medicine

With the season of spring comes new life and beautiful growth! The allergies that can come with the season, on the other hand, are not so beautiful. People often experience such issues as runny nose, sneezing, coughing, and wheezing. Most conventional allergy medicine today can cause unwanted side effects. Thankfully there are herbs out there for just about anything that ails you, including seasonal allergies. Finding the right ones is key to alleviating those symptoms that can cause you discomfort and misery.

OK, I know that sweating is generally viewed as, well, gross. But it turns out, sweating is actually really good for you and it benefits your body in a big way.

Today’s walk through Mother Earth’s Medicine Cabinet will lead us down a path to check out Pine Pollen. All pine trees produce this magnificent pollen that can be harvested or purchased at a health food store. The pollen is not actually pollen -- it is technically considered to be a form of seed. It isn’t packed with flavor but it has a light nutty taste.

Natives in Australia have long known this plant to be a panacea – able to cure almost any ailment. Since they are a deeply mystical people, it would be easy to draw the parallel of how the aborigines would have used knowledge of tea tree and how this knowledge would most certainly have extended into conditions of the mind and the realm of the psychic, beyond the physical. Let us explore further.

Before there was ever the white gelatin, sugary puffs, there was the marshmallow, which unlike the sweet is actually quite an amazing plant. Marshmallow, otherwise known as Althaea officinalis, is a perennial species plant which is native to Europe, Western Asia, and North Africa. The root of the Marshmallow plant has often been used for many different purposes involving both health and medicine. Among many, here are 5 marvelous uses of marshmallow root.

Cedar trees are viewed as being very sacred by Northwest indigenous cultures, and are often harvested for many different purposes. Pretty much all the parts of a cedar tree can be utilized for something. The roots, bark, wood, and withes have been used for practical as well as ceremonial uses. Curious to know some of these neat uses of cedar? Read on to discover 5 of them!

Use # 1: Baskets

Aloe vera is one of nature’s miracles. It is the first thing you grab when you’ve spent a little too much time in the sun. You thank it for soothing your skin, but do you know what else this succulent plant can do? Aloe vera has been called “plant of immortality” and rightfully so. Aloe vera contains essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals that can do wonders for the body both internally and externally. Beyond treating sunburns, aloe vera can provide relief and boost your health in ways you never expected.

Countless life-altering diagnoses root from the same underlying cause, that being inflammation. Causing problems from arthritis to cancer, inflammation wreaks havoc on the body and its organs. One way to explore cures for these issues can be by acknowledging the same source of most all modern health issues: your food.

Processed foods along with those containing high trans fats can cause a serious inflammatory type reaction in the body. Alcohol, caffeine, and sugars are huge culprits for the issue and their intake should be minimal or avoided entirely.

Ayurveda is one of the most ancient scientific approaches to holistic healing in human history. As one of the first collected systems of medicinal practice, the roots of Ayurveda can be found in Tibetan, Traditional Chinese, and Early Greek medicine. Originating in India between five and six thousand years ago, Ayurveda is a holistic form of medicine fundamentally based upon the laws of nature to treat the body, mind and spirit.

Earlier this week, I sat in a sangha among a roomful of spiritual seekers, gathered together in pursuit of a shared goal to reset the self.  Prior to coming, we were given the task to cut physical clutter from our lives. A few folks shared their experiences: various items of stagnant energy ushered into the forsaken trash - the ex’s toothbrush, the taunting pack of cigarettes, the size 4 pants that paraded in the past - or my personal favorite “an ex-boyfriend’s comforter he got from an ex-girlfriend”… folks were purging it all.