Category: Skin, Wounds & First Aid

This sheet covers eczema, itchy rashes, hives and the other skin troubles that come from the body pushing its waste out through the skin. It also covers cradle cap, and how to support a baby who is too young yet for a liver flush. Poison ivy, skin infections and wounds, and skin cancer each have their own sheets.

Understanding the Condition

How the Healthy Skin Works

The skin is the largest organ of the body, and it is far more than a covering. It is our third lung: through thousands of tiny pores the body breathes in the air around it and lets out waste in the sweat. In health the skin carries only a small, light share of the cleansing work. The heavy work belongs to the liver, which gathers the waste from the blood, and to the bowel and kidneys, which carry it out.

What Goes Wrong

When the liver, the body’s vacuum bag, gets full, and especially when the bowels are not moving well, the waste has to go somewhere. The body begins to detox through the skin. The skin was never built to handle that load of toxic waste, and it breaks down quickly: red patches, tiny pimples that turn to water blisters, weeping, crusting, dry scales and cracks, and an itch that can be almost unbearable. Scratching breaks the skin open and invites infection on top of it.

When the liver is clear, its waste goes down to the bowel. When it is full, the waste is pushed out through the skin. Simplified diagram drawn for H.E.A.L.

• Eczema is this pattern settled in: dry, red, itchy, sometimes weeping skin that flares and calms and flares again. It often begins in babies and young children.
• Hives are the same push coming on fast: raised, itchy welts after an insect sting, a food the body can’t tolerate, or a load of waste cut loose all at once.
• Psoriasis brings thick, silvery scales. The real answer is the same: clear the liver so it stops pushing its waste out through the skin. Then the body clears the skin quickly, and the salves on this sheet can do their work.
• What feeds it: a congested bowel; junk and processed foods and heavy, mucus-forming foods, which make the sweat sticky so it dries and clogs the pores; synthetic clothing that doesn’t let the skin breathe; and stress.

The longer it goes on, the harder it is to turn around. A fresh flare can clear in a day or two. But when the skin has been used as the way out for years or decades, the body comes to treat it as normal and begins to protect the problem. It then takes time, repeated liver flushing and cleansing of the whole body to redirect the waste. Any weakness, and the body will want to go back to the skin route.

Cradle Cap or Eczema?

In a baby the two can look alike, but they are not the same thing. Cradle cap shows as greasy, yellowish scales or crust, starting on the scalp. It is linked to a yeast that lives on the skin, and it can travel to the face, behind the ears, into the skin folds and the diaper area (Health New Zealand). Because it is a fungus, Black Walnut is the answer for it. Eczema is dry, red and itchy, without the greasy scales on the scalp; it is liver and skin work. A baby can have both at once.

The Emotional Side: the Energy Work

Healing the whole person. We are body, mind and spirit, and all three must heal together. When one part is neglected, the other two cannot find complete healing.

The skin is where we meet the world, and how we look in our skin affects how we feel and how others treat us. Stress is one of the strongest triggers I see: skin that was almost clear flares again after a hard week. Learning to lay the stress down is part of the healing.

Louise Hay, in her book Heal Your Body, describes these patterns:

• Skin: “Protects our individuality. A sense organ.” Turn it around: “I feel safe to be me.”
• Skin problems: “Anxiety, fear. Old, buried guck. I am being threatened.” Turn it around: “I lovingly protect myself with thoughts of joy and peace. The past is forgiven and forgotten. I am free in this moment.”
• Eczema: “Breath-taking antagonism. Mental eruptions.” Turn it around: “Harmony and peace, love and joy surround me and indwell me. I am safe and secure.”
• Itching: “Desires that go against the grain. Unsatisfied. Remorse. Itching to get out or get away.” Turn it around: “I am at peace just where I am. I accept my good, knowing all my needs and desires will be fulfilled.”
• Psoriasis: “Fear of being hurt. Deadening the senses of the self. Refusing to accept responsibility for our own feelings.” Turn it around: “I am alive to the joys of living. I deserve and accept the very best in life. I love and approve of myself.”
• Rash: “Irritation over delays. Babyish way to get attention.” Turn it around: “I love and approve of myself. I am at peace with the process of life.”
• Hives: “Small, hidden fears. Mountains out of molehills.” Turn it around: “I bring peace to every corner of my life.”

