The Prepper Broadcasting Network - Herbal Medicine for Preppers: Goldenseal

Starting point is 00:00:00 y'all welcome this week's show today we are going to talk about an herb that was once so synonymous with american herbal medicine that it was one of our most valuable resources golden seal was actually so popular a medicinal herb in early america and in europe england and well england probably more than most of europe but so popular that it was almost as worth as much as gold. A lot of the Appalachian Mountain folks and really going up into Pennsylvania, it grew abundantly in New England.

Starting point is 00:00:42 I mean, anywhere where you had sort of a cool, damp climate, you could find golden seal and ginseng. And those two plants essentially were the economy in those regions, much of those regions, especially in the Appalachians people would make a little moonshine people would go fur trapping they'd work in timber

Starting point is 00:01:08 and they'd go gather golden seal and ginseng you know a few other herbs blood root angelic etc but that was the entire economy and it was pretty much subsistence living and the thing about

Starting point is 00:01:23 golden seal is it was so popular it got over harvested and almost became extinct the it really is essentially an American herb it was you know introduced to the colonists by the Native Americans in what was known as the eclectic school the eclectics was the school that really the first school of American herbal medicine it was John James Audubon and a few other guys and you know they went out and Lord the plants of North Carolina, Andre Mischot, and a lot of English and French folks and interacting

Starting point is 00:02:06 with the natives and learning about the herbs. It was called eclectic because it mixed European herbal medicine, especially English herbal medicine and the British colonies with our native herbs. And the Thompsonians were really the descendants. of the eclectics. They began, started about mid-1800s. The eclectics were going about late 1700s. But the Thomsonians really took their studies and their medicines and refined them. And Dr. Thompson was from New Hampshire. It was very, very familiar with Golden Seal, Latin name hydrastus, candidensis. He says, this root is the king of tonics to the

Starting point is 00:02:58 mucous membranes. It is mild, positive, and permanent stimulating tonic. Its influence, though primarily given to the mucus membranes, extends to all parts of the body, wherever it may be required by the necessities of vital force or influence thither by the combination of other agents. It improves appetite, assist digestion in the weakened debilitated stomach, especially if there be nervous disturbances, or if the gastric membrane be clogged with congestion or cataract. mucous. In cases of gastric ulcerations, hydrastuses given in small and frequent doses, and will not infrequently give relief to both the gastric membrane and to the nervous system. In combination with some kind of soda, bivorate of soda, I'm not sure about that.

Starting point is 00:03:48 It makes an excellent wash for children, sore mouths, and other forms of sore mouth and sore gums. It is especially function. its special function with the liver is tonic relief to the portal system in fact the same class of influence is felt throughout the entire venous system it is one of the best agents for the sustaining of venous circulation hence its action upon the right or venous side of the heart its influence is also felt by the arterial circulation but its influence is secondary hydrastus may be made into uh be made too specially influenced the stomach bronchi bowes urinary, genitalia as may be influenced by its combination with agents that especially influence

Starting point is 00:04:34 any one of the several departments. In other words, you can mix it with other herbs. Let's see. He combined it with Aurelia, that's Spike Nart. Prunis, that's any member really of the Apple family to plum. I mean, Prunis is a big family. Cherry, he's probably talking wild cherry in that case or comfrey gives tone to the vigor of the respiratory system combined with jug lins it performs a powerful intestinal tonic that's a black walnut extract I think you know what comfrey is jugglins like I said is black walnut with eupatorium perperium that's Joe Pyeweed or there's another name for it anyway or capcella its tonic influence is felt upon the

Starting point is 00:05:24 kidneys with such a agents as Michella, Michella, what is that? That's not common to me right now. Anyway, you can look it up, just Google, M-I-T-C-H-E-L-A. It influences the organs of generation. With general astringes, it is admirable in the gastric and weakness present in cholera, diarrhea generally. It tones the membranes, enables it to cast off accumulated mucus, use locally in female troubles.

Starting point is 00:05:53 It is unexcaled, colindula or hamommer. malice that's a witch hazel, calendula is just calendula. It may be added as required. It's intestinal, if intestinal weakness, it may be combined with some preparations whose nature is of iron such as prunus, Virginia,ana. That is wild cherry. And with alternatives are required, the influence of Hedrasis, a valuable addition. Let's see, it was good for hepatitis, good for portal circulation. I'm not going to read verbatim now. It's just too long. Tonic influence, both in the secreting and excruiting functions of the liver.

