Now is a wonderful time to be alive. We have never had so much scientific research on the human body or plant chemicals before! It was only last century that hormones were discovered, and that we have gotten the viewpoint of their role on the emotions. But despite all this new knowledge, the herbal approach has not changed all that much.
Back in Medieval medicine, both allopathic practitioners (the philosophy of modern medicine) and herbalists believed that perfect health could be achieved by balancing four humors of the body. This is the approach they would take if a woman complained of symptoms of depression, fatigue and so forth. This would be often diagnosed as ‘melancholy’, a disorder that was considered a purely female disease. Melancholy was also used to describe one of the humors, its name literally meaning ‘black bile’. This bile was supposed to be linked to the liver. The herbalists would address melancholy by using bitter herbs, many of which were considered female herbs, and still are today. These would be herbs such as false unicorn, red raspberry leaves, black cohosh, etc.
Although these are still considered female herbs, the truth is they work well for the male body. Hormone balancing herbs contain phytosterol hormone-precursors. We in our own area have had two men come for help for hot flashes this week (a side effect of chemotherapy). Their medical doctor had told them to get black cohosh and flax seed oil. Combining a plant oil (such as wheat germ oil) with hormonal herbs (such as Hormonal Changease) has been what we have had the greatest success with, and we're glad to see other people having good results in their own practices.
Oddly enough, most of these herbs are liver herbs. The rule of thumb is that the taste of bitter will stimulate the flow of gastric juices, particularly bile in the liver. This is precisely what most of these herbs do. In past newsletters, we have discussed the liver's role in breaking down and removing old hormones, and how the ancient Greeks considered it the seat of the emotions. The liver, along with the bowels and urinary tract, are the places we prefer to work most when there is a hormone issue.
Sometimes it is just a matter of being able to eliminate old hormones from the body, and then people feel the way they would like to. So if the liver is forced to store bile because the urinary tract or bowels are blocked, merely removing the blockage may be all the effort required. It is not often talked about, but we have seen with our own eyes the anxious, depressed or suicidal begin to cope with life after using an herbal formula inducing a bowel movement. We prefer to start with this route first, because it works quickly and is closer to the root of the problem most of the time. This also safeguards against becoming dependent on a calming herb to relax the nerves and give comfort, but do nothing to ultimately heal.
So Dr. Christopher usually used the Lower Bowel Formula and Liver & Gallbladder formula. He was fond of quoting a case where a mother had two children by the neck, trying to keep them from killing each other with their fighting. He did nothing more than put them on the mucus-less diet and Lower Bowel formula and within a few weeks, the feverish anger was replaced with a congenial disposition.
When he needed stronger help, he used the Hormonal Changease formula. His most classic cases with this formula were with hot flashes, mood and fertility. Often, he would require that it be taken with wheat germ oil. This was to provide the necessary building blocks for the body to manage the hormones. Although it is not always necessary, it has happened often here that someone has had no response to the hormonal herbs, and began to heal after adding wheat germ oil into the program.
Many people use expensive synthetic cremes today for estrogen/progesterone balance. Some use expensive herbal cremes derived from wild yam. It is much cheaper and easier to just use wild yam. I once attended a seminar where a knowledgeable woman was lecturing on estrogen and progesterone. She advocated an expensive natural creme. After she left, the next lecturer, rather sheepishly, explained how the same results could be achieved with red raspberry leaves and other herbs. It was a rather enjoyable conclusion, I thought.
Dr. Christopher’s Formulas
- Lower Bowel Formula
- Liver & GallBladder Formula
- Hormonal Changease
Find Dr. Christopher’s Herbal Formulas, single herbs, essential oils, books and more at Dr. Christopher’s Original Herb Shop: www.drchristophersherbshop.com.
NOTICE: All information in this newsletter is given out as information only and is not intended to diagnose or prescribe.
