The Prepper Broadcasting Network - Herbal Medicine for Preppers: Lavender

Starting point is 00:00:00 Hey y'all, welcome to this week's show. Today, we are going to talk about an herb that most herbless would consider to be among their absolute favorites. I say most because I am so allergic to the stuff, I cannot even be in the same room with it. It is, like, really bad for me. It's lavender. Now, most people love lavender. I mean, it's used in everything from. tinctures and teas to aromatherapy to perfumes to oils to you know room deodorizers they put in their clothes

Starting point is 00:00:40 i mean most people would list lavender among their favorite herbs and i mean growing up in a hippie college town every girl either smelled like lavender or petulia oil and i'm allergic to both actually so that was a bit of an issue um i mean i like the smell. I actually don't mind it as a culinary ingredient, just a pinch of the flowers in what's called herbs to provence. It's considered to be an optional ingredient in this French herb mix. It's got a little bitterness to it. It doesn't seem to bother me in food. I mean, it can really like elevate the flavor of, I mean, just a bowl of white beans with little herbs in provence. You would not believe the difference. So excellent on grilled.

Starting point is 00:01:30 meat and fish especially fish it's just it can be one of those hard to identify herbs in you know a lot of dishes but when it comes to a medicinal dose of it especially if it's being used in an aromatherapy type situation my eyes are going to start watering my nose is going to start itching i'll start my lungs will burn i'll start sneezing it's just horrible for me but it has throughout history been one of the most popular medicinal herbs. It has been used medicinally for millennia. D.S. Cordes recommended several varieties of lavender and even a lavender infused wine, which he called a stoches or something. Anyway, he lists a lot of varieties. I'm not going to get into all of them. But the, well, there were, we're

Starting point is 00:02:26 really down to like two main families of lavender, I would say. There's sort of the Mediterranean lavender, and then there's the one that's grown more in England and like northern France. Neither one of them tolerate wet feet at all. Lavender could be very hard to grow. If you buy a pot of lavender from the store, it's probably going to die, and it's because that potting soil holds water. So being originally a Mediterranean plant, it does better, in dry soil and hot conditions. Full sun. Now, the English lavender or French lavender is sometimes so-called can handle partial shade.

Starting point is 00:03:08 It can handle rainy or cooler weather. In fact, it does really well. It really does better in cooler, rainier climates, but it still can't handle wet feet. You've got to get like kind of raised hills and people grow it. I mean, but fields full of it, you know. Really, they both smell great. Deiscorted, he said that you made stowacidides, that was the wine, the same way as Hissop wine. Put one pound of lavender into six gallons of wine.

Starting point is 00:03:45 It's a big batch of wine. I would imagine you'd want to use white wine because it's going to have, I think the red wine would kind of fight it out. lavender as far as like the scent and the bitterness of the lavender with the tannic quality of red wine would probably not work real well the Greeks did drink more sweeter wine you know ancient Greeks most of the ancient world preferred sweet wines as opposed to the dry wines that we're accustomed to now but I would think a very mild I guess you would say white wine would really allow the flavor, you know, the sweetness would counter the bitterness of the lavender a little bit and the scent wouldn't be overwhelming from the wine. I think it would probably be

Starting point is 00:04:36 pretty nice. He said it dissolves thick fluids, so congestion basically, gaseousness and pain in the side. And that's like a stitch in the side that can actually be caused by an inflamed liver. And lavender is one of the bitter herbs that can help with liver issues. It would calm the nerves and was good for extreme cold. Good against extreme cold. If I'm not mistaken, it has some vasodilating properties. It probably helps the peripheral circulation a little bit. It is effectively given with pyrethum and sagapenum for epilepsy. All right. Pyrethrum is going to be chrysanthemum. Yes, these are old remedies. for epilepsy, but you have to remember that epilepsy, as we know it now, is not always the same condition as in ancient writings.

Starting point is 00:05:38 Anything that could cause spasmodic apoplectic fits, essentially was called epilepsy, and that could be caused by retaining too much urine, actually. It could be caused by various toxic metals in the diet. So we always want to take that with a grain of salt, and I cannot remember what Sagapenum is. Anyway, if you want to look it up, it's S-A-G-A-P-E-N-U-M. But yeah, it's an old so-called cure. So in Greek, more commonly, lavender was also called Nardus or Nard, being named after the Syrian town of Narda, which was a major center of trade of perfumes, herbs, and spices. And, you know, this was one of the most expensive perfumes in the ancient world.

