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Robert McDowell's Herbal Treatments 07 December 2003 Herbal Help for Humans and their CompanionsHello Everyone!Highlights This Week:- * Mastoid Bone Infections in Humans * Kidney Stone Treatment in Canines * How are your Taste Buds and Smell Sensations? * The Curse of Pattersons Curse! Are there any amateur herbalists out there??? Email Us!!! Acute Mastoiditis -- How rare is it now???? A client recently requested help to fight a acute mastoiditis in her child. The doctors recommended surgery to open up the mastiod and scrape the bone to remove the infection and then put tubes in both ears. This client was very hesitant to submit their child to surgery like this. Mastoid bone infections are relative rare nowadays as the antibiotics from the 1950's controlled them well. Previous to this they were more common and sometimes life threatening most often resulting from a lowered immunity and a chronic sinus or ear infection . Nowadays however with antibiotic resistant infection they are back on the agenda. The Mastoid Process (located behind the ear)includes a hollow space with in the bones(normally filled with air) with almost no drainage available to it. Due to this fact when it does become infected from a spreading middle ear problem it requires very strong acting blood cleansers. I make up a suitable internal herbal treatment which if given in conjunction with Colloidal silver treats any drug resistant infection, improves the immunity, clears up the infections and heals the mucus membranes lining the sinus cavities simply and easily. The herbs in the mix include Horsetail, Comfrey, Garlic, Echinacea, Rosehips and Fenugreek. Since the development of modern antibiotics the problem all but disappeared but I predict it will be returning shortly as more and more infections become resistant to antibiotics. http://www.herbal-treatment.net/herbs_mastoid_bone_infection.html See some of the links on my website on: http://www.herbal-treatment.net/herbs_colloidal_silver_antibiotic.html and http://www.herbal-treatment.net/article_colloidal_silver.html Kidney Stone Treatment for Canines "Keickette has been on treatment for kidney stones now for about 12 days. She seems to like the formula , as a matter of fact I myself , think it tastes pretty good!" Keickette's owner writes that her 3 local Vets are following the treament with GREAT interest ! Also that she will be introducing Keickette slowly to a new " natural " dog food shortly manufactured state side by the name of " Aunt Jeni's " Please tell your Vet friends that there is nothing magical about herbal treatments for Kidney Stones. The pain of passing a stone is right up there with childbirth without the rewards and it focused the minds of herbalists and their patients for the whole of mans recorded history (6000yrs plus). Never more particularly than during the industrial revolution when our diets really started to let us down. There are dozens of herbs in the European herbal pharmacopoeia which assist in dissolving them, some of these are more aggressive than others like Celery for example which can break them into large rough chunks too quickly. As I say on my website at; http://www.herbal-treatment.net/herbs_calcium_stone.html I have chosen Pellitory of the Wall as my dissolver which breaks stones down slowly into fine sand and the rest of the herbs are to improve the health of the system, discourage future stone formation and to soothe the passage of the resultant gravel. Taste Buds and Smell Sensations Viral Infections and even the common flu can occasionally leave us without a sense of taste (ageusia) or smell (anosmia). This leads to a dramatic drop in appetite which makes you suddenly realize the important role that our senses play in our digestive system. Of course it is not life threatening but it is a frustrating disorder because it can affect a persons ability to enjoy food, drink and pleasant aromas. In fact these aromas work together for us to be able to recognise and appreciate flavours . Cells that sense smell can be damaged or destroyed by serious infections or by radiation therapy, however the most common cause is head trauma as in car accidents when there is severing or destruction of the olfactory nerve. Taste on the other hand can be diminished by a number of different causes such as a dry mouth, heavy smoking, radiation treatment, and side effects to certain drugs. To date I have only treated a small number of people with either of these disorders. However in the mix I include Euphorbia , Hypericum, Fenugreek, Horseradish and Mugwort along with the Bach Flowers Walnut, Wild Oat and Clematis. In combination these herbs soothe and heal the mucus membranes as well as put back in balance the cells that smell and taste. The Curse Of Patterson's Curse for Horse Owners Many parts of NSW are now under a purple haze of Pattersons Curse , this spring it is worse than ever due to the previous years drought and now some seasonal rain to help it along. My First Patterson's Curse Patient: The very first horse I treated was one with liver damage from Patterson's Curse and this was before I had any experience at all, in using herbs to treat grazing animals. This particular racehorse had been spelling in a weedy paddock and had become very sick indeed to the point that the Veterinary's advice was to put him down. The trainer was devastated and as a last resort approached me. I thought about it overnight and then made up in a bucket a blend of dried herbs, which in combination would treat the whole of the metabolism to try to heal the liver damage of course, but to do so by bringing all systems back into normal functioning. A fundamental of holistic medicine is to appreciate that all the individual organs and systems in our bodies do not function in isolation. They work in harmony with their partner organs and systems and in an historical, environmental, emotional and even energetic context. Anyway in this case, I confidently predicted to Greg that the horse would eat his cupful of herbs morning and evening, mixed in with a little feed, and that the horse would recover. In fact however, although I did feel confident with my approach and with the herbs I had chosen, I had absolutely no idea whether we would be able to save this animal's life. It had lost 20% of its body weight, was listless and looking terminally ill, even to my uneducated eye at the time. The horse showed signs within 3 days of recovery, a little more vitality and a return of his appetite. His manure was normal within 10 days and he was gaining weight by this time. In 12 weeks he appeared completely recovered and I was just as amazed as Greg was, and his Veterinary Surgeon. Although this