Beat the Next Flu and Cold Virus Season with Echinacea – Nature’s Immunity Booster

Looking at Echinacea’s reputation through history is like riding a roller coaster:  It’s up, it’s down, it’s up again.  Before European colonists showed up, the Plains Indians were using this native North American wildflower as a healing herb.  In fact, Native Americans learned of Echinacea angustifolia by observing elk seeking out the plants and consuming them when sick or wounded, and identified those plants as elk root.  The colonists started using it too, and in the 1870s, a Nebraska doctor popularized it as a “blood purifier” and snakebite remedy.
For years, most households in th8is country kept tincture of Echinacea on hand as an infection fighter.  With the advent of antibiotics, however, the herb fell from favor.
Now, thanks to modern medical science, Echinacea is once again receiving favorable attention.  Although it’s no substitute for antibiotics and probably won’t heal snake bites, this herb holds some promise as an immune system booster after all.  In order to re-establish its reputation as a healer, however, this American herb had to do a little traveling.  In Germany, extensive research overt eh past few decades has uncovered a host of infection fighting properties.
“The herb normalizes the number of white blood cells in the blood and helps them surround and destroy bacteria and viruses,” says Dr. Mowrey.  It also slows the spread of infection to surrounding tissue and helps flush toxins away from infected areas , he says.
In several studies, injections of concentrated compounds derived from Echinacea caused people’s immune systems to activate macrophages.  These germ-gobbling cells are crucial to beating infection, and they may have antitumor activity as well.  Echinacea may even play a role in curbing the misery of colds and flu.  In one study done in Germany, liquid Echinacea extract was shown to help ease the symptoms of influenza and speed recovery.
Applied externally as a poultice to wounds, sores, and burns, Echinacea may also protect against infection and stimulate tissue repair and healing.

How to Take Echinacea
To battle a cold or the flu, take Echinacea at the first sign of symptoms.  To duplicate the German flu study, you can take about a teaspoonful of alcohol based tincture a day.
A tea made from Echinacea provides a tasty but somewhat less potent alternative.  To make a tea, pour boiling water over two to three tablespoons of dried, fresh, or powdered herb and steep for five minutes.  Sip over a period of 30 to 90 minutes, and repeat six to eight hours later.

Make Sure it’s the Real Thing
The lack of standardization in American herbal products makes it hard to guarantee even an approximate dosage of a particular compound.  There have also been reports of Echinacea products being adulterated with other herbs.  Therefore, only purchase herbal products from well-established, reputable suppliers.  Echinacea is generally considered safe, although an allergic reaction is always a possibility.   Discontinue use if you experience any adverse effects.

We recommend visiting Native Remedies, they have a wide variety of echinacea products. Click the following link to take advantage of a special offer (Buy two get one free) from Native Remedies…

Herbal Home Remedies for Your Pet

Have you ever wondered if there is an effective, inexpensive, home solution to a problem that your pet may be having?  Thousands of home herbal remedies exist for human conditions—a large portion of these have even been tested by medical science.  But what facts do we have on treating animals with herbal care?

The natural home remedies that work well on humans also, in many cases, work well on family pets.  These treatments can often be safer and more effective, (not to mention less expensive than a visit to the vet) than pharmaceutical medications.  In addition, pharmaceuticals often create negative and even debilitating side effects.

The best treatments for your pets should be a combination of traditional medicine–vets still serve a good purpose in caring for your pets—and careful use of herbal or homeopathic remedies.  And similar to humans, healthy eating, sleeping, and exercise habits are critical to a healthy and happy pet.

A holistic approach should be applied when treating your pets, meaning you should examine all factors that influence your pet’s well being.  Following are a couple of examples of herbal solutions to some common pet ailments…

• Itching Ears can be caused by ear infection, mites, or other skin/ear problems– Product Recommendation: Dr. Ear

• Dr. Ear, ear drops for dogs and cats, contains a number of herbs that are widely used for skin health and ear health including, Tea Tree Oil, Rosemary, Calendula, and Verbascum Thapsus

• Tear Stains can sometimes be caused by a bacterial or yeast infection– Product Recommendations: i-Clenz

• I-Clenz is a cleansing wash that contains natural herbal ingredient that will effectively cleanse unsightly tear stains and support healthy eyes.  Some of the herbs included are Dandelion and German Chamomile.