Starting point is 00:06:30 It was included in the tomb of the Egyptian king Tutankhamun. This was also likely the nard that caused a scandal among the disciples of Christ. You know, the Bible says that Judas turned against our Lord at the institution of the Eucharist or Holy Communion. Well prior to that, it was recorded that he objected what he considered a waste of money when Mary Magdalene honored the Christ with an expensive oil of Nard. Okay. But some scholars believe that may have been spike Nard as opposed to lavender. Things can get a little confusing.

Starting point is 00:07:02 But anyway, as they say, he knew the price of everything but the value of nothing. That is human nature. It doesn't change over time. Ms. Greve tells us the Greeks gave the name Nardis to Lavender from Narda, city of Syria. near the Euphrates, and many persons call the plant Nard. St. Mark mentions this as Spike Nard, which is actually a different plant, and I'm not sure about that. But it was very, very valuable, very valuable. And to make things even more confusing, the Romans called it Asarum, and Asarum is a totally different plant.

Starting point is 00:07:43 It was formerly believed that the asp, which is a dangerous kind of viper, snake made lavender its place of abode. So one had to approach a lavender plant with great caution because it might have poisonous snakes in it. No idea if that's true. Thankfully we do not have poisonous snakes and by elevation of the mountains of North Carolina, of course growing up part-time in the coastal swamps, I got to be plenty of experience with cotton mouths and copperheads. Plenty of experience, far more than I would like to have. I never got bit well no one time a little tiny baby copperhead did grab hold of me it didn't I didn't have any reaction so I was okay and the thing was not it was no bigger than an

Starting point is 00:08:28 earthworm so I don't know what the deal was with that but yeah never gotten bitten and I hope never to be bitten I like snakes I'm not a snake fanatic I'm not one that would like to have them as a pet my my favorite thing to do with snakes is to go out looking for water moccas and other poisonous snakes kill them and eat them i actually like snake meat quite a bit it if it's prepared properly you know it's something we did in the swamps it was sort of a tradition around there you controlled your poisonous snake population by eating them and you know out west they do the same with rattlesnakes and apparently a water moccasin and rattlesnake are very closely related anyway the um meat can you get very

Starting point is 00:09:16 very tough and very dry if overcooked so the best thing to do is just like quick chicken fry and you know just barely cook it through it now otherwise you can absolutely stew it and it will go tough and then retinderize just like most meats will in a stew and you can um it goes wonderfully in a curry that's i mean it's really like fantastic in a curry if you've ever had frog legs snake tastes a little somewhere between frog legs and chicken but it's tougher and drier frog leg court meat of course is very delicate and very soft but the flavor and some to some extent of the texture is similar you know if it's just done the right way I would highly

Starting point is 00:10:02 recommend doing a Thai or Filipino type curry get some good curry powder curry paste garlic and onions that if you get a good curry paste like a Thai style it have lemon grass and hot peppers and all kinds of stuff in there of course i'm going to use more hot pepper um lots of hot peppers and onions is what i like in a curry so i'm going to do that i'm going to get those sweat down add a little curry paste a good tight curry paste or powder whichever you prefer and um mainly uh half a can or so a coconut milk smooth that out let it come to a simmer you can add a little chicken broth if you want to it's not totally necessary you're going to get good flavor from that coconut milk and curry paste coconut milk is one of those

Starting point is 00:10:49 calorie dense foods if you're looking at just taking a small amount of food with you for long-term survival I don't even know fourth cups like 2,000 calories or something it's ridiculously calorie dense so then I would clean and skin my snake and chop it up you know it's gonna have those little bones in there you got to get used to them it's like eel I love eel but you know the bones can be an issue sometimes and cut in chunks and just let it slow simmer in that nice curry broth cook up some rice and have a fantastic meal a meal that many people would pay a lot of money for in other countries Americans aren't really snake eaters which is a shame because as I said snakes couldn't meet so anyway lavender was well established by the monastic medicine of the Middle Ages

