Saturday, February 27, 2021

                               Blog 108 New Tips on Several Anti-Viral Herbs 

 

It is important to have as many options as possible regarding your health and life.  This blog will share information about several anti-viral supplements and herbs.  These are not meant to take the place of other medications, vaccinations, or other approaches to health care that are currently suggested during this challenging time.  They are meant, instead, to be used in whatever way you deem most appropriate.  Some of these herbs and supplements are not appropriate for everyone, while others can be used by most people, with a few exceptions.  Of course, dosage will change depending on age, weight, health and the use of other herbs, supplements, medications, and vaccines. 

 

Garlic:  one of the most powerful anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-fungal herbs known.  It is used frequently in Chinese Herbal Medicine and is popular in the herbal Materia Medica of many other cultures, including those of Native Americans and European countries.  Organically raised garlic is best.  Garlic is more potent raw than cooked.  If you can tolerate it, it may be beneficial to eat two or three raw cloves a day on a regular basis, with occasional breaks of several days.  If the raw form is too harsh, chopping up or pressing garlic and letting it sit exposed to the air for 20 to 30 minutes prior to cooking will help preserve more of the helpful components.  Other forms of the herb are high quality powdered, oil extract, and black garlic.  The powdered is usually in capsules and should be organic, as should the oil extracts and the aged, heated garlic (black garlic).  Some people consider black garlic a delicacy, and it also is at least as beneficial as raw garlic.  Garlic helps thin the blood, lower cholesterol, support the immune system, regulate blood sugar levels, prevent and sometimes even fight infections, and is used as a component in some herbal de-worming formulas.  Contraindications to using garlic: 1. use of anti-coagulant medication or 2. bleeding disorders which prevent blood from clotting. 

 

I learned about a special garlic lemon formula from Chris Wark (of Chris Beat Cancer), who in turn learned about it from Dr. Wahmid Talib, a professor of Cancer Biology in Amman, Jordan.  Dr. Wahmid writes that the best way to make the following lemon/garlic formula is in a 3:1 ratio by weight of aqueous extracts of lemon to garlic.  The weight does not have to be exact, but three to four large organic garlic bulbs combined with three average sized organically grown lemons would be appropriate.  Peel and chop the garlic and let it sit exposed to the air for at least 15 minutes.  Add the garlic and unpeeled lemons to 16 ounces of distilled or purified water, and blend well in a strong blender until liquified, but not so long that the mixture heats up.  Pour the liquid into a nut-milk bag, metal strainer, pantyhose, or cheesecloth and squeeze out all the liquid.  Store the liquid in the refrigerator for up to a week in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid.  The liquid can also be frozen for longer storage.  Drink about three ounces of the lemon garlic extract after one to three meals per day.  This does not taste good.  Deal with it.  If you have either of the contraindications mentioned in the previous paragraph, do not use this extract.  When consumed over several months, this formula bolsters the immune system and also may sometimes help the body shrink cancerous tumors.  This extract is not meant to take the place of medical advice from your physician. 

 

Dandelion Root:  In addition to being supportive of liver and kidney function and having anti-inflammatory properties, this herb also appears to be a potent anti-bacterial and anti-viral, and to be especially effective in relation to the influenza virus.  Here is a link to an interesting 2011 article in Virology Journal that covers this information well.  You should be able to either click on it or else cut and paste it into your browser.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3265450/

One convenient thing about dandelions is that they are plentiful and can be found in diverse places.  They are hardy and their flowers, leaves, stems and roots are all beneficial, but the root has by far the strongest medicinal qualities.  If you do choose to harvest these plants from your lawn or elsewhere, be sure that the lawn has not been treated with chemicals or that the area is not located near a heavily trafficked road, since the plants will absorb toxic substances and then you will take these toxins into your body.  If you are harvesting this herb for the roots, the best time to do so is in the autumn, after the first frost, but before winter has set in, and when the soil is a little moist.  Harvesting at this time preserves the most beneficial compounds in the root, including inulin, which helps balance blood sugar and also helps support healthy gut flora. 

 

Lomatium:  Used by Native Americans to fight bacterial, fungal and viral infections, especially involving the respiratory tract, this herb was also reputed to have been used on a small scale to help combat the flu during the Great Influenza pandemic of 1918 - 1920.  Lomatium is sometimes used to prevent infectious illness as well as to help alleviate these illnesses.  This herb has never been commonly found, and now, since it is rare and likely endangered, only specially authorized people or organizations are supposed to harvest it and distribute it in tincture form.  Tinctures are alcohol or glycerin extracts of much of the vital components of herbs.  Most tinctures are alcohol, since they have a much longer shelf life.  If the alcohol content poses a problem, it is possible to put a dose of the liquid extract into an uncovered glass container with a wide mouth and place that in some hot water that has recently stopped boiling.  Let it sit for an hour or more. This will allow a significant portion of the alcohol to evaporate, still leaving the other herbal components.  A little of this herb can go a long way in producing a high quality tincture, and there are several companies that have good tinctures, including Herb pharm and Barlow Herbals.  Even though Lomatium appears to be generally safe to use, it should not be taken by pregnant women or nursing mothers, because not enough research has been done on it.  The herb apparently grows only in one small area of the world (the Pacific Northwest).  A side-effect, which occurs in about 10% of users, is a full body rash, which is usually red and itchy and may last as long as 10 to 14 days.  This rash is a one-time occurrence and is not dangerous; however, people who tend to get this type of rash might prefer to find another herb with which to work. 

 

This blog’s offer:  as always, feel free to call or email me with questions regarding the information in this blog, since there is much I have not addressed.  Stay well!

 

 

 

 

 

 

No comments:

Post a Comment