Category: Herbs & How to Use Them

Cleansing & Flushing, Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them

The Cleansing Tea I Drink Every Day

Dara Dietz

Of everything I use, this tea might be what I drink most faithfully. It’s a cleansing tea, fifteen herbs that support the blood, the liver and the kidneys, but it genuinely tastes good, hot or cold. I don’t treat it like medicine I have to choke down. It’s simply my daily beverage of choice, and it has become that for many of our members too.

I think of the herbs I use in three groups. The strongest are the detoxing herbs. Next come the nutritional formulas that target one system. The gentlest are what I call Herbs for Life: food-type herbs taken every day as a habit, not because something is wrong. This tea belongs with those, the same way I take my apple cider vinegar, maple syrup and Cayenne every day.

What a Good Daily Cleansing Tea Contains

A good everyday cleansing tea might contain these fifteen herbs:

  • Dandelion Root, 2 parts. A classic bitter root for the liver and gentle daily cleansing.
  • Burdock Root and Pau D’Arco Bark, 1 part each. Blood and internal cleansers.
  • Juniper Berries, Uva Ursi Leaf, Horsetail and Parsley Root, 1 part each. Support for the kidneys and urinary tract.
  • Ginger Root, Cinnamon Bark, Clove Bud, Cardamom Seed, Fennel Seed and Black Peppercorn, 1 part each. Warming spices that aid digestion and make it a delicious tea. Black pepper also helps the body make better use of the other herbs.
  • Licorice Root and Orange Peel, 1 part each. Natural sweetness and a bright citrus note.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s 2 ounces of Dandelion Root and 1 ounce each of the other fourteen.

Brewing the Tea

  • The overnight way: put 1¼ cups of the dry tea in a pot with a gallon of cold water and let it soak overnight. In the morning, heat it just to boiling, take it off the heat and let it steep at least 15 minutes. Strain, and pour over ice or drink it hot.
  • My coffee-maker shortcut: grind the dry herbs to a fine powder and keep the powder in the freezer. About 2 tablespoons brews a full pot in a drip coffee maker; use the strongest setting if yours has one. In a reusable single-serve pod, fill it only about half full, since the herbs swell. I run the same herbs through twice, and the two cups over ice make a 2-quart pitcher.

How Much and How Often

Drink it freely through the day. Most of the members who have made it a habit keep a pitcher in the fridge.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Cleansing & Flushing, Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them

Eleven Herbs for a Deep Blood Cleanse

Dara Dietz

When the blood carries too heavy a load of toxins and waste, it shows up all through the body: in the skin, in the joints, and in that overall run-down, unwell feeling.

A good blood-cleansing formula brings together a whole team of alterative herbs, the herbs that help the body clean its own blood. Each brings its own strength, from cleansing to circulation to gentle elimination, and together they clear the buildup, keep the bowels moving it out, and feed the organs that do the clearing.

This is a formula I reach for during a cleanse, and as a second blood and liver cleanser for two groups in particular: those who are allergic to nuts, and those dealing with an active skin condition. Both benefit from extra help clearing the blood.

What a Good Blood-Cleansing Formula Contains

A good blood-cleansing formula might contain these eleven herbs:

  • Red Clover Blossoms, 2 parts. The lead herb, a classic blood purifier and the traditional base of blood-cleansing blends.
  • Chaparral, 1 part. A Southwestern desert herb long counted among the strongest blood purifiers there are.
  • Burdock Root, 1 part. One of the best-known blood purifiers and skin-clearing herbs.
  • Sarsaparilla, 1 part. A blood purifier and tonic, rich in minerals.
  • Oregon Grape Root, 1 part. A liver and blood cleanser, similar in action to Goldenseal.
  • Stillingia Root, 1 part. A Southern alterative long used for the skin and the blood.
  • Poke Root, 1 part. A cleansing herb for the lymph and the blood.
  • Cascara Sagrada, 1 part, and Buckthorn Bark, 1 part. Bowel tonics that keep elimination moving, so the waste being cleared actually leaves the body.
  • Prickly Ash Bark, 1 part. A circulation herb that carries the formula through the bloodstream.
  • Licorice Root, 1 part. Soothing and gentle alongside the stronger cleansing herbs.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s 2 ounces of Red Clover and 1 ounce each of the other ten.

