The digestive system is a very intricate and complex system. To my mind, it is much like a fragile ecosystem. There is a constant need for balance in the digestive system, just as there is in nature. The balance between the organs and among the different types of healthy bacteria found in the digestive system is absolutely essential to good health. When the digestive system is not working properly, the body becomes either malnourished or toxic. As a result, all the woes of poor nutrition and/or a toxic system eventually show themselves in the overall health of the body and mind.
Due to the many different organs included in the digestive system and their specific roles in the body, there are a lot of essential oils and herbs which have an ability to impact this system and bring about improvements. This month’s newsletter targets only a few of them. (I know from the length of the article that it seems like we surely must have mentioned them all. Not so—but it did feel like that to me as I wrote it.) I hope you find something useful to you or your family in the information I have tried to present here.
The three most important things to know about parasites are:
1) They can make a person very ill and leave problems that last for a very long time.
2) They can be very difficult to diagnose—even when reading the foot using zone therapy.
3) They can be indicative of a compromised immune system. When the immune system functions optimally parasites are usually eliminated in the natural course of living.
Skin rashes and irritation caused by parasites actually seem to respond very quickly to essential oils. (Have I mentioned lately that I hate skin rashes worse than nearly anything on earth?) It is wonderful that we have such wonderful options as essential oils! When dealing with parasite rashes, the oils must be applied using water, not carrier-type oils that might ‘feed’ the parasites. The chosen regimen must be continued for the entire life cycle of that particular parasite, including the hatching of any eggs. We have found that essential oils, placed in water in a spray bottle, work very well. The entire body must be covered by the water and the oil at least twice a day. Not fun or easy, but effective—even against MRSA. Be sure to shake the bottle frequently and well during the application process. Essential oils and water do not really mix well.
Once the parasite has been eradicated, there will still be a period of time needed to repair the damage done to the skin and subcutaneous tissues.
The more I read and studied, the more I came to realize that, because of sanitation and hygiene practices in North America, we have a greatly reduced incidence of parasitic issues. It has been and is a good idea to be vigilant, and to teach our children to be vigilant, in these areas.
I have also made a vow to increase my vigilance in washing, washing, washing my hands, even when camping or gathering herbs in what looks like pristine wilderness—especially around streams and waterways.
I will also be washing, washing, washing my produce much more faithfully. Kids and animals? Probably just a price we pay and handle the results in the best way that we can! (For me, that is the Miracle II parasite cleanse protocol, first and foremost, along with essential oils.)
A strong immune system is the best defense against parasites—as it is with everything else!
| Symptoms of Internal Parasites | More Serious, Less Common Symptoms of Internal Parasites |
|---|---|
| 1) Fatigue | 1) Irritability and drastic changes in behavior |
| 2) Flu-like symptoms | 2) Liver disease |
| 3) Rashes | 3) Weakened immune system |
| 4) Sudden weight gain or loss | 4) Chronic immunological diseases |
| 5) Body aches | 5) Allergies |
| 6) Sleep disturbances | 6) Asthma |
| 7) Gas, bloating, constipation | 7) Anemia |
| 8) Teeth grinding at night | 8) Arthritis (as the parasites form cysts which lodge in joints and muscles) |
| 9) Drooling at night | 9) Muscle cramps |
| 10) Nervousness | 10) Bluish specs in whites of the eyes |
| 11) Excessive hunger | |
| 12) Iron deficiency | |
| 13) Difficulty losing/gaining weight | |
| 14) Constant cough or colds | |
| 15) Hives, rashes, itchy skin | |
| 16 ) Watery diarrhea | |
| 17) Sugar & other cravings, such as dirt, raw rice | |
| 18) Ravenous appetite |
I was absolutely delighted to see what had been chosen for this month’s topic! February can be such a hard month for so many people, and this coming one promises to be harder than usual for me and those around me. As some of you may have heard, our family experienced the devastating loss of a dear loved one recently. I am very grateful for the opportunity to refresh my own mind, study the remedies that deal with depression, grief, and other emotional and mental issues a bit deeper and then share with you what I know and learn. The use of some of these remedies has already had a profound effect on my own mental health recently.
