The Prepper Broadcasting Network - Herbal Medicine for Preppers: Elecampane

Starting point is 00:00:00 Hey y'all, welcome to this week's show. Today we're going to talk about a really interesting herb. It's one of the most storied herbs in history. It's one that's been used by our ancestors for thousands of years. In fact, the Latin name is Inula Hellenium. It's named after Helen of Troy, because in the legend of Helen of Troy, she was gathering Ella campaign when she was abducted by Paris. Pliny stated that no day passed that the Empress Julia Augusta did not eat some of the candied root of Ellicampaign

Starting point is 00:00:39 to help with digestion and to cause mirth. It's an interesting plant and gosh it's been used at least since ancient Egypt, maybe Samaria, Babylon. I mean we're talking really one of the oldest herbs known to man and it's really nice that it grows not only throughout the Middle East and the Mediterranean and all over Europe, but it's also in America. It's native to America as well. It's considered just a wildflower. So wherever you are, I mean really from Canada to Mexico and just about anywhere in the world, I don't know about tropical jungles or deserts or anything like that. But even in a desert you could probably grow Ella campaign. You may have to give it some shade, maybe even, you know, keeping in pot, some water, that kind of thing. But, yeah, it grows just about everywhere.

Starting point is 00:01:38 Diascorides said a decoction, taken as a drink, induces the movement of urine and the menstrual flow. The root itself, taken in a syrup with honey, helps coughs, asthma, hernias, convulsions, gaseousness, and the bites of venomous creatures. Interesting. Don't have any idea, if it has, any effect at all on the bites of venomous creatures but it's considered to be a very good lung herb very good for coughs and asthma it's one of the go-toes for pneumonia bronchitis also very

Starting point is 00:02:17 good for digestion and apparently it's a diuretic and will stimulate mincy so you wouldn't want to use while pregnant anything that can do that can also cause a miscarriage but i think it would have to be a fairly large amount. But, you know, I don't know for sure. That's not my area of expertise. The leaves boiled in wine are effectively applied to those who have sciatica. Very interesting. Yes, it has been used as a poultice, whether it has a specific action, I guess you would say, on nerve pain. I have no idea. But you do find it in various salves, salves, whatever you want to call them. liniments and such as that. He said the root is good for the stomach preserved in raisin wine. Yes,

Starting point is 00:03:06 the Greeks were really big on making wine from raisins. That's not just something people do in prison. In fact, they really like their raisin wine. They called it Passam. And, you know, it's a hot Mediterranean climate. So that was an easy way to preserve grapes was to turn them into raisins. It's been done, I mean, again, going back to ancient Egypt and ancient Sumerian and all that. they all had raisins and all you got to do to make raisin wine is pour boiling water it doesn't even have to be boiling hot tap water it can even be cold water but it's easier to use hot water they well okay let me give a caveat the grapes um rehydrate better if you pour hot water over them okay and you can you don't even really have to mash them up they'll just kind of fall apart

Starting point is 00:03:55 and all that great sugars from the grapes gets into the water and it reconcentrates almost just instant grape juice. However, the natural yeast on the skin of the grapes, of the raisins, I should say, can be killed by boiling water. Really, if you were going to do an all-natural raisin wine, which is the way they would have done it in ancient Greece, is just to put warm water over them or room temperature water over them and let those natural. yeast from the skin of the grapes begin to digest the sugars and really within just a few days it'll be bubbling real good and you've got it can be a fairly highly alcoholic wine depending on your ratio of grapes to to water if and if you did use the boiling water or if you wanted to be sure of getting a a drier wine because a raisin wine tends to be rather sweet you might want to actually use boiling water to kill the natural yeast and then use a commercial wine yeast which is going to give you a dryer in product. Otherwise you could use, I guess what is it cadmium? Camden, not cadmium. No, Camden. Camden is definitely not cadmium. That would be

