This is the perfect time to year to buy and plant seeds that will help you to stay healthy. Early sprouting baby kale leaves provide an excellent regenerative health source.
Kale is a cruciferous vegetable which contains sulforaphane, a compound which boosts enzymes in the liver that counteract the harmful toxins we might digest or breathe in. As we age, stem cells, which are necessary to repair, restore, replace, and regenerate the damaged cells in our bodies, diminish.
Cruciferous vegetables such as cauliflower, broccoli, kale, cabbage, bok choy, garden cress & brussels sprouts are some of the best foods for stem cell growth.
Baby kale leaves are an easy plant to grow from seeds on your window sill, balcony or kitchen garden; providing you with an excellent nutrition source and healthy stem cell regeneration. Kale is a superstar due to the amounts of vitamins A, K, B6 and C, calcium, potassium, copper and manganese it contains. Kale is also a functional food that modulates the microbiota in the microbiome. It is easy to add to soups, salads, pesto, falafel, pakora, pizza, vegetable cake (actually bread) and other foods.
The proverb above states that the primary driving force for most new inventions is a need. Necessity was certainly the driving force behind the Botanical Spa Therapy Herbal Bath Teas which I developed while extremely debilitated due to the off gassing of a new home, leaving me with toxicant induced loss of tolerance (TILT), multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS, multiple food allergies, gastroenteritis, chronic fatigue (CF) and depression. Trying countless detox remedies recommended and prescribed by health store personnel and alternative practitioners did nothing to resolve my chronic debilitating symptoms. My desperate quest for a solution, my herb research and intuition led me to the herbal bath tea recipe testing which has provided me with the whole body detoxification that I needed to recover my health. I am now 100% symptom free from the above conditions, feeling healthy and energetic. I have recommended the herbal bath teas to countless clients who have also become symptom free and healthy.
Compromised detoxification in the liver and throughout the body’s detox pathways can be the underlying cause of many chronic and acute symptoms and conditions, including immune, neurologic, hormone and weight management challenges. Unhealthy diet, medications, alcohol, toxins (foods, air, personal care and household products, salon treatments), vaccines, chemotherapy and supplements can accumulatively burden the body’s detox pathways, including the liver. Healthy detox pathways are crucial to good health, symptom free living and disease prevention.
The Botanical Spa Therapy Herbal Bath Teas are being relaunched as part of a spa kit, making it easier for you to get started using medicinal herbal bath teas and your body’s largest detox organ, your skin, to naturally promote whole body detoxification. The spa kit includes everything needed for four medicinal herbal tea bath spa experiences, to be spaced seven days apart. I love adding a few drops of Siberian fir essential oil to my herbal baths, which takes me into the tranquil forest for my spa experience. You can find essential oil information linkds by visiting My Green Medicine Cabinet at my blog.
Instructions are included in the spa kit along with the list of seven medicinal herbs in each of the extra large bath tea bags.
Consult with your regular health care provider and pharmacist before using the herbal tea baths. There may be contraindications due to medications, health status or other factors. DO NOT DRINK THE BATH TEAS
The Botanical Spa Therapy Herbal Bath Teas Kit includes:
4 large tea bags containing a mix of seven medicinal herbs for 6 herbal tea bath spa experiences
sea salt for 4 herbal tea baths
4 vials of therapeutic grade pure essential oils for 4 herbal tea baths (mix with the sea salt) and to help set a relaxing spa experience, or to use in your personal diffuser or, to use with the essential oils foot and hand reflexology chart (included)
one spray bottle of therapeutic grade pure, soothing essential oil spritz for your bed pillow and linens (various soothing scents)
one Botanical Spa Therapy Herbal Bath Tea instruction card
one 100% pure, long burning beeswax tealight to help set a relaxing bath spa experience
the link to my favourite ‘Peace’ album” on Spotify to enhance your spa experience
complimentary single email consult opportunity
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The Botanical Spa Therapy Herbal Bath Tea Kits are only available for shipping in Canada. You can duplicate the experience by using the herbal bath tea recipe and information in my Botanical Spa Therapy ebook or The Whole Person Well-being Equation ebook, which also contains my complete list of Bodyscan Visualizations. These ebooks are available for immediate download.