Starting point is 00:11:39 St. Hildegard von Bingen wrote of two varieties she said it is not effective for a person to eat it, but it does have a strong odor. If a person with many lice frequently smells lavender, the lice will die. Okay, sounds weird, but what actually lavender does have a vermifuge property, which means it will kill vermin, or I mean it will kill lice, it will kill nits, you can help with worms when eaten, taken as a tea, really. so lavender shampoos have traditionally been used to help get rid of not just lice but all manner of bugs and such she said its odor clears the eyes since it possesses the power of the strongest aromas and its usefulness of the most bitter ones it curbs very many evil things and because of it maligned spirits are terrified there is a very ancient tradition of using lavender

Starting point is 00:12:37 as somewhat of protection against demons. Is it true or not? I don't know. God created everything. Is that one of the properties he invested in lavender? I don't know. And St. Hilgard von Bingen was taught herbal medicine by, as she said, the voice of the living light, literally by God himself and angels.

Starting point is 00:13:00 I'm just going to take a word for it because I'm not, I don't have that access to that vast, knowledge, the knowledge that God gave to Solomon about all plants on the earth, right? I'm going to take her word for it. She said that whoever cooks lavender in wine or if he has no wine, honey and water, and frequently drinks when it is warm with lessen the pain in his liver and lungs and the stuffiness in his chest. It also makes thinking and disposition clear. It has been shown that lavender, the scent, the essential oil and the scent helps with headaches. does help with memory and brain fog so to speak so she's writing about 1100 a d she already knew all this stuff that scientists are just finding now of course if i consume lavender in

Starting point is 00:13:49 a large quality quantity it's not going to improve the stuffiness of my chest it's going to make it much worse so um father nape in the late 1800s mainly used lavender oil which at that time he said it could be soldered any chemist or pharmacy it should be in all home remedies. Five drops taken on a cube of sugar, assist the digestion, and give a good appetite. Those who are troubled with wind or flatulets, with a headache caused by rising gases or with nausea, take this oil as above. I have often used it with the best results for those afflicted with mental derangement. It is calming. It helps with hysterical conditions or anxiety. A lot of people use lavender for anxiety. And I maintain that in very many cases the cure depends on the removal of

Starting point is 00:14:37 gases, which have especially bad effects on the brain. In my opinion, much too little attention is generally paid to these gases and the treatment of such patients. Those who have never suffered from flagellancy, those who have ever suffered from flagellency, know what a dreadful part these raging winds play in the body, against loss of appetite, congestion, giddiness, it's dizziness, and that could actually be the epilepsy that D.S. Corrides referred to. It may have simply been dizziness. And all the many different sufferings of the head, the dose indicated in the beginning of this paragraph will for great relief. So that was lavender oil.

Starting point is 00:15:13 What did he say? Five drops on a sugar cube. Father Nape, his protege, I mean, Father Nape's protech, brother Aloysius, said, this aromatic plant grows in gardens. It has a pleasant smell, a little like camphor. It is perennial and woody plant or shrub, had it with narrow ash-grey leaves and blue fragrant flowers, which are used medicinally. They form spikes on the stemmed. terminals. The flowering period is from June to September. Spike oil or lavender oil is distracted from these flowers and using the treatment of several illnesses, including the promotion of

Starting point is 00:15:46 menstruation. Take five drops on sugar twice a day. It is also beneficial for accumulated wind, colic congestion of the blood in the head, dizziness, headaches, hypochondria, and lack of appetite. He says the well-known lavender waters prepared by steeping two and a half cups of freshly picked lavender flowers and four cups of 32% alcohol for several days and then filtering it 32% out that's gonna be like 64 proof I don't know that we can actually get a 32% alcohol in modern America I just go with 80 proof vodka or brandy brandy well I'm gonna go with vodka brandy has a sweetness to it well that actually may be good. Either way, okay. 80 proof was 40%. That's only 8% different from his 32%. I think we'd be

Starting point is 00:16:41 fine with that, just so that's basically a tincture of lavender, which they call it lavender water, apparently. Now, Sophie Hodderwick's Nab says of the Polish tradition, lavender became very popular in Europe during the Middle Ages when it was used to treat a variety of elements, including arthritis, gout, and broken limbs. Marsen of... Erzdow, I guess, stated everyone knows of lavender because all the ladies grow it in their garden. His other comments ascertained that the oil of lavender is good to rub beneath the nose. Some Polish name I cannot pronounce recalled that it removes chills from dampness, nausea, and headache when a woman wears it beneath her cap. For headaches, wine mixed with lavender on its own, or mixed with sage, rosemary, marjoram, thyme, it warms a cold brain and a weak stomach and decreases

