Coping with PMS naturally

Many herbs can help with PMS symptoms, however some can increase your fertility and make medications such as antibiotic and contraceptives less effective.
Chasteberry has been seen to reduce breast pain or tenderness, constipation, irritability, depressed mood, anger, and headache. But this is one of those herbs that can increase your fertility as well.
Raspberry leaf has been known to reduce cramping and irritability. It's is also good for keeping your cycle regular and toning your uterus so labor can be quicker.
Burdock is known for its anti-inflammatory effect, the plant steroids it contains help the liver metabolize hormones such as estrogen to improve symptoms associated with hormonal imbalance. This is good for mood changes.
Lemon balm has been use for centuries to help insomnia and anxiety.
Rooibos is also a calming herb that can help ease bloating and pain for a better night's sleep.
If you still can't sleep Valerian root helps increase melatonin level to get you to sleep easily.
Prenatal vitamin have a good balance of vitamins and minerals that can help ease the symptoms of PMS.

Preventing Sickness

You'd be surprised to find out that adding a few extra things to your diet can make such a huge difference. For example, adding organic peppermint tea to your daily routine will lower your chances of getting a cold because of all its amazing vitamins.

Peppermint is also excellent of helping to treating a cold too. The methol and carvone in peppermint make it an excellent decongestant; just inhaling the vapors of peppermint tea will help clear your nasal cavities. However,if you are a nursing mother you'll want to avoid it as it will decrease your milk supply.

Garlic, ginger and onions have great anti-inflammatory properties and help keep your digestion system healthy and clear.

Echinacea has many many uses and helping to prevent the common cold is one. This amazing herb help boost your immune system, so if you do get sick you can fight it off faster. 

If you have allergies you'll be happy to find out that eating watercress is very helpful with allergy symptoms and tastes great with spinach and some lime and salt. As a natural antihistamine it is a must-have for allergy suffers.

A tea recipe I find very tasty and had keep my immune system strong is peppermint, dried orange peel, echinacea, raspberry leaf and juniper berries. The raspberry leaf and juniper berries also help with regulating period and increasing female fertility.

Juniper berries are also effective in treating urinary tract infections.

Gluten and refine sugars should be avoided, along with caffeine as these are harmful to your immune systems and makes the healing process slower

Echinacea (Echinacea Angustifolia)

Also known as the purple coneflower, this perennial herb is renowned for its ability to stimulate the immune system. This herb is native to the American Great Plain, found in Central and North America. The parts of the plant that are used are the roots, leaves and stems. This plant prefers moist, rich, well-drained soil in full sun. Once the plant is 2-4 years old roots are best harvested in the autumn. This herb is great for treating insect bites/stings, and halting infections. Echinacea is considered a natural antibiotic, and is also effective as an anti-mircobial agent, anti-inflammatory, and wound healer. Taking echinacea regularly will help with overall health but is advised that a break of a week should be taken after every 3 weeks of prolonged use. Peppermint and Echinacea tea daily is a great way to enhance your immune system and prevent getting sick.

Garlic (Allium Sativum)

This hardy perennial bulb is widely available in any grocery store and has amazing medicinal qualities. In WWI doctors squeezed fresh garlic juice in wounds to control infections. But the use of garlic has gone back even longer than that it was used as a protector against evil. European folklore tells that people put garlic in a small bag and tied it around a child's neck to protect against a cold or their tummy to protect from worms. The core benefits include antibiotic, detoxifying, lower cholesterol and blood pressure.  Garlic can be used to halt a cold or flu by letting the good oils from crushed garlic cloves be absorbed into your skin. This method is best if used on the sole of your feet overnight at the first sign of illness. This is because the skin on your feet is very sensitive. Garlic helps prevent heart disease as recommended by The University of Maryland Medical Center. Not only does it decrease bad cholesterol it increases good cholesterol. Garlic helps prevent platelet aggregation, also known as blood clotting. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, allicin appears to be the chemical property in garlic with the anticoagulant powers. The dosage required varies for each person so if you are looking into replacing your anticoagulant with an herb alternative talk to your local Herbalist or Natural Consultant about using garlic capsules.This herb prefers moist, well-drained soil and sun. Plant individual cloves 1 1/2in (4cm) deep in late autumn. Once grown, stop watering allowing the plant to dry out and dig the bulb out in early summer. hang bulb to dry fully or preserve.

Ginseng (Panax Ginseng)

This adaptogen helps the body recover faster by strengthening the entire body, increasing the efficiency of the endocrine, metabolic, circulatory, and digestive systems. This root reduces stress by increasing the flow of oxygen in the blood stream and immune-strengthen white blood cell to eliminate toxins. Ginseng has been use therapeutically for more than 5,000 years, making it one of China's most valued ancient herbs. This herb helps enhance physical endurance and speed up the recovery of a cold. This herb helps improve male fertility and help the body to process emotional stress. In China this herb has been used to avoid signs of aging. This root should be harvested in autumn once the plant is six years old. the seeds should be sown once ripe and kept in a greenhouse for their first winter. Separate the neck of older plants from roots and replant in spring. This herb prefers moist, humus-rich soil in the shade. This herb cam be taken in many forms including as tinctures, decoction, or concentrated capsules. Avoid taking ginseng for more than six week continuously, break for 2 weeks then resume if necessary.

