Here Comes the Flu Season
Protect Yourself the Wise Woman Way
© 2004 Susun S Weed
Along with the beauty of fall days comes the need to get ready
for winter. Time to get out my long underwear and my warm
wooly socks. Time to nourish my immune systems so cold days
won't be days of colds -- and flu.
I don't rely on modern medicine to keep me healthy,
but if you usually rely on a flu shot to protect you, you
may feel frightened by your inability to get one this year.
You may be wondering what you can do instead. Or you may have
discovered that flu shots don't give protection from all types
of flu, just the ones the makers guess will be active this
winter. And you may wonder if there isn't some other way to
prevent the flu. Or maybe, like me, you prefer not to use
shots or drugs unless absolutely necessary. You may wonder
what herbs and remedies are the best to have on hand to help
your family deal with the flu.
No matter what your situation, now is a good
time to give yourself the benefit of Wise Woman Ways to prevent
-- and deal with -- the flu. These flu presenters and flu
remedies are simple. They are quite safe. And you don't have
to be rich to use them. Wise Woman herbal medicine is people's
medicine. Mama Medicine. You can buy most of the things I
discuss in this article -- and you can find them growing freely,
too. You can buy the herbal preparations I mention already
made -- and you can easily make you own for pennies, too.
These Wise Woman Ways are supported by both
tradition and science. Wise women through the centuries have
kept themselves and their families safe from contagious diseases.
And science has found good reasons for their effectiveness.
I hope these tips will help you face winter's ills with confidence,
and good health.
Beat the Flu
The best way to prevent the flu is to build
a powerful immune system. While this can't guarantee that
you won't get the flu, neither can the flu shot. Here are
my favorite ways to keep my immune system strong:
Eat more garlic.
Drink nourishing herbal infusions daily.
Make immune-strengthening soups; or add immune-strengthening
herbs to canned soup.
Use anti-viral herbs as needed.
Eat
More Garlic
One of the best immune-system helpers is garlic. Dr. James
Duke says it contains at least 17 different factors that nourish
and support powerful immune system functioning. Herbalists
in the middle ages relied on it to prevent infection from
the plague, so it might keep us safe from the flu. Garlic
is anti-bacterial, too. If you don't like fresh raw garlic,
powdered garlic is just as good. The dose is 1 or more cloves
of raw garlic per day, or up to a teaspoon of garlic powder.
Here are a few of my favorite ways to eat raw
garlic:
Top scrambled eggs with minced raw garlic.
Put chopped raw garlic on pasta and cover with tomato sauce.
Try minced raw garlic on a piece of hot buttered toast. Delicious!
Add minced raw garlic to your baked potato.
Mix chopped raw garlic and olive oil with hot cooked greens
like kale or spinach.
Drink
Nourishing Herbal Infusions
Nourishing herbal infusions are the basis of great nourishment
for the immune system and the entire body. They are full of
antioxidant vitamins, minerals, proteins, phytoestrogens,
and hundreds of protective phytochemicals that work to help
you ward off the flu and colds too.
Here's how I make a nourishing herbal infusion:
Choose one herb: nettle, oatstraw, red clover, comfrey leaf,
linden flowers, or violet leaf.
Place one full ounce, by weight, of any one herb in a quart
jar. A canning jar is best.
Fill the jar to the top with boiling water.
Screw on a tight lid
Let it steep for four hours, or overnight.
Strain the liquid out, squeezing the herb.
Refrigerate the infusion, where it will be good for 24-36
hours.
I drink two to four cups nourishing herbal infusions
daily -- over ice, heated up with honey and milk, or mixed
with other beverages.
Make Immune Strengthening Soups
Cooking herbs and vegetables together for a long time extracts
minerals, actives immune-strengthening phytochemicals, and
increases the levels of available antioxidants. Raw foods
weaken and stress the immune system.
To make an immune strengthening soup:
Chop at least half an onion per person and saute in olive
oil until translucent..
Add at least two cloves of garlic, sliced or chopped, per
person and saute for a minute.
Add two or more cups of water or vegetable broth per person.
Add one cup per person of chopped seasonal vegetables such
as: carrots, cabbage, celery, corn, burdock, turnips, potatoes,
tomatoes, parsnips.
(If using canned soup, begin here.)
Add one small handful of seaweed per person.
Add one ounce fresh, or one-half ounce dried mushrooms --
any kind -- per person.
Add one-quarter ounce dried tonic roots per person.
Add generous amounts of antioxidant seasoning herbs and some
sea salt.
Bring to a boil; simmer for an hour.
Turn off fire and let your soup mellow in a cool place overnight.
Serve it the next day, heated up, with freshly-baked bread
and organic raw milk cheese.
Seaweeds build powerful immunity. Kombu
and wakame are excellent in soups. Cut them small; they swell
to 5-7 times their dried size when cooked.
All mushrooms strengthen the immune
system. Dried shitake are available and inexpensive at Chinese
grocery stores. Reishii, maitake, and other medicinal mushrooms
are delicious, as are the more common button mushrooms, portobellos,
and dried porcinni.
Tonic roots help our livers, lymph,
and kidneys work well, protecting us from infection. I often
put these tough roots into a jelly bag and drop that into
the soup so I can fish it out before serving. I use one or
more of these, fresh or dried, depending on what I have available:
Siberian ginseng
Astragalus
Burdock
Dandelion
Chicory
Yellow dock
American ginseng.
Seasoning herbs from the mint family
-- rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, marjoram, and sage --
are loaded with antioxidants. I don't just season the soup
with them, I add them by the handful for the greatest impact
on my immune strength.