Starting point is 00:06:36 Locally, the influence of hydrastus is a superior one. Good for aerosipolis ophthalmalia, sore mouth, sore throat, leukemia, vaginal and uterine ulceration, eczema, smallpox, eruptive and syphilitic sores. it is excellent combined with hamomelis again this witch hazel and as a wash for gonorrhea and and for uterine ulceration so there you have it i mean in early america this was written about 1900 this was the tomsonian system of medicine one of their textbooks from around 1900 it was considered one of the most essential herbs and herbal medicine and it was almost harvested

Starting point is 00:07:17 to extinction because for one thing it was a lot of gonorrhea going around back then and any herb from sassafras to you know golden seal several others that were found effective in treating that really was harvested very much now sassafras is a bit more abundant I don't think it's ever been harvested to near extinction but golden seal definitely was really to this day if you find golden seal in the wild unless there's a lot of it you really shouldn't pick any. You should get some, like strictly medicinal seeds, carries that a few other companies sell plants or seeds. Good one to get growing in your garden. Once you grow it in the garden, you get to know the plant and you get to know what it looks like. Same thing with ginseng.

Starting point is 00:08:04 You may be surprised how much you actually see in the woods. And if it is abundant, it's not endangered in most states, but do check your state regulations. It's had a pretty good comeback, since people basically stopped using it a hundred years ago because they forgot all about herbal medicine after the Pure Foods and Drug Act passed but still in some areas it's quite rare and so there are you are excellent and abundant alternatives my favorite being Oregon graperoot or barberry they're everywhere I mean big you know spiky holly type Oregon grape bushes that have all the blueberries on them as opposed to the red berries on a holly it has the same berberin the yellow pigment in the root that's my go-to one bush and they're just

Starting point is 00:08:52 everywhere even a small one you pull it up the root's so huge that's enough for a year for me and it's anticeptic it's good for colds and fevers it's good for the liver it's good for all kinds of stuff right actually very good emergency medicine in the woods it can stop a wound from getting infected that's my go-to barberry would be the second for me a lot of barberry used in landscaping I I've even got a couple of them in my yard, but I don't really feel like digging them up. I find plenty of organ grape in the woods. It's Mahonia species, by the way.

Starting point is 00:09:28 Coptis. Coptis is a little flower that also has berberin in the root. And you could certainly find that in the meadows, I guess, edge of woods, or grow it in your garden. But, yeah, they're much better alternatives to go out and harvesting wild golden seal, unless you just happen to find a bunch of it and then just take a little one or two plants is probably not going to hurt anything but always remember you know we need to keep these for the next generation so can't just wipe them out so kings america dispensatory written in 1898 was what doctors would use as a reference and they talked about the plants found growing in shady woods rich soils damp meadows throughout the united states and canada all the way up into alleghenies and all in the way into Canada and all that. They called it yellow root because of the Berberin. Wait a minute. Oh, well they actually say there are several common names and they wanted people stop calling it yellow root because that's actually also used for

Starting point is 00:10:33 Xanthoriza. So they wanted to differentiate. It was also called jaundice root and yellow eye and golden root and you know all kinds of stuff. But anyway, we're going to go with golden seal that's the name of the plant everybody basically agreed on eventually and they go through a lot of talk about how to harvest it how to process it I mean this was you know big stuff taking gold seal to market so it could go to the pharmacies there were herb buyers throughout the United States that specialized in just that but for medicinal action use and dosage let me get one sip of water and I'll read that

Starting point is 00:11:15 paragraph for many years the salts of bourbon and the powder of hydrasis were the chief forms in which the drug was administered at present time these salts and the crude drug are but little used so they were using a tincture essentially let's skip ahead to uses you can do a kincture you can do a decoction no need to try to make salts of it or anything like that. It's more of a chemical preparation. Let's see. What did they like it for?

Starting point is 00:11:53 Yep, yep. They keep putting on medical journals. And good for people with weak pulse for the respiratory system. I want to get down to the specifics here. And it is incredibly long entry. The bitterness was very good for digestion, of course. So it's a valuable drug in. Disordered states of the digestive apparatus, especially when functional in character.

Starting point is 00:12:19 That's why I'm not reading it verbatim. Good for chronic gastritis. Increased secretions. Especially beneficial in catterol or congested states of the intestines and gall ducts. Good for respiratory affections. Really, yeah. It's almost a cure-old. Good for syphilis even.

