[The7thFire] The Original 4 Herb Formula for Essiac Tea

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Misty L. Trepke

http://health.

 

 

The Original Four-herb Formula for Essiac Tea

by Lanny Messinger

http://www.the7thfire.com/health_and_nutrition/original_essiac.htm

 

 

On a fateful day in 1922 Canadian nurse Rene Caisse happened to

notice some scar tissue on the breast of an elderly woman. The woman

said that doctors had diagnosed her with breast cancer years before.

However, the woman didn't want to risk surgery nor did she have the

money for it. As luck would have it, she had met an old Indian

medicine man who told her that he could cure her cancer with an

herbal tea. The woman took the medicine man's advice, and

consequently she was still alive nearly 30 years later to pass on

this herbal remedy to Nurse Caisse.

About a year later, Rene Caisse was walking beside a retired doctor

who pointed to a common weed and stated: " Nurse Caisse, if people

would use this weed there would be little or no cancer in the

world. "

 

The " weed " was one of the herbs in the medicine man's formula --

sheep sorrel. The doctor had watched his horse cure itself of cancer

by repeatedly grazing in a particular part of the pasture where

sheep sorrel grew.

 

In 1924 she decided to test the tea on her aunt who had cancer of

the stomach and was given about six months to live. Her aunt lived,

cancer free, for another 21 years.

 

Rene Caisse's (pronounced " Reen Case " ) 72-year-old mother had been

diagnosed with inoperable cancer of the liver and only had a few

days to live. She gave the tea to her mother who recovered and lived

without cancer for another 18 years.

 

In the ensuing years Nurse Caisse refined and perfected the original

Indian formula. She tested it on mice and on human cancer patients.

She called the formula Essiac, which is her surname spelled

backwards.

 

Rene Caisse devoted over 50 years of her life to treating thousands

of cancer patients with Essiac. So effective were her free

treatments that in 1938 her supporters gathered 55,000 signatures

for a petition to present to the Ontario legislature to make essiac

an official cancer treatment.

 

Initially, Rene was not aware of the control that the

medical/pharmaceutical establishment had over governments. She was

continually threatened with arrest until she finally withdrew from

public view.

 

Unlike Nurse Caisse, the medical establishment was more interested

in making money than in helping people. Essiac was cheap. It could

cut into the lucrative profits from radiation, chemotherapy and

surgery -- treatments that often did more harm than good. Essiac is

non-toxic. Rene said, " Chemotherapy should be a criminal offense. "

 

The complete story of Rene Caisse's struggle to make Essiac an

official cancer treatment was told by Dr. Gary Glum in his book

CALLING OF AN ANGEL: ESSIAC, NATURE'S CURE FOR CANCER. Dr. Glum

emphatically states that people who take Essiac on a regular,

preventive basis do not get cancer. Dr. Glum interviewed JFK's

personal physician, Dr. Charles Brusch, who stated: " I know Essiac

has curing potential. It can lessen the condition of the individual,

control it, and it can cure it. "

 

Dr. Ralph Moss was appointed to the Cancer Advisory Panel that

evaluates alternative cancer therapies for the government. On his

web site and in his book CANCER THERAPY, Dr. Moss points out that

each of the herbs in Essiac has been scientifically shown to contain

anticancer substances. In his " Cancer Chronicles "

[www.ralphmoss.com], Dr. Moss notes Essiac's rising popularity by

comparing Essiac's four-cent a day cost to a $150,000 bone marrow

transplant.

 

Essiac: More than just a cancer treatment

 

Dr. Frederick Banting, the co-discoverer of insulin, became

interested in Essiac and even offered Nurse Caisse research

facilities to test it. According to Rene, he believed that Essiac

must somehow stimulate the pancreatic gland into functioning

properly. Even today diabetics are using essiac to improve their

condition and many have gone off insulin entirely.

 

Essiac has become widely known for its remarkable ability to boost

the immune system and detoxify the body. Many people are reporting

that they no longer catch colds or flu by taking essiac regularly.