Starting point is 00:05:16 really bad for you. I can't remember the name of the, it's not a disease. It's a poisoning actually that people used to get from tires. But anyway, Camden is a sulfate-based, if I remember correctly, disinfectant that is good for killing yeast. Most of the commercial wines that you buy in the grocery store have been treated with Camden or a similar sulfide and that kills the yeast, make sure that the wine's not going to start fermenting again in the bottle and perhaps explode. So that's why they do it. A lot of people have. reaction so to sulfates can upset their stomach make them feel pretty sick and that's when you know when someone says I can't drink wine it makes me sick

Starting point is 00:06:02 it's probably unless they're drinking way too much you know it's probably that and in that case you can look specifically for wines that say you know sulfate-free or so or whatever but you're really just better off making it yourself and using a you can use a commercial yeast lable one I usually use. You can use natural yeast that are found on the grape skins. You have far more control over the alcohol content of your wine and the sweetness versus dryness if you use a commercial yeast. So that's my caveat. That's why I've never, well, not in a long time made of a raisin wine just using the natural yeast on the grape skins. But you absolutely can.

Starting point is 00:06:51 and in fact there's a guy on YouTube he's from Wales does some really funny videos about making wines and such from just store shelf juice I mean you know he'll make a bottle of wine it costs like a buck and a half and he's he's a real character too I think he calls himself doctor booze or something anyway and he's actually kind of been struggling with alcohol addiction so it's you know you may actually want to watch it if you If you have an issue, you may want to pull up his channel for that, even though you could be very tempted to try his experiments at home. His struggles with reducing his intake, pretty darn insightful, actually. But he's a smart guy.

Starting point is 00:07:37 He's a real character, a big, fat Welsh guy. But anyway, I like his channel. He's a nice guy. I've communicated with him a few times. But he did an experiment to see if a commercial wine yeast versus, bread yeast versus the natural yeast on the raisin skins which one would ferment faster and get higher alcohol content and all that and actually the raisins won the raisins actually beat out the commercial yeast amazing i mean it was to me because i mean i everything i had been taught and

Starting point is 00:08:12 told was the exact opposite so um you know as preppers it's another good thing to have in your a cabinet is raisins, you know, they do last basically forever if you're kept in a dry environment and they're a decent source of sugar and a reliable source of yeast. If you wanted to make bread, you could use the yeast off of the raisin skins. All you would do in that case is essentially just make a very small batch, like a cup of raisin wine. And when it starts foaming and frothing, mix it in with some flour, and make a dough start. out of that the same way you would do sourdough a lot of people make their sourdough that way using fruit skins that's the way George Herder my hero George

Starting point is 00:08:57 Leonard Herder did it and it is one of the most reliable ways without it out you know the only thing and if you're making bread you don't even have to worry about it getting a little sour the cedar bacteria you know if you're using it to start a you know a wine or a cider or anything like that natural ginger ale, whatever you might be using it for. You know, you want to do a fermentation lock and keep the acedar bacteria out so it doesn't turn to vinegar unless you want vinegar, in which case, go for it. So anyway, back to Ellicampaign. Yeah, it was made it made into a syrup with honey or actually made into lozenges and such, even back to

Starting point is 00:09:44 ancient Greece and ancient Egypt. In Egypt, it was called. called, I don't know how to pronounce Egyptian, but L-O-N-E, Lone, Lonnie, Yon, I have no idea. So, anyway, the Discordi is also in Demeteria Medica, ate a wine specifically of El-Campaign. And it was five ounces of dried L-Campaign root, put into six gallons of grape must, so fermenting wine, three months. take the roots out and it was used as a remedy for the chest and as a diuretic and yeah another option you could do with your raisins there or fresh grapes or apple juice or whatever we wanted to use anything with sugar in it basically anything with sugar in it a lot of the a lot of the stuff is sold in the grocery store you know if it's not a beer that lists this ingredients if it's not a

Starting point is 00:10:44 good wine if it's not if it's one of those like like pre-mixed carbonated soda water kind of things most of that's never been made with fruit or barley or anything like that it's just sugar wash and sugar wash is nothing but dissolve sugar and yeast another thing people make in prison it's pretty nasty but actually that guy that the dr boo's guy that was telling you about I can't remember his name it's not coming to me right know he did a sugar wash one time and he used a distillers yeast and he you know it came out pretty much the way you would think it's going to come out and almost 20% alcohol and he mixed it with fruit juice and he's like he's like guys guys I've just figured out how to make mad dog you know