Emotional patterns quoted from Louise Hay, Heal Your Body (Hay House). These are not faults to blame anyone for; they are a reminder of how much the heart is carrying.

Areas Affected & Opening the Way to Healing

The trouble shows on the skin, but the skin is not where it starts. The work is to clear the liver, keep the bowel carrying the waste out, support the kidneys, and spare the skin while it heals.

Clear the Liver: the ELF

The answer to skin trouble is always to clear the liver, so it stops pushing its toxic waste out through the skin. Once it is clear, the body clears the skin quickly, and the salves become effective. When what should be working isn’t working, it is time to flush the liver.

• A fresh flare: one strong ELF will clear most acute skin trouble, often very quickly. See my liver flushing directions.
• Long-standing skin trouble: repeated ELFs, the five-day week of liver flushing as needed, and cleansing of the whole body over months. Don’t be discouraged if it comes back after a good clearing; that is the body’s old habit, and each round weakens it.
• During the ELF, if nausea or bloating comes up, 2 teaspoons each of L/P and Digestive Tonic in a little hot water settles it.

Keep the Bowel and Kidneys Moving

• LBF #1, no cayenne. Build up one capsule a day until the bowels move two or three times a day. People who need more than 5 capsules often prefer it without the cayenne anyway.
• Kidney Support, and kidney flushing for itching that won’t let go.
• The Blood Purifying Formula, as directed on its formula sheet. It is our cayenne-free blood cleanser, and it supports the liver to detox properly.
• Plain Echinacea when the skin is open, weeping or infected. If you have an autoimmune condition, talk with Dara before starting. Echinacea can overstimulate an immune system that is already attacking the body. In its place we use astragalus and marshmallow root, which is much slower, so the whole program has to be done more gently.

Calming the Itch and Healing the Skin

Hot and cold showers for the itch. This is the quickest way I have found to stop the itch and knock out the inflammation. A handheld shower head works best. Run the water as hot as you can take without scalding, over the itchy area, for a minute or so; it pulls fresh blood into the area and scratches the itch without wrecking the skin. Then switch quickly to completely cold for a minute or so, driving the blood deep through the area so the body can clear what is causing the inflammation. Seven hots and seven colds seem to work best. For me the relief lasts for hours; repeat when the itch returns.

The ginger bath. Ginger supports the downward motion, so the body moves its waste down toward the bowels and not out toward the skin. Use ginger powder only; fresh ginger is too caustic. For an adult, 1 to 2 cups of ginger powder in a tub of tepid water, depending on the size of the tub and the person, and soak 30 to 45 minutes. Rinse off with clear water at the end of the soak. Ginger is drying to the skin, so put on the Healing Salve or BF&C Salve right after. For an adult this is a short-term support while the ELF does the real work.

The salves, in order:

• Healing Salve during a flare. When the skin is red, hot, itchy or weeping, the Healing Salve takes down the inflammation and relieves the dry, itchy skin. It can be used as a pack under flannel.
• BF&C Salve once a patch has calmed but is still dry, cracked, rough or thickened. It rebuilds the skin.
• Give the skin at least 6 hours a day open, free of salve, so it can breathe.
• Black Walnut for fungus, such as cradle cap or a rash that behaves like yeast. Start with the Black Walnut Salve. If that isn’t strong enough, dab on the Black Walnut extract full strength with a cotton ball. It will stain the skin for a few days or weeks.

Both the Healing Salve and BF&C contain comfrey root, used on the skin. Use them as directed; more is not faster.

Bathing and clothing. Bathe regularly so dried sweat doesn’t clog the pores. Olive leaf soap is gentle and cleansing. Wear and sleep in natural fibers, such as cotton, linen, wool and silk, so the skin can breathe; synthetics hold the waste against it.

Sunshine and fresh air. The sun is a true healer, and fresh air over the skin helps it clear. Build up slowly, and cover with light clothing, a hat or shade once you have had enough for the day.

Food

• Clean up the food program. Cut the junk, processed foods and sugar, and lean on fresh vegetables, fruit and whole foods. Heavy, mucus-forming foods make the sweat sticky and clog the pores.
• Know your own triggers. For me, even a bit of pork brings it on overnight.
• Juices: carrot and cucumber.
• Drink plenty of distilled water, so the kidneys can carry their share of the load.

