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Robert McDowell's Herbal Treatments 09 June 2005 Herbal Help for Humans and their CompanionsAyurveda and the Understanding of IlnessAyurveda holds that specific disease conditions are symptoms of an underlying imbalance. It does not neglect relief of these symptoms, but its main focus is on the big picture: to restore balance and to help you create such a healthy lifestyle that the imbalance won't occur again. Living in health and balance is the key to a long life free from disease. Perhaps the most important lesson Ayurveda has to teach is that our health is up to us. Every day of our lives, every hour of every day, we can, and do, choose either health or illness. When we choose wisely, nature rewards us with health and happiness. When we persistently choose unwisely, nature, in her wisdom, eventually sets us straight: She makes us sick and gives us a chance to rest and rethink our choices. Anything that enters our body (microcosm) can exert three possible effects on the organism. It can act as food. This nourishes the organism It can act as medicine. This balances the organism It can act as poison. This disturbs the organism. The five elements may exert one, two, or all three of these effects. The rule that governs the interaction between the environment and the organism is the Law of Like and Unlike. Like increases like. Unlike decreases like. For example, when you lie in full sun, your body temperature goes up. Similarly, when you take a bath in cold water, your body temperature goes down. Everything you experience, food, medicine, or poison, increases like parts of your microcosm and decreases those parts that are unlike it. Similarly, thought also enters your microcosm. Thought can be positive or negative and will influence your being. Goods thoughts cheer you up. Bad thoughts will poison you and decrease your good feelings. Knowing what is good and what is not so good for your personal self enables you to make informed choices in your life. Right thoughts and attitudes actually induce prosperity. Evil thoughts and bad deeds will not result in prosperity, but to the ultimate ruin of the microcosm. This week we feature:-
Canine - Allergy Desensitisation Program My approach to allergy is to deal with the oversensitivity directly rather than to identify all the substances which show up as allergens and then run a program of desensitisation toward all these substances to try to train the immune system. This process is really pretty successful when done using homeopathic agents but the skin prick desensitisation programs are long drawn out and very expensive and I have never seen very satisfactory results from them. They start out assuming that the substances (allergens) are the problem and not the immune system. The opposite is the truth and it far better to work on the immune system itself to bring it back to normal. The other problem with dog skin problems is that every reaction to every substance produces histamines in the blood and these keep building up and also produce more toxins in the blood which must then be cleared. In my experience dog skin problems respond much more effectively by working to clear these blood toxins internally than using a method which by definition only produces more. My recommendation is to dump the desensitisation program and put your dog on a simple and inexpensive internal mix to begin with: See: http://www.herbal-dogkeeping.com/dog_skin_allergy_acute_irritation.html Then after three or four weeks combine this with a blood cleansing mix. See: http://www.herbal-dogkeeping.com/dog_skin_blood_cleanser.html Equine - Contracted Flexor Tendons in 6 month old Foal If you have foal with such acondition start with Crushed millet & flaxseed, it must be crushed or boiled, a cup of each made into a porridge & mixed into food halve am & pm. Crushing OR Boiling the flaxseed gets rid of the Prussic Acid in the flaxseed and it is this acids that is toxic over time. If it is whole, mix a cup full of each and cover them with boiling water, let it soak over night. This should be split into two and half given with morning feed and half with afternoon feed. If you wish you can add a little molasses to the boiling water. Further you should try to source some fresh comfrey leaves and add one chopped up comfrey leaf into each feed after the foal has gotten used to the above. Purchase Dr Bach's Rescue remedy at a chemist or health food store & dose the foal regularly. Massage the tendons twice daily with raw flaxseed oil to improve elasticity of the ligaments & tendons, this is vitally important. For the pain & discomfort steer away from Bute it has too many side effects especially for a young horse & you'll be causing gastro intestinal problems on top of the current issue. For the pain I recommend for the pain the inflammatory tonic, it is quick & very effective to use with no side effects see link & halve the recommended dosage; http://www.herbal-horsekeeping.com/horse_anti_inflammatory_healer.html Human - What is a boil? A boil, also referred to as a skin abscess, is a localized infection deep in the skin. A boil generally starts as a reddened, tender area. Over time, the area becomes firm and hard. Eventually, the center of the abscess softens and becomes filled with infection-fighting white blood cells that the body sends from the blood stream to eradicate the infection. This collection of white blood cells, bacteria, and