Anti-Viral Herbs
Anti-infective herbs can help us prevent the flu -- and assist
us if we do get sick. Colds and the flu are caused by viruses,
making them more difficult to treat than bacterial infections.
Viruses are more vital than bacteria and harder to kill. There
are many anti-bacterial herbs -- including yarrow, echinacea,
elecampane, and poke -- but few that are anti-viral. Of these,
my favorite is St. Joan's/John's wort. If any herb can prevent
the flu, St.J's can.
Of course, even flu shots don't prevent all
types of flu, and they don't prevent colds, so even if you
do get a shot, it's a good idea to have some anti-viral and
anti-bacterial herbs on hand. The distinction between them
is not so important once you are sick. Both types of herbs
will alert the immune system to the infection and help it
gather the resources needed to counter it. Did you know that
the achy muscles and headachy feeling we get with the flu
is not caused by the flu itself but results from the immune
system gobbling up all available resources so it can clobber
the flu virus.
St. Joan's/John's wort (Hypericum
perforatum)
This beautiful yellow flower yields a blood-red tincture that
I take by the dropperful to prevent viral infections such
as the flu. A dropperful in the morning throughout the cold
months is adequate for prevention. I increase that to 2-3
dropperfuls a day if I have been exposed at home or at work
to the flu. If I do get sick, I will use other herbs to counter
the infection. Capsules of St. J's are ineffective; I only
use the tincture.
Echinacea (Echinacea augustifolia)
The tincture of echinacea root is a well-known anti-infective.
When I feel an infection brewing, I use large doses of echinacea
to build white blood cells and encourage T-helper cells. The
dose of echinacea root tincture is 1 drop for every 2 pounds
of body weight, as frequently as every hour or two in the
acute phase of an infection, 2-4 times a day otherwise. I
have seen echinacea relieve terrible flu infections.
Important:
I do not use echinacea as a preventative; it doesn't seem
to work that way. I do not use any part of this plant except
the root. I do not combine it with goldenseal, which I believe
hinders the immune system. I do not take echinacea in capsules.
I make a quart of echinacea tincture each fall
as my winter insurance. Here's how I do it: Put 4 ounces of
dried Echinacea augustifolia root in a quart jar. Fill to
the top with 100 proof vodka. Cap tightly and label. Shake
daily for the first week. Then weekly for at least eight weeks.
Poke (Phytolacca americana)
The tincture of this root is so powerful some authors consider
it poisonous. You may have a hard time finding it for sale.
But poke is an important helper when flu "bugs"
have taken over. I would not take poke as a preventative;
it is far too strong. I use poke root tincture to kick my
immune system into high gear. The dose is one drop -- yes,
only one drop -- once or twice a day for no more than a month,
although in serious cases I may use up to 8 doses a day. Poke
root tincture can harm the kidneys if it is taken continuously.
I never take capsules of poke root.
Elecampane (Inula helenium)
The tincture of this root is a favorite for clearing lung
infections and countering the flu. The usual dose is 10-15
drops 2-3 times a day, but I would increase the dose to 6
times a day in an acute situation. I expect to see results
within a day or less. I would only take elecampane if I had
an active infection; it has little protective value. I never
use elecampane capsules.
Elder (Sambucus canadensis)
Elder flowers are a nice remedy for those with a feverish
cold, but for those with the flu, I prefer elder berries.
The most common way to take them is in the form of a syrup.
The immune enhancing properties of elder berries are renowned
in Europe and slowly gaining popularity in the United States.
Elder berry syrup also eases coughs and lung congestion.
Winter is Coming
Herbs may not seem strong enough to prevent or counter the
flu, but they are. When we use herbs to maintain and regain
health, we not only take a big step toward health independence
but a small step toward peace on our planet. Instead of making
war on weeds, I use them. Instead of making war on nature,
I let Her guide me. Instead of making war on myself when I'm
sick, I nourish myself toward greater health, greater peace.
Green blessings surround us. Herbs not only
protect us from the flu, they can uplift our hearts and bring
us joy in trying and uncertain times.
Tips to Avoid the Flu
1. Wash your hands, this is the single best way to avoid the
flu.
2. Cough or sneeze into your elbow, not your hand. Viral particles
are easily passed from hands to eyes and nose even if you
use a tissue.
3. If the flu is active in your area, avoid public places.
Study
with Susun Weed in the convenience of your home! Choose from
three Correspondence Courses: Green Allies, Spirit & Practice
of the Wise Woman Tradition, and Green Witch - includes audio/video
tapes, books, assignments, special mailings, plus personal
time.
Learn more at www.susunweed.com
or write to:
Susun Weed
PO Box 64
Woodstock, NY 12498
Visit Susun Weed at: www.susunweed.com
and www.wisewomanbookshop.com
For permission to reprint this article, contact us at: www.ashtreepublishing.com/contact
Vibrant, passionate, and involved, Susun Weed has garnered
an international reputation for her groundbreaking lectures,
teachings, and writings on health and nutrition. She challenges
conventional medical approaches with humor, insight, and her
vast encyclopedic knowledge of herbal medicine. Unabashedly
pro-woman, her animated and enthusiastic lectures are engaging
and often profoundly provocative.
Susun is one of America's best-known authorities on herbal
medicine and natural approaches to women's health. Her four
best-selling books are recommended by expert herbalists and
well-known physicians and are used and cherished by millions
of women around the world. Learn more at www.susunweed.com