horse was 6 years old at the time of its recovery, we agreed between us to bring him back into work to see if he was absolutely as well as before. It turned out that by the time we reached 10 weeks into his preparation, he couldn't perform as well galloping flat-out as he once could. He was not unwell, but just didn't have the spark he used to have. So he was retired, and as far as I know is hacking around now still, 10 years later. Our Own Property: On our own agistment and medical spelling property we have Patterson's Curse as well and after the recent 12 month drought and the partial recovery over the past 4 months we are dismayed at the proliferation of the 'Curse" and the look of our beautiful mixed improved/native pasture, and our property in general. However, all of our own horses, those on agistment with us, and our medical cases are happily grazing in paddocks some of which have quite large patches of Patterson's Curse in them. Our Landcare Agronomists tell us that the Patterson's Curse appears only when the ground has been disturbed and have pointed out in the regeneration areas of our property the weed is only found along the tracks used by the Kangaroos and other wildlife. They tell us that it performs a useful function in this situation where the ground is packed down by sending its taproot deep into the compacted soil and breaking it up. Also that when the grasses re-establish themselves, they will naturally compete with this weed and it will disappear on its own. Our Biodynamic associates tell us that while we can discourage the 'Curse" by making a homeopathic preparation from dried and burned plant there is no real need to do so. We are advised that the biodynamic preparations we are using will speed up the recovery of our pasture and the health of our topsoil and the Patterson's Curse will reduce to minimal levels again. As a Herbalist, I know that you could kill a horse with a sack of carrots as the excess of Vitamin A would severely damage its liver. I know also that the answer to Patterson's Curse poisoning is not to be found in trying to eradicate this or any other weed in our pastures by using chemicals. Let's Look at the Systems Involved: What we need to do is to understand the horse with its natural behaviours and instincts; our feeding and farm management practices; and our pasture as a natural system all together, and then; make simple accommodations to ensure that we don't force our horses into a situation where they poison themselves. * A horse in the paddock will have its head down most of the day grazing and moving about. He is actually choosing every single mouthful of feed and his gut is full all day long. * This selective grazing will leave untouched particular plants and we need to manage and to spell our paddocks to maintain a healthy blend of grasses and healthy soils. * If a horse is hand fed and left a small paddock in this part of Australia for too long, there will be nothing but bare packed dirt and Patterson's Curse in the spring time and summer and nothing at all but bare earth in the winter. This demonstrates to me that a horse's instincts already protect it from involuntary poisoning as a the vast majority of horses will not graze on Paterson's Curse even if there is nothing else about. We all know horses kept under these conditions. To take the approach that we need to poison the 'Curse' to protect our horses is ridiculous. * It damages our pastures both with the chemicals and by disturbing the blend of grasses, clovers and other plants, which make our soil and our pasture healthy. * It prevents the taproot of this plant and other deep-rooted plants like dandelion (a liver tonic) from playing their part in aerating and composting our subsoil. * It destroys these broad leaf plants that protect the topsoil and humus with its colonies of bacterial and fungal fauna in those areas where the ground has been disturbed and its natural cover damaged. Modern programs of over-grazing and then working the soil several times, poisoning the emergent weed growth and sewing "improved pastures" go against all common sense and the fundamentals of both the horses needs and intelligent land management. * The soils are left unprotected and the natural fauna, which support healthy humus and topsoil, are destroyed by the exposure and the chemical sprays. * The natural balances of minerals in the soils are degraded. * The nutritional value of the pastures grown in such soil is severely compromised. * The variety of plants that the horse can choose amongst to feed and regulate its metabolism and health is severely restricted. All we achieve by such practices is to produce the look of health pasture to an uneducated observer. What can we do to Protect Our Horses? As usual, whenever you ask a simple question from a Holistic Healer, you get pages and pages of stuff you never asked for. However if I were to say first up that: * You should feed your horse Dandelion, Chamomile, Fenugreek, Fennell, Garlic and Rosehips occasionally. * You should allow it access to free choice Kelp, Sea Salt and Dolomite to provide any minerals or trace elements missing from the feed and pasture. * Provide regular opportunities for your horse to graze in laneways or other areas of unimproved pastures and weeds. * Feed meadow hay in preference to cultivated and irrigated Lucerne or other commercial hay. * Reduce your horse's exposure to all commercial processed horse feed products. * Resist the temptation to use poisons either on the ground or in your horse's gut. * Rotate and spell your paddocks regularly. * Protect your ground cover and the colonies of bacteria and fungi, which are the lifeblood of your humus at all, cost. and * Learn to love your weeds. Without all the explanation above, you could not fully appreciate the whole picture. When your horses metabolism has been severely compromised by some form of poisoning I always recommend the following mix of herbs and Bach's:- Borage, Chamomile, Dandelion leaf and Root, Garlic, Hawthorn, Kelp, Nettle and Fennel as well as Walnut, Scleranthus and Rescue Remedy. http://www.herbal-horsekeeping.com/horse_conditioning_blend.html In Conclusion: All you need to do to protect your horse from Patterson's Curse poisoning is to change it from a susceptible horse to one which is not susceptible. If your horse is not nutritionally or environmentally stressed and is free to graze on healthy pasture at times and to choose what it eats, it will not go out looking to poisonous plants for missing minerals or to satisfy its subverted grazing instincts. We are starting to receive grateful messages from relieved horse owners who have used the mix successfully in the past few weeks. All the Best Robert McDowell Herbalist |