Aloe Vera

Aloe Vera

Jo Francks MH

The warmer weather is an invitation to get outdoors and enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Often it’s a time that we over expose our skin to the rays of the sun and end up with a painful sunburn. We are able to use the sun’s rays to produce vitamin D only until the skin begins to turn pink. That time frame varies depending on one’s skin type. Aloe Vera gel is one of the first things many people look to for sunburn or any other type of burn. The quickest way to use it is to get the gel fresh from the leaves by cutting a piece of the leaf and splitting it open and placing the cut leaf right on the burn or gently rubbing the fresh gel onto a larger area of a sunburn.

Aloe Vera has long been considered an important Medicine. Aside from burns, it has also been used for wounds, stomach pain and digestive disorders, constipation, headache, itching, baldness, mouth and gum diseases, kidney ailments, blistering, and blemishes. Native Americans called the plant “wands of heaven” and used it for healing, especially for burns and other ailments. Other external uses include treatment for all kinds of wounds such as scrapes, cuts, etc. The gel seems to mildly kill the germs on the surface and promote healing.

Aloe Vera penetrates the skin quickly and deeply. This allows water and other moisturizers to sink deeply into the skin, restoring lost fluids and replacing the fatty layer. It permits the uronic acids, which strip toxic materials of their harmful effects, to penetrate deeply and allows the cleansing astringent qualities of the gel to work better. By increasing the circulation of the blood to an area, Aloe Vera sloughs off the dead cells and fosters the growth of new ones. This helps foster the regeneration of scarred or blemished skin tissue and provides a protective coating on the skin to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria. This antiseptic action also stops skin infections (acne) in oil-clogged pores. It heals blemishes with little or no scarring. It is also said to replace lost hair and eliminate liver spots.

Aloe Vera makes a nice house plant. It is easy to grow and requires very little care. When the soil dries out it needs to be watered. Repot when the plant outgrows the pot and when many little starts form. When you need the plant for use, just pinch off an adequate section of leaf, trim off the prickles, and squeeze out the gel or apply directly to the wound.

Artemisia

Artemisia:

Jo Francks MH

The International Herb Association has declared the genus Artemisia as herb of the year for 2014. There are 2 herbs from the Artemisia genus on the School of Natural Healings 100 herb list. Artemisia tridentata, whose common name is desert sage and Artemisia absenthium or wormwood.

Artemesia tridentate or desert sage is a plant that grows abundantly here in Utah. After a summer rain it fills the air with its pleasant aroma. It is used as a tonic and blood cleanser and to help to regulate female issues. The branches of this plant are bound together and used as smudge sticks to clear the air when burned.

Wormwood is usually used in combination with other herbs. It will expel worms and is a good liver tonic and digestive aid. A tincture made from the fresh leaves makes a good liniment for sore muscles, sprains and bruises.  The dried leaves have been hung in pantries and storage areas to keep bugs away.

Both of these herbs are very bitter. Use a teaspoon per cup of boiling water and steep for 30 minutes. A cold infusion is best used with desert sage and left to steep a few hours or overnight.

Help for Arthritis

Help For Arthritis

Jo Francks MH

I was recently asked by a woman who had arthritis in her hands what could be done to help her. She showed me that she could only close her hands half way into a fist. I recommended that she use apple cider vinegar in a solution of 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar and 1 tablespoon of honey in a glass of distilled water and drink this solution 3 times a day. I also told her about Dr. Christopher’s Joint Formula and that the dosage for this formula is 2 capsules 3 times a day. The herbs in the Joint formula are designed to dissolve deposits, cleanse and relieve pain. They help the body move towards wellness. I forgot about this conversation I’d had with her until I saw her a couple of weeks later. She brought up the fact that she had been using the apple cider vinegar solution and the joint formula faithfully since I had told her about them. She showed me that she could now close her hand almost all the way into a fist. Because the change was gradual to her she wasn’t sure if the formulas were helping. I reminded her that she could only close her hand half way the last time we talked. We were both pleasantly surprised at the progress she had made with just using the joint formula and the apple cider vinegar and honey drink.

This reminded me of another incident that happened after teaching a class on herbal health. I was approached by a man who had been using a cane for years. That day he didn’t have his cane. He was very excited to tell me that he had been taking apple cider vinegar every day and his arthritis was clearing up. He didn’t need his cane any more.  So many people have been helped by using these simple and safe remedies.

