Herbs to Keep on hand
Whether you call it an herb cabinet or medicine cabinet, there are various herbs and remedies you should try to always have on hand for basic medical needs. Some of these really come in handy when you have children in your home.
Cayenne - Cayenne should always be on hand for a variety of uses. Pour the powder from a gelcap or kitchen herb seasoning bottle onto wounds to stop
bleeding, swallow the capsules for internal bleeding and shock. Also excellent for using internally for allergic reactions to stings and bites.
Garlic - Always keep garlic on hand as well. Capsule or oil forms keep the longest, but keeping fresh raw bulbs around is a good idea too. If you use garlic in capsule form, make sure it's 100% true garlic though. Anything which says "odor free" has the primary healing ingredient removed, so the garlic will be useless for medicinal purposes.
Garlic can be used externally and internally. It removes pain from ear infections and sore throats, can sterilize wounds, and will kill fungus infections such as athlete's feet, thrush, and vaginal yeast infections.
Comfrey - Comfrey is a healing herb which will start new cell growth very quickly. Keeping this on hand in salve form is best, so you can apply it to any wounds, cuts or scrapes as needed. Comfrey promotes healing extremely quickly though, so you need to take care when using it on open wounds. Be sure the wound is cleaned very well before applying the comfrey salve, or you'll end up with bacteria and germs trapped below the new skin that's generated.
Adding a bit of goldenseal to the comfrey salve helps prevent infections and adds to the healing process as well.
Comfrey salve is also quite useful for pulled tendons and ligaments, and to help broken bones heal more quickly.
Goldenseal - This is a powerful herbal antibiotic which can be used both internally and externally. Most often it's used internally to fight infections, but used in salve form it will also help heal wounds, and prevent or treat infections. Golden seal root is more powerful than the leaves and stems, but both work well. Don't give much to diabetics though, because it's a natural source of insulin.
Echinacea - This herb is excellent for use with the flu, or similar glandular or throat related infections and problems. Echinacea can also be used at the beginning of a cold, to help reduce the symptoms and length of time it lasts.
Peppermint - An excellent herb to keep on hand with babies in the house particularly, Peppermint is used to sooth tummy aches and expel gas. Great for treatment of colic, and it's easy to buy in tea form.
White Willow - A natural herb used for pain relief, this can replace standard aspirin or other name brand pain relievers. White willow is also an anti-inflamatory herb, so it can be used for things like headaches or arthritis pain without the side effects and risks associated with synthetic pain relievers.
Some statements in this article may not be approved by the FDA, and should not be taken as professional medical advice.
The Compleat Mother Magazine
