Guest guest Posted January 25, 2004 Report Share Posted January 25, 2004 Yarrow (Achillea millefolium); (Compositae) Dr. Christopher said that Yarrow is one of the greatest diaphoretic herbs. It will raise the heat of the body, equalize the circulation and produce perspiration, when taken hot. Dr. Christopher reminded us that the old herbalists stated that " the home without Yarrow will have death therein when the plagues come " . Brigham Young, the Mormon Prophet, said that in the last days, people will be blessed who know how to use Yarrow. Dr. Christopher recalled that during the great influenza epidemic of 1918, about twenty million people died the world over, two million being in the United States. He remembered that as a boy people were not allowed to go out in public during the epidemic without wearing surgical masks. If you were found without the mask, you could be arrested. " We have been warned that during the plagues yet to come we will have far worse influenza epidemics than in the past. People will die in such large numbers that these epidemics will fulfill prophecies that black crepe would be on nearly ever door. You can have one of the few homes wherein " `death does not visit' if you will see that your family rebuilds their bodies by proper eating, staying on the mucusless diet, and having Yarrow or some other good diaphoretic herbs on had at all times " (Herbalist: 1:6:196). Dr. Christopher taught the standard herbalist's view of fever, that it is a signal of malfunction happening in the body, so one must turn to the cause to get rid of it. If you suppress the fever with aspirin or some other drug, the heart has to work that much harder to pump not only the original toxicity from the body, but also the corpses of the germs. This can damage the heart, the kidneys, the nervous system, the circulatory system--all of the body--and eventually result in rheumatoid arthritis, crippling arthritis, muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, and other similar ailments (Ibid.). When there are toxic materials in the body, germs enter. These live on the dead materials. The body builds a fever for incubation and multiplication of the germs, because the more germs that there are, the faster toxins are removed from the body. The germs must have moist heat to reproduce quickly. Without a great deal of added moisture, the body dehydrates itself trying to furnish the moisture needed. This can result in a dry fever, which can kill. With a moist fever, however,the fever can go higher and higher, causing more and more germs to consume the toxins in the body. When the body is clean, the germs leave because there are no more toxins left to live on; they will not consume healthy cell structure and cannot hurt the healthy human body. During the fever, liquids must be given to the patient, such as juices, herb teas, and distilled water. Yarrow tea, among the diaphoretics, is especially useful because it raises the temperature naturally, opens the pores for waste to escape, and promotes perspiration. As long as moisture is going into the body and perspiration is occurring, there is little damage that can be done by fevers. This sweating, or diaphoresis, is essential to healing in such a situation--and in many others--because if the pores of the skin are closed, the bloodstream soon becomes impure, poisoning the whole system. Dr. Christopher taught that no matter where the trouble may be in the body, provided the general circulation is involved, you can dramatically help the situation by diaphoresis. This is why Yarrow is so valuable. He cited that inflammation of the lungs, pleurisy, peritonitis, inflammation in the stomach, spleen, bowels, kidneys, bladder, uterus or brain--everywhere in the body--can be healed by diaphoretic treatment. One of the most dramatic treatments Dr. Christopher recommended is his Cold Sheet Treatment. Although it is detailed elsewhere, the reader might benefit from a brief rehearsal of the procedure here. lie said that when the epidemics come, you will be able to save many lives that would otherwise be lost without this remarkable aid. It can be used safely in any inflammatory disease, on anyone, from newly-born infants to the very aged. Dr. Loretta Foote, formerly Dr. Christopher's staff obstetrician, never lost a full-term baby in all her years of practice, even when they were born with respiratory congestion, or even pneumonia. She used the cold sheet treatment on cases when the babies were only minutes or hours old. This treatment is commenced by giving the patient an enema, which Dr. Christopher said should only be done in an emergency, such as a high fever. Cold tea, such as catnip, mint, Yarrow, red raspberry,etc., or cold water may be used. A hot enema relaxes the lower bowel and anus area, causing them to expand and quickly void, but the cold will contract the area