalist this week: her local store was out of elderberry syrup and zinc lozenges. What other herbs could she take during a pandemic?!
It's a strange time for us herbalists. Many of us have, for years, been shouting from the rooftops about how magic plants are, and now the local health food store is sold out of elderberry and people are calling to ask where they can get lomatium root. Don't get me wrong, I'm so freaking glad that people are getting more into herbs. But, I think that when people get into herbs without knowing anything about HERBALISM, there's a great danger that herbs get approached in the same way that everything in modern society gets approached-- like plants are commodities. And also, approaching herbalism in the same way you would, say, pharmaceutical medicine, is... hmm, how to say this without sounding harsh or divisive... wrong.
So there's two things I want to say here:
The first is that plants are living beings, and don't enjoy being treated as if they're Black Friday specials. There's no point in hoarding them because they lose efficacy over time, and they love, love, love to be shared.
The second is that plants are not like pharmaceuticals. That means that just because you cannot find the exact right herb that someone in an article said would be helpful, that there aren't other things you can do, other plants you can use, other avenues to explore.
Using plants as medicine is based in the principles of ENERGETICS, which means basically this:
We look at the body as a series of interacting systems. It is not a machine with specific delineations between parts, but an organism working as a whole that sometimes gets out of balance. The body is usually very very good at returning to a state of balance, but sometimes it can benefit from a bit of help from our plant friends, who are really good at gently (or forcefully) nudging the body back.
In terms of energetics, the body gets out of balance in its systems, and it does so by either getting hot, cold, damp, dry, tense or lax. This is the cliff notes version, please see jim mcdonald for greater depth.
When you pick a herb, using energetics, you might say something like 'oh, this is a lot of heat in the body, and therefore I am going to use a cooling herb'. You actually do this already even if you're not a herbalist. For example, if I said to you:
-it's 120 degrees outside and you're overheating, feeling wretched, and need something. Someone offers you either a bowl of hot white bean and kale soup, or a sliced cucumber salad. Which do you pick? (If you picked the soup please don't ever move to the desert because I'll fear for your wellbeing :P).
-or-
You see two people: one is tired and sluggish and can't think clearly, the other is bouncing off the walls and their thoughts are moving in a million different directions at once. Who do you give the cup of coffee to?
So, this is the basis of herbal energetics: recognizing the state that the body is in, knowing what state you want to guide it towards, and knowing which plants will help you do that. In learning about herbal energetics, you just learn more herbs, and know where they go and whether they warm, cool, relax, tighten, moisten or dry out the body. And you learn how to see the signs of all of the different imbalances in other people. That's the nutshell version.
Why did I just explain all of that?
To explain to you that elderberry and zinc are not the only answers, if you're worried about your immune system, or if you're currently infected with the plague. That there are so many different plants that can help with the different aspects of what we're dealing with. And that you don't necessarily need to go to a special shop to find them. So I thought I'd give you a few tips for using what you have at home, as a herbalist.
With regards to this specific plague that is circulating, there are common symptoms arising:
Dry lungs.
Tiredness.
Fever.
Body aches.
Dry and impacted mucous in the lungs.
So, instead of giving you a list of specific things to go out and get, that might at this point be hard to find, I figured I could be of the most help by telling you about things that you might already have on hand, or if you don't have them, you can easily get them at the store (hopefully garlic doesn't become the new toilet paper).
Read on!
<3 Rebecca
ps. Unrelated but very important: my course, The Wonder Sessions is about to reopen for enrollment for this year. It's the perfect thing for helping you learn to navigate changing times. If you're interested in hearing more about it, please enter your email address HERE, and I'll send out an email once it's open.
Contents:
1. Pantry medicine for dryness
2. Pantry medicine for immune boosting
3. Pantry medicine for the lungs
4. Pantry medicine for fevers
5. Pantry medicine for body aches
6. Your body is the greatest medicine and that is completely free
1. Pantry medicine for dryness
In your pantry you might already have a few things that will help with dryness.
Chia.
Chia is the seed of Salvia columbariae, which grows in the Southwest deserts. It is also the seed of Salvia hispanica, which is grown commercially for us to buy in bags in the health food store. I am referring to the commercially available chia, here :).
Chia seed is moistening. Apart from the fact that they're high in nutrients, and fiber, and help to manage blood sugar, and are a great pre-biotic, they are sliiiimy, and that slime (this is the technical term) is what's going to keep your system nicely moistened.
To use: Add to drinks (a pinch or a spoonful in your water, add to smoothies, juices, kombucha). Make puddings (chia pudding is delicious).
Read more: check out Sophia's writings on Chia.
Flax.
