Respiratory Health

by Nelson, Dr. Christopher’s Herb Shop

There are some herbal formulas that almost everybody loves. When you are able to see a big problem go away in a matter of hours opposed to days or weeks, people tend to get excited about it. So let’s look at what some of the top herbalists had to say about certain formulas for colds and fevers.

Dr. Shook

"…for colds, influenza, fevers, inflammation of the brain, pneumonia (inflammation of the lungs), stomach, bowels or any part, this is a certain cure. I have never known it to fail, even when given up to and at the point of death. It will not only save at the eleventh hour, but at the last minute of that hour. It is so harmless that you cannot use it amiss, and so effectual that you cannot give it in vain." Dr. Edward E. Shook, Advanced Treatise in Herbology, 1978

The infusion for the tea is made as follows:

2 ounces elder flowers
2 ounces peppermint leaves (crushed)
1 1/2 pints boiling distilled water

Pour boiling water over herbs, cover and allow to steep (not boil) in a hot place 20 minutes.

Strain and sweeten with honey, then drink the whole amount of tea as hot as possible while closely covered in bed.

Cover a hot water bottle with a cloth or towel dipped in apple cider vinegar and place on the feet. In a few minutes there will be copious perspiration, and the pulse will slow down and the patient will sleep peacefully for hours...When taken alone, elder flowers are inclined to be emetic, and somewhat nauseous to some people. This effect can be prevented by combining them with peppermint (Mentha piperita).

Peppermint is stimulant, nervine, calmative, and antiemetic, which helps offset the undesirable effects of the elder flower. This combination is world-famous as a great fever and cold remedy. [HHH p.53]

Dr. Nowell

"We have made and used composition powder for over forty years. When we state we regularly mixed it in batches of sixty pounds the student will readily see that we have had at least some experience with it. As a remedy in colds, beginning of fevers, flu, hoarseness, sluggish circulation, colic, cramps, etc. We believe it has done more good than any other single preparation ever known to man. If this compound were kept in every home, and used as the occasion arose, there would be far less sickness. Give it freely in your practice and your patient will bless you. Look over the ingredients, and consider how it will clear canker, ease cramps and pains in the stomach and bowels, raise the heat of the body equalizing the circulation, and remove congestions. It is safe. It is effective. We have on numberless occasions given a cup [or 2 capsules] of composition tea every hour as warm as the patient could drink it, until the patient has perspired freely, and after four or five doses have seen our patient in a free perspiration, thereby removing colds and febrile trouble."

Brigham Young, the great Mormon prophet and colonist, used composition tea regularly, and recommended it to be used for children coming down sick, with a little cream and sugar added, instead of loading the child's stomach with heavy foods.

This formula is known as the Chest Composition Formula.

Dr. Christopher

(Super Garlic Immune) While lecturing in Snowflake, Arizona one night, one of the group asked if we had an plague remedy, and I was prompted to give them a "certain combination" of herbs to use.

The people there were very impressed to go right to work and prepare this liquid, having it ready for use. We had told them that plagues come at unexpected times and it could be tomorrow or maybe even years away, but expect the unexpected and be ready now. If the formula was still unused, from "no need" years later, we could all be happy but "TIS BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY".

These good people made it up in gallon lots and had it on hand. Months later while speaking in Tucson, Arizona, someone asked for the "Super Garlic Immune remedy." I was surprised and asked where they had heard of it, as we had only given it out once. We were informed that a plague-like condition or flu had hit the Snowflake area and when other aids failed, this combination of herbs in liquid form performed its job with amazing speed. [The hospital was filled with the sick. After all other remedies had failed, 2 registered nurses who had attended the lecture asked the M.D if they could use it. After they had gotten permission, they were all amazed to see the sick recover rapidly with the formula.]