and retain the liquid until it soaks further into the encrusted and hardened fecal matter to ensure a large evacuation. After this enema, a small enema called an injection is given. You make the liquid for this by placing in a blender container one to two cups apple cider vinegar and water in equal amounts. Turn the blender on and add several peeled cloves of garlic. Do not make this too thick to go through the neck of the enema syringe. If no blender is available, chop or grate the garlic finely and mix with cool or cold water and apple cider vinegar mixture. Have the patient lie with his buttocks elevated with pillows or padding and inject the garlic tea into the rectum, having the patient hold it in as long as possible (ten to fifteen minutes) before voiding it. Babies can be given the enema and diapered, allowed to toddle or crawl if they wish, or to be held. They usually retain this injection for the required length of time and, interestingly, the garlic aroma appears on their breath within just a few minutes. Then place the patient in a hot tub, as hot as possible without scalding the skin. To this hot tub add one ounce of ginger, one ounce of cayenne, and one ounce of dry mustard, all in powdered form. Be sure to coat the mucous membranes of the genitalia with vaseline or some other low- vibration ointment so that the herbs will not cause stinging and pain. Stir the bath well and have the patient sit and sweat. These herbs open the pores of the body to allow oxygen in liquid form to enter and the poisons and toxic materials to be dispersed. While the patient is in the tub, give him one or more cups of hot Yarrow tea, which will cause him to sweat even more. If your patient is a child, you can give camomile tea, which has a more acceptable taste to children. Even a baby bottle of the tea can be given. Although in infections it is preferable not to give the tea sweetened, for children it may be necessary to lightly sweeten the tea, perhaps with sweet herb (Stevia). The person may eventually tell you that he is tired; you can tell when children get tired as they seem limp. Have him stand up and wrap around him a large, wet sheet taken out of cold water or ice water. Pin it down the side from neck to feet. Squeeze out some of the water before putting on the sheet so it will not trail water as the person is walked or carried to bed. Have the bed prepared with a rubber sheet or plastic sheet over the mattress. Cover this with a dry cotton sheet and lay the patient on the sheet, covered with another cotton sheet, and the then natural-fiber blankets, well- tucked in. Do not use synthetics during any part of this treatment, as they will not allow the toxins to escape. When the patient is tucked into bed, uncover his feet and oil them thoroughly with olive oil. While you do this, you can give a short acupressure treatment all over the foot to help speed the healing. Then apply garlic paste, which has been previously prepared by mincing or mashing several cloves of garlic and mixing them with olive oil to make an ointment. This should be applied a half to three-fourths inch thick all over the soles of the feet and bound lightly with gauze or two- inch strips of old cotton sheets. Pull over this a large white cotton or wool sock, pin the wet sheet over the bottom and let him go to sleep. He will sleep well from the effects of the Yarrow tea. The next morning he will want to get up and be active, because he feels so well from the cleansing. Take him out of bed and sponge him down with a half-and-half combination of warm apple cider vinegar and distilled water to remove the perspiration on the body. Freshen the bed, put clean pajamas on the person, and have him rest. If he is hungry, do not give heavy foods, but only herb teas, water, or fruit or vegetable juices, having him swish them around in the mouth to mix well with the saliva. The large sheet used in the treatment will likely be stained with various colors, depending on what the patient had taken into his system: black from coal tar (aspirin and other medicines made from tar), yellow from inorganic sulphur (sulfa drugs, cooked eggs, preserved fruits, etc.,) green from arsenic in medicine and sprayed foods, red from iodine, purple from potassium permanganate, brown from coffee, chocolate, tobacco, and so on. These toxins accumulated in the body and slowed down healing for years. Although it is too bad to have them in the sheet, they are better there than in the person's body! After the body is cleansed, you can be sure to maintain health by proper diet, air, water, clothing, exercise and balanced activity. MILFOIL Yarrow is one of the ancient herbs. It originated in Europe, but was introduced in the United States and now it is fully naturalized. It grows everywhere freely except in the Southwest, and is particularly common in the Eastern portion the