Another moistening seed, flax, or linseed, is also slimy! Put a teaspoon of flax in a wee pot of water and boil it for 20 mins and you'll end up with a delicious and slimy tea. You can add spoonfuls of this slime-tea to other drinks if the consistency of it is weird for you. Grind up flax seeds and add it to smoothies and baked goods, too. From "A Modern Herbal": "
"Linseed is largely employed as an addition to cough medicines. As a domestic remedy for colds, coughs and irritation of the urinary organs, linseed tea is most valuable. A little honey and lemon juice makes it very agreeable and more efficacious. This demulcent infusion contains a large quantity of mucilage, and is made from 1 OZ. of the ground or entire seeds to 1 pint of boiling water. It is taken in wineglassful doses, which may be repeated ad libitum."
Oatmeal.
You know how oatmeal gets gummy and sticky? That's some good slime that moistens your body! If dryness is bothering you, and your lungs and sinuses are feeling tight, and you do not react to oats, try adding more oats to your life. You can also, in a pinch boil a small amount of oats in a lot of water, for a slightly slimy, nourishing tea.
Hibiscus.
If you have hibiscus in your pantry or garden, it's also cooling and moistening to hot and inflamed mucous membranes (tasty, too!).
To use: make hot or cold hibiscus flower tea.
Prickly pear cactus.
I'm including this because, while not common in some parts of the world, here in Southern California, prickly pear is common, both in gardens and grocery stores (if not at your local Ralph's, try a Mexican grocery where you'll find both de-spined prickly pear (nopales) and bags of hibiscus (Jamaica) and most likely herbs too (mullein, for example, or Gordolobo).
If it's in your garden, pick a paddle with gloves and tongs. Carefully cut away all of the spines (you can take the side of a sharp knife and run along the side of the paddle as if you're giving it a very close shave).
To use:
Throw on the grill and eat like a good steak. Chop it up and add to your drinking water (so slimy and so good). Throw a chunk in with smoothies (I mention smoothies a lot but I live in Southern California Smoothieland and drink them for lunch most days).
2. Pantry medicine for immune boosting
MUMMY'S CHICKEN SOUP
AKA Jewish penicillin. You can make this any way you want; here's how my family does it:
chicken legs (about 1.5 lbs per stock pot)
chicken feet (about 1 lb)
1 brown onion.
1 carrot.
1 head garlic.
2 sticks celery.
Salt.
1 tomato.
Put it all in a pot, bring to simmer, simmer for 4 hours or so. Remove from heat. Strain. Cool and remove fat layer from top. Re-heat to drink.
In this you can add herbs if you have them on hand: astragalus, burdock, nettle leaf, shiitake mushrooms, violet. If you don't have herbs, leave them out. The penicillin works allll on its own just fine.
Raw garlic.
I cannot state enough how good raw garlic is for your immune system. It also thins and stimulates mucous which is great when you have a bunch of it stuck in your lungs. In terms of personal experience, I was feeling utterly wretched last week and couldn't breathe properly, until my husband made me our home-favorite of raw garlic on toast. And within minutes, my lungs felt different: mucous moving, all that delicious garlic coming out through my lung tissue. I've had about 2 cloves for breakfast and dinner since then. I *highly* recommend, if your stomach can handle it, to get raw garlic in your body as much as possible.
Our favorite way to prepare it at home is to chop a bunch of garlic, cover it in olive oil, add salt and pepper, and put it on toast. We might be nuts though, so you can also add herbs (parsley, oregano, cilantro, chives), and turn it into a chimichurri-type thing. Add a squirtof lemon juice, and add to soups, stews, spread it on toast, dip crackers in it.
Ginger.
I mention ginger more below for fevers and body aches, but it's worth noting in the 'general immunity' section too. Warming, spicy, great for the immune system in general, add it to soups, curries and stews.
This is a great time to take up a curry habit...
Citrus.
High in vitamin C, and great for general immunity, there's still tons of citrus in the stores and it's a great time to stock up. Most of my favourite citrus recipes are desserts, and I think that does NOT count as immune-boosting, but adding lemon or lime to your water, or eating more oranges and grapefruits, all good.
Cayenne.
Filed under: spices that thin the blood, get circulation moving, get your digestion jump-started, and generally sorta increase activity across the board. Cayenne is great to have on hand during a pandemic. Full disclosure, you couldn't pay me to ingest it because black pepper is spicy enough for me. But, if you love spice, eat more spice right now.
In fact, in general, all of the spicy foods are great at a time like this. Curries or sauces that use cumin, ginger, turmeric, cayenne, clove, anise, cinnamon, garlic, etc. Make a batch of curry paste (I've enjoyed this one) and start stirring it into broths, stews, salad dressings. Have a dollop on rice with a pile of greens.
(thanks to Missy Rohs, Holly Torgerson, Julie James, for some of these ideas, which I've totally stolen without proper credit *evil grin* <-- to be clear it's because this was in an ongoing conversation and direct quotes would be messy)
3. Pantry medicine for the lungs
STEAMS!
The absolute best thing that you can do for your lungs, if you're trying to prevent a virus from sinking in, or if you've caught something and don't want it to get worse, is to steam.
Steaming is super easy:
Put a pot of water on the stove.