Supporting a Baby Until the Liver Is Ready

An adult can do an ELF and clear the issue quickly. A baby can’t yet. The liver and the stomach need time to mature before they can do the work needed to clear it up, and a child needs to be about two years old before an ELF. Until then, the baby is supported, so the skin is as comfortable as possible while it waits. Then the liver can be cleared.

• Mom does the cleansing. For a nursing baby, the mother’s food program and cleansing reach the baby through her milk. A nursing mother takes regular adult doses; the baby gets only a small amount, which usually only helps. Her own ELF, bowel work and clean food program may be the strongest help the baby has. A good probiotic in Mom’s diet helps too.
• The ginger bath: ¼ cup of ginger powder in a baby bathtub of tepid water, and soak 15 to 20 minutes, every other day or so. Rinse with clear water at the end, then put on the salve right away, since ginger dries the skin.
• Olive leaf soap for the bath. It is not too strong for a baby’s skin.
• The salves: Healing Salve on the red, itchy, flaring patches, and BF&C Salve on the patches that have calmed but are still dry or cracked. The salve is safe; its oils are light. Still, try it on one small spot first, so you know the child won’t react strangely. It is the responsible thing to do and makes everyone comfortable.
• Cradle cap: Black Walnut Salve on the scalp first; if that isn’t strong enough, the Black Walnut extract full strength on a cotton ball. Expect a stain for a few days or weeks.
• Lobelia for a gassy baby: 1 or 2 drops of the Antispasmodic for a young baby. It relaxes the stomach muscles so the gas can pass more easily. It is also a mild nervine.
• Keep the bowels open. If the baby is backed up, see my sheet on the enema for an infant or young child.
• Cotton next to the skin, in clothes and bedding.

Level of Commitment

• Gentle support. A fresh flare, an itchy rash or a crop of hives: one strong ELF, the hot and cold showers, the Healing Salve and then BF&C. Often clear in a day or two.
• Focused cleansing. Eczema that keeps coming back: a cayenne-free program, repeated ELFs and a week of liver flushing as needed, LBF #1 no cayenne, kidney flushing, a clean food program, and the salves, over a few months.
• Incurables Program. Skin trouble that has gone on for years or decades, where the body has made the skin its normal way out: the whole body has to be cleansed and rebuilt, gently and steadily, with the skin spared all along.
• A baby: support, not clearing, until about age two; see the section above.

A Loose Healing Plan

• Day 1: go cayenne-free. Do a strong ELF. Hot and cold showers whenever the itch flares. Healing Salve on the angry skin.
• Days 2 and 3: watch the skin. Most fresh flares clear quickly once the liver is flushed. Move to BF&C Salve on the patches that have calmed.
• If it has gone on a long time: settle in for months. Get the bowels moving with LBF #1, no cayenne. Flush the liver again as needed, with a week of liver flushing when it keeps returning. Add kidney flushing. Clean up the food. Ginger baths to keep the waste moving down.
• All along: the heart work. Notice what stress does to your skin, and lay it down.
• For a baby: Mom’s cleansing and food program, ginger baths every other day or so, olive leaf soap, the salves after a test spot, Black Walnut for cradle cap, until the child is about two and ready for an ELF.

Stories from the Work

More on Eczema, Skin & Itch

• Infection: Skin & Wounds
• Skin Cancer
• A Healing Salve to Keep on Hand
• Knitting Bone, Flesh and Cartilage Back Together
• Black Walnut: Nature’s Strongest Antifungal
• Eleven Herbs for a Deep Blood Cleanse
• Echinacea: Telling the Immune System to Gear Up
• Mullein and Lobelia: Letting Locked Muscles Go
• Enema for an Infant or Young Child
• ELF; Liver Flushing Updates
• Stopping the Itch Naturally

What a Tumor Really Is, Benign and Malignant, and the Lumps That Are Not Tumors at All

Understanding the Condition

Finding a Lump

There are few things that bring us to attention quicker than finding a lump or bump under the skin. The first thought for most people is cancer, and fear takes over. But most lumps are not cancer, and many are not even tumors. Understanding what a lump is, and why the body made it, takes away much of the fear and shows the way to clearing it.

