Virus Amongst Us

By: Matthew Stewart AHG
cofounder Spirit Apothecary,
Bedford, OH

Cold and flu season has quickly come upon us. We are again forced to be trapped inside in close proximity with one another. This is breeding time! Unfortunately, I am referring to viruses and bacteria that are more then happy to make YOU their happy home.

There are few tried and true methods for preventing colds. They always say you must eat right, have little to no stress, and exercise. It is very difficult when your life’s obligations take precedence to your own well being. There are easy ways to help you through a cold. Upon early onset, you know, scratchy throat, sneezing, pressure in your head, you should up your Vitamin C intake.

If you smoke, each cigarette depletes 30mg of Vitamin C. If you smoke a pack a day you should automatically take 600mg to just combat the damaging effects caused by smoking. Many accredited doctors believe an individual can rebound more quickly from most illness by taking 6000mg of Vitamin C a day. Every research I have done, has always said it is important to use buffered style ascorbic acid because your body assimilates it much more quickly and completely. .

Herbs are also a safe and easy way to help boost your body to get over a nasty cold. I will cover a select number of herbs which I find important to help you out of the nastiness of winter’s cruelty.

Echinacea purpurea is most the common Echinacea due to its growing habits. However, Echinacea angustifolia has a more profound healing effect. Echinacea angustifolia works better even in smaller doses then Echinacea purpurea, which is good news for herbal tea drinkers because Echinacea of any species tastes horrible. Echinacea helps boost immunity and assists in building a strong auto immune system. Working in similarly to Echinacea is milk vetch. Anything named vetch wouldn’t be invited towards most people’s lips, let alone made into a tea.

However, Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceous) should be the exception. Astragalus is a fine Chinese herb that stimulates the auto immune system in a similar fashion to Echinacea, which in turns makes more white blood cells to help fight off the awfulness of colds and flu. I would strongly steer you against either of these herbs if you suffer from any disorder of the immune system i.e. Crohn’s disease, MS, lupus, etc.

There has been much a do about the Amazon rainforest in recent years. One of the most useful herbs, Pau D’ Arco (Tabebuia spp.), deserves such an accolade. It has been used for many millenniums by the native Incan and Aztec peoples for bacterial, viral, fungal and yeast infections. It strengthens the immune system to such an extent that scientist have studied this herb as a treatment and a cure for HIV and herpes. Pau D’Arco has also been used as an expectorant: to promote “productive coughing” in order to loosen deeply embedded phlegm. This is definitely one bark an herb cabinet should not be without!

Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra) is a fantastic herb which has roots in back ancient times (no pun intended). Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine have used licorice root not only as an expectorant but as an additive herb that helps other herbs work more efficiently.  Licorice is considered an adaptogen which is an herb that regulates the flow of certain important endocrine system chemicals; in turn it controls the body’s reactions to stress, and aids the digestive and immune systems. Panax and Siberian ginsengs are also such herbs, which would be more fitting to be taken as a daily regime for tonic and preventative uses, versus licorice which is mainly used for specific symptoms of illness.

Native Americans have been using Slippery Elm Bark (Ulmus rubra) for centuries as remedy for sore throats, colic and stomach ulcers, and to help relieve inflammatory bowel. It has a very high content of mucilage which coats and protects mucus membranes. Slippery elm is safe for everyone including infants and the elderly and has been used as a “nutritive porridge” in times of hunger.

Another Native herb is Yerba Santa (Eriodictyon glutinosum), which has been used as a treatment for most respiratory afflictions. Yerba Santa has expectorant properties which helps to loosen and remove phlegm from the lungs and throat.  It also is used to relieve coughs from allergies, asthma, and bronchitis and is added to most respiratory herbal mixtures because it hides some of the unpleasant tastes of herbs. 

Mom and grandma always said that chicken soup will help ”cure” the common cold, but little did they know that it has been scientifically proven! There were studies done in 2000, which found that chicken soup actually has a strong anti-inflammatory effect and helps stop Neutrophil activity, a bio-chemical process of the immune system, which causes mucus and runny noses. I know we all have heard that chicken soup will help you “sweat it out”. This is very true because chicken fat is a diaphoretic that will help you push out dead and dying cells that congest your body with debris causing your illness to last days longer.

For the vegetarian, there are also herbs that can help with this sweating process. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) is a great warming agent that is added to cold and flu mixtures, like Licorice, helps the whole herbal mixture work more completely. Ginger is an herb that has many safe functions for the body such as inducing sweating, relieving nausea, helping upset stomach, and as an anti-inflammatory agent that may help relieve spastic coughing. I keep fresh ginger in the freezer and grate it when it’s needed because fresh ginger works better then dried. Fresh ginger is available at most markets and grocery stores.

Keeping with the heat of the moment, no cold or flu recipe would be complete without Chili Peppers (Capsicum annum) and Pippali (Piper longum). Chilies have the dubious honor of lighting most people’s fire due to their intense heat but also helps keep phlegm more fluid and relieving pain. Chilies unfortunately aren’t for everyone, but those that can tolerate them, will receive a delightful gift. Chilies are high in Vitamin C, beta carotenes and truly are one of the few herbs that aids in rebuilding stomach tissue damaged by ulcers.

Chili has an extraordinary chemical called Capsaicin, which promotes endorphin production to help relieve aches and pains of colds and flu, and is employed by many arthritis sufferers to help inflammation and joint pain.

Black pepper has all but eradicated the use of Pippali in both foods and medicine. Pippali has a strong pungent flavor similar to its cousin Black Pepper but has many medicinal benefits that our tradition table spice fails to offer. Pippali is a powerful stimulant for both the digestive and the respiratory systems. Pippali plays an important role in aiding the thermogenic response, releasing unneeded body heat, and drying and expelling mucus that is stagnate within the lungs and bronchi.

Stay well or get well!  Hours of Operation Monday - Friday 12-8pm
Saturday 11:00am - 7:00pm
Sunday CLOSED
Spirit Apothecary Botanicals & Findings, LLC 664 Broadway Avenue
Bedford, Ohio 44146  (440)439-HERB
www.spiritapothecary.com

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