Monday, September 16, 2013

The Power of Plantain!

When Elijah came in the house after tangling with this guy...

I knew something was wrong.  When I asked him..he mumbled.  Sometimes he does that.  I asked again and told him I couldn't understand him.  He mumbled...louder.  I didn't realize he had a mouth full of Plantain until he began spitting it out onto the back of his hand. The boy knows his herbs!

Plantain is our first line of defense against bug stings, bites etc.  Plantain grows everywhere.  If you don't spray your yard with chemicals, I'd bet a nickel that you have it in your yard. It's edible and high in vitamin B1 and riboflavin.  It has been used as a medicinal herb forever.  One of the names the American Indians called it was "life medicine". It contains glycoside Aucubin, a powerful anti-toxin.  It is full of many other effective constituents as well. It has antibacterial properties, helps stop the flow of blood quickly (important for boys on a farm to know!) and is wonderful for many sinus/lung complaints such as bronchitis, sinusitis, asthma, coughs and hay fever! It is used in anti-smoking products because it causes a natural aversion to any tobacco product!  (Make a tincture at home and save yourself a lot of money!)

Here is Plantain growing in our yard.  Our farm is organic so it is safe to pick and use anything growing here.  Don't use it if you spray chemicals on your yard!!

 

We use it frequently in poultices for bee and wasp stings, spider bites and caterpillar stings because it draws and neutralizes whatever poison has been injected.  It takes out the swelling, and redness as it draws out the poisons. It can also draw splinters, thorns and other things little ones get under their skin. 

Here is a bowl full of plantain to be used in my Herbal Medicine Made Simple class (another one coming soon)!

 

I've read that the American Indian carried the root of Plantain to treat snakebites. They also called this White Man's Foot because it grew everywhere the white man settled.  I've read that it was not native to America but the seeds were brought over when the first settlers arrived.  

They say it is good for wrinkles...I'm working on a cream for that!

Once Elijah realized he had been stung, he grabbed some Plantain and started chewing it as he headed into the house.  He slapped it all over his hand and left it for awhile.  It did the work...drew out the poison and healed his hand in an amazingly short period of time.  

Remember his hand looked like this...red, swollen with raised white bumps....


Just two hours later his hand looked like this!

Redness, swelling and raised white bumps gone!  No need to use a petroleum based cream, steroid cream or antibiotic cream.  He had no itching, no tenderness...nothing....he was back to normal.

One of my daughters used this recently for a bad spider bite...and it drew out the toxins, healed the area and made it possible for her to stop taking the antibiotics that were tearing her tummy up!

One of my sons came to me days after getting into a "spider convention" in an old out building.  He had multiple bites, a raised hot red spot the size of a cue ball with long red streaks coming off of it.  We spent the evening applying multiple hot poultices of plantain and the next day...the red streaks were gone, the heat was gone and he was left with a flat, slightly pink splotch that quickly faded.

Our Father gave us many herbs to heal our bodies....He told us so!  Unfortunately, we've lost much of that knowledge. I'm so grateful for the years I've studied herbal medicine - over 30 now! Herbs have healed my children of many things, saved us a ton of money and trips to the hospital/doctor and done so without putting chemicals in or on their bodies.  I'm so grateful for the good gifts our Father gave us to help our bodies heal!

I hope this helps you tuck a little nugget away so the next time one of your loved ones tangles with the great outdoors, you will remember a quick, easy and efficient way to help them by using Plantain, one of our Father's gifts to us!

Blessings,

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