If you are interested in the herbal bath tea bags only, you can order 4 botanical spa therapy herbal bath teabags with instructions only, for $50 Canadian (shipping included). Available in Canada only. For this option email me.
Make sure that you enter a street address for the shipping address, not a box number. Email me at elisabethlhines@gmail.com if you have any difficulty with the purchase transaction, shipping, delivery or product. Do not contact Paypal.
Wishing you health, happiness and peace!
Elisabeth Hines, C.N.C., C.B.P., Holistic Wellness Practitioner, Health by Design, http://www.mybodycanhealitself.ca/, elisabethlhines@gmail.com
Every January many people are eager to start some type of detoxification regime in the hopes of improving their health. It took me years of poor health after off gassing of new homes and suffering from MCS, EI, TILT, CF, IB, depression and more, before I was able to successfully detoxify my body burden and become symptom free, healthy and energetic. During the early years of my poor health I tried every detox remedy recommended by multiple natural health practitioners and natural health stores. These did nothing to resolve my poor health and chronic symptoms. It wasn’t until I learned more about the body’s detox pathways that I understood that mine were somehow compromised and I had to find other solutions. That is how ‘necessity became the mother of my invention‘, botanical spa therapy herbal detox baths. After extensive experimenting on myself and later recommending my method to many clients over the years, this method has been a success, resulting in symptom free living and good health for not only me but also my clients.
The question of ‘why’ has now been answered for me in a scientific way and I think it will provide insights to the additional 40% of the population that may also have compromised detox pathways, either due to the MTHFR gene mutation or other detox pathway challenges. Regular detox strategies, which are readily available everywhere, may not provide you with the results you desire. Read on to better understand your body’s detox challenges.
“During the replication process, damages and errors my occur to the DNA. These are corrected most of the time by cells, if not the errors and damages may be fatal. They must be fixed before functioning and future replication. If they are left untreated these causes for the mutation to be passed onto future generations, this is how cancer, Autism, Down Syndrome and many more are passed on.” 1
In a healthy body with healthy DNA repair, detox challenges are resolved regularly. What happens if you have the detox gene mutations or other detox pathway challenges? If you have chronic ongoing symptoms and are looking for detox strategies to get you to your goals of 100% symptom free living, read on to get a better understanding of possible detox pathway challenges and consequences.
Possible Consequences of compromised detox pathways:
free radical damage
oxidation
inflammation
fibrosis
cirrhosis
insulin resistance
fatty liver
parasympathetic nervous system compromise (faulty calming)
choline deficiency (high cholesterol, gall stones)
hormone disruption and dysregulation
multiple unresolved chronic symptoms
weight gain (inability to lose weight)
inability to gain weight
toxicant induced loss of tolerance, TILT, (inability to tolerate chemicals and scents)
multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS)
chronic fatigue
low iron
food allergies
environmental allergies
depression
acne
psoriasis
DETOX Supports
If you have considered some type of detoxification option you will undoubtedly have been offered many recommendations, as I was many years ago. While considering your options, consider using nutrition and your body’s largest detox pathway to compensate for your body’s possible compromised detox pathway challenges. Also ask yourself; did my last detox method achieve my well-being goals and provide me with symptom free living?
Detox requires a two part process – 1. stop adding to your body pollution and 2. eliminate your body’s existing body pollution. For more information on this visit my blog post
Consider using your body’s major detox pathway, your skin, to compensate for detox pathway challenges. For more information on this visit my blog post.