States. In Europe, it has long been valued as an important medicinal herb. Dioscorides said that it will help recent inflamed ulcers, being smeared on green. It was also given for epilepsy, with water and salt. Yarrow was formerly much esteemed as a wound herb, and its old names of Soldier's Wound Wort and Knight's Milfoil testify to this. It was also called Herba Militaris, all of which suggest that it was used as a ready-to-hand field bandage for battle wounds, " although its value for stanching flows of blood is doubtful, " claims one herbalist (Coon:46). Gerard says that it is the same plant with which Achilles stanched bleeding of his solider, hence the name of the genus, Achillea. Others saythat it was discovered by a certain Achilles, Chiron's disciple. It specific name, millefolium, is derived from the many segments of its foliage, hence also its popular name, Milfoil or Thousand Weed. The name Old Man's Pepper refers to the astringent quality of the herb and the fact that it has been employed as a snuff. In the seventeenth century, it was also used as an ingredient in salad, although that doesn't correspond to our modern tastes today: the taste of the herb is much too biting and astringent to us. Linnaeus recommended the bruised herb, fresh as an excellent vulnerary and styptic. It is employed in Norway for the cure of rheumatism, and the fresh leaves chewed are said to cure toothache. In England, the herb has been made into an ointment for wounds, and a tea is taken for melancholy. In Russia, it is used for bleeding, stomach problems, coughs and colds, liver problems, dysentery and nervousness. The American Indians were extremely aware of this herb, and many tribes had specific uses for it. This brings to question, of course, the claim that our species are all naturalized from Europe. Some say that the western species are different from the European, and other disagree, saying that they are the same species. Since they are alike in medicinal values, it doesn't really matter, but we prefer to think that the plant was distributed everywhere by the Lord for the use of man wherever they are. One very early report says that Yarrow was used in cuts by the Illinois and Miami tribes. The Paiutes made a tea of Yarrow to be taken internally for weak and disordered stomachs; they also used the herb for headaches, crushing the green leaves and applying externally. The decoction was also used internally for headaches, and as a blood tonic (especially after childbirth), as a cold remedy, a kidney aid, a venereal aid, and externally as a poultice on swellings and sores, eyewash, a wash for fevers, a toothache remedy and a treatment for collar sores on horses. The Ute name for this plant signifies " wound medicine, " and they applied it externally on bruises, and used it as a tea in sicknesses of various kinds. It grows freely in the mountains of their territory. The Winnebagos used an infusion of Yarrow to bathe swellings and treat earache; they also sometimes put a wad of the crushed leaves into the ear for earache. The Chickasaws used it as a remedy for cramp in the neck. The Meskwakis boiled it for application externally to any ailing part, and used the leaves and flowers for fevers and flu. They also used the leaves as a poultice for rash in children, and the fresh tops to rub on eczema sores. The Pillager Ojibwas used the florets for ceremonial smoking and as a fumigant to break fever. The flowers were placed on coals and the fumes were inhaled to break the fever. The Potawatomis used them as a fumigant to ward off evil spirits and to revive a comatose patient. The Flambeau used an external application for poisonous spider bites. The Montagnais used it to break fevers as did the Fox tribe, who also used it as an antirheumatic. The Aleuts used it for stomach and throat pain and as a dermatological aid, especially for nose bleed. The Kwakiutls chewed or soaked the plant and heated it for a poultice to be used on swellings. The Shoshone tribe used the freshly-mashed leaves on swellings and sores; they used the freshly-mashed roots on painful wounds. The decoction was used by the Shoshones against diarrhea and rheumatism, and as a wash for itching, relief of indigestion, colic, and toothache. The Zunis used a burn dressing poultice of Yarrow before fire eating or fire walking, and used the infusion on burns. The Chippewas used a decoction of the leaves, steamed and inhaled for headache, as a stimulant for horses; the decoction was used for skin eruptions. The Gitksans used a decoction of the root as a gargle for sore throat. The Menominees used the dried and powdered leaves for a poultice in swellings and sores, and a poultice of the fresh leaves for rash in children. The Mohegan tribe used the decoction as a liver and kidney aid and as an appetite stimulant. These varied but related uses suggest that Yarrow