 

BURDOCK ROOT

 

(Arctium lappa)

 

For centuries burdock root has been regarded as an effective blood

purifier that neutralizes and eliminates poisons from the body.

Burdock contains a volatile oil -- especially in the seeds -- that

is eliminated through the sweat glands, taking toxins with it and

alleviating skin problems. Burdock contains niacin, which is known

to eliminate poisons from the body, including radiation. Burdock

also supports the bladder, kidney and liver and has been said to

dissolve kidney stones. It also contains an abundance of minerals,

particularly iron. Studies have shown antitumor activity in burdock.

Japanese scientists have isolated an antimutation property in

burdock, which they call the " B factor " . The Japanese grow burdock

root for food as well as medicine. A memorandum from the World

Health Organization revealed that burdock was effective against HIV.

 

SHEEP SORREL

 

(Rumex acetosella)

 

Rene Caisse isolated sheep sorrel leaves as the main essiac herb

that dissolves cancerous tumors. Dr. Ralph Moss points out that

sheep sorrel contains aloe emodin, a natural substance that shows

significant antileukemic activity. Sheep sorrel contains

antioxidants, is diuretic and has been used to check hemorrhages. It

has also been used for food, but it does contain oxalic acid which

can interfere with calcium absorption.

 

SLIPPERY ELM

 

(Ulmus rubra/fulva)

 

Slippery elm is well-known for its soothing properties. It reduces

inflammations such as sore throat, diarrhea and urinary problems. It

has been regarded as both a food and medicine. Dr. Moss noted

that " slippery elm contains beta-sitosterol and a polysaccharide,

both of which have shown [anti-cancer] activity. "

 

TURKEY RHUBARB ROOT

 

(Rheum palmatum)

 

Turkey Rhubarb has been shown to have antitumor activity. It is

diuretic, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and has been used

extensively to relieve constipation. It is medicinally more potent

than garden rhubarb root and is more palatable.

 

CAVEAT EMPTOR

 

Due to the ever-increasing popularity of Essiac, numerous

entrepreneurs have jumped on the Essiac bandwagon with their own

four, six, or eight-herb products. Unfortunately, Rene never

published the formula. Tempers flare and egos clash in the

continuing conflict over who has the correct formula or the best

product. Curiously, ESSIAC didn't become a trademark name until

several years after Dr. Glum released the Essiac recipe into the

public domain. Yellow dock is often substituted for sheep sorrel.

Imported turkey rhubarb has either been irradiated, fumigated or

both. So how do you know if you are buying the real, unaltered

Essiac?

 

The backbiting and blatant disinformation that has obfuscated the

Essiac formula has compelled me to clarify the issues.

Unfortunately, Rene is not alive today to remind people that it's

all about helping to relieve suffering, not money. So here are the

plain, non-commercial facts:

 

Essiac is truly a multi-cultural phenomenon. Many Essiac marketers

say it's an Ojibwe Indian formula. However, there is no evidence

that the original Indian medicine man was from northern Ontario's

Ojibwe tribe. He could have been Algonquin, Cree, Cherokee, Huron or

Iroquois. Also, turkey rhubarb is native to China, not northern

Ontario. Both burdock and sheep sorrel were brought to this

continent from Europe by early settlers who then passed on their

herbal knowledge to the local tribes. Slippery elm is the only

Essiac herb native to North America.

 

The only person Rene Caisse trusted to help her make Essiac was her

best friend, Mary McPherson, who knew the formula by heart. However,

Mary had made a deathbed promise to Rene never to reveal the formula

to anyone. Mary would have taken the Essiac formula to her grave,

too, had it not been for Dr. Gary Glum. He purchased the formula

from one of Rene's patients and published it in 1988. Mary was more

than a little surprised when Dr. Glum told her the formula.

According to Dr. Glum, Mary eventually revealed the formula because

it was no longer a secret and she wanted to end the controversy over

it.