Consider diet changes and additions to improve detoxification pathway functions. Sulforaphane and Diindolylmethane (DIM) are two phytochemicals found in cruciferous veggies that can be powerful tools for supporting the body’s detoxification system. Broccoli cabbage, broccoli sprouts, kale, cauliflower, Bok choy and collard greens are excellent sources and great to incorporate into green drinks, even for children. Citric fruits such as lemon and oranges are great for detoxification. For more information on healthy diet changes visit my blog post.
There are no shortage of stories in the media about people who have suffered some type of brain injury and been left with heightened mental abilities post recovery. Intuition, something everyone possess, is often heightened after injury. My personal brain injury experience, from off gassing of a new home resulting in toxicant induced loss of tolerance (TILT), resulted in a heightened intuition, a vital survival tool. My injury left me with nervous system and digestive system dysregulation causing multiple food allergies (85) confirmed by blood testing and depression. I am now 100% food allergy free and 100% depression free.
When my body and mind crashed physically and mentally, standard medical treatment was medication, which did nothing to resolve my symptoms or restore my health. My many year search of trial and error alternative options was costly. The one recovery tool that stands out, supported by healthy lifestyle changes, was learning to use my intuition in combination with bodyfeedback for protection from reactions. This allowed my body to focus on repair and healing instead of vigilance and reacting.
Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine stated: “Everyone has a doctor in him or her; we just have to help it in its work.The natural healing force within each one of us is the greatest forcein getting well.”
The National Library of Medicine article by Simon M McCrea, Intuition, insight, and the right hemisphere: Emergence of higher sociocognitive functions, published online 2010 Mar 3 provides a scientific definition for intuition.
“Intuition is the ability to understand immediately without conscious reasoning and is sometimes explained as a ‘gut feeling’ about the rightness or wrongness of a person, place, situation, temporal episode or object.”
The neural networks associated with intuition provide valuable body feedback tools to guide the body and mind in the pursuit and maintenance of vibrant health and longevity. Have you noticed that there are times when you feel sudden weakness or nausea, your balance is altered or one side of your body is weaker than the other side? Muscle response testing is a form of neuromuscularbiofeedback, an applied kinesiology biofeedback testing method. It uses feedback from the body and brain (your virtual black box) as information. Other forms of biofeedback include taking a pulse, taking a blood pressure and listening to the heart with a stethoscope.” In the 1950s, Dr. Arthur Coca identified that his wife’s heart rate would increase if she ate a food that provoked an inappropriate or allergic response. This was, as Dr. Coca put it, ‘accidentally acquired knowledge’ which he then applied to patients as well as his wife. The results were very effective and consistent.” Similarly bodyfeedback response testing provides information about foods and substances ingested, inhaled and applied to the body as well as environmental factors, including stressors. Anything can cause disruption to the natural balance, communication and function within your body. Learning how to read your body’s responses after exposure to suspected causes can provide you with health protection, allowing your body to focus on repair and healing instead of ongoing vigilance and reacting. I teach clients how to use their ‘gut feeling’ and bodyfeedback responses’ to determine which foods and other items (water, personal care) may be having a negative effect on them, including allergic reactions.
Simon M McCrea recaps in his article, making the connection for intuition to motor response: “To reiterate, intuition is automatic, nonconscious, affectively laden, absolute and judgmental, instant, implicit, associated with motor response, and the operation of right hemisphere nonverbal decoding mechanisms.”
Thomas R. Verny in the Psychology Today article Intuition: What It Is and How It Works, concludes: “Clearly, the biological basis of intuition is complex and likely involves a combination of factors. There is growing evidence suggesting that all humans are born with a basic ability for intuitive thinking and that, as we mature, as our links between the embodied mind, emotional processing, and intuitive thinking strengthen with experience, we may get better at it. Of course, if we fail to listen to this channel, like a muscle not exercised, our intuitive abilities will decline.”
If you have had any type of brain damage or malfunction, your intution may be compromised at times. How do you get started making or improving the connection between your intuition and your ‘doctor within’, for improved health and protection?