Bring it to a boil.
Remove from the heat.
Throw in a handful of aromatic herbs if you have them.
Put a towel over your head and breathe in the steam (aromatic or not) as deeply as you can, for as long as you can comfortably hover over a hot pot of water).
This gets all the antimicrobial steam deep into your lungs, where it moistens lung tissue, aiding the mucous membranes in getting rid of any naughty little virus particles. If you have aromatic herbs to throw in there, even better, because the aromatics will kill any wee naughty virus particles that are there. Kill em dead. Just like that.
But the steam itself is so helpful for your lungs, which like to be limber, and moist. So even if you don't have herbs, steam alone is great.
Herbs you can use:
Mint.
Thyme.
Oregano.
Rosemary.
Sage.
... basically any of the aromatic herbs that you'd use for cooking.
If no fresh herbs, use some Italian seasoning, or Herbes de Provence in your steam pot.
Something else that's often quite easy to get at the grocery store is eucalyptus-- my local Trader Joe's always has bunches of eucalyptus for sale, and you can keep them on the counter (pretty!) and put a handful of leaves in the steam pot every time you do it.
ONIONS!
Onions thin mucous, which is really useful when people are suffering from thick, sticky, impacted mucous in the lungs. Because it's something that's so abundant and most of us have, it'd be easy to think of it as 'weak' or a substitute medicine for other things that are more herbalist-y sounding, but onion is freaking fantastic, potent, and powerful lung medicine. If you've got the plague already, and are worried that it's sinking deeper into your lungs, get some onion in ye, stat.
You can make onion syrup, or cook up a bunch of onions in everything you eat, or do an onion poultice (instructions in article linked below). Another onion folk-remedy is to leave half an onion by the side of your bed at night. I think the fumes are antimicrobial :).
The best article on onion medicine: HERE.
Aromatic herbs in tea.
Most of the aromatic herbs that we use for cooking are aromatic and antimicrobial. I mentioned above that even smelling the aroma of the herbs is going to kill microbes in your respiratory tract, but some of our aromatics have specific indications for the lungs. Specifically thyme, which is a MAGICAL herb for loosening and bringing up mucous. If you only have a little thyme, then use it for tea instead of steams, because that's the best use of your thyme. *bows*
If you don't have fresh herbs, then make an Italian seasoning tea, and add honey, and make do with what's available. The herbs that you have on hand are more effective than whatever you can't get hold of...
Bougainvillea:
And, throwing this out there for anyone who lives in a desert-y area where Bougainvillea abounds: Bougainvillea flower tea is antispasmodic and soothing. I don't have a full picture of its actions yet because I haven't used it enough (I almost never get coughs and really like some personal experience with things before talking about them). I do know that when I was in Mexico I was so delighted to see it at a market, and had a hilarious mime-conversation with the lady selling it who indicated that it was for coughs. Then my friend Carolina Valder, who's from Ecuador, mentioned that it's commonly known to be good for coughs. That's all I'm going to say about it because I have very little experience and have no desire to 'Columbus' a traditional medicine, but, it grows everywhere in Southern California (Arizona, New Mexico, too, maybe?) and in a time where people are suffering from lung complaints, why not use what we have in abundance...
4. Pantry medicine for fevers
At first for a fever, think 'warming'. Spices like...
Ginger.
Turmeric.
Cardamom.
Cinnamon.
Make yourself a cup of tea, because when you first get a fever, you want to help your body get the temperature up (remember the fever kills viruses and is there to help your body return to a state of balance). Do you have a jar of pumpkin spice blend? Or some Ras al Hanout? Or some Mexican seasoning? Depending on the blend, this might be kinda gross, but try blending a little with hot water and honey, or mixing some in with a mug of soup.
After that, you want things that are going to open up the pores to make you sweat a bit. So things like:
Mint.
Oregano.
Lavender.
Chamomile (I'm including this in pantry medicine because lots of people have chamomile tea hanging around).
Make yourself a strong cup of tea. If anything you can use herbes de Provence, or a jar of Italian seasoning. Put a spoonful in a mug, add boiling water, steep for 10 minutes, add honey for some sweetness, and drink it while hot.
5. Pantry medicine for body aches
Epsom salt baths: really help to relieve the deep aches.
Gentle, gentle self-massage with a tennis ball, or your own hands.
If you have ginger, then you can make a strong ginger tea and add that to the bath water.
If no bath, the drink ginger tea.
6. Your body is the greatest medicine and that is completely free
This is just a simple reminder that your body is brilliant. It knows what to do to get back into balance. It generates fevers, to kill viruses, and it makes you rest, because it can do the most effective job of healing when you're not being active.
And if you have none of the above things on hand, then you can do steams with plain water.
You can gargle with warm salt water.
You can watch funny things until you have tears running down your face from laughing so hard (this boosts immunity so much!).
And you can sleep, and rest, as much as is possible.
And you can trust your body. It knows what to do.