Putting It Together

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

How Much and How Often

  • 2 droppersful (about 70 drops) four to six times a day, for a week. This is the amount I use during a 5-day cleanse.
  • Mix it into a few ounces of grape juice to make it easier to take.
  • Drink 64 to 128 ounces of liquid a day while you’re using it, to carry the waste out.

For the strongest cleanse, used in our 5-day program and for the most serious cases, see A Strong Formula for Cleansing the Blood and Lymph.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Cleansing & Flushing, Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them

A Strong Formula for Cleansing the Blood and Lymph

Dara Dietz

This formula carries one of my favorite pieces of history from this tradition. After one of Dr. John Christopher’s arrests, he was told never to use the word “cancer” again. Not long after, in a private conversation about Red Clover, Dr. Schulze told him, “I just can’t help myself. Red Clover is the antidote for cancer.” Chaparral carries the same kind of reputation, long credited as one of nature’s most powerful antioxidants. I share these exactly as they have long been told within this tradition, as historical claims and not medical guidance. But they’re part of why this formula has the reputation it does.

This is the strongest blood and lymph cleanser I use, built on the same tradition as the famous Hoxsey Formula and Dr. Christopher’s Red Clover Tonic. Everyone on our 5-day cleansing program takes it, and it’s the core of the program for the most serious cases, where its whole job is to support the liver in clearing disease and built-up toxins out of the blood.

What a Good Blood and Lymph Cleanser Contains

A good formula for a deep blood and lymph cleanse might contain these twelve herbs:

  • Red Clover Blossoms, 2 parts. A core blood cleanser, prized in the old-time cleansing tonics.
  • Chaparral, 2 parts. A desert shrub long used in the Southwest as a strong internal cleanser.
  • Burdock Root, 1 part, and Burdock Seed, 1 part. Classic blood-purifying herbs, used for centuries alongside Red Clover.
  • Yellow Dock Root, 1 part. A liver and blood herb common in old-time cleansing blends.
  • Oregon Grape Root, 1 part, and Goldenseal Root, 1 part. Bitter roots that support the liver’s own cleansing work.
  • Poke Root, 1 part. Supports the lymph.
  • Bloodroot, 1 part. One of the historic herbs of the Hoxsey tradition this formula draws from.
  • Garlic Juice, 1 part. For its own cleansing and immune support.
  • Lobelia Seeds, 1 part. A relaxant that keeps the whole system moving.
  • Cayenne, 1 part. For circulation, carrying the other herbs through the body.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s 2 ounces each of Red Clover and Chaparral and 1 ounce each of the rest, with the garlic juice stirred into the extract.

Putting It Together

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

How Much and How Often

  • For serious illness: ½ teaspoon every 3 hours.
  • For general cleansing: ½ teaspoon three times a day.

These herbs are strong, and strong-tasting. They are cleansers, not a gentle daily tonic, and they do their best work with a real cleanse: plenty of water, fresh juice and herbal teas through the day to carry out what they loosen. If you feel some nausea or an upset stomach, that can be the body’s cleansing response; back off the amount and give the body time to catch up.

Cayenne moves the cleansing out through the skin as well. If the skin is already carrying an extra load, as with eczema or psoriasis, or if you have a nut allergy, the eleven-herb blood cleanser is my second choice. It’s the same class of cleanser, without the Cayenne.

For Lymph Congestion

Because it cleanses the lymph, this formula is also my internal support for lymph congestion and blockage, such as lymphedema. For a swollen area, pair it with the Mullein and Lobelia salve laid on as a pack. I wrote more about that in Understanding Lymphedema.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Heart, Blood & Circulation, Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them

Food for the Blood

Dara Dietz

Your blood carries oxygen to every cell in your body. That job depends on having enough healthy red blood cells, and enough hemoglobin inside them to carry the oxygen. Anemia is simply a shortage of red blood cells, hemoglobin or both. It shows up as paleness, tiredness or a pounding heart, because the body is working harder to move oxygen with less of it in each cell.