My past allergy/reaction history has been intense. I am now 100% food allergy free and feel safe and comfortable in all of my environments without fear of reacting.
My immune and nervous system crashed many years ago after moving into a new home and suffering from toxicant induced loss of tolerance (TILT) due to the off gassing. My resulting inability to tolerate any chemicals and over 80 foods (revealed from blood food allergy testing) resulted in years of challenging physical and mental symptoms. My quest for recovery led me to many holistic strategies, since the regular medical system had no solutions for me. I have been 100% food allergy free for many years due to the successful NAET energy (neutralizing) treatments that I received. My ongoing sensitivities to all chemicals, multiple chemical sensitivities (MCS) took longer to eliminate, however I was able to eventually feel safe and comfortable in all of my environments with an informed sense of vigilance for safety.
1. Drug Intolerance/Drug Allergies
My inability to tolerate drugs without adverse reactions dated back to my teenage years due to multiple procedures requiring local anesthesia, anesthesia and pain management. This ongoing challenge felt like a hopeless situation, especially if I ever ended up in a case where I need a drug (e.g. injection, hospitalization). The big question, which I was routinely asked when filling out medical forms, ‘are you allergic to drugs’, left me with more questions than answers, since I seemed to react to multiple drugs. Was it a specific ingredient? Was it a carrier or preservative?
My recent broken tooth, resulting in a large chunk of molar breaking off, left me in a very vulnerable situation as my last previous dental visit, where local anesthesia was required, left me with a four day paralysis of the right side of my head, brain, face, throat and shoulder. It was an extremely frightening experience, especially on swallowing. I have had residual general paresis (nerve weakness/vulnerability) on my right side since that day especially when I consume anything with preservatives or additives.
According to Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology; “In most cases, nerve palsy begins instantly after local anesthetic injection into the retromolar region and usually resolves within 12 hours. However, in rare cases, onset of symptoms may be delayed for several hours to days. Dental infection or paradental foci is also believed to be responsible for the insult.”2
Reality time! That ‘serious situation in the future’, was here now, and it was frightening. I procrastinated for some time; I chewed on the opposite side of my mouth, avoided extreme cold foods. Then one day I had a very painful unsoothable jaw which persisted for several days and I knew I had to see a dentist. I googled for a holistic dentist in my area, hoping there would be alternate solutions to the local anesthesia that I dreaded.
I was fortunate to find a wonderful holistic dentist who understood chemical sensitivities. The dentist recommended I take Traumacare homeopathic tablets for the pain until my appointment, which was very effective in eliminating the pain. I explained my challenge to her and my past history and then also shared how I had been treated for food allergies using acupressure treatments and wondered if it was possible to eliminate drug reactions using a similar method. She brought out three different types of local anesthetic and watched me as I tested each just by holding them up to my sternum (you can find out how this works by checking out this post) . Local anesthetic vial number one, sent me falling backwards in a thrust that the dentist could see, as did local anesthetic vial number two. Local anesthetic vial number three did not knock me off balance but sent nerve tingles all the way up my arms, shoulders, chest, face and head, which stopped once I let go of the vial. The local anesthetic in vial three was Carbocaine 3% which is a no-methylparaben formulation to avoid allergic reactions on sensitive patients.
With my holistic dentist collaboration, we came up with a plan where I would take vial number three (Carbocaine 3%) home and attempt to neutralize my body’s reaction to it using the laser pen in The Allergy Kit, which I use with clients who have food allergies. The laser pen is focused on various acupressure points while holding homeopathic vials of specific foods and other allergens. I indicated that with some balancing/neutralizing treatments, more than one treatment may be required. The scheduling I have found correct for balance/neutralizing has always been four days so I was prepared to repeat the procedure in four days if I still experience adverse symptoms when holding the vial on day four.
