It's nice when it's cheap. It's even nicer when it's free. I'm talking about treatment and medications. Everyone knows that cheap doesn't mean good. But it's not about the benefits, it's about the pleasure here and now—at least for the wallet.
Why buy expensive medications when you just step outside and there it is, a “green pharmacy”! Pick them by the handful, scythe them by the sackful, and you'll get a mouthful of health for free.
But I'm being disingenuous. It's not that simple; not everyone is chasing the cheapest option. A fair share of herbalists are seduced by the idea of eco-friendliness. They assume that pharmacies are full of chemicals, while what you pick in meadows and fields, or on the side of the road, is all natural. Or simply natural, no need to be shy!
It's useless to appeal to the wisdom of self-sufficient healers of themselves and their families, to ask them to remember what they learned in school (be it chemistry or botany). No, they won't remember that everything around them is pure chemistry, and also biology. Well, and physics. And even the occasional mathematics. And the grass growing in the ecologically clean foothills of the Altai Mountains, for example, is chemistry, no matter how you look at it.
Take, for example, a plant beloved by old grandmothers and young mothers, coltsfoot, the spring primrose. We type in “coltsfoot baby cough” into a search engine. And begin reading:
…Juice from coltsfoot and plantain leaves is very helpful for coughs…
…For coughs caused by acute respiratory viral infections, herbal expectorants can be recommended: decoctions of coltsfoot, wild rosemary, and elecampane…
…For coughs, brew coltsfoot (bought at a natural food store) and drink a little, but often…
In short, anyone can repeat this experiment and achieve the same results if they so desire. We find advice everywhere to use coltsfoot in treating children. I'll note the differences in approaches: sometimes the juice is recommended, sometimes a decoction, sometimes a tea. “Little by little, but often”—pay attention!
But coltsfoot isn't just a primrose with distinctive leaves and yellow flowers. It's also a plant organism characterized by a specific chemical composition. What is this composition?
Here's the deal: coltsfoot (like a number of other plants in the Asteraceae, Fabaceae, Fireweed, and Borage families) contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids. These, as reported in a chemical encyclopedia, “possess a broad spectrum of biological activity. Ingestion of plants containing P.a. can cause mass poisoning in humans and animals.” These substances are dangerous due to their hepatotoxicity—they damage the liver.
For this reason, coltsfoot is prohibited as a medicine—not in Russia, but in Germany. However, even in Russia, when using such herbs, one should remember not to use them “little by little, but often.” While a child's cough may ease now, after some time, liver problems, some of them serious, may develop. In particular, pyrrolizidine derivatives are blamed for the development of hepatic veno-occlusive syndrome, which can lead to cirrhosis.
Ivan tea, a favorite among many, or fireweed, is also suspected of hepatotoxicity. This alone should somewhat dampen the enthusiasm of lovers of so-called Koporye tea. But they brush off the warnings: how much do you have to drink to get sick? Well, who's to say they can't test it out for themselves?
Autumn/winter is the traditional time for folk remedies against so-called “colds.” And against the flu, too. What's in our arsenal? Garlic, of course, by the ton, from morning until night, both internally and externally, grated, whole… Meanwhile, garlic increases the frequency of seizures in epileptics. Garlic is not recommended for pregnant and nursing women, and it's highly undesirable for obese people and those with hypertension.
Onions are, naturally, a cure for seven ailments. But they also have contraindications: they're dangerous for those with pre-existing heart, liver, and kidney problems.
Chamomile tea is the same one that Miss Marple loved, according to Agatha Christie. Old ladies might not be bothered by it, especially if they have high stomach acidity. However, it might be harmful for pregnant women, who should generally be very careful with plants containing essential oils.
St. John's wort is a well-known remedy for a myriad of ailments. Herbalists are ready to recommend it and even use it as a tea additive. However, one of St. John's wort's harmful properties is phototoxicity (Novoimanin, made from St. John's wort, is labeled as a potential photosensitizer). The plant increases the sensitivity of humans and animals to sunlight. So, after drinking St. John's wort tea, avoid the beach. Or avoid this miraculous plant altogether during the summer.
Herbal infusions are a special kind of thing. They're made up of “parts”: 2 parts of this herb, 1 part of that herb… The only problem is that the content of certain substances in the plants depends on the growing conditions and the proper harvesting practices.
For only the herb-gatherer can be sure that he or she has taken these conditions into account (for example, not foraged for the herb for seven or nine ailments on the side of the highway) and followed the rules (for example, dug up the magical roots not in midsummer, but in the fall. Incidentally, this is more difficult to do when the plant, having stored up useful substances in its underground parts, simply discards the above-ground portion).
Who can be sure that the harvester has harvested, say, elecampane and not telekia glabra? Or that he has chosen St. John's wort (St. John's wort) or chamomile (Chamomile)? That the harvested and dried raw materials are free of bacterial and fungal contamination?
In conclusion, I urge sensible readers to make the following a rule when dealing with medicinal herbs:
1) Do not use any herbs without medical advice;
2) do not use any herbs without medical advice in the treatment of allergy sufferers, chronically ill people, children, people in special conditions – pregnant women, nursing mothers;
3) do not use herbs that are known to be toxic.
It's best to approach herbalism as a cultural phenomenon, a branch of ethnobotany. And enjoy it not by self-medicating, but by reading articles about plants.