Ginger (Zingiber Officinale)

This root is commonly found in many Ayurvedic medicine. Because of its ability to heal a wide variety of ailments. Ginger can be made into a tincture or used in teas as well as available in pill and candied forms. Ginger can be used to help many circular and digestive problems or nausea. Ginger boosts circulation. Ginger can help with gas by adding it to spice a meal.  Adding warmth your feet by rubbing a ginger infused oil on them. It helps add energy. Native to tropical rain forest this herb needs fertile soil and warm temperature year round.

Dandelion (Taraxacum Officinale)

In England this plant used to be believed to ward off witches if picked on Midsummer's Eve; called 'witch gowan'. This "weed" has been considered a pest in America however this herb is wonderfully medicinal. So much so that in place where is doesn't grow naturally, such as China and Japan, they have farms/greenhouses devoted to growing this plant for medicinal uses. For years in America this herb has been used to treat kidney diseases. This herb can be uses to fight acne or eczema along with flushing accumulated waste in the liver. This herb is rich in Calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, iron, manganese, and potassium. The leaves of this plant contains more protein than spinach.; the leaves alone are 14% protein. This plant is also loaded with antioxidants and vitamins.The nutrients in dandelion greens may help reduce the risk of cancer, multiple sclerosis, cataracts, age-related muscular degeneration and stroke. Dandelion contains anti-inflammatory properties which provide benefit to those with asthma and other inflammatory diseases. This herb prefers rich, well drained soil in full sun. The seeds should be sowed in the spring, the leaves and fresh flowers can be picked anytime they flower but roots should be dug up in the second autumn.

Aloe Vera

Oriental, Persian, Greek and Roman physicians have used aloe vera to treat a wide range of illnesses; from tonsillitis to insomnia. Some people believe that drinking aloe flower essence  , diluted in water, daily can increase your sensitivity to others. It includes vitamins A, C, and E making it ideal as part of a great beauty regime. The aloe gel can be use to treat a large range of skin ailments including; burns, wounds, acne, eczema, bedsores, allergic reactions, inflammation, psoriasis, insect bites, blisters and dry skin. It can also be used to treat constipation as a mild laxative. This amazing plant helps boost you immune system if you drink aloe juice daily. This juice also naturally replenishes your body because of it's many amino acids, vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, B12, C and E, Folic Acid and Niacin. Minerals also found in the juice include; copper, iron, sodium, calcium, zinc, potassium, chromium, magnesium, and manganese, making it a good source of daily nutrients. Along with improving your energy levels it can help you maintain a healthy body wait by helping your digestive system. This herb also helps with heartburn, arthritis, and lower blood sugar and cholesterol. Aloe vera plant juice is also helpful for common reoccurring disorders such as colds, flues, bronchitis, herpes, stuffy noses, and other respiratory disorders. This plant is also commonly called a miracle plant because of it's ability to help heal people suffering from AIDS and cancer as it halts the growth of cancerous tumours. Not only does it help with all these ailments the list of benefits is still even longer. It prefers well-drained soil in sun, it can grow indoors out of direct sun. It can grow from sown seed indoors during spring or from offsets taken from the base. Lower leaves can be harvested any time, cut the leaf diagonally across base. This leaf should be allowed to stand in a jar to drain out the sap; this should be stored separate from the rest. The gel is scraped out of the inside of the leaf.

Anticoagulants

Some people call anticoagulants blood thinners. However, the blood is not actually made any thinner. Anticoagulants are medicines that prevent the blood from clotting as quickly or as effectively as normal. The main possible side-effect of anticoagulants is bleeding. Many synthetic anticoagulants interact with some other medicines and foods. If you are prescribed or buy any other medicine always tell your doctor, nurse or pharmacist if you are taking an anticoagulant or before switching to an herbal.  Blood clots can block an artery or a vein (blood vessels), a blocked artery stops blood and oxygen from getting to a part of your body. The tissue supplied by a blocked artery becomes damaged, or dies, and this results in serious problems such as a stroke or heart attack.

      Some work by blocking vitamin K, which prevents blood clots forming so easily by increasing the time it takes to make fibrin. It usually takes two or three days for these medicines to work fully.

Anticoagulants are used to treat or help with;

·             Atrial fibrillation (fast irregular heartbeat). Having atrial fibrillation is one of the most common reasons for taking an anticoagulant.

·         A mechanical heart valve.

• Endocarditis (infection of the inside of the heart).
• Mitral stenosis (one of the valves in the heart does not fully open).
• Certain blood disorders that affect how your blood clots (inherited thrombophilia, antiphospholipid syndrome).
• Had surgery to replace a hip or knee.
  