Dr. Christopher recommended the apple cider vinegar and honey drink to many of his clients. It is very good for digestive problems such as GERD. It also helps balance the Ph in the body, and it has been used to help build up the friendly flora in the intestines.

Red Clover

Red Clover

Jo Francks MH

Red clover is an herb that is given to us as a blessing for many different ailments. It has been used for centuries and is well know as a treatment and prevention for cancer. It is also useful as a tonic for nerves and as a sedative for nervous exhaustion. It has been mentioned as a treatment for bronchial troubles and whooping cough. It is healing to wounds and can be made into an ointment for the treatment of wounds and skin problems like psoriasis and eczema.

Modern research has found that red clover blossoms contain isoflavones, plant based chemicals that produce estrogen-like effects in the body. Isoflavones have shown potential in the treatment of a number of conditions associated with menopause, such as hot flashes, cardiovascular health, and osteoporosis.

Dr. Christopher’s Blood Stream formula is based around red clover blossoms having 6 parts of the herb. Some women have found that taking the Blood Stream formula for other conditions has reduced their frequency of hot flashes. The Blood Stream formula is used along with the Lower Bowel, Kidney, and Liver Gallbladder formulas as an extended herbal cleanse. Start the herbal cleanse by taking 2 capsules of the Lower Bowel formula 3 times a day and 2 capsules of the kidney formula twice a day. These two formulas are taken for two weeks before adding the Liver Gallbladder formula, 2 capsules 3 times a day or a dropperful of the extract 3 times a day. Stay on these 3 formulas for another week and then add the Bloodstream formula, 2 capsules 3 times a day. It is recommended that these formulas be taken for six weeks up to six months always resting from the formulas on the seventh day.

Red Clover has a direct action in improving the nutrition of the brain. It is especially helpful when there is general mental failure, with loss of memory of words, or when there is confusion of ideas of functional causes. It is also useful when there is weakness of the lower extremities, or of the feet from deficient capillary circulation.

This is an herb that can be gathered when the blossoms are in full bloom and is safe to use for many ailments.  

Food and Cancer

Foods Known to Prevent Cancer

Jo Francks MH

In the book Eat to Live by Dr. Joel Fuhrman there are many references to foods that help prevent cancer and other diseases. Following are some quotes from the book.

Pg. 5; High protein diet (and diets rich in animal products and low in fruits and unrefined carbohydrates) are likely to significantly increase a person’s risk of colon cancer. Scientific studies show a clear and strong relationship between cancers of the digestive tract, bladder and prostate with low fruit consumption.

Pg. 35; Fruit consumption has been shown in numerous studies to offer our strongest protection against certain cancers, especially oral and esophageal, lung, prostate, pancreatic, and colorectal cancer.

Pg. 55; Observational studies around the world continue to find that the risk of colorectal cancer is lower among populations with high intakes of fruits and vegetables and that the risk changes on adoption of a different diet.

Pg. 62; Raw vegetables and fresh fruits have powerful anti-cancer agents. Studies have repeatedly shown the correlation between consumption of these foods and a lower incidence of various cancers, including those of the breast, colon, rectum, lung, stomach, prostate, and pancreas. This means that your risk of cancer decreases with an increased intake of fruits and vegetables, and the earlier in life you start eating large amounts of these foods, the more protection you get.

Pg. 80; The major cause of all diseases afflicting Americans today is a produce-deficient diet. On any given day, no fruit whatsoever passes the lips of half of all Americans.

Pg. 90; Vegetable and fruits protect against all types of cancers if consumed in large enough quantities. Raw vegetables have the most powerful anti-cancer properties of all foods.

Pg. 160; many diets have people afraid to eat healthful fresh fruits because they contain carbohydrates. Fruit consumption, however, shows powerful dose-response association with a reduction in heart disease, cancer and all-cause mortality.

Pg. 226; a high intake of refined grains in the diet is linked to common cancers. A high intake of fruits has the opposite effect. Fruits protect powerfully against cancer.

There are many diets that don’t allow any fruits to be eaten. Some of those diets are anti-cancer diets. Others are weight loss diets. The research I have done points to fresh fruits and vegetables to be the main foods that help prevent cancer and other major illnesses. In order to overcome illness and disease it is suggested that 80 percent of the calories eaten come from fresh fruits and vegetables. Any patient of Dr. Christopher’s who had an incurable illness was put on a diet of fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds and when they followed that diet most of them got well. Hopefully our readers are enjoying the abundance of the fresh fruits and vegetables of the season with the intention of having excellent health and vitality.