Starting point is 00:11:39 Mad Dog 2020 and actually yes it's exactly basically as far as I know how it's made and so if you you know ever plan to become a hobo there you go you can make your own mad dog or night train or Boone's Farm absolutely and hey what would well what maybe I shouldn't say no I shouldn't say this I know we got a lot of people probably listen to this show with their kids but let me just say that you know were it not for such beverages high school would not have been as as fun and and as many memories of vomiting but anyway st. Hildegard wrote of Ella campaign and by the way it spelled E L-E-C-A-M-P-A-G-N-E she wrote around 1100 a D she said that it had very

Starting point is 00:12:39 it has beneficial powers in it dry or green it may be put in wine all year long after it has shriveled in the wine its powers have faded and it should be thrown away and replaced by new one who has pain in his lungs should drink this wine in moderation every day before and after eating it carries away poisons from the lungs suppresses migraines and clears the eyes but if someone drinks it frequently it would injure him by its strength you got to remember this is not a it's a medicine at that point you made a medicinal wine. Never forget that. I know a lot of people who will make a tincture or an herbal infused wine and, you know, you're supposed to have like a tablespoon of that a day or maybe just, you know,

Starting point is 00:13:24 one small, in the case of the Zellicampaign wine, probably about a half glass before and after a meal, I think they said. But then they think, well, this is tasty. I'll have another glass. I have another glass. Then you're getting too much of a medicinal herb. and you know much more that would be recommended and it can have really bad effects a lot of them can be really hard on the kidneys I don't think a little campaign would fall into that category but you know I use juniper berries a lot infused for everything from cold remedies to diuretics to you name it and you know when I make a gin it's just got a little bit of juniper berries in it's not

Starting point is 00:14:06 like a really medicinal dose it's more for flavoring Now, if I took a juniper tincture in which I put a whole ounce of juniper berries, dried juniper berries, to twice by volume, alcohol, and it's really super strong, that would really could actually do kidney damage. You would definitely have aching in your kidneys, probably some blood pressure issues, probably some burning urine because the turpines would just be so strong. So, you know, always keep that in mind. Mint, especially, anything in the mint family. And, you know, mints are most common culinary herbs, not just plain, you know, spearmint and peppermint, but your basils and oreganoes are mints. I mean, we use mints all the time, but we don't use them in medicinal doses.

Starting point is 00:14:57 Medicinal doses are much, much, much stronger than the oregano and basil you're going to put in your spaghetti sauce. Or even an infused beverage that you might just say. you know, sip on, have, you know, a couple in the evening. That's just enough to flavor it. And you do get a little medicinal benefit from using herbs in your alcoholic beverages, but when you actually have a medicinal dose, you could die, just, I mean, seriously, from spearmint, or peppermint, more likely. If you had, like, several glasses of a strong peppermint tincture, you could actually start bleeding to death. I mean, from your eyes and ears and really bad stuff.

Starting point is 00:15:42 I mean, yeah. So always keep in mind, a medicinal dose is very different from a culinary dose. So Brother Aloysius wrote in 1901. The root is used medicinally. It has a strong aromatic penetrating smell. Its sap is sour and bitter. The roots of two or three-year-old plants should be gathered in autumn and finally chopped and dried.

Starting point is 00:16:08 The root decoction consists of four to five teaspoons per two cups of water and may be used fruitfully for the treatment of leukemia and green sickness. These are both the women's issues, menstrual type issues. The green sickness, I think, is specifically anemia from excessive menstrual bleeding. Take one cup daily, the decoction, and I may be wrong about that. As I always say, I am not an expert on herbs for women's issues. So there are many books written specifically on that topic and always refer to those. Take One Cup Daily.