I used the laser pen and The Allergy Kit instructions with the vial of local anesthetic as planned. On day four I held the vial again and had no adverse symptoms of any kind and felt strongly balanced/grounded. I phoned the dentist office and scheduled the extraction. My molar was extracted using the local anesthetic that I had been balanced to without any adverse reactions. I feel blessed to have found a holistic dentist, sympathetic and understanding to my challenges, and willing to work with me to overcome them. I am sure there are many more people who seek out a holistic dentist as the result of drug reactions like the one I had.
My next question is: Can I balance myself to other drugs that I might need in the future? The Allergy Kit for food allergies comes with a vaccine homeopathic vial which I was weak to (knocked me off balance) and I was able to balance myself to it as well. For more information on The Allergy Kit, the procedure and the laser pen visit.
If you would like to have a complimentary food vial testing demonstration on The Allergy Kit contact me at elisabethlhines@gmail.com or message me.
After harvesting some comfrey and marjoram I am prepping my herbal salve ingredients. My chopped comfrey and marjoram leaves are brewing in the organic olive oil infusion. Recommended infusion time is 30 days. At that time I will strain the oil and add it to my melted beeswax.
After reading the research studies on the benefits of comfrey I decided that I would make some of the salve and apply it to my ‘sometimes’ vocal sacroiliac joints and lower spine for the anti-inflammatory and ‘bone knitting’ benefits. Since I often use marjoram essential oil for ‘stress and strain to pain’ relief for this challenge, I decided to infuse marjoram leaves in with my comfrey leaves.
Comfrey, (Symphytum officinale L), peer-reviewed in scientific journals, has been used for over 2000 years for its anti-inflammatory, analgesic and astringent properties.
According to a Clinical Overview of Comfrey in the Wiley Phytotherapy Research,
“Today, multiple randomized controlled trials have demonstrated the efficacy and safety of comfrey preparations for the topical treatment of pain, inflammation and swelling of muscles and joints in degenerative arthritis, acute myalgia in the back, sprains, contusions and strains after sports injuries and accidents, also in children aged 3 or 4 and over.”1 .
Researchers believe a chemical compound called allantoin found in comfrey is principally responsible for the wound-healing effects. Allantoin is a common botanical extract often chemically synthesized in the pharmaceutical industry and used in a variety of ointments and creams designed for healing wounds.2 Comfrey also stimulates granulation and tissue regeneration, and supports callus formation.3
Comfrey contains pyrrolizidine alkaloids that have been associated with substantial hepatoxicity after its ingestion as a tea. Because of the hepatoxic effect, common with the overuse of many medications as well as some herbs, comfrey ointments should contain no more than 5 to 20% comfrey.
Mount Sinai Hospital recommends the following precautions for use:.
Never apply comfrey to broken skin.
Use only small amounts of creams with comfrey for no longer than 10 days at a time.
DO NOT use any comfrey product for more than 4 to 6 total weeks in one calendar year..4
Always test any product on a small area of skin before proceeding and check with your regular healthcare provider and pharmacist to ensure there would be no unacceptable drug interactions with any other medications you are taking.
My healthy and happy comfrey:
Knowing that I will always have a source of anti-inflammatory, analgesic and ‘bone knitting’ ingredients in my own back yard, my escape to my farmacy, gives me comfort, especially in light of unknown future supply chain challenges.
For more information on the amazing pain relieving and ‘topical anesthetizing effects’ of my super herbal marjoram and other herbal remedies visit MY GREEN MEDICINE CABINET
I was blessed in the past to be able to find a solution to eliminate my multiple food allergies. I am now 100% food allergy free, an astounding accomplishment from blood food allergy tests revealing 85+ food allergies accompanied by unbearable gastrointestinal symptoms. Finally there is a self-help allergy kit version of the expensive allergy elimination treatments I received, for food and seasonal allergies. There is also a way to protect yourself from consuming potential food allergens by using bodyfeedback information that your body gives you. Read more about that at the end of my post below.