grew freely throughout America where the tribes lived (early informants insisted that it is a native herb), and that empirical use among the tribes establishes well the efficacy of Yarrow. The herb was official in the United States Pharmacopeia from 1863- 82, used as a tonic, stimulant and emmenagogue. Interestingly, it was formerly brought to weddings to ensure seven years love. Other names for the plant include thousand-leaved, thousand seal, dog daisy, knight's milfoil, ladies' mantle, and noble yarrow. FEVER HERB Yarrow was one of Dr. Christopher's favorite herbs; he listed it among his Ten Honorable Herbs under the category of diaphoretic. It is widely recommended by many herbalists for feverish diseases. " It is often used by peasants as a substitute for quinine, and it quite as effective and far safer than that drug " (Levy:Common:160). It is sometimes called " Englishman's quinine " , and has been thought to be especially effective in cases of chills and fever. There are various preparations of Yarrow which will effect this breaking up of fever. Dr. Christopher said that drinking the hot infusion, alone or in combination with other herbs, such as elder flowers and peppermint. If you wrap the patient's feet in flannel that has been wrung out in apple cider vinegar, keeping this warm with a hot water bottle, you can break up a cold overnight or within 24 hours. You should be sure to keep the bowels open, either using a garlic enema or giving a dose of senna. Once the fever is broken, keeping the bowels open ensures that the patient heals quickly so that toxic accumulations do not keep " feeding " the problem. Another combination that is recommended for breaking fevers mixes a standard infusion of Yarrow with a teaspoon of honey and three drops of Tabasco sauce. The patient should be heavily covered. This will open the pores and cause profuse sweating, thus eliminating toxins and relieving the kidneys of the job of eliminating. You can also use a dash ofcayenne or ginger to accent the action of the Yarrow. Dr. Christopher related that his daughter was away at summer camp and caught a severe cold. When he went to visit her for the weekend, he found her in bed with a high temperature, headache, and the general symptoms of influenza, the body aching and in a most restless condition. He saw a stand of Yarrow growing near the cabin and went to gather a handful. He placed a bunch of the whole plant in a jug and poured over it about one-and-a-half pints of boiling water, covered it for about five minutes, and then poured off a cupful of the warm tea. He gave it to his daughter, who insisted that she would vomit if he made her drink the whole cup. He told her that if the stomach rejected it, the result would be a cleaner stomach for the next dose. She drank the cupful, and he poured off a second cupful of the warm tea to give to her. She got it all down, and in a few minutes was perspiring freely. In half an hour she said she felt better and in the morning she was completely recovered (SNH:2 17). We have given the tea in influenza when the patient vomited, but afterwards taking more tea got the same healing diaphoretic effect. Especially since flu can last up to a week--sometimes longer--it is amazing to have an herb that can break it up so quickly. If you give the tea to children during the early stages of eruptive diseases, such as measles, chicken pox, smallpox, etc., the tea will help the disease to break out more quickly and thus shorten the time. Dr. Christopher recommended a mixture of Yarrow, pleurisy root and lady's slipper (or skullcap) for the measles. Anytime there is a fever, no matter what the disease, Yarrow can help break it and bring the disease to a speedier ending. For chest colds, it is sometimes recommended mixing 1 ounce of Yarrow, ½ ounce elder flowers, ½ ounce boneset, and 1/4 ounce licorice. These are made into a decoction and taken by the cupful every three or four hours, going on a juice fast for a day. For head colds, equal parts of Yarrow, sage, boneset, and echinacea are made into infusion and taken before meals. For bronchitis, equal parts of Yarrow, mullein and elecampane are made into an infusion, a cupful taken every four hours. For catarrh, which is a mucus condition in the system, Yarrow, angelica and eyebright herb are mixed in equal portions with a pinch of cinnamon. This is made into an infusion, one cupful taken three times daily after each meal. In addition, if mucus-causing foods are removed from the diet, the catarrh is often cured of itself (Luc:Herbal:72-3). Aside from its use as a febrifuge, Yarrow is known for many other important applications. It is wonderful for eliminating lung congestion, and even for stopping hemorrhage or bleeding from the lungs (Málstrom: 107). It is sometimes mixed with comfrey for internal hemorrhage. It is good for various forms of