Starting point is 00:16:45 The decoction also stimulates appetite and dissolves phlegm. It is recommended for asthma, lung complaints, flagellants, heartburn, catteras, congestion. Dropsy, it's water retention, edema, indigestion, and irregular menstruation in young girls. It can also be applied for itching eczema and scabees. Igor Vilevich Zeven, it tells us in the Russian tradition, it is called nine powers in the Russian language, while the Ukrainians know it as wonderful power, attesting to its myriad applications, although found growing through the countryside, many Russians cultivate Al-Campaign in their gardens. Reference to this herb can be traced to the 17th century when the court positioned to the Tsar Michael Federovich prescribed the herb to the czar and his fans. family. An herbal dated 1627 states of the root of nine powers should be crushed and mixed with raw honey and taken in the morning and evening. It will calm down coughing and expel any thick

Starting point is 00:17:45 flam inside the throat. The same root cooked in wine, sweetened with sugar is good and when taken internally helps people breathe easier. It is an excellent lung herb, just widely cultivated throughout the world for that reason, except in the United States where we tend to consider it wildflower, a weed, which is pretty stupid, actually. British herbalist Gerard said, this is 1,500 is good for shortness of breath and old cough, and for such as cannot breathe unless they hold their necks upright. So when you slip over, if you get a little shorter breath, that does happen. If you have inflammation in the bronchials, it can really, you have to sit up straight or you can't breathe.

Starting point is 00:18:33 All right. So it's good for that. A great value. Some medicine to be licked on. So I'm into a loisage. And likewise preserved, given to purge and void thick, tough, clammy humors by which he means mucus in the chest and lungs. The root preserved is good and wholesome for the stomach. Being taken after supper, it doth not only help digestion, but keepeth the belly soluble. The juice of the same, driveeth forth all kinds of. of worms from the belly. Yes, another reason it shouldn't be taken in large amounts, especially while pregnant, probably not any users while pregnant, was it does have some vermifuge properties. If it kills worms, it's not going to be good for a baby. Let's see. He mentions that Pliny, or Pliny, I should say, wrote that chewing the root would fasten the teeth. Okay, so if you had like loose, teeth, I guess, from inflammation of the gums, the, I guess, as stringency would help kind of tighten things up. I don't know. I don't know on that. So, let's see. He mentions, this again,

Starting point is 00:19:43 1,500s, England, that the root of elephant campaign is a good counter poison for the biting of serpents. Also good for those that are bursting. That means, like, basically, herniated, hernia, or, oh, there's another word I'm looking for, but yeah. And, uh, troubled with cramps and convulsions. Let's see. Dried, made of powder with honey would help ulcerid sores. Boy, he had a lot of remedies for it. He talks about how it's good diuretic. Good for those that are grieved with inward burstings or have any member out of joint.

Starting point is 00:20:26 Also considered to help with the, you know, if you've dislocated a joint. And that was taken internally. I'm not sure if it helps or not, but, you know, it's an old use for it. Oh, he talks about using externally for itches, scabs, mangyness, and such like. And apparently, according to legend, the druids associated Ella campaign with elves. But our best Irish herbal is written by John Kehoe in 1735, and he was not superstitious at all, nor was he very loquacious. He said, it provokes urination and minstration, cures consumptive coughs, and shortness of breath, AIDS digestion, alleviates pains in the joints, and main to an ointment, cures itchy conditions.

Starting point is 00:21:13 It is also good for chest problems and cures most disorders of the lungs, such as difficulty or suspension of breathing, hurried respiration, and asthma. Miss Greve, writing in the 30s, gets a lot into the history. how it was written of by Roman poets or Horace, early English writer, writers, I should say, she lists a lot of the folklore. You know, I love the lore of it, but I'm not going to take your time with that. If you're interested, this comes from my encyclopedia, bitter medicinal herbs, or Ms. Greaves wrote two books called A Modern Herbal, Volume 1 and 2.

Starting point is 00:21:57 You can find all that in there. She said that Ellicampaign was frequently mentioned in Anglo-Saxon writings prior to the Norman Conquest and was used by the wealth physicians of the 13th century and was generally known in the Middle Ages. Formerly was cultivated in all private herb gardens, that's true, it is an official herb. She mentions that in Denmark, interestingly, they also associated with elves. I don't know why, but it was called Elf Dock or Elf Wart. But two medicinal uses.

