Natural Herbal Beauty

Herbs have been used for centuries for all sorts of injuries and wounds. Their very names remind us of the fact: yarrow’s botanical name (Achillea) comes from Achilles, who reputedly used it before the gates of Troy to heal his fellow Greeks. In some cultures a warlike nature tended to dominate views of herbs: the Maori of New Zealand, for example, were always fighting each other and the vast majority of their traditional remedies involve poultices and compresses to heal the injured.

Herbs are still ideal for all sorts of minor cuts, grazes and burns: the choice is wide, so even when you are far from home there is generally a suitably styptic healer close at hand. (more…)

This ancient herb is useful against bronchitis and lung congestion arising from any cause. It is considered very helpful for expelling heavy phlegm from the chest or lungs. St. John’s wort is used to treat people with suppressed urination and, although it seems contradictory, it is used to stem bed-wetting. The herb has traditionally been used to ease painful menstruation, soothe the pangs of afterbirth, and treat many menopausal symptoms.

St. John’s wort is one of the herbs traditionally prescribed for jangled nerves and melancholia. The tea is especially helpful in cases of neuralgia and/or headaches, especially if they are accompanied by nervousness or excitability verging on hysteria, or occur during depression. Headaches with symptoms such as throbbing on the top of the head or a heavy lethargic feeling in the head are often eased by St. John’s wort.

Used externally, this herb is said to bring down swellings and heal old wounds, even festering wounds, when nothing else seems to help. It also helps bring boils to a head, and cleanses abscesses, neglected cuts, and bad insect stings. (more…)