To find more herbal remedies for your pet, we recommend visiting PetAlive.com.  They have a huge selection of natural, homeopathic pet products at excellent prices!

Herbal Medicine Cures

Herbal medicine is one of the oldest form of health care since the beginning of time.  All over the world, in almost every cultures, history is filled with evidence that out predecessors used herbs for medicinal purposes.  Unlike many modern medicine, they are usually safe and do not have as many side effects.

The late twentieth century saw the benefits of herbal remedies and the use of herb-based medicines increased dramatically.  Now more and more hospitals are starting to offer herbal remedies as an alternative to conventional medicines.  With the popularity of herb medicine, it has become imperative to conduct studies to help medical science understand how herbal medicine works in our body.

Just like conventional medicine, herbal medicine produce side effects also.  It is important to remember that plants contain certain chemicals that product toxicity.  Also, while herbal medicine are usually safe they can be abused.  The chemicals in herbal medicines can create residues in the body and over a long time the toxicity can lead to sickness or even death.

Another factor to consider when using herbal medicine is the fact that it is very risky to mix them with other medications.  Herbal medicine should never be mixed with other herbs and medications.  For this reason, it should never be mixed and match at home.  It is best to consult with your doctor before trying to mix it at home.  There are sources on the internet to learn more on what herb to mix and which one not to.  Remember to carefully check the source of the information before attempting to follow it since the internet is filled with a lot of misleading information.

Furthermore, it is impossible to know how much herbal mixture is safe unless you know precisely the exact contents of the mixture along with the numbers of herbs and the proportional content of each herb.  We know a lot of things on herbal medicine through history, but one thing still remain unsolved is how herbal medicine works.  For this reason, the mixture in the medicine should be taken seriously or the result will be fatal because of certain toxic effects of the chemicals in herbal medicines.

All this information should not deter you from looking at herbal medicine.  If you are interested in it, it is best to leave it to a professional who has the expertise on herbal medicine.  With this type of medicine, you can rest assure that your body will not have any dangerous chemicals going into your body like conventional medicines.

Different Types of Herbal Medicine

There are many positive aspects that herbal medicine have. Unfortunately, the lack of sufficient scientific understandins means doctor cannot be held accountable for what is being prescribed and also the safety factor that involves it.

Over the counter medicine and prescribed medication undergo a vigorous test by the FDA before getting approval for sale.  This entire process ensures that every chemical in the medicine is safe to the human body and are well understood, documented, and scientifically demonstrable.

Herbal medicines are less complicated and because it’s all from natural sources, it does not need FDA approval or scientific testing.  With that being said, a person should take precaution before consuming it because some of the chemicals in the plant might not interact properly with the body and therefore, will result in serious consequences and even death.

So herbal medicines might be risky to consume but there should be no worry if you take the simple step of consulting with your doctor first.  Doctor have the knowledge of what herbs mix properly with others and if it is safe for the body.
With the internet full of websites selling roots and leaves grown in their backyards, use caution when buying them.  Make certain that the herb medicine comes from genuine herbs and not some imitation herbs.  Using the wrong herbs might possible contain toxic chemicals that can make you really sick.

Here are some common forms of herbal medicines:

Head massages - Head massage are known to reduce stress and heaviness in the head or, in some cases, cure headaches.  There are herbs out there that helps aid massaging of the head and help the mind relax.

Pills and capsules - The pills and capsules are believed to not be effective with herbal medicines because professional in herbal medicines believe that the drying and crushing of the herbs rob them of their potency.  Other suggest to gain the most out of the herbal medicine is to consume it in its raw form.  If you are looking for a specific herbal medicine instead of a supplement, then you should not consider the use of pills.

Infusions - Infusions involve the use of different parts (leaves, seeds, and fruits) of a herbal plant to make the tea.  Some ingredients used are red clover, raspberry leaf, and comfrey leaf.  If using herbs instead of tealeaves, this type of infusions is known as Medicinal Strength Tea.  There are a lot of recipes available online for making Medicinal Strength Tea.

These are just a few of the different types of herbal medicines for you to use.  Depending on your preference and taste, you might want to try each one and see which one is right for you.