Starting point is 00:22:36 She says, diuretic, tonic, diaphoretic, expectant, alternative, antiseptic, astringent, and generally gently stimulant. I think we know all those terms. Maybe diaphoretic, if you haven't listened to the show before,

Starting point is 00:22:48 means it helps with a fever. Expectrum, it means it helps you cough up mucus, essentially. It was employed by the ancients in certain diseases of women and endropsy and skin effects. any thing to do with the lungs of course and was also called scabwort because it would cure sheep affected with a scab and also in another country was called horse heel because it was from its reputed virtues and curing the cutaneous diseases of horses

Starting point is 00:23:20 again that skin issues yes very much used in in veterinary medicine we have not really gotten into herbal veterinary medicine it's almost a school in an of itself. There are a lot of books written on the subject. But anyway, she said in herbal medicine is chiefly used for coughs consumption and other pulmonary complaints being a favorite domestic remedy for bronchitis. Absolutely. So I think we covered all that.

Starting point is 00:23:50 Uh-huh. We get to modern use, and we'll wrap it up there. Plants for Futuracies Al-Campaign has a long history of use as a medicinal herb. As a gently warming and tonic herb, it is especially effective in treating costs and consumptions, bronchitis, and many other complaints of the chest, as well as disorders of the digestive system. It is a very safe herb to use. It is suitable for the old and young, especially useful when the patient is debilitated.

Starting point is 00:24:15 It cleanses toxins from the body, stimulating the immune and digestive system, and treating bacterial and fungal infections. The root is alternative anthlementic. Anthemetic means, again, it helps get rid of worms. alternative means it gradually brings you back to health. Estringent, bitter, colagogue that's selling the stomach essentially. Demulcine means softening. Diarrhetic, diaphoretic, mildly expectant, and gently stimulant, that means to the digestive system.

Starting point is 00:24:44 Stomatic, again, good for the stomach, and tonic, and again, that's for the digestive system. It is best harvested in the autumn for plants that are two years old and can be dried for later use. The root should be at least three years old, according to another report. This remedy should not be prescribed for pregnant women, so I was right on that. An extract of the plant is a powerful antiseptic, bacteriicide, and particularly effective against the organism that causes tuberculosis. So another reason we might want to have this one on hand. The root contains allotolactone, that's hard I want to say, which is strongly anthominic. One to 1,000 dilution can kill parasitic worms.

Starting point is 00:25:26 Isn't that amazing? And specifically the worm, Ascarus, it will rid the body of it in 16 hours. So definitely a prepers herb because you never know what's going to happen if the grid goes down, so to speak, and you may not have really good sanitation and food storage. Alentolactone has anti-inflammatory properties as well. It reduces mucous secretion, stimulates the immune system. The plant is sometimes recommended as external wash for skin inflammations, vericose alters, but in some it may cause allergic reactions.

Starting point is 00:26:06 So once again, I find a remarkably useful plant with a storied history. It's edible and medicinal uses have been known for thousands of years, and it's barely known in America, usually considered a weed. So one to learn to identify. as you will find in the wild, one to probably plant in your garden because it's one of those essentials. So y'all, we covered a lot of ground in this show from raves and wine to all a campaign, but I hope you found it interesting. Have a good one, and I'll talk to you next time. The information in this podcast is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition.

Starting point is 00:26:50 Nothing I say or right has been evaluated or approved by the FDA. I'm not a doctor. The U.S. government does not recognize the practice of verbal medicine, and there is no governing body regulating herbless. Therefore, I'm really just a guy who studies herbs. I'm not offering any advice. I won't even claim that anything I write or say is accurate or true. I can tell you what herbs have been traditionally used for. I can tell you my own experience, and if I believe an herb has helped me. I cannot, nor would I tell you to do the same.

Starting point is 00:27:18 If you use an herb, anyone recommends you're treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health. Humans are individuals and no two are identical. What works for me may not work for you. You may have an allergy, a sensitivity, an underlying condition that no one else even shares and you don't even know about. Be careful with your health. By continuing to listen to my podcast or read my blog,

Starting point is 00:27:42 you agree to be responsible for yourself to your own research, make your own choices, and not to blame me for anything ever.

The Prepper Broadcasting Network - Herbal Medicine for Preppers: Elecampane

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.