A remedy to try?

I recently read the following on Dr. Mercola's website.  I have not tried this remedy, but plan to if my husband or I start to get sick this winter.  If you try it, just be sure to get a non-aluminum source of baking soda.  Azure Standard carries one, as does Bob's Red Mill.

In today’s modern world of medicine the FDA just will not let companies that sell products make medical claims about them unless they have been tested at great expense, and approved as a drug. But this was not always the case.

In a 1924 booklet published by the Arm & Hammer Soda Company, the company starts off saying, “The proven value of Arm & Hammer Bicarbonate of Soda as a therapeutic agent is further evinced by the following evidence of a prominent physician named Dr. Volney S. Cheney, in a letter to the Church & Dwight Company:

“In 1918 and 1919 while fighting the ‘Flu’ with the U. S. Public Health Service it was brought to my attention that rarely any one who had been thoroughly alkalinized with bicarbonate of soda contracted the disease, and those who did contract it, if alkalinized early, would invariably have mild attacks.”

Recommended dosages from the Arm and Hammer Company for colds and influenza back in 1925 were:

• During the first day take six doses of half teaspoonful of Bicarbonate of Soda in glass of cool water, at about two hour intervals
• During the second day take four doses of half teaspoonful of Bicarbonate of Soda in glass of cool water, at the same intervals
• During the third day take two doses of half teaspoonful of Bicarbonate of Soda in glass of cool water morning and evening, and thereafter half teaspoonful in glass of cool water each morning until cold is cured

Simple and Delicious Herbal Syrups

I found this idea on a blog for making delicious herbal syrups.  I love the creativity that is involved and having the simple syrup base will make even the medicinal syrups tasty!   These are inexpensive to make and perfect for cold and flu season when using herbs like elderberry and echinacea.  Herbs can be bought in bulk inexpensively at Mountain Rose Herbs.

I made a delicious chai syrup yesterday using these proportions:  2 cups water, 2 cups sucanat, 6 crushed cinnamon sticks, 1/3c crushed cardamon pods, 1 T cloves, 1 tsp anise seeds, 1 tsp crushed peppercorns, 1 tsp licorice root, and 1 T dried ginger root.  It tastes amazing!  I plan on buying little jars and giving this away as Christmas presents this year.  This syrup can be used on ice cream, in black tea, on oatmeal, in coffee, on pancakes...and more!  It's tasty, but also a healthful syrup, with all the vast health benefits of all the spices used.

Simple Inexpensive Air Freshener for Your Bathroom

Almost all store bought air fresheners are synthetic scents these days.  Not only is it pricey to have to keep buying these, but these synthetic fragrances are not good for you.  They often either coat the interior of your nose with an oil film or use a nerve deadening agent to mask odors.  They are starting to be linked to potential lung damage and asthma and are especially bad for children.

One alternative is using essential oils.  I often do this for our home.  You can simply take an essential oil of choice and place one drop of it on your bathmat (be sure to do a color fast test on the underside of the rug first - though, I have never had an issue with staining).  Be sure to keep the bathroom door shut as this will keep the scent confined to the bathroom.  For those with children, use a kid friendly oil such as lavender, lemon, grapefruit, or mandarin, and these are inexpensive oils.

It is important that you buy organic oils from a reputable seller, especially when you have children, as adulterated and non-organic oils often contain toxins that can be harmful.  (Organic is very important when it comes to essential oils because they are so concentrated that if they are not organic, the pesticide concentration will be very high in the oil.)

Be sure to rotate your oils, as it is never good to use one oil over a long period of time.