Starting point is 00:17:32 nausea, he said. Lavender wine was supposed to strengthen the heart to protect against nausea. Lavender was also useful in strengthening poor appetite for treating rheumatism as an antiseptic. The oil massage of the skin was said to rid one of lice. During the Middle Ages, a very popular island in Poland was called Lavendogra, made from lavender and rosemary. Lavendagra was a Polish translation of L'Eau de la Réne de Henri, or Queen of Hungry Water. Yeah, I've heard of that. Queen of Hungry Water. In its time, Lavendagra was lauded by Elizabeth, sister of Casimir's, the Great, I guess a king of Poland in 1300s, who at the age of 72 cured himself of gout and rheumatism using

Starting point is 00:18:19 hungry water. As hungry is in the nation of Hungary, not hungry as in you want food. Actually, as a regent for her son, King Louis of Hungary in Poland, she generated a great deal of amazement, by washing not only her face but her entire body in it and supposedly became younger looking every day. So well-engrained in herbalism was lavender by the 1500s that Gerard listed 14 varieties, including several herbs that were called lavators, but were not related, such as sea lavender, which is in actual linoleum. But anyway, let's get to uses.

Starting point is 00:18:56 We won't get into all his confusing. Boy, he even includes wild time. in there with lavender let's see if flowers of lavender I mean the blue part not the husk mixed with cinnamon nutmeg and clove made into a powder and give it a drink and distilled water thereof doth help the panting and passion of the heart shortness of breath in other words and rapid heart weight prevail if against giddiness or dizziness or the turning or swimming of the brain and members subject to palsy a conserve oh this is a nice way to do

Starting point is 00:19:39 lavender you can actually make like a jelly they call it a conserve with the flowers and sugar really I actually do enjoy that even though I'm allergic to it I have a little bit it's nice on some butter toast I said it profiteth much against the diseases of foreshed if the quality of quantity if the quantity of a being taken there of in the morning fasting elizabeth in english is tough he means a little bit of this lavender jelly the size of a bean now he doesn't say what kind of bean that is um i do not believe lima beans had come to england yet no not in the 1500s but broad beans had and that's a big old bean so i'm going to say maybe a fourth teaspoon maybe um it profit profiteth these much that

Starting point is 00:20:32 have the palsy if they be washed in the distilled water of flowers anointed with the oil made from the flowers and olive oil and in such a matter of oil of roses is which shall be expressed in the treaty of roses yes that yeah anyway we'll move on to coal pepper about a hundred years later fortunately his writing's a little bit easier to pronounce um he says lavender is of a special good use for all griefs and pains of the head and brain that proceed of a cold cause As the apoplexy or falling sickness, that's epilepsy again, dropsy or sluggish malady, cramps, convulsions, palsy, and faintings. It strengthens the stomach and frees the liver and spleen from obstructions,

Starting point is 00:21:15 provokes women's courses or menstruation, expels the afterbirth. The flowers of lavender steeped in wine help them to make water that are stopped. In other words, it's a diuretic. It'll provoke urination. Or are those who are troubled with the wind or colic if it be placed in the bath. therewith. Interesting. Decoction made with the flowers of

Starting point is 00:21:36 lavender, horn, fennel, and asparagus root, and a little cinnamon. It's very profitably used to help the falling sickness and the gaiiness returning of the brain. So again, we don't know if this is epilepsy proper. We can't say that. To gargle the mouth

Starting point is 00:21:52 with the decoction thereof is good against the toothache. Two spoonfuls of the distilled water of the flowers take and helps those that have lost their voice. And also the tremblings and passions of the heart and the feigning and swooning not only being drunk but applied or drank but applied to the temples or nostrils and smelled unto um yeah uh let's see and it seems the french lavender was the most popular among the english herbalists which

Starting point is 00:22:20 um it makes sense i mean the the french lavender is going to grow a lot better in that climate than would the mediterranean apparently the english gardeners and herbalists were not happy about that though they wanted to use a native plant you know how the english are about everything english um i'll just skip ahead here uh that was called dwarf lavender my miss grieve uh oh yeah she talks about lavender honey that's a wonderful way to take lavender it can actually help with allergies again help against allergies to lavender um hmm skipping ahead, skipping ahead. She quotes Parkinson and some other herbless.