At our next series of lectures in Snowflake, sometime later, we heard one testimony after another about the many different types of ailments that were given quick relief by using this formula. The formula has now spread in many areas from coast to coast and is being used with good results. A man picked us up at an airport on the west coast a short time ago, and on the floor of his car was a bottle with liquid in it. When asked what it was he said, "oh, that's your Super Garlic Immune remedy, we never travel without it as it works good on about any sickness that comes up while we are traveling. We are also never without a bottle of it at home." [NL 2-9]

Let’s compare these remedies. The elder and peppermint tea is especially useful for one reason: it is practically safe to administer under any condition. With some of the flu and fevers we see now, we hear that immune system boosting herbs can worsen the condition by wearing the body out. Whether or not this is true is debatable, but in any case, with these diseases, children and the elderly, this formula is safe to use and still effective.

If you are able to catch an illness before it matures, you will save yourself a lot of pain. The Chest Composition formula is excellent for these scenarios. It is better to break up a fever than to treat the symptoms and bury the illness deeper into the body. The capsules are a convenient way to take the suggested hourly dose. As long as you don't wash them down with milk or soda, you can expect results with them.

The Super Garlic Immune formula is what I consider Dr. Christopher's bazooka for combating illness. I had a neighbor who once told me this:

"You know, I don't really care much for herbs. But my mom was into it, and every night she would give us Anti-Plague. She always gave us a dropper full before we went to sleep. Later she found out that we only needed three drops. I think that's why I don't like them. But I never had strep throat growing up. That's got to mean something."

To learn more about these formulas visit: www.HerbalLegacy.com

Most of these formulas are on sale this month – you can find them here:

http://www.drchristophersherbshop.com/monthly_special.html

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.

Cold & Flu Season

by Nelson, Dr. Christopher’s Herb Shop

No one enjoys getting a cold or flu. The term “seasonal sickness” is odd to us at the School of Natural Healing. Most people consider developing an illness as natural as a weather change. Got to get the yearly cold, right?

A lot of people stop catching seasonal illness when on a plant-based diet. I think I personally must have gone five years without catching a cold or flu after I ate vegetarian. Of course we think diet plays a big role in immune system health. These illnesses develop during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays - when people are more prone to eating huge amounts of junk foods. A lot of energy goes into digesting food, and the type and volume of food people usually eat during this time leaves them constipated.

Nevertheless, there are plenty of common herbs that can boost the immune system in both wellness and sickness. As a preventative, Echinacea is the most commonly used. Echinacea is legendary for its ability to get the immune system functioning, even in cases of severe poisoning. It works by tricking the body into thinking it has been poisoned, thus increasing immune activity. If it is taken for 6-9 days without a day long break, the body will figure out that it hasn't been poisoned, and it will lose its effect. It is the sole ingredient of the Kid-E-Mune formula, and in the Echinacea extract.

Elderberry or elder flowers are used in a similar way. These are very gentle, safe to use on sick babies or in situations where increasing the strength of the immune system might lower the vitality of the patient.

Elder has a high concentration of the mineral potassium. Potassium herbs and potassium broths have played a central role in the programs of big name herbalists (Dr. Christopher, Dr. Walker, Jethro Kloss, etc). Making a broth from potato peels was the common ingredient in all of these herbalist's recipes. When the body is sick, large amounts of this mineral are useful for speeding recovery. These herbs are in the Kid-E-Well formula.

Astragalus will raise the white blood cell count and is great for maintaining good health in this respect. It may be used in large amounts without problem, except in the case where a fever is present. Because astragalus will strengthen yet calm, it can prevent a fever from functioning effectively and is best avoided during this time. Even under these circumstances, no real harm can be done. This herb is in the ImmuCalm formula.

Garlic is possibly the most powerful antibacterial/antiviral herb, similar to onions and horseradish. The organic sulfur content (which gives it the pungent flavor) is a powerful tool to destroy invaders. In addition to killing pathogens, it will boost the immune system. The mere odor of garlic was proven in a Russian lab test to kill bacteria up to 30 centimeters away! Indeed, a chopped up onion placed next to an ill persons bed was a proven remedy in older times for breaking up a cold.

Garlic is the ingredient of Dr. Christopher's most powerful immune formula, Super Garlic Immune (Anti-Plague).