Elderflower

This month Mountain Rose Herbs is having a 20% off sale on elderflower.  This is the perfect time of year to buy it.  Elder flowers have many benefits; two of them being a great fever reducer and immune system builder.
A tea can be made with the flowers, taking 2 teaspoons of flowers and pouring 8 ounces of hot water over them.  Allow this to sit for 15-20 minutes, then sip the tea over the next hour or two.  This tea can be a bit strong, so I recommend adding some raw honey to it.  Dosing varies depending on where you read, but I would recommend 3-4 cups a day for treating an acute symptoms such as a fever (but do not continue this dosing for more than a few days).  For building the immune system, I would drink 1 cup every few days. These doses are for adults.

More on Sleep

It seems as though I hit upon a hot topic with regards to needing a peaceful nights rest!  I thought I would do a follow up post regarding herbal treatments for insomnia.  There are three herbs that I would like to discuss and these can all be bought inexpensively at Mountain Rose Herbs.
It is important to note, though, that if you suffer from insomnia, you should try to identify the underlying cause, such as stress, hormones, lifestyle, or a medical issue, so that you can make the needed changes and find the appropriate herb or oil to help you in the interm.  I do recommend rotating herbs and taking breaks from herbal treatments.  Too much of anything is not a good thing.

Chamomile - this is a standard treatment for insomnia.  You can make an easy brew to drink 45 minutes before bedtime by placing one teaspoon of herb to steep in 1 cup of hot water for 15 minutes.

Valerian Root - valerian is an herb that many use to treat insomnia.  It's a strong herb and one that I would recommend rotating frequently.  This is brewed differently than your typical tea.  A decoction is made of this root by taking 1 teaspoon and pouring a cup of cold water over it and letting it sit all day.  Drink 45 minutes before bed.

Lemon Balm - this herb is great for helping you to relax, so if stress is contributing to your insomnia, you may want to give this herb a try.  Take one teaspoon of herb and pour 1 cup of hot water over it, letting it sit for 15 minutes.  Drink 45 minutes before bed.

A Peaceful Night's Rest

It's a busy time of year!  If you feel like you need some help unwinding at night, you can try this simple technique to encourage a peaceful and restful night of sleep.  Take 1 drops of lavender or neroli essential oil and place it on a cotton ball.  Place the cotton ball at the top edge of your pillow (keep away from your eyes) or on the ground next to your bed right before you go to sleep.  The oil will naturally diffuse into the air all night and help you to relax both mentally and physically.

You do want to be careful with your use of essential oils and not use the same oils every night and give yourself a break from using oils.  I recommend trying this a few times a week, rotating oils.   Other oils you can try would be roman chamomile or bergamont.  If you are nursing or pregnant, you should consult your physician before using essential oils.

I personally have used lavender and neroli with much success and have woken up feeling much more rested and relaxed.  You do want to to be sure that you are buying oils from reputable sources.  I can recommend these two:  Floracopeia and Florihana.  You want to be sure that your oils are 100% pure and organic and have not be adulterated in any way, as adulteration could actually cause adverse reactions.

Don't Toss that Turkey Carcass!

One of my favorite things to do after Thanksgiving is make turkey stock.  I usually get about 8 canning jars worth of stock from my 14 pound turkey.  Turkey broth is easy to make.  I just take my turkey carcass, break it into a few pieces, and place it in my stock pot.  I add enough water to cover the carcass and let it simmer for 8-10 hours.  Once the carcass has simmered and the broth is ready, I simply remove the bones and bottle the broth.  Often the water has cooked down and the broth is very concentrated, so I get out my 8 canning jars and evenly fill the jars and then add water until the jar is 3/4 full.  The broth is then ready to place in the freezer.  Be sure that your jars are not too hot before you place them in the freezer or they will crack.  They will also crack if you overfill then, thus the reason I fill them just 3/4 full.
You can use this broth to make delicious soups or use it when you cook up grains such as rice, quinoa, or millet.