Rather than treat anemia as a lone symptom, a good blood formula feeds the blood. These herbs supply the iron and minerals the body uses to build new red blood cells and raise its hemoglobin. Because it works as food, it’s taken regularly, with meals, over time.

I also add it to the rebuilding program whenever bleeding has been part of what someone is recovering from. It helps the body replace what was lost.

What a Good Blood-Building Formula Contains

A good formula for building the blood might contain these four herbs:

  • Sarsaparilla Root, 8 parts. The lead herb. A classic blood purifier and tonic, valued for the minerals it brings to rich, healthy blood.
  • Yellow Dock Root, 4 parts. One of the best-known iron-rich herbs, long used to build red blood cells and hemoglobin.
  • Comfrey Root, 4 parts. A nourishing herb rich in the minerals that build the blood.
  • Sassafras Bark, 1 part. A small amount to round out the formula’s blood-cleansing action.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s 8 ounces of Sarsaparilla, 4 each of Yellow Dock and Comfrey, and 1 of Sassafras.

Putting It Together

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

How Much and How Often

2 to 4 droppersful (½ to 1 teaspoon) in a cup of hot water after each meal. Add honey to taste and drink.

For more on rebuilding the blood, see Anemia, Herbal Support to Rebuild the Blood.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them, Organs & Glands

Rebuilding Tired Adrenals

Dara Dietz

Your adrenal glands are two small glands that sit right on top of each kidney, and the job they do is far bigger than their size. They make the hormones the body relies on to handle stress: adrenaline for fight or flight, cortisol to regulate blood sugar and inflammation, and aldosterone to balance sodium, fluids and blood pressure.

When stress is constant instead of occasional, from illness, overwork, poor sleep or emotional strain, the adrenals wear down trying to keep up. That’s when people notice a tiredness that doesn’t lift with rest, a harder time handling stress that used to be manageable, and a heart that feels like it’s working overtime.

Feeding these glands, rather than pushing them harder, is what gives them the chance to rebuild. And because the adrenals and the heart carry the load of stress together, a good adrenal formula supports the heart as well.

What a Good Adrenal Formula Contains

A good formula for tired adrenals might contain these seven herbs:

  • Mullein, 4 parts, and Lobelia, 4 parts. Together they are considered the perfect food for the glands, long paired to nourish and rebuild an overworked, run-down gland.
  • Ginseng, 4 parts. A mix of American and Siberian. American Ginseng is the gentler of the two, well tolerated over time; Siberian Ginseng is the classic herb for stress and endurance.
  • Gotu Kola, 4 parts. In small amounts it relieves fatigue and wakes up the brain, and it supports the pituitary, which directs the adrenals.
  • Hawthorn Berries, 4 parts. A heart tonic for centuries. Under stress the heart often works overtime, and Hawthorn steadies it, soothes the nerves and helps with nervous sleeplessness.
  • Ginger Root, 4 parts. Carries the formula into the abdomen, where the adrenals sit, and clears congested capillaries.
  • Cayenne, 1 part. Nature’s finest stimulant for the circulation, bringing oxygen and nourishment to the cells that need repair.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s 4 ounces each of the first six herbs and 1 ounce of Cayenne.

Putting It Together

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

How Much and How Often

2 to 4 droppersful (½ to 1 teaspoon) three times a day, six days a week.

It took years for the body to get into this condition, and it takes steady nourishment to rebuild. While it does, avoid the foods and activities that add stress to a tired gland. And remember, a merry heart does good like a medicine.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them, Organs & Glands

The First Twinge Is the Time to Act

Dara Dietz

There’s a moment at the very start of a bladder infection, a telltale twinge, burning or urgency, when acting quickly can still stop it in its tracks. That moment, not hours or days later, is when to reach for this drink.

When bacteria gain a foothold in the urinary tract, the bladder lining becomes irritated and inflamed, and that brings the burning and urgency. Acidic urine makes the burning worse. Herbs that neutralize the acid and calm the inflammation, used right away, can ease the pain quickly.