 

One of the reasons Rene kept the Essiac formula secret was that she

didn't trust people to make it properly and she thought that it

would be altered. She was right. For example, in the 1980s Canadian

talk show host Elaine Alexander marketed her own version of the

formula containing eight herbs, which she called " FLOR ESSENCE "

[trademark]. She subsequently died of cancer.

 

Even today a common misconception still exists that Elaine

Alexander's formula is the original Essiac formula. According to Dr.

Glum's sources, the original Indian formula contained only four

herbs. Every herbal formula has its own synergy and therefore

creates a specific effect. Essiac works -- Why change it by adding

more herbs that may diminish or cancel out its proven healing

powers?

 

THE FORMULA

 

Anyone can verify, with a computer, the correct Essiac formula that

Mary McPherson entrusted to the town of Bracebridge, Ontario. Simply

visit " The Rene M. Caisse Memorial Room " at www.octagonalhouse.com

and click on the green " Essiac " link. There you will see this

formula:

 

* 6 1/2 cups cut up Burdock Root

 

* 1 pound powdered Sheep Sorrel

 

* 1/4 cup powdered Slippery Elm Bark

 

* 1 ounce powdered Turkish Rhubarb Root

 

[The burdock root should be cut up into pea-sized pieces -- all

other ingredients are powdered. Store ingredients in a dark, cool,

dry place in sealed containers.]

 

THE RECIPE

 

The preparation of Essiac is as important as the formula itself.

Essiac is a decoction, not an infusion. An infusion is what people

do when they put a tea bag in a cup of hot water. Generally

speaking, an infusion tends to extract vitamins and volatile oils. A

decoction is used to extract minerals, etc. from roots, bark or

seeds by boiling for ten minutes and then allowing the herbs to

steep for several hours. Entrepreneurs often sell Essiac imitations

in tincture form (herbs in alcohol) or in gelatin capsules; neither

form is Essiac because Essiac is a decoction.

 

1. Using a stainless steel pot and lid, boil 1/2 cup of herb mix in

one gallon of pure, unchlorinated water for ten minutes.

 

2. Turn off heat and allow herbs to steep for 12 hours.

 

3. Heat up tea to steaming, but not boiling. Allow herbs to settle a

couple minutes.

 

4. Strain off hot liquid into sterilized canning jars. The remaining

pulp can be used for healing poultices.

 

5. Refrigerate tea. For long-term storage use the boiling water bath

canning method and store in a cool, dark, dry place.

 

6. For preventive purposes, people take 1 to 2 oz. (1/8 to 1/4 cup)

per day diluted with about 1/2 cup hot water. Herbalists recommend

increasing daily water intake due to diuretic and detoxifying

action. People who are using Essiac to treat an illness or to

eliminate toxins, sometimes take Essiac two or three times a day,

depending on the situation. Do not eat or drink anything (except

water) one hour before to one hour after taking Essiac; bedtime is

recommended.

 

Make sure that the sheep sorrel you use is the small, wild variety

of sheep sorrel and not a substitute like yellow dock or garden

sorrel. Don't use imported turkey rhubarb root. Many Essiac

merchants are unaware of the quality of their herbs. The best way to

insure that you're getting true Essiac is to grow the herbs

yourself. This puts you in control of product quality and takes out

the commercialism. Burdock root is harvested in the fall of the

first year. Slippery elm bark is wildcrafted and is easy to buy, but

should also be homegrown so it doesn't become endangered. Turkey

Rhubarb is the only herb in Essiac that cannot be wildcrafted in the

U.S. It is an attractive ornamental that can be grown in a flower

bed or garden.

 

SOURCES FOR ESSIAC

 

The following sources for Essiac herbs will ship products and will

accept 100% of the purchase price in NORFED Liberty Dollars:

 

Brent Reed

newearthresource

826 10th St, Huntington, West Virginia (herbs)

 

Scott Brown

www.naturesalternatives.com

3531 W. Glendale Ave #226

Phoenix, Arizona (herbs)

 

Lanny Messinger

tlcrealdollars

301 Chicken Rd

Endicott, Washington (herbs, seeds, live plants)