What a Tumor Is

A tumor is a mass of cells growing out of order. Healthy cells grow, do their work, wear out and are replaced in an orderly way. In a tumor, a group of cells keeps building past what the body needs, and the extra tissue forms a lump. Tumors can be slow-growing or fast, small or large, and they can form almost anywhere: in the glands and lymph nodes, the breast, the uterus and other reproductive organs, the urinary tract, the abdomen, or just under the skin.

Dr. Christopher described a tumor as “a swelling, an abnormal formation” of tissue “arising from the cells of the host,” and named its cause as “the inability to eliminate unhealthy material.” His aim was to “rebuild tissue so the body can slough off the tumor accumulation.”

Benign or Malignant?

Tumors fall into two very different groups, and knowing the difference removes a great deal of fear:

• Benign tumors are not cancer. They grow slowly, are usually wrapped in a smooth wall (a capsule), and stay where they are. They push neighboring tissue aside rather than growing into it, and they do not spread to other parts of the body. Most tumors people find are benign. They can still cause trouble by their size or by pressing on an organ or nerve, so they deserve attention, but they are not a death sentence.
• Malignant tumors are cancer. They have no smooth wall. They reach into the tissue around them like roots, and cells can break away into the blood or lymph and start new growths elsewhere. This is why a malignant tumor calls for serious, full-time work.

Why the Body Builds a Tumor

The body is designed to carry waste out every day through the bowel, liver, kidneys, lungs, skin and lymph. When these channels are blocked or worn down, waste builds up faster than it can be cleared. The body then does the wise thing: it locks the toxic material away in a sack, out of the main stream of the blood, where it can do less harm. That sack is the lump.

In the 1950s, Dr. Ernest Wynder and his colleagues produced cancers on rabbits’ ears and necks by painting them with tar from cigarette smoke over the animals’ life spans. The cancers came only after years of steady exposure. The study looked at the skin, not the inner organs, but what I take from it, and from what I have seen in my own work, is that before a tumor or cancer can form, the eliminative organs (the liver, kidneys and bowel) have already been worn down until they can no longer clear the waste. The tumor is not the real issue. It is a symptom of a degraded internal system. That is why we cleanse and feed: clear out the waste while rebuilding the organs that should have been carrying it away.

Study: E. L. Wynder (Sloan-Kettering Institute), E. A. Graham and A. B. Croninger (Washington University, St. Louis); rabbits painted with cigarette-smoke tar over their life spans (reported December 1957). The conclusion about the eliminative organs is my own teaching, not a finding of the study.

This is also why cutting a lump out, by itself, so often fails. Dr. Christopher warned that you can cut cysts out and tumors off, “but unless you go to the cause, they will grow back again.” The body still lacks the ability to eliminate the unhealthy material it was storing. The liver is the vacuum cleaner of the body; when it is free, it can draw the waste out of the lump and send it out through the bowel.

Potassium and the Lumps of the Body

Dr. Christopher taught that many cysts, tumors, warts and moles grow where the body lacks potassium. Potassium chloride keeps fibrin, the material the body uses to build muscle and connective tissue, dissolved and moving. Without enough of it, fibrin is “thrown out as a stringy, insoluble mess” that can form fibroid tumors, cysts and adhesions. He likened cysts and tumors to leeches that “stay in places where there is a body deficiency. As soon as the body is balanced and well, the cysts and tumors have to go.” Potassium-rich whole foods, not pills, are his answer: fresh vegetables and their juices, and the Potassium Broth below.

The Lumps That Are Not Tumors

Many lumps people fear are something else entirely. Most of these are harmless, but any new or changing lump should still be checked.