Starting point is 00:12:44 They were using it as a remedy for syphilis, at least to help control it. Good for the eyes. Bourbon has antiseptic and as stringent properties. And the use of using it for sore eyes or, you know, ophthalomal, however you pronounce that, issues, really dates to 1804 with Lewis and Clark Expedition. They learned from the Indians, Captain Lewis learned how to use. golden seal for swollen and infected and sore eyes. Really very good. That was once one of the most popular uses. There were all kinds of golden seal eye drops. Also good for bladder

Starting point is 00:13:29 infections and cystitis, the stringent and the anti-septic properties, you know, very good. And that berberin is not broken down by the digestive system. It actually is a still potent in the urine, used for various skin issues. Gosh, this goes on for probably 15 pages. Okay, specific indications it uses. Hydrosis is specifically indicated in cataral states of the mucus membranes, that's congested states, when unaccompanied with acute inflammation. An apparent exception to this acute is an acute purulent autosis

Starting point is 00:14:11 in which it is said to act better than in chronic conditions. Good for gastricular ability, irritation with feeble circulation, muscular tenderness and soreness. You can put in liniments and washes. It does help. Passive hemorrhages of the uterus and pelvic issues. Skin diseases depending on gastric abnormality, including hydrastus. You know, I am sure.

Starting point is 00:14:41 medical professionals today would be absolutely astounded by all the uses of golden seal that would have been just common knowledge for doctors of a hundred years ago i mean these old uh maybe you could have found like in the 1970s an old gp a general practitioner that still would have known it but i mean doctors these days would probably have no knowledge of golden seal whatsoever excuse me um so uh let's just turn to a little uh native american medicine um In the Lumby tradition, Arvus Locklear Bowman and Loretta Oxidine, very common names of the Lumby tribe, were Lumby healers, and they said they considered Golden Seal to be a tonic remedy that stimulated the immune response and also believe the plant was antimicrobial, which is. Count Lowry was a very, very popular Lumby midwife and healer and real, you know, somebody that was very well known. I knew her when I was younger, you know.

Starting point is 00:15:41 She suggested that her patients use Golden Seal or treat internal bleeding. Let's see what, it's going to modern use. Okay, so Plants for a Future, I've given you a lot of, you know, older traditions, but Plants for Future says, Golden Seal is a traditional medicine of the North American Indians and is still widely used in Western herbal medicine. In the 19th century, it acquired a reputation as a heal-all and was grossly over-collected from the wild

Starting point is 00:16:06 and has become rare in the eastern part of its range. which is now being cultivated on small scale, which I would encourage you to do. It is especially valued in treating disorders to the digestive system and mucus membranes, and is also extremely useful in the treatment of habitual constipation. The root is the active part of the plant, harvest in autumn if the plant has died down and dried for later use. It is said to be anti-periodic, antiseptic, astringent, colagogue, diuretic, laxatives, stomatic, tonic, Use mainly in the treatment of orders affecting the eyes, ears, throat, nose, stomach, intestines, and vagina. The root contains the alkaloid hydrastine, berberine, and canadine.

Starting point is 00:16:51 Burberine is antibacterial, effective against broad-spectrum bacterial and protozylla. It increases bile secretions and acts as an anticonvulsant, a mild sedative, and lowers blood pressure. Use of this plant destroys the beneficial intestinal organisms as well as. as pathogens, though. So should only be prescribed for limited periods, maximum of three months. I probably would not go that far. And, you know, I would follow that up with some kombucha, yogurt, water, kaffir, whatever you got. Anything of good sauerkraut. You know, I got recipes for sauerkraut in my books, probiotic, good stuff to replace that bacteria. The plants should be used with caution, and not at all during pregnancy. That is true. Or by people,

Starting point is 00:17:38 with high blood pressure, even though it lowers blood pressure. There is actually a warning about that, and I'm not quite sure why. And infusion of the root is used externally as a wash for skin diseases, fadgial infections, and gum diseases. So, wonderful plant to use. Where I live, there's tons of golden seal out in the woods. I still, I use Oregon grape. And like I said, I've got barberry plants in the yard. I don't even mess with them. Coptus grows out there, also called gold thread. There's just so much Oregon grape.

Starting point is 00:18:18 It's so easy to find. The birds just spread it everywhere. You know, they pick the berries and eat them, and just wherever they fly, they leave Oregon grape plants behind. A lot of times they're considered weedy. People want you to tear them out of their yard or, you know, part of their property. That's my preference. I'm just going to say my advice is to go with Oregon grape or grow the golden seal in your garden.

Starting point is 00:18:52 I wouldn't try to go out and wild harvest it unless you find a huge patch. And you know, you're just going to have to let your own ethics be your guide. If you're comfortable harvesting it and you think you're going to not wipe it out, you know that's up to you so long as it's legal and of course you do need to check the regulations in your state so anyway y'all have a good one and i will talk to you next week I'm going to be I'm going to I'm going to

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The Prepper Broadcasting Network - Herbal Medicine for Preppers: Goldenseal

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