internal bleeding, such as nosebleed, coughing or spitting up blood, rectal hemorrhoidal bleeding, bloody urine, and excessive menstruation (Lust:272). It is very often recommended for external applications, as it is reputed to act as a styptic, stopping the flow of blood from a wound. " It can be applied directly to wounds to stop bleeding and is used in making a bolus or salve for bleeding piles " (Tie: 121). For piles and hemorrhoids, use an enema of the tea after the bowels have been cleansed with a plain water enema. Also inject two tablespoonfuls several times a day, and after each stool. When there is a bad condition of piles and hemorrhoids, take a cleansing and then a Yarrow enema each day. When there is much pain have the water 112 to 155 degrees F. (Kloss:333). Ulcers and soft tumors are said to respond to an application of the ointment. " Animal studies have shown that extracts of Yarrow can reduce inflammation and that they have a calming effect. Thus, the use of the juice of this plant for the treatment of ulcers and hemorrhoids has a rational basis. Extracts of Yarrow are also known to have antibiotic effects when evaluated in test tubes. Thus, at least for external application, one would expect that a person suffering from boils or other microbial infections of a minor nature would receive beneficial results by the external application of Yarrow preparations (Weiner:206). Yarrow leaves, chewed, are said to sometimes relieve the pain of a toothache. For earache, apply some of the strong infusion quite hot to the ears, and insert a few drops of the cooler brew. In addition, the crushed leaves, well-wanned, can be placed in each ear (Levy: Common: 160). This might be a good remedy to know if you need to treat an earache and are away from herbal supplies. Yarrow has long been recommended for women's troubles. It relieves cramps and helps control excessive menstrual bleeding when taken as a warm infusion (Tie:121). It is good for controlling leucorrhea, or the whites, by taking internally and by using as a douche, the cool infusion being used. It lessens the discharge in women generally. It is also good for bringing on suppressed menstruation. You can used the warm Yarrow tea as a sitz bath as well. Yarrow has been long-recommended for dyspepsia and all digestive problems. " The use of decoctions or infusions of Yarrow flowers as a tonic has been studied experimentally in humans, and it has been confirmed that gastric juices are stimulated by the oral ingestion of extracts of this plant. This would lead to a tonic effect with improved digestion of foods. The effect is due to the presence of bitter principles (azulenes, sesquiterpenes) in the flowers " (Weiner:206). In Russia it is recognized for stomach troubles and as an appetizer. It is much used by the Swiss as a bitter tea for use as a stomach cordial or appetite tonic (Luc:Magic:49). It is also thought of as a specific cure for nausea. It is good for strengthening the liver and gall bladder, being especially noted for stimulating the flow of the bile (Lust:272). This is good to know, because many holistic practitioners recommend using a coffee enema for tripping the gall bladder reflex. Putting the poison caffeine into the system through an enema is just as dangerous as taking it internally in coffee; Yarrow would seem a much preferable alternative. Yarrow has also been recommended in pancreas problems, including Bright's disease and diabetes. It is sometimes given internally for colic and gas pains. It is especially good for diarrhea and dysentery, used internally and given as an injection; infants particularly respond to this treatment. Urinary irritations often respond to the internal use of Yarrow tea. The tea can be applied to chapped hands or other skin irritations, and it can be rubbed on sore nipples if needed. In the Doctrine of Signatures, the finely-segmented leaves of this plant and its profuse growth suggested to ancient users to claim that each leaf is equal to a thousand uses. The root stock, which is creeping, indicates its thorough blood- cleansing properties. It contains much of the blood fortifying chemicals such as iron, calcium, potassium, sulfur, and sodium. The silky hairs on the whole plant indicate external irritations, as we have discussed above. The ointment of the herb has long been prepared in England with other herbs for external applications, and in Scotland it is still highly valued as a skin ointment (Harris: Complete: 196). OTHER USES For a time the Swedes used Yarrow in lieu of hops in the manufacture of beer and claimed the beer thus brewed to be a greater intoxicant. Combined with camomile, the herb is made into a strong infusion and cooled, good for a hair-rinse, or to be rubbed into the scalp to discourage baldness or failing hair. The dried flowers are famous for their use in dried-flower arrangements. As