This is a comfort formula. It eases the burning and pain of voiding; it is not what clears the infection itself. For that, use it alongside the infection support in Our Two Infection Fighters and Echinacea.

What a Good Bladder Comfort Formula Contains

A good formula for the burn of a bladder infection might contain these five herbs:

  • Juniper Berries, 4 parts. The lead herb. Its oils pass out through the kidneys and act directly on the urinary tract, which is why it’s the herb to reach for at the first sign of trouble.
  • Corn Silk, 2 parts. The comfort herb. It coats and calms the irritated bladder lining directly, easing the burning and urgency themselves.
  • Cranberry, 2 parts. Helps keep bacteria from sticking to the bladder wall, and together with Juniper helps neutralize the burning.
  • Parsley Root, 2 parts. Keeps fluid moving through the urinary tract, flushing out what’s irritating it.
  • Uva Ursi, 1 part. Adds its own cleansing support in a smaller amount.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s 4 ounces of Juniper, 2 each of Corn Silk, Cranberry and Parsley Root, and 1 of Uva Ursi.

Putting It Together

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

How to Take It

  • Put an ounce of the formula in a large mug.
  • Pour 6 to 8 ounces of boiling water over it. This shocks off the alcohol, so there’s no need to boil the formula itself. Let it sit a minute or two.
  • Top it off with cold water so you can drink it quickly.
  • Drink the whole thing right away rather than sipping it.
  • Try to hold off urinating for about 45 minutes afterward, to give the herbs time to work.

A Smaller Preventive Use

I have some men in wheelchairs who don’t drain their bladders well, and they use this in small amounts as a preventive. Retained urine gives bacteria a place to grow, so a little of this formula on a regular basis helps keep that from turning into a full infection. The amount depends on how chronic the problem is.

Which Urinary Formula When?

  • The kidney formula and tea: food for the whole renal system, to be used for as long as you like.
  • The bladder formula: for incontinence and urgency, which often come from a mild infection or bacteria in the bladder or urinary tract.
  • The bladder comfort drink (this post): only for the burning pain of a bladder infection, taken as one strong drink.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them, Organs & Glands

Steady, Daily Support for a Tired Bladder

Dara Dietz

Your urinary tract works around the clock: the kidneys filter waste from the blood, the bladder stores it, and a network of muscles and tissues manages when and how it’s released. When that system is weak or overworked, it can show up as a bladder that doesn’t hold urine reliably, urinary tissue that has lost its tone, or a tendency toward stones and mineral buildup.

These are usually gradual problems, and they respond to steady, daily support rather than one fast remedy. Urgency and leaking are often driven by a mild infection or bacteria in the bladder or urinary tract, and clearing that is part of getting control back.

Over the years this formula has given relief to people who had become afraid to go out in public because they couldn’t control their bladder. It has also helped women, and anyone laid up after an accident or surgery. Being laid up doesn’t just weaken the muscles you can see; it weakens the ones that manage the bladder too.

What a Good Bladder Formula Contains

A good bladder formula might contain these seven herbs, in equal parts:

  • Juniper Berries, 1 part. One of the two fast-acting diuretics here, long credited with correcting problems in voiding urine.
  • Parsley Root, 1 part. The other fast-acting diuretic, well known for rebuilding urinary tissue.
  • Uva Ursi Leaf, 1 part. A cleansing herb for the urinary tract, credited with helping dissolve stones and mineral buildup.
  • Marshmallow Root, 1 part. Soothing and healing, it eases the flow of urine through an irritated tract.
  • Lobelia, 1 part. Relieves spasm in the urinary tract.
  • Goldenseal Root, 1 part. Fights infection and heals tissue.
  • Ginger Root, 1 part. Helps the whole combination work together.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s simply equal ounces of all seven.

Putting It Together

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

How Much and How Often

This is a healing food formula, so the amount is spread out through the day: ½ to 1 teaspoon, three to five times a day, depending on how much trouble there is with control or with bacteria. A cup of parsley tea alongside it, morning and evening, is a good old-fashioned helper.

