Herbs - the primary source of
medicine for people of every culture. Herbs have been
mentioned in historical literature, and in the Bible.
What more? The Bible tells us, "I have given you every
herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of the earth,
and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding
seed; to you it shall be for meat." Man has used herbs
to treat his illnesses for thousands of years. Herbs are
safe and extremely reliable, with no side effects.
First, the term "herbs" applied to
non - woody plants. Today, the word "herbs" refers to
any part of any plant used for flavoring or medicine.
You can find herbs in your kitchen; for example: the
mustard on your table and many of the spices on your
kitchen shelf come from herbs. There are many, many
examples of herbal uses in your every day's life. Herbs
are miracles of Mother Nature.
People always sought help through
the herbs, because herbs are natural sources; unlike
medications that produce countless side effects, herbs
can realign the body's defenses, helping it to heal
itself with no side effects.
Herbs are natural remedies. Herbs
were always the natural medicines for the human being.
Writing about herbs we should mention the types of
herbal medicine systems that are used today; European,
Native, American, Chinese,
Ayurvedic, and Western herbalist are the most
prevalent systems. All of the systems treat the body as
a "whole", and they each utilize the energy of herbs to
"work as needed" in synergy with the natural energy in
each individual. So use herbs to have natural, vital
energy to do things you enjoy, to have the ability to
maintain your body's natural immune system to protect
you from diseases. There are many benefits of herbs.
Let' s write about some of them. Herbs help cleanse and
purify the body without side effects. Herbs regulate and
tone the glands to function normally. Herbs are high in
vitamins and minerals and other nutrients that nourish
and build the body. Herbs allow the body to have extra
energy to heal itself, and finally herbs promote the
body's natural good bacteria.
Herbs take up substances from the
earth and convert them into vitamins, minerals,
carbohydrates, proteins, and fats that our bodies use
for nourishment and healing. By using the whole plants
or herbs, we take in all the vital ingredients they
carry. Most herbs contain several active substances, one
of which usually dominates and determines its choice as
a remedy. Other healing aspects of the herbs should not
be overlooked because they help the body to assimilate
its benefits and buffer any side effects.
Herbs work synergistically, so
combining them enhances each herb's properties, helping
to bring greater healing to the body. For example, a
good mixture to help induce sleep combines passiflora,
valerian, and hops. All three herbs have relaxant
properties, but passiflora specializes in aiding sleep,
valerian relaxes muscle tension, and hops have a marked
effect on relaxing the nervous system.
In herbology, herbs are perceived
to have varying combinations of qualities and degrees of
each quality, too. Herbs can be both heating and drying,
or heating and moistening. It can be cooling and drying,
or cooling and moistening. One herb can be very warming,
while another may be just slightly warming. But both are
considered heating herbs.
The way in which these qualities
are assigned to plants is really very simple. Heating
herbs are believed to produce warmth in the body.
Generally speaking, all of the aromatic herbs, such as
anise and caraway, are considered warming. Many of the
bitter herbs, such as Oregon grape, are also classified
as heating.
Cooling herbs, on the other hand,
are those which healers believe take heat away from the
body, or from some part of the body. Often, herbs that
contain highly volatile oils (like wintergreen or
spearmint) are categorized as cooling. Cooling herbs
(borage is another example) are known as refrigerants.
To get an idea of what a refrigerant is, think of a hot
summer day, and then imagine eating a slice of
watermelon or cucumber. These are two of the best-known
refrigerant foods.
Whether a herb is classified as
moistening or drying depends on its individual
properties, also. An herb that has been observed to
increase urination, such as bearberry, is considered
drying. Any astringent herb, such as oak bark or sage,
is also called drying. Usually the aromatics (like anise
or caraway) are thought of as drying. But there are
exceptions: fennel, for example, is regarded as
moistening (it is said to increase milk in lactating
women ). An herb is also considered to be moistening if
it is mucilaginous or demulcent (soothing). Flax seed,
marshmallow, licorice, and slippery elm are good
examples of this latter type of moistening herb.
One way European herbalists began
to develop a better understanding of herbal properties
was to think in terms of parts of the body that they
thought were influenced by each herb. That is, they
began to define for each herb specific "centers of
activity" in the body; For example, cayenne pepper,
classified as a heating herb, was designated as
affecting the circulatory system because it was observed
to increase the flow of blood, especially to the
capillaries near the surface of the skin. Perhaps this
explains why people who live in very hot climates use
hot peppers in their cooking. The peppers may actually
help them to dissipate body heat by circulating it to
the skin surface, where it then causes cooling as
perspiration evaporates and heat radiates into the
surrounding air.
Ginger is another heating herb that
is assigned properties similar to those of cayenne. But
ginger's center of activity is defined as lying
primarily in the internal organs. In the traditional
European system, it is thought to create a type of heat
that stays inside the body; Ginger is therefore used by
herbalists in the winter and in more northern climates.
They employ it as a remedy for colds and to "strengthen"
the kidneys and bladder. These differences between
cayenne and ginger are due to the body's different
centers of activity for each herb.
To make matters more complex, herbs
are not limited to just one center of activity, either.
There are many herbs that are used to treat several
diverse problems at once, such as acne, constipation,
headaches, lethargy, and indigestion, for example. The
primary center of action for such an herb could
theoretically be the liver and gall bladder, where it
would be thought to cause an increase in bile secretion.
The theory goes like this: Increased bile secretion
improves digestion of fats and oils, which in turn
improves complexion. An increase of bile will also help
alleviate chronic constipation. Cleansing the colon is
an important function. The accumulation of toxins in the
bowels, due to poor food decomposition and elimination,
contributes toward a generally toxic condition which can
result in many of the symptoms listed above. Toxins in
the colon are absorbed by the blood, therefore, the
cleaner the colon is, the cleaner the blood will be. And
the liver helps filter toxins from the blood. If the
liver's rate of activity is increased, then the blood
will contain fewer toxins. Many gall bladder liver
entered herbs -such as Oregon grape-are described as
affecting the body in all these ways. Such theories are
simplistic in modern medical terms, and largely
unsubstantiated by medical research. But traditional
herbology does not approach healing from the perspective
of laboratory analysis. It has always been based on
empirical observation of individual people.
Nota bene, the ancient nations,
like Egyptians, were highly skilled with herbs. The
ancient text written in 1500 BC contains references to
more than 700 herbal remedies, including herbs such as
caraway seed, aloe, poppy, and garlic. However the
Chinese have practiced herbal use for 5000 years. The
Chinese are noted for their knowledge and use of
ginseng. So do not be afraid to use the herbs in your
kitchen. Talk about herbs and their important part in
our life. There are endless other topic, supporting the
beneficial effects of herbs, including herbal compounds,
herbs quality, methods of preparation, herbal dosage,
and nutritional content. And remember - using herbs or
herbal products - means healthier life. So enjoy the
herbs, aromatherapy, vitamins, and life!