mentioned before, the stripped stalks are used in divination. In the garden, Yarrow increases the aromatic quality of all herbs. In a small proportion, as in a border, it helps most vegetables. It will grow in a narrow bed as it does not mind being trampled. The hay or tea are said to be good for sheep. The plant helps the quality more than the size of neighboring plants, although in one experiment it had an unusual effect upon perennial rye grass. It strikingly cuts down the protein content in the grass, but considerably increases the fiber content therein. But the two herbs mixed together for pasture feed provide 40% more protein than the grass alone, thus recommending the mixture for a high nutritional feed for cows. Yarrow is also good to enrich the compost pile (Phil:98-9). It is sometimes used to flavor homemade liquors. CULTIVATION, COLLECTION, PREPARATION You can start Yarrow from seed or by dividing the root clumps of established plants. The decorative varieties are usually available from nurseries, and the white medicinal kind can often be found in mountain regions, dug from the ground and transplanted into the herb garden. Yarrow seed will germinate in the light. Sow it on top of fine soil and keep it moist until it germinates. Start it indoors in March so it will be ready for harvesting in June or July. Although fertilization is of minor importance because of Yarrow's hardiness, annual applications of bonemeal will promote its growth. The plant will produce a more pleasing aroma in light, sandy soils than in heavy, clay ones (Hyl:625). Cut the flowering plants and chop into pieces, drying rapidly at temperatures from 90 to 100 degrees F. Slower drying may cause darkening of the leaves. The white medicinal variety is said to excrete a toxin to the soil that eventually will defeat even its own growth. If you need to have the white medicinal variety, you might grow it for a season and then hunt it wild (Hyl:625). You can prepare an ointment of Yarrow by placing the chopped flower heads and leaves in olive oil, keeping in a warm oven or sunlight for several days. Strain and press well, heat gently, and then add enough beeswax to harden when cool. Yarrow stores quite well in a cool, dry, air-tight situation. DESCRIPTION This common roadside herb grows to 6 to 20 inches high, from a slender, creeping, perennial root, which, beside a multitude of filiform rootlets, gives off several long, reddish stolons. The stem is simple or nearly so, erect, slightly grooved and roughly hairy. The leaves are alternate; those from the near the root wide- petioled, two to six inches long; those of the stem proper shorter, sessile or nearly so, and all in their general outline more or less lanceolate oblong, twice pinnately-parted, the divisions linear, crowded and three-to-five cleft. The peduncles number three or more; the pedicels are many, forming small, crowded, flat-topped corymbs at the summit of the plant. The flower heads are many-flowered and radiate. The involucel consists of two to three imbricated rows of ovoid-oblong scales, with a prominent midrib and brownish, scarious edges. The rays are four or five, pistillage, with a short, obovate, reflexed limb. The corolla is tubular, the summit slightly inflated, five lobed, the lobes revolute, acute. The stamens are five, inserted upon the tube, and rising slightly above the face of the corolla. The anthers are adnate, without tails at the base. The style is long, upright, slender, rising above the anthers. The stigma is two-cleft, the divisions recurved and fringed at their tips. The receptacle is small, usually flat and chaffy (Millspaugh:335). CHEMICAL COMPOSITION Oil of achillea has a taste similar to the herb itself. Achilleic acid is also attributed its medicinal action. Both the flowers and leaves contain an aromatic volatile oil which is blue in color owing to the presence of chamazulene. DR. CHRISTOPHER'S COMBINATIONS CONTAINING YARROW The Desert Herb Combination contains Yarrow. RELATED PLANTS. A. lanulosa is considered to be the western species of Yarrow, although it is not easy to discern from European Yarrow. A. ptarmica, Sneezewort, was early used in medicine. It helps with catarrh, epilepsy, and uterine problems. A. tomentosa, the wooly yellow Yarrow, is very rare, and is thought to be imported from Europe. A. ageratum has tufted, oblong, serrate and clammy leaves and very short ray floret; it is used similarly to Yarrow. A. nobilis has a stronger taste than common Yarrow. A. moschata is largely used in Switzerland; it has a strongly aromatic and bitter taste and is used as a bitter. A. atrata and A. nana are used like the other species. http://www.healmarketplace.com/herbs/100herbs/yarrow.htm _________________ JoAnn Guest mrsjoguest DietaryTipsForHBP http://www.geocities.com/mrsjoguest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.