The method of food allergy elimination that neutralized my 85+ food allergies at the time, were NAET treatments, which used the body’s acupressure points and acupressure to neutralize my body’s ‘skewed’, or excess/wrong responses to specific foods. You can read more about my story on my about page. The NAET treatments have held for me and provided me with the ability to feel safe eating everywhere without fear of reactions.
Dr. Ynge Ljung, an Acupuncture Physician, has developed a self-help DIY allergy elimination kit and system which is a version of the acupressure allergy elimination treatments that eliminated my multiple food allergies. Her easy to use kits and system can treat the whole family, thus taking the power of your health back into your own hands. There are also kits available for seasonal and environmental allergens, as well as an emotions kit. This testing is not suitable for those who experience anaphylactic reactions. Always check with your regular healthcare provider before proceeding with treatments and have an Epipen available for your reactions. I can provide guidance on helping your body to reduce skewed allergic responses. Learn more about the kit at https://www.theallergykit.com/?ref=elisabethhines
The same type of acupressure treatments using the laser pen and vials of seasonal allergens, can help you to become free of your seasonal and environmental allergies.
NOW FOR IMPORTANT PROTECTION AGAINST CONSUMING FOODS THAT COULD POTENTIALLY CAUSE YOU A REACTION
When I was allergic to the 85+ foods and environmental allergens, I was a prisoner. It was unsafe for me to eat anywhere other than home from the list of remaining non 85+ allergic foods. I was introduced to bodyfeedback testing at the time and restructured it to test foods and drinks before I consumed them. This ability basically saved my life from ongoing severe good allergy reactions and allowed my body to rest and focus its energies on healing and repair instead of vigilance and reacting. Learn how to identify your seasonal allergies, food allergen and intolerance issues using your body systems. The two blog post links below will provide you with additional information and insites:
Book a virtual consultation to learn how to use bodyfeedback to determine your allergy triggers and protect your from serious allergic reactions. Contact me at elisabethlhines@gmail.com to book a virtual consultation. You will be invoiced before the consultation through Paypal where you can use your credit card. You will then be provided with a followup email and instructions to collect some food and other samples for testing during the virtual consultation.
This page contains Amazon affiliate links that allow for the earning of commission on purchases.
Self reliance for symptom relief may not be of interest to you, but with the worldwide supply challenges, I find a sense of urgency in terms of being prepared. I have been fortunate to remain relatively symptom free as I approach another decade. Regular exercise, including a combination of yoga and tai chi, meditation, walking, and a mostly plant based diet , much of it homegrown, have helped me to sustain a symptom free lifestyle. My go to for symptom relief when needed, and which I recommend to clients, are my self-help strategies and tools, which you can find in my book The Whole Person Well-being Equation, and my well stocked apothecary of medicinal herbs and therapeutic essential oils. You can read more about the medicinal herbs and therapeutic oils I use in My Green Medicine Cabinet. You can find quality herbs here. My book provides many self-reliant mind/body strategies to eliminate symptoms and promote healing, often circumventing the need for additional symptom relief supports. Learn how you can use visualization and tapping to promote changes and healing in your body. Click on this link to view what you can expect from the book and what people are saying. This book is a self-reliance resource for symptom relief and healing.
Although I have studied medicinal herbs extensively, I am not a medicinal herb wildcrafter. I have a full stocked apothecary of medicinal herbs and therapeutic essential oils which I recommend to clients for symptom relief and healing. I planted some medicinal herbs in my garden and pots last year, and will be adding more plants to my herb garden this year. The picture below is my comfrey drying, along side of my roses. I make a manure tea for my garden with it. Any yes, it smells pretty potent just like manure.
According to Alyse Fowler’s gardening column advice:
“Comfrey is rich in potassium (K), which is required for fruit production, and also contains potash (P) and nitrogen (N). A liquid comfrey feed has a higher NPK ratio than farmyard manure. Comfrey is also one of the few plants to contain vitamin B12, so it’s a rich source of food for plants.”1
If you are planning to wildcraft herbs for medicinal use, consult with a qualified herb wildcrafter. Many plants look similar despite the handy new plant identifier app now available. Adverse reaction to any medicinal herb is possible.