Many of these formulas are on sale this month – you can find them here:

http://www.drchristophersherbshop.com/monthly_special.html

Next week we will focus on respiratory health, and the favorite methods of Dr. Shook, Dr. Christopher, Brigham Young and Jethro Kloss for preventing a cold and cleaning the lungs.

Find Dr. Christopher's Herbal Formulas, single herbs, essential oils, books and more at Dr. Christopher's Original Herb Shop: www.drchristophersherbshop.com.

To read previous issues of the Herb Shop Newsletter please visit:

http://www.drchristophersherbshop.blogspot.com/

NOTICE: All information in this newsletter is given out as information only and is not intended to diagnose or prescribe.

Heavy Metal Detox

by Nelson, Dr. Christopher’s Herb Shop

Natural healing is built on the principles of cleansing and nourishing. One of the toxic materials you will often hear about in this field is heavy metals. It is by clearing these substances that some of the nastier diseases are relieved with a natural approach.

It is rather unusual how for the last 1000 years or so these metals have been widely introduced into the human body. The most well known would probably be mercury. Mercury was the drug of choice for many allopathic practitioners in the dark ages (herbalists were using cayenne and lobelia). Back then purging was a common method for relieving disease.

Giving someone mercury would make them vomit, evacuate the bowels, perspire, and throw the body into a healing crisis. The downside was that it had a high fatality rate.

This didn't in anyway discourage its use, however, and for hundreds of years it served as the base for countless elixirs, often combined with fermented bugs and animal organs. In this way, it is remarkably similar to materials used in a typical vaccination.

Most vaccines now don't have mercury in them. They do have formaldehyde (made from fermented ants) and animal proteins (glands from animals such as monkeys), along with a list of substances the modern consumer wouldn't recognize. Aluminum is a common concern in these compounds as well.

I don't think man ever had to worry about aluminum in the air until chem trails were being done (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemtrail_conspiracy_theory). That seems even more bizarre than aluminum cookware. If you're wondering whether or not the aluminum gets into your food, cook eggs or a pie crust in aluminum cookware and see how gray they turn. This is why no restaurant ever uses aluminum, and why the School of Natural Healing says that it should never be used. There is a strong correlation between aluminum and Alzheimer's.

All of these subjects are quite debatable, but regardless of the way you look at it, people in industrialized society are getting exposed to mercury, lead, aluminum and a variety of other minerals that are in no way good for the body.

Heavy metal poisoning is often diagnosed through hair analysis (which isn't considered accurate) and blood testing. The typical treatment is called chelation therapy. This can be done intravenously, and I have met people who used oral pills for chelation.

Instead of using costly, invasive procedures to detox, why not try some herbs first? Even if it was a completely worthless investment, your loss wouldn't likely be more than $20. Besides, they actually work! At least this is what the research of Dr. Omura indicated. He discovered quite by accident the ability of one herb to safely chelate metals out of the body. He noticed some of his patients urinating larger levels of toxic metals out than others. He eventually found that the common factor was that these patients all ate Vietnamese soup made with cilantro. Either cilantro leaf, or cilantro seeds (called coriander) are used to detox metals today.

Coriander seed is a very common, delicious and affordable spice. Using this spice (preferably in its raw state) can act as an effective heavy metal detox by itself or as a maintenance herb. Taking a full tablespoon of this herb daily for three weeks can safely pull metals from the body.

Most of the clinical studies for herbal chelation come from Russia (Dr. Omura was a Russian doctor). Garlic (known as Russian penicillan) has also been shown to pull mercury from the system. This is also an herb that can be used regularly for maintenance.

Dr. Christopher liked bugleweed. His Heavy Mineral Bugleweed formula was his combination of choice whenever heavy metal poisoning was presented to him. He used these along with Epsom salt baths. One of his more dramatic cases was with a miner. Dr. Christopher had him take the Heavy Mineral Bugleweed formula with the Blood Stream formula, taking 3 hot baths with a pound of Epsom salts a week, spaced a day a part. After three weeks, that poor miner had to work hard to scrape dense, metallic grime off his bathtub.