On a lighter note, my older brother, an advanced mathematics professor, told me once that his classes in February were simply used to play fun (and mildly educational) number/math games. Why? Because, he said, students are just up to too much else in February and they need a bit of fun to cheer them up! I suspect that the darker days of winter and, perhaps even in sunny climes, the let down following the holiday season affects us all. See the full list of topics.
There is, absolutely and without doubt, no road to good health (or recovery from illness and chronic ailments) without good nutrition being a priority every day!
Studies done at the School of Gerontology, University of Southern California, indicate that if a person has a sub-clinical nutritional deficiency, he or she might appear ‘perfectly normal’ except for increased susceptibility to disease, longer recovery time from surgery, adverse reactions to vaccines, extreme fatigue that interferes with normal functioning, depression, insomnia, and irritability.
Richard Revlin, M.D., of the Sloan-Kettering Cancer institute says,
“In the United States today, we rarely see cases of classical vitamin deficiency, such as scurvy and pellagra—to name just a few cited in this article. However, we are now beginning to recognize a vast new series of marginal deficiencies related to disease. Marginal deficiency, it now appears, may be a surprisingly common phenomenon.”
One very important reason herbal remedies work for a particular problem is that the herb has provided one or more vital nutrients that are missing in the diet.
It is important to understand, and remember, that vitamins and minerals chemically constructed in a laboratory cannot fill the nutritional needs of the body. Man has been unable to produce a single molecular structure that is exactly identical to those produced in nature. Laboratories can assemble the correct components in the correct amounts but somewhere in the joining of the atoms will be a rotation to the left that should be rotating to the right. The resulting isomer (that is the scientific word for it) is not bio-identical, no matter what the advertising says. This is as true of hormones and amino acids as it is of vitamins. (Hint: If the supplement you are buying says “L-something or other”, the ‘L’ is a warning that this supplement has been artificially produced in a laboratory and will not be providing the nutrition you think you are getting!
There is a great deal of information about the nutritional components of herbs in the book, Butterfly Miracles with Herbal Remedies which can be purchased at Butterflyexpress.shop. Nutrition and health is a topic that has fascinated me for years. See the full list of topics.
September marks the beginning of flu season. The herbal world is full of so many wonderful things to help us build our immune system and combat the flu when it finds its way into our lives. This month we will focus on building your Immune System and the Herbs, Essential Oils, and Blessed Waters that are my favorite for the Flu Season. Some of the products discussed are particularly loved by children but can always be used for adults as well. See the full list of topics.
Are you ready for some summer fun? There are so many fun things to do and places to go. Are you traveling, camping, or just getting out in the sun? Summer can be full of bugs, sun, scrapes, and bruises so we are focusing this month’s blog on some of our favorite Herbs, Essential Oils, and Blessed Waters that help us to be PREPARED for the fun of SUMMER. There are some amazing products you need to know about and then we will talk about things for Sun Safety, Building Immunity, Camping and First Aid, and Traveling.
In September the topic up for discussion is Strengthening Lymph and Immune. These are two very important systems for maintaining health and preventing sickness. I am loving the new tincture for giving your lymph some Tender Loving Care. We will discuss other tinctures for cleansing as well as give you a link for how to cleanse without making yourself sick. Essential Oils have been my go-to for lymph draining for years and we will discuss some of my favorites. Of course, this blog would not be complete without talking about the blessed waters that you should know for helping your immune and lymph systems. See the full list of topics.
In December, we will be talking about STRESS and FOOD POISONING. This is my absolute favorite time of year. I am not a fan of the cold and the snow, but I have a special love and adoration for the spirit of Christmas time. It is also a stressful time of year as there is so many extra undertakings to be fulfilled. I can’t even imagine navigating it without my oil friends. Food poisoning is another thing we seem to see a rise of this time of year, maybe because we are eating so many things that our bodies are not used to. We will talk about our must-haves for this as well.
See the full list of topics.
In October we will be talking about RESPIRATORY and FLU. As we head into the cold and flu season we thought it was important to review some go-to oils, herbs, and homeopathic that are worth having around this time of year. We have all been in the trenches of the flu ourselves and with our kids. I hope this blog makes any sickness that comes your way this season shorter and less intense. Please see the index at the bottom of the blog for a complete list of topics.