proteins is known as pus. Finally, the pus "forms a head," which can be surgically opened or spontaneously drain out through the surface of the skin. There are several different types of boils. Among these are: Furuncle or carbuncle: This is an abscess in the skin caused by the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus. A furuncle can have one or more openings onto the skin and may be associated with a fever or chills. Cystic Acne: This is a type of abscess that is formed when oil ducts become clogged and infected. Cystic acne affects deeper skin tissue that the more superficial inflammation from common acne. Cystic acne is most common on the face and typically occurs in the teenage years. Hidradenitis suppurativa: This is a condition in which there are multiple abscesses that form under the arm pits and often in the groin area. These areas are a result of local inflammation of the sweat glands. This form of skin infection is difficult to treat with mainstream treatments and doctors typically resort to a surgical procedure to remove the involved sweat glands in order to stop the skin inflammation. Pilonidal cyst: This is a unique kind of abscess that occurs in the crease of the buttocks. Pilonidal cysts often begin as tiny areas of infection in the base of the area of skin from which hair grows (the hair follicle). With irritation from direct pressure over time the inflamed area enlarges to become a firm, painful, tender nodule making it difficult to sit without discomfort. These frequently form after long trips that involve prolonged sitting. Boils are a sign of blood toxins accumulating and of your robust immune system seeking to expel them directly through the skin because for some reason other avenues of expulsion are unavailable. I make up a blood cleansing mix formula for a description see the site below; http://www.altivoe.com/herbs_blood_poisoning.html Home Remedies - BOILS * Apply neat tea tree oil, or undiluted lemon juice. * Bread poultice to draw a boil: Put breadcrumbs in a calico bag, or between two layers of gauze. Dip into boiling water and wring out. Apply to the boil and cover to keep hot. Have a second poultice ready to apply when the first one cools. * Cooked, hot mashed onion can also be used as a boil poultice. Reader Feed Back Hello, Thankyou for your help with our ill cat. She has not agreed with everything, but she is finally getting better. She did not tolerate the onion for very long, so even though it sealed one of her ulcers, it made her ill in other ways. We had used a betadine spray (iodine) for a while and it helped her skin but made her ill after awhile. She became very skinny and stopped eating. When she refused to eat, even when we spoon-fed her, we got really worried. We figured out that it might be the smell of her ulcer (the second one, which appeared as the other went away), and frantically searched for something that would stop the smell and hopefully cure it, without making her even sicker. My mother remembered that some Indian spices should do that. She searched the internet and found a lot of information about Turmeric, Cayenne Pepper, Henna etc. We then tried to find if any were safe for cats. Turmeric is. We were still worried that it might sting, but Snowy seemed very relaxed and let us put the paste (Turmeric powder with water) on her skin and into her ulcer. The smell stopped immediately!!!! Snowy seemed relaxed and relieved as we put the paste on her, and started looking for food only a few minutes later!!!! She ate almost her normal portion of food without any prompting. We were so thrilled!! For the past fortnight she had only eaten when we had spoon-fed her, and had even started to refuse that. As soon as she ate, she also drank quite a lot of water, and then ate a few more times that evening. She even went to her food and water during the night, and again the next morning. She ate almost her normal amount during the first day. Her appetite was almost normal, instantly. She has been on Turmeric for 4 days now, and she has put on a little weight, and continues to eat by herself. The Turmeric paste sticks to the sore and ulcer, but does fall off in small pieces as she moves. It also makes her fur and bedding (and us) yellow. We gave her a bath today and removed most of the turmeric (only comes off if immersed in warm water) and looked at her sores. The ulcer has become much smaller and shallower, and stopped oozing. The red skin has become very close to normal skin. We put more turmeric on her and she seems content. She has been totally different in the past 4 days, joining us all near the fire, and teasing the dog again. We still worry about her as her hind right leg is still swollen, but it seems to be getting better. She has also gone to her toilet on her own, as she used to do, and has rediscovered her scratching post. We just thought you might like to know about turmeric and how it has affected her. Perhaps you know of some side-effects that we don`t know of, or perhaps this information may help someone else. She is not completely healed yet, so we will see if her progress continues. We will keep you informed. Paula We value your feedback so much that we are making it easier for you to send us a sentence or two. Please fill in the form below and click 'Submit' Wishing you and your companions the best of health and happiness. Yours Truly, Judith Burton for Robert McDowell |
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