After following Dr. Christopher's heavy metal program for three weeks, if any additional help is needed, rest a full week from the baths. The herbs are to be taken during this rest period. When heavy metal cleansing, it is valuable to use a blood cleansing herb (such as chaparral or burdock) along with your program.

Heavy Mineral Bugleweed: Take 2 capsules with 6 capsules of Blood Stream Formula, taking Epsom salt baths as described.

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.

Auto-Immune Disorders

by Nelson, Dr. Christopher’s Herb Shop

It is within the last century that some strange diseases began to emerge. Most of these were unheard of or uncommon before now. A wide variety of diseases fit into this category: Multiple Sclerosis, diabetes, chron's, autism, allergies, etc. All of these have one thing in common, that the body is attacking itself.

It is the immune systems job to determine self from non-self. Some rather hellish symptoms emerge when the immune system overresponds to correct an imbalance. There are many explanations for this. I will be giving the perspective of the School of Natural Healing.

When the body attacks itself, is it functioning or not functioning? Our point of view is that it is functioning, and functioning well. Not to say that we want things to continue to go the way it’s going, but rather than shut down the immune system, why not work with it so it can work effectively? The immune systems fires up when it finds something in the body that isn't supposed to be there, so it works to clear it out. The elements of an alternative program for this kind of program usually consist of removing any waste material in the area, stopping intake of 'alien' matter into the body and strengthening up the afflicted system.

So what do we stop putting in the body? What kind of waste matter? That’s where you will find the controversy. Well, from the School of Natural Healing standpoint, looking at things like autism and chron's, we see a link between these diseases and conventional vaccinations, and consider it a very strong link. The principle of vaccination is a very sound one, but the way it is applied is a point of disagreement. Injecting foreign proteins (from animal organs) under the skin bypasses the immune system. These proteins are not your bodies, and are hard to get rid of, so it attacks them.

This could be a large topic in and of itself, but for the sake of keeping the newsletter briefer, we would encourage the reader to investigate this. We are fond of the book Vaccines: Are they really safe and effective? by Neal Miller.

Dense minerals can be approached with cilantro, the affordable coriander seed, epsom salt baths and Dr. Christopher's Heavy Mineral Bugleweed combination.

Today people are coming down with a lot of wheat allergies. I would not consider most of the grains people eat wheat. The poor thing has been so hybridized and genetically modified it does not in any way resemble the wheat grain from 100 years ago. I know people who can't eat wheat, but can eat spelt or kamut. This certainly isn't always the case, but these grains, especially kamut, come from very old stock. That is the only major difference.

We disagree with genetically modified food. Well over 60% of the food in a typical grocery store has been genetically modified. We are concerned about the body responding poorly to a food it doesn't recognize, and suggest eating 100% organic.

Because there are so many auto-immune disorders, it would be impractical to outline a program for each one here, but there is a simple herbal combination that has a very potent action for each one. It is merely equal parts marshmallow root and astragulus. This would be Dr. Christopher's ImmuCalm formula. The goal is to calm down and strengthen the immune system. This recipe is ages old and has proven its worth.

With simple allergies, this formula alone is very potent. In fact, I remember a woman crying during hay fever season when I told her the manufacturer was out of stock that week. She had used it for years and loved it. This formula can make life bearable in a case of autism, chron's, or any case where you need the immune system to function properly. In big auto-immune disorders, if you used the formula I suggest you buy the bulk herbs. It takes a lot in these circumstances (1-2 TBS or 12-24 capsules), but in bulk a month supply can be purchased for $15 easily. Otherwise the average dosage of 2-6 capsules will be adequate for simple allergies. Since these are tonic herbs, they may be taken regularly in these doses without ill effect. While this formula may not be the cure, it is a worthwhile remedy.

This, combined with herbs specific to the problem area, provides a solid means for a drastic improvement in quality of life, as well as gradual improvement in the condition. Almost all of these disorders require a specific diet to achieve full function, and is worthwhile to investigate. Next week we will discuss effective means for detoxing heavy metals from the body.

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.