Which Urinary Formula When?

  • The kidney formula and tea: food for the whole renal system, to be used for as long as you like.
  • The bladder formula (this post): for incontinence and urgency, which often come from a mild infection or bacteria in the bladder or urinary tract.
  • The bladder comfort drink: only for the burning pain of a bladder infection, taken as one strong drink.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them, Organs & Glands

Food for the Kidneys: A Daily Formula and Tea

Dara Dietz

Kidney infections were part of my life from childhood. By sixteen, an infection and high fevers put me in the emergency room in convulsions, and I lived on antibiotics for the next fifteen years. When I discovered herbs, I finally began to clear the infections from my renal system completely.

Ever since, my daily supports have been a kidney formula stirred into my kidney tea, along with my hot lemonade: cayenne, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and a little maple syrup. I haven’t had a kidney attack or kidney pain in over 20 years. I know my kidneys are a weak spot, so I keep animal proteins very low, and I have no soda, sugary drinks or junk food. The body just doesn’t need that stuff.

I’ve been drinking this tea for over 30 years. I don’t drink a gallon every day, but I have at least a mug or two, and it’s still my tea of choice.

Food, Not a Flush

This is a basic nourishing formula for the whole renal system: food for the kidneys. It feeds and supports rather than pushing a strong detox, it tastes good, and it can be used for as long as you like. People hear “kidney tea” and assume it’s only for stones. It does help there, but most of our members keep a pitcher in the fridge to rebuild and maintain their kidney health day to day. Don’t wait for a kidney complaint to reach for it.

What a Good Kidney Formula Contains

A good kidney formula might contain these nine herbs:

  • Juniper Berries, 2 parts. The largest share, and a time-honored kidney herb. Juniper supports a healthy flow of urine and keeps the whole urinary tract clean.
  • Uva Ursi Leaf, 1 part. A classic herb for a clean, healthy bladder and urinary tract.
  • Parsley Root, 1 part. A gentle, nourishing root that supports the kidneys and helps flush the urinary tract.
  • Corn Silk, 1 part. Coats and calms the tissues of the urinary tract, keeping the formula gentle.
  • Goldenrod Flower Tops, 1 part. Long used to support the kidneys and help the body clear excess fluid.
  • Horsetail, 1 part. Rich in silica and minerals that tone and strengthen the tissues of the urinary tract.
  • Pipsissewa Leaf, 1 part. A North American urinary herb, a cousin of wintergreen, used for the bladder and kidneys.
  • Burdock Root, 1 part. A classic blood cleanser. Cleaner blood means less work for the kidneys as they filter it.
  • Burdock Seed, 1 part. Complements the root with its own gentle support for the flow of urine.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb.

Put the dry herbs in a glass jar and pour in 80-proof vodka. Once the herbs have settled, you want about 60% herb sediment on the bottom and 40% liquid on top. Shake the jar every day. The traditional timing follows the moon, from the new moon to the full moon, about two weeks. I prefer to let my extracts sit a full three months, which makes them good and strong. Then strain and bottle the liquid.

What a Good Kidney Tea Contains

The tea is the formula’s everyday partner. A good kidney tea might contain these twelve herbs:

  • Juniper Berries, 2 parts.
  • Corn Silk, Uva Ursi Leaf, Parsley Root, Dandelion Leaf, Horsetail and Goldenrod, 1 part each. The same gentle kidney and urinary support as the formula, with Dandelion adding its own help with the body’s fluid balance.
  • Hydrangea Root, 1 part. Long used to discourage stones. Dr. Shook considered it a true stone solvent: as a stone’s sharp points dissolve, he noted, the pain and inflammation they cause go with them.
  • Gravel Root, 1 part. True to its name, used to help the body pass and discourage gravel and stones.
  • Marshmallow, 1 part. Soothing to irritated urinary tissue.
  • Orange Peel and Peppermint, 1 part each. They make it a bright, pleasant tea you’ll actually want to drink.