How to Make Pomegranate Juice

It's pomegranate season!  These fruits are beautiful, delicious, and a super food.  You can read more about their health benefits here.  I just bought 25 pounds of organic pomegranates from our local co-op and decided to make pomegranate juice for the first time for Thanksgiving.  It was a bit labor intensive, but very easy and so delicious!  I'm hooked for life!  Here's how I did it...
Wash off your pomegranates.  Fill a large bowl full of water and place it on your kitchen counter.  Put on an apron (the juice can sometime spray and can stain.)  Cut off the crown of the pomegranate and score the outside in 4 sections.  Put the pomegranate in the bowl of water and pull apart.  Keeping it in the bowl and under water will prevent any juice from spraying you.  Once you separate out all the seeds and pulp, place the seeds in a blender or Vitamix and pulse for 10-15 seconds.  Strain the juice to remove seed and any extra pulp and you will be left with delicious juice!
I plan to freeze some of our extra juice to bring out throughout the winter.  I also mixed some in with fresh squeezed orange juice this morning, which was delicious.

Cut the Sugar!

It's Thanksgiving...a time for yummy food, right?  Of course!  And this is one of my family's favorite times to indulge, and indulge we do!  I'm not one for cutting back on the holidays, but I do cook with organic ingredients and my one healthy aim is to cut the sugar a bit.  I'm shocked when I look at so many recipes and see the amount of sugar they call for in their recipes.  I find that I can often cut the sugar by at least half and no one even notices.
I made the Caramel Apple Pie that is on the William Sonoma website for us this year.  They called for sugar in the pie crust, sugar in the apples, sugar in the caramel sauces...wow!  That's a LOT of sugar.  So, I have left out the sugar in the crust and the apples and kept the called for amount in the caramel sauce.  On top of that, I use sucanat or rapadura and never use pure white or processed brown sugars, which are devoid of any nutrient value.  I do this because these sugars still retain their mineral content (see more here) and do not cause as significant a spike in the blood sugar levels.  My family enjoys the rich taste that sucanat and rapadura infuse into our foods, so I don't even buy white sugar anymore.
Hope you enjoy this simple holiday tip and have a very happy and yummy Thanksgiving!

Seaweed

I have a recommended read for those who are interested in the health benefits of seaweed, which you can find here.  I became interested in seaweed once we stopped using iodized table salt and switched to unprocessed pink salt, which I buy here and here.

It's amazing all the health benefits that can be derived from seaweed.  It's a very inexpensive way to provide trace minerals and many wonderful health benefits for yourself and your family.  Just be sure that the seaweed you buy is from a clean water source.  I personally would avoid buying any from Japan at this time due to the nuclear spill that happened during the earthquake earlier this year.  Be sure to read the section in Valerie's book about how much seaweed to take and what kinds to take before you buy your supply, as you do want to be careful not to eat too much seaweed.

I bought our seaweed from Mountain Rose Herbs and have stored it in a jars in my pantry.  I alternate the types that we use.  If I cannot hide the taste in food, then I put it in capsules for my husband, which is easy to do and a lot cheaper than buying it already encapsulated.  Mountain Rose Herbs sells a capsule machine that is very inexpensive.

Fresh Cranberry Relish

Be sure to check out the Recipe for the Month!  I have a fabulous, easy, and healthy cranberry relish that has become a Thanksgiving standard.  After you taste this relish, you will never want to bring another canned relish into your home again!

What to Have on Hand to Boost the Immune System For the Holiday Rush!

Thanksgiving week is almost here, which means for most, travel, visiting with family, and a busy schedule.      There are a few easy supplements you can have on hand for this next week:

*Vitamin D - This is a great support to the immune system and since most are not getting their daily dose of sun this time of year, this is critical to take to keep your immune system healthy.

*Elderberry syrup - This is quick and easy to make (here is the recipe that I use).  This can be taken daily throughout the week.

*Echinacea - At the first hint of feeling sick, start to take some echinacea.  Herbs for Kids carries a great brand for children starting at the age of one and Whole Foods sells all kinds of tinctures (the liquid form I recommend for adults- but not pregnant or breastfeeding women due to the alcohol content) of echinacea that you can choose from.