According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse over 52 million Americans over the age of twelve have used prescription drugs non-medical in their life. In 2010, there were over 8 million drug abusers of pain medication. It is a health issue for many Americans and people around the globe. The Federal Drug Association in 2015 approved over 63 new drugs that have many unwanted volatile side effects to them. It is all a vicious cycle, you pay for drugs hoping it will help you, but it you end up straight back to the hospital. In fact, some people even take more medication to counteract some of the side effects, which in turn can cause even more severe side effects. The pharmaceutical companies are raking in cash of the lives of many innocent people wanting to live to see another day. One way to stick it to the big pharma is to practice herbal healing. Nature provides many miracle plants to treat symptoms in way that is better for your health.
Herbalism exists right in front of our faces from the mustard on the table, to the spices in the pantry. Herb is defined as a non woody plant that dies down to the ground after flowering. However, the term herb is more general including some parts of the plant or all that has been practiced for medical treatment, nutritional value, food seasoning, lotions, or dying substance. Plant remedies represent the natural occurring cycle of the universal form treatment. It has a long history of being therapeutic products. In 3000 BCE, the Sumerians documented various uses who described well-established medicinal uses for plants such as, laurel, caraway, and thyme. Following the Sumerians, a well number of documented Ancient cultures used plants for various types of purposes. It seems the practice of herbalism is a lost art in the average household. Not a lot of people are familiar with the types of benefits each plant have to naturally cure ourselves.
Herbs should be used when it is fresh to maximize effectiveness. However, some are required to be dried first. Preparation is different for each herb. Some only release the natural healing properties when prepared in certain ways. One process of extraction is infusion, combing boiling hot water to the herbs. Decoction is the process of extracting mineral salts, rather than the vitamins by bathing the plant in boiling water. Cold Extraction is the process of using cold water to extract the salt minerals and only bitter principles. When using the cold extraction technique, the amount of plant material should be just under the water level. You must let it sit for 8-10 hours to let the drink be ready. You may also use a powder to mix with water, milk, or soup; sprinkled on food; or swallowed in capsules. The powder can also be used to make ointments for skin areas. Poultice is used to to soothe, to irritate, or to draw impurities from the body, depending on which plant or plants you use. You may also take hot or cold baths with plants to induce certain properties around your body. Of course you are not going to have a one shot miracle drink. Practicing herbalism requires daily use of the herbs to naturally balance your body back to perfection.
It is never too late to look back at history and finding out perhaps there is something worth being knowledgeable about all those "out-dated" ideas afterall. In this day and age we have the perspective and resources to plant our own herbs to cure ourselves naturally. We become addicted to pain medication, prescription medication, and over the counter medication. It is time to put a stop to the cycle of death that the FDA and other drug companies prop up and instead turn to the cycle of natural healing; the practice of connecting back to our roots (literally).