Brewing the Tea

  • The overnight way: put 1¼ cups of the dry tea in a pot with a gallon of cold water and let it soak overnight. In the morning, heat it just to boiling, take it off the heat and let it steep at least 15 minutes. Strain, and pour over ice or drink it hot.
  • My coffee-maker shortcut: grind the dry herbs to a fine powder and keep the powder in the freezer. About 2 tablespoons brews a full pot in a drip coffee maker; use the strongest setting if yours has one. In a reusable single-serve pod, fill it only about half full, since the herbs swell. I run the same herbs through twice, and the two cups over ice make a 2-quart pitcher.

How Much and How Often

  • Add ½ teaspoon of the formula to each 8 ounces of hot or iced tea, so a 16-ounce mug gets 1 teaspoon.
  • For a gallon pitcher of iced tea, stir in a whole ounce of the formula and drink it through the day.
  • Drink freely. A common guideline is at least half your body weight in ounces of fluid each day, so a 150-pound person needs at least 75 ounces, and Dr. Christopher recommended even more. For someone 150 pounds or more, a gallon a day is fine. Let the tea carry most of it.

The formula and tea are also the heart of my Ultimate Kidney Flush, a 3-day stone-dissolving routine with fresh apple, lemon and lime juice and raw apple cider vinegar. For the deeper work, see Kidney Flushing Light to Intense, and for a struggling kidney, A Salve Pack for Struggling Kidneys.

Which Urinary Formula When?

  • The kidney formula and tea (this post): food for the whole renal system, to be used for as long as you like.
  • The bladder formula: for incontinence and urgency, which often come from a mild infection or bacteria in the bladder or urinary tract.
  • The bladder comfort drink: only for the burning pain of a bladder infection, taken as one strong drink.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Food & Nutrition, Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them

Superfood: Raw Material for Healing

Dara Dietz

Over and over I have seen that nutrition is vital to healing. Whether you are working through a serious disease or simply cleansing for a healthier life, the body needs raw material to rebuild with.

The herbs are master builders. Different herbs go to different parts of the body, promoting circulation and restoring health. What many people don’t understand is that the herbs alone don’t supply all the nutrition needed to do the work they’re capable of. It’s like sending a master builder to your lot with the blueprints and the know-how, but never delivering any lumber. You won’t be moving in any time soon.

Some foods and herbs are so concentrated and complete in their nutrition that I call them superfoods. A spoonful of a good blend is like a transfusion of nutrition, and for many people it is the missing link in their health program.

What a Good Superfood Blend Contains

A good superfood blend might contain these powders:

  • Nutritional Yeast, 20 parts. Non-active yeast, heated enough to stop all yeast activity but not enough to harm its vitamins. It is the richest source of B vitamins and about half protein, and it is safe for anyone avoiding yeast.
  • Alfalfa, 8 parts. The vitamin and mineral herb, gently cleansing and rich in chlorophyll.
  • Orange Peel, 4 parts, and Lemon Peel, 3 parts. Rich in vitamin C and the bioflavonoids the body needs to use it. The pectin in citrus peels also helps pull heavy metals out of the body.
  • Barley Grass and Wheat Grass, 2 parts each. Grain grasses are more potent than the grains themselves, full of vitamins, minerals and chlorophyll.
  • Spirulina, 2 parts. One of the most concentrated foods on the planet: about 60% complete protein, high in beta carotene and B vitamins, and easy to digest.
  • Chlorella, 2 parts. Second only to Spirulina in nutrition, with its cell wall broken so the nutrients are easy to absorb.
  • Beet Root and Spinach Leaf, 2 parts each. Two of the richest sources of usable iron, famous for building the blood. Spinach adds calcium and vitamin K.
  • Rose Hips, 2 parts. Another fine source of vitamin C and its helpers.
  • Kelp blend, 1 part. Sea plants are the richest source of usable minerals on earth, carrying all the minerals and trace minerals of the ocean.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb. By weight, that’s a pound and a quarter of yeast, half a pound of alfalfa, and so on down the list in ounces. For a blend without the yeast, simply leave it out.