Starting point is 00:23:04 We'll just get to modern use. How's that? Lavender is a, you know, this from my book, the encyclopedia bitter medicinal herbs. So when I say I'm skipping ahead, I'm going further on in the chapter. Anyway, Plants for a Future says Lavender is a commonly used house or herb household herb,

Starting point is 00:23:21 though it is better known for its sweet, scent, aroma, than for its medicinal qualities. However, it is an important relaxing herb, to having a soothing and relaxing effect upon the nervous system. The flowering spikes can be dried and used internally in a tincture, though the extracted essential oil is more commonly used. The essential oil is much more gentle in its action than most other essential oils. That's true.

Starting point is 00:23:40 You can actually use this one straight on the skin, and it's really good to use as an antiseptic if you're not allergic to it. It also helps heal wounds and burns. So this is one you don't have to cut, unless you have very sensitive skin. So I can't say you absolutely don't have to do it. But anyway, an essential oil obtained for the flowers is antihalytosis. What does that mean?

Starting point is 00:24:01 It means it helps with bad breath. Frankly, I would not want to use an essential oil of lavender for bad breath. Go with something minty or cinnamony or not something as strongly bitter as lavender. But, anyway, and I don't want my breath smell like flowers. That would be really annoying. It's powerfully antiseptic, antispectic, antispasmodic, aromatic, carminative, colagogue, diuretic, Nervine, sedative, stimulant, stomatic, and tonic. What does all that mean?

Starting point is 00:24:31 Let me figure out aniseptic, any spasmodic, aromatic, carmenidiv means help settle a stomach. I think colagogues, and that also helps with worms and such, maybe. I'd have to double check that. Diaract, Nervine means it calms and nerves, sedative is obvious, stimulant, stumatic, and tonic, good for the appetite, basically. It is not often used internally, though it is a useful carmeneative in Nervine. It is mainly used externally where it is an excellent restorative and tonic

Starting point is 00:25:03 when rubbed in the temples. Oh, so in this case, it meant tonic is, um, perks you up, brings you back to health, not necessarily for the digestion, but it does both. And that word is used interchangeably throughout herbal medicine, which can be very confusing. When run with the temples, for example, it can cure a nervous headache and is a delightful addition to the bathwater, its powerful antiseptic properties are able to kill many of the common bacteria, such as typhoid, diphtheria, streptocococcus, and pneumococcus, as well as a powerful anecdote to some snake venom. Now, isn't that interesting? It is very useful in the treatment of burns, sunburn, scalds, bites, vaginal discharge, anal fissure, etc., where it sues the affected

Starting point is 00:25:43 part of the body and can prevent the formation of permanent scar tissue. The essential oils uses aromatherapy it's good for the immune system yeah I mean that's I guess I would say wraps up the medicinal use culinaryally it does have uses like I said conserve or syrup or jelly whatever you want to call it is really good lavender fused honey is really good I mean honey made from bees feeding on lavender is great but you can also infuse honey with lavender. You can infuse oils with lavender. Lavender syrup on vanilla ice cream is a favorite for a lot of people.

Starting point is 00:26:27 Or lavender flavored ice cream. It's actually very good. Herbs and Provence is the way I would normally use it, as I said. Most blends sold in America will have a little lavender in there, along with some savory, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, and oregano. Lavender and Herbst in Provence is actually more popular in America. and it is in France, oddly enough. It just goes so well with pork, chicken, lamb, tomatoes, and fresh green beans.

Starting point is 00:26:56 Really, very good. It's a boldly assertive herb. I tend to associate its aroma with memories of a stuffy nose and girls with hairy armpits. But I have to admit, it is a nice-smelling herb, and I wish I could use it a lot more than I do. Even though I am allergic to it, I like to have it around. it smells good and it is somewhat relaxing if I can tolerate it, which sometimes I can for short periods of time. If you're not allergic to lavender, my book Growing Your Survival Herb Garden has instructions on how to grow it. It's one you should really look into the

Starting point is 00:27:35 antiseptic qualities. So many great qualities it has. This is one you would want to have on hand if you can use it. All right, y'all. Have a great week. And I will talk to you next time. The information in this podcast is not intended to diagnose or treat any disease or condition. Nothing I say or write 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.

Starting point is 00:28:08 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. If you use an herb, anyone recommends you are treating yourself. You take full responsibility for your health.

Starting point is 00:28:31 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, 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: Lavender

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