This handy guide is a recent purchase.
If you are planning to plant medicinal herbs in your garden make sure that you are buying organic and ideally heritage seed or plants. Learn as much as you can about the medicinal herbs that you are going to plant and use for symptom relief. You can find some of the resources that I use in my Escape to the Farmacy blog post.
There are many excellent books on herbs. I learned much of what I know from Maria Treben’s books, a part of my holistic course. Check out the great selection of herb books that make great resources for your home apothecary and as gifts.
Always consult your doctor or a certified herbalist before trying any new medicinal plant. Reactions from combination with other herbs, supplements and drugs are possible, even if they are therapeutic for you. .Always do your own research and verify anything you read with multiple sources.
There is nothing better on a snow day than the smell and taste of fresh sourdough bread. My kitchen is filled with the aroma this morning and I did not have to rely on a tricky sourdough starter to enjoy it. You will find the shortcut below.
From my years of experience working with people with food allergies and sensitivities, including mine in the past, it became apparent that many people could tolerate sourdough bread more easily despite the potential gluten issues. Somehow the sourdough fermentation process that gives the bread its distinctive sour taste also makes it more gut-friendly. for some.
According to Vanessa Kimball of The Sourdough School in the UK, “The same microbes that are in the soil are the same microbes that are in that pot of sourdough starter, which are the same microbes that are in our gut,” 1
“The wild yeast and bacteria in a sourdough starter break down some of the carbohydrates and proteins found in flour, says Kate Scarlata, a Boston-based dietitian and author of The Low-FODMAP Diet book.” 2
According to research, for many people it is actually the fructan, a carbohydrate found in wheat, rather than the gluten that causes non-celiac gluten sensitivity symptoms. 3
According to additional research searching for gluten sensitivity causes, glyphosate, a pesticide often used on wheat crops in North America but not the UK, may be responsible. This could explain why people who travel from North America to the UK find they are able to tolerate eating bread there with less symptoms. .
“Glyphosate toxicity looks a lot like gluten issues. That’s because glyphosate creates the same damaging conditions normally associated with celiac disease and gluten intolerance. Because of the way its chemical is designed, glyphosate kills off beneficial bacteria in the gut. It also prevents important cytochrome P450 (CYP450) enzymes from functioning properly … the same enzymes affected in celiac disease. By inhibiting CYP450 enzymes, glyphosate makes it harder for your body to clear out toxins on its own, form bile acids (crucial for nutrient absorption), produce essential fatty acids, activate vitamin D and break down vitamin A into usable forms.” 4
Whatever the possible causes, many people that I share my bread with, are delighted to be able to eat sourdough bread. Finding a good quality organic sourdough bread may be a challenge in many locations, which is was in mine; so I started experimenting with different recipes and have finally found one many people love. The original recipe is from Carolyn at the Homesteading Family Youtube Channel – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9KOHtQrHgM&t=37s. I have made some revisions. I use Platinum Instant Yeast/Sourdough Culture combination instead of regular yeast, 1/2 cup seed and ancient grain blend, 1/2 cup of organic oats, 1 cup of organic whole wheat flour and 4 1/2 cups of organic all purpose flour. I add 2 Tablespoons of maple syrup to the yeast water mix before adding the flours. Add the oats last so they do not absorb the water.
This is an exceptionally easy bulk dough recipe that stores in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. I follow Carolyn’s instructions but have also had some improvements in the finished product by incorporating some additional strategies (still experiementing) when needed such as rehydrating and conditioning the sticky or flat dough by folding it. You can find these in the other Youtube links that follow.
3 Fructan, Rather Than Gluten, Induces Symptoms in Patients With Self-Reported Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity, National Library of Medicine, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29102613/
Being told that ‘these are challenging times for all of us’, does little for many, to extinguish fears and concerns. Life can be hard, and although we, like those who fought and endured war times, can do hard times; sometimes we need extra help. There are many mental health supports available which can be accessed through different governments and organizations. Check with your local government and municipality for available resources for support. In Canada help can be assessed here.