How Much and How Often

  • 2 heaping tablespoons a day, stirred into juice or a blender drink.
  • Up to 4 rounded tablespoons a day when the body is working hard to heal.

Many of these foods are single-celled plants that digest on their own, so the nutrition can reach the bloodstream within about 15 minutes. I take mine every day, and it makes a fine partner for a plant-calcium formula.

What’s in a Serving

Worked out from the blend above, a serving of 2 heaping tablespoons (about 16 grams) carries roughly:

  • Calories: 55, with just half a gram of fat
  • Protein: 5 grams
  • Carbohydrate: 7 grams, 4 of them fiber (14% of the daily value)
  • Potassium: 320 mg (7%)
  • Iron: 2.5 mg (14%), and calcium: 80 mg (6%)
  • B vitamins, when the nutritional yeast is the fortified kind: about 350% of the daily value of thiamin (B1), 310% of riboflavin (B2), 150% of niacin (B3), 250% of B6, 130% of folate and 90% of B12
  • Plus vitamin C and bioflavonoids from the rose hips and citrus peels, chlorophyll from the grasses and algae, and iodine and trace minerals from the kelp

These are approximate figures calculated from the ingredients, not lab tested, and they vary a little with every batch of whole-food powders. One note on the niacin: fortified yeast carries a lot of it, and a large amount at once can bring on a harmless but startling warm, red “niacin flush.” Staying around this serving size avoids it.

Wondering whether the yeast in this blend is a problem for Candida? See Nutritional Yeast: The Yeast That Feeds You.

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.

Herbal Healing, Herbs & How to Use Them, Organs & Glands

A Salve Pack for Struggling Kidneys

Dara Dietz

Kidney trouble has been part of my life since childhood, when an infection went untreated long enough to damage my whole renal system. Herbs changed that for me, and kidney cases have been a big part of my practice ever since.

One of the best ways to get healing herbs right into a struggling organ is a fomentation: hot towels soaked in a strong herbal tea, laid over the area and covered to hold in the heat, then changed as they cool. Fomentations work beautifully, but they are messy and time consuming, and few people will actually set them up and keep them going.

A salve pack does the same job without the fuss. The herbs are already in the salve; you spread it on flannel, lay it over the kidneys, cover it and add heat. This salve was developed for chronic or inflamed kidneys. Its herbs support urine production and the health of the kidney itself.

What a Good Kidney Salve Contains

A good salve for the kidneys might contain these five herbs:

  • Parsley Root, 2 parts. The lead herb. A remarkable aid for the whole urinary system, and Dr. Christopher paired it with Juniper to get the urine flowing.
  • Juniper Berries, 1 part. Clears passive congestion from the kidneys and removes waste through them, and it strengthens the kidneys, the bladder and the urinary passages.
  • Marshmallow Root, 1 part. Soothing to inflamed kidneys and bladder, it relaxes the urinary passages and eases pain, and it helps gravel pass smoothly.
  • Ginger Root, 1 part. Brings circulation to the area so the other herbs can do their work.
  • Burdock Root, 1 part. One of the best blood cleansers in nature. It increases the flow of urine and relieves congestion in the lymph.

“Parts” can be any measure you like, as long as you use the same one for every herb.

Putting It Together

Fully extract the herbs in extra virgin olive oil. Most of my salves go into a 150-degree oven for three hours; then I swap the spent herbs for fresh ones and do it again, three times through in all. Strain the oil and thicken it with beeswax.

How to Use It

  • Spread the salve on a piece of flannel folded in two layers.
  • Lay the flannel, salve side down, over the kidney area. Hold it in place with Press’n Seal wrap or any pack holder that works; castor oil pack holders work well over the kidneys.
  • Cover with a towel and a heating pad for 45 minutes to an hour before bed.
  • Leave the pack on all night, and repeat as needed.

For more on caring for the kidneys, see Herbal Support for the Kidneys and Kidney Flushing Light to Intense.

For an overview of how I use herbal salves as topical applications, here is my video:

This is shared for educational purposes, from my own study and experience. It is not medical advice.