    Aspirin has an effect of preventing clots by preventing platelets sticking together. However, it is classed as an antiplatelet agent rather than an anticoagulant. Anticoagulants interfere with chemicals needed to make clots or clotting factors. Some natural anticoagulants include; garlic, ginger, white willow, turmeric, feverfew and angelica.
         Using garlic is usually prescribed as supplements in two 200mg daily three times a day.
         Ginger is usually taken four times daily in 500mg doses.
         Like garlic turmeric is consumed three times daily in 200mg doses.
         White willow is consumed as a tea three to four times each day by steeping one or two teaspoons of dried bark in 8 ounces of hot water for a period of 15 minutes or 240 milligrams of this herb in capsule form daily.

Arthritis

There are two major types or arthritis; osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, each has different symptoms. Osteoarthritis is related to wear and tear of aging and the thinning or cartilage around joints, other factors can include injuries. Rheumatoid arthritis is different and is sometimes defined as an immune disorder, it is caused when the body defense system attacks its own cells. The result is swollen, painful, often deformed joints and a general feeling of being unwell. For rheumatoid arthritis it is not recommended to self treat, please consult with your doctor or herbalist that can monitor your condition. A daily dose of cod liver oil is suggested up to 1 teaspoon which is beneficial for joints and reduce stiffness. Keeping an active lifestyle and a diet high in essential fats, rich in vitamin and minerals is greatly needed. On top of a healthy lifestyle there are tea and decoctions that will be beneficial. Detoxifying the system is important as it eliminates irritant waste material and reduces muscular aches and pains. Stiff joint are also helped with stimulating the circulatory system. Teas and decoctions that are for this purpose includes; dandelion, nettle, meadowseet, celery seed and ginger. Dandelion leaf has diuretic properties that increases the functionality of the kidney helping you eliminate waste. The root is a gentle liver tonic and mild laxative. Nettle is rich in vitamins and iron but acts like a blood cleanser. This helps repair and renew tissues. It can be taken alone 'or mixed with dandelion. Meadowsweet is useful for easing discomfort of muscle pain. It should only be taken as a tea once daily for no longer that 2 weeks at a time. Celery seed has an alkalizing effect to the system and helps remove acidic toxins.For maximum effect use celery seed with parsley as it helps enhance the benefits. Celery seed should not be used during pregnancy or with kidney diseases. Ginger has a warming effect that stimulates the circulatory system. It is recommended for both types of arthritis but should not be taken in high doses.

Pain and stiffness can benefit from compresses. use 5 drops of the essential oil versions of the herbs mentioned above in 300ml (1/2 pint) of hot water, dip cloth, wring it out and apply to affected area.

A warm bath helps relax the muscles of the body adding 5 drops of the recommended oils with 3-5 of lavender oil will help your aching joints and muscle. 

Rheumatism Liniment

this is a liquid preparation that combines herbal oil with tincture. This should be applied at body temperature and massaged into the effected ares. Use 6 cloves garlic, 1 1/4 cups olive oil, 2 tablespoons juniper tincture. Crush garlic without peeling them and put in a bowl pour olive oil over the garlic and cover with foil and stand it over a pan of simmering water. Heat gentle for an hour. Strain out the oil and leave until lukewarm then stir in the juniper tincture and pour into a stoppered bottle. This will keep for several months

Anti-Inflammatory

There are many herbal anti-inflammatory you might find useful including; black pepper, basil, cardamom cayenne, chamomile, chives, cilantro, cinnamon, cloves, garlic, ginger, parsley, nutmeg, rosemary, turmeric, and peppermint. In this post I will talk specifically on only some of these. Cayenne has anti-inflammatory qualities along with painkilling, circulatory stimulation and aids digestion. Adding half a teaspoon of cayenne powder to food daily will fire up your circulation and digestion. You can use heated leaves place on your temples to ease headaches. Cinnamon can be uses as an antimicrobial, to lower blood sugar and as an aphrodisiac, on top of being an anti-inflammatory. mixing cinnamon powder with honey is and excellent acne face mask. adding half a teaspoon to your diet helps with stabilizing blood sugar. Chamomile is great as an anti-inflammatory but it also excellent for treating hayfever, skin problems, digestion and anxiety. taking chamomile tincture up to 3 times daily will help with indigestion, ulcers, and gastritis. Chamomile infusions helps with chapped or sunburn skin. Peppermint is one of my person favourites when it comes to anti-inflammatories. My sister is an athlete and uses peppermint infused oils to help with aching muscles. On top of being an anti-inflammatory it is great for stimulating digestion, muscle spasm and antimicrobial. This herb is also good for diets as it curbs your appetite. Drinking peppermint tea or peppermint echinacea tea daily boost immune system helping to avoid getting sick. Garlic is a great antibiotic that lowers your cholesterol, detoxifying and anti-inflammatory properties. More information on garlic can be found in previous post here . Ginger is a great anti-inflammatory that boost circulation, digestion and reduces nausea.