The internet and social media provides many recommendations for strategies to help you stay grounded during stressful times. What works for one person, may not work for another. Isolated strategies may also not be enough on their own, but when combined with other strategies, may provide a synergistic impact. A healthy diet, walking, yoga (thanks Jane Fonda for your inspiring videos) and prayer are my ‘go to’ strategies to help me stay grounded. Essential oils have also been a staple in my bag of calming tricks. The grounding blend tea is my #1 back up ‘go to’ when I feel I need grounding. The impact is lasting which I have not found with other strategies to date. Some strategies may not be effective or safe with other strategies, like medications, so consultation with your regular healthcare provider is important before adding in new strategies.
My training in the medicinal properties of herbs has provided me with many health promoting supports during the challenging times in my life. You can read more about these at the blog link posts I list at the end of this post.
Botanical spa therapy, which was the result of much trial and error combining and testing to provide a recipe that promotes whole body detoxification, has had a major impact in helping to restore my health and that of my clients.
My herbal experimenting continues, in part because of my recent move which has provided me with bountiful backyard gardens, and in part, because of my passion for finding natural solutions to help others to cope with life’s daily challenges and unexpected surprises. In my ‘escape to the farmacy’ blog, I share information on the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual benefits of botanicals and botanically inspired escapes, experiences, recipes, art and decor. Escaping to, immersing in, being inspired by, and eating from nature brings so many body, mind and spirit benefits!
My grounding blend tea has provided me with the ability to feel calm and grounded in the midst of life’s challenges, and I wanted to share the recipe with others. This recipe is not one that you would serve at tea, it is actually intended as a tea tonic, consumed in small quantities (note the small tea cup). It is not a tea that you drink for the flavour, so feel free to ‘shot glass’ it down and follow with your favourite tea. As with any tonic support, they should be consumed for a short period of time (once a day for about a week) and then you would take a break of at least four days before repeating if necessary. Make sure to check with your regular healthcare provider before adding this grounding blend tea to your grounding strategies plan.
Botanical Therapy Grounding Tea Recipe
Each of the herbs listed in the recipe have been used medicinally for many conditions. Although these were not my first ‘go to’ herbs for my grounding blend, because I went with the historically recommended herbs for calming first (lavender, chamomile, valerian, passion flower, lemon balm), this blend had a surprising calming and grounding impact on me. The synergistic grounding benefit that I have found they provide may be unique to me because of my past stress sensitivity and skewed HPA stress response, but may also help you to stay grounded. I have tried many natural strategies to help me stay grounded and this one by far out weighs others I have tried. Many of the herbs share anti-inflammatory properties, which makes one wonder if that is a root factor in keeping the HPA stress response balanced, keeping one grounded. Each person’s stress response is unique and as such, responds differently to stressors and therapies. Some individual experimenting with quantities and combining may be required to get your best mix. Here is my recipe to get you started. Herbs used are in chopped, dried form. The dandelion root is powdered.
1/2 teaspoon stinging nettle (Urtica dioica).The herb with its many chemical compounds provide many researched health benefits, including anti-histamine and anti-inflammatory.
1/2 teaspoon speedwell (Veronica). This herb with its 100 phytochemicals, is recommended for many diseases including inflammatory disorders.
1/2 teaspoon dandelion leaf and root mix (Taraxacum officinale). Do not use roasted. Not a welcome visitor in the lawn, dandelion has many well researched health properties including , Type 2 diabetes, cancer and for its anti-inflammatory properties
1 teaspoon thyme. Thyme has been researched for its anti-inflammatory, respiratory, neuroprotective and anti-depressant effects.
3/4 of a cup of warm (not hot) filtered water. Steep for 20 minutes and strain into your cup.