• Cysts. A cyst is a closed sac filled with fluid or soft material, with its own thin wall. It is not a tumor. Cysts form in the skin, breast, ovaries, kidneys and elsewhere, and are a sign the body has walled off what it could not process. Dr. Christopher tied them to potassium deficiency; the castor oil pack and the potassium foods on this sheet support clearing them.
• Fibroids. Firm, benign growths of muscle tissue in the wall of the uterus. Very common, and almost never cancer. See the Uterus sheet for the female program.
• Lipomas. Soft, rubbery lumps of fat just under the skin that move when pushed. They grow slowly, are almost always harmless, and are usually painless.
• Swollen glands (lymph nodes). The lymph nodes are the body’s filters. When they are fighting an infection or backed up with waste, they swell into tender lumps, often in the neck, under the arms or in the groin. They usually go down when the infection clears and the lymph is moving again. Dr. Christopher told of his seven-year-old granddaughter whose glands swelled until she could hardly swallow; he pinned a mullein and lobelia fomentation around her throat, and the next morning she came downstairs “all smiles and no pain.” A swollen gland that is hard, does not move, is not tender, or stays for more than a few weeks should be checked.
• Moles. A mole is a small cluster of pigment cells. Almost all are harmless. In my practice, the BBB Mole Salve with Cellfood has been an excellent support for dissolving moles (see below). Any mole that changes shape, color or size, bleeds or itches should be checked by a doctor first.
• Nodules. Small, firm lumps, often near joints (rheumatic nodules) or in glands like the thyroid. Most are harmless. Lobelia has long been used on the skin over rheumatic nodules (Pedersen, Nutritional Herbology, p. 122). Have any new nodule checked, especially in the neck.
• Polyps. Small growths on a stalk that form on a moist lining, most often in the nose, sinuses or colon. Most are harmless, but colon polyps should be checked during a colonoscopy, since some can turn cancerous over time. In my experience, snuff works really well on sinus polyps. See the Head Infections sheet for how to use it.
• Boils. A boil is an infected hair root or oil gland filled with pus, red, hot and painful. It is an infection, not a tumor. A few years ago I had a breakout of boils on the back of my leg (I’m very sensitive to pork, and a hint of pork grease will do it). For weeks I played around with blood-purifying options without success. Then I read in Dr. Christopher’s writing that burdock root will “quickly” clear boils. I took one teaspoon of the dried root in a cup of boiling water each day. I began on Tuesday, and by Friday the boils were gone, completely gone.

The Emotional Side: the Energy Work

Healing the whole person. We are body, mind and spirit, and all three must heal together. When one part is neglected, the other two cannot find complete healing. A person can follow a perfect herbal program, but if she stays in a life that keeps wearing her down, or never makes time to care for herself, the body will keep losing ground. Healing the body often means facing what is happening in the heart and spirit as well.

A tumor is the body holding on to what it could not release. Very often the heart is doing the same: holding old hurts, old shocks and regrets that were never let go.

Louise Hay, in her book Heal Your Body, describes these patterns:

• Tumors: nursing old hurts and shocks; building remorse. Turn it around: I lovingly release the past and turn my attention to this new day. All is well.
• Cysts: running the old painful movie over and over; nursing hurts. Turn it around: The movies of my mind are beautiful because I choose to make them so. I love me.
• Breast lumps and cysts: refusing to nourish the self; always putting everyone else first. Turn it around: I am important. I count. I now care for and nourish myself with love and joy.
• Boils: anger boiling over; seething. Turn it around: I express love and joy, and I am at peace.

Emotional patterns paraphrased from Louise Hay, Heal Your Body (Hay House). These are not faults to blame anyone for; they are a reminder of how much the heart is carrying.

Areas Affected & Opening the Way to Healing

A tumor sits in one place, but it was built by the whole body. The work starts with the bowel that must carry the waste out, the liver that draws it from the blood and lymph, the kidneys, and the lymph system that drains the area around the lump. Open those channels first. Then work directly on the lump to loosen it and draw the waste out, and feed the body so it can rebuild the tissue.

Castor Oil Packs: Two Uses

• Over the liver and bowel. Soak a flannel in castor oil, lay it over the whole front of the body (neck to groin), and put a hot water bottle over the liver (right side, just above the waist) for about 1½ hours. This is the opening step for anyone on the Incurables Program, to get the bowels open and working well. Usually there are years of backup to clear. The castor oil pack works to turn cement into soft mud that can be easily evacuated from the body. It also softens the waste in the liver, so when you flush it the ELF (Emergency Liver Flush) is more effective.
• Over the tumor itself. First spread a layer of M&L Salve over the lump. The salve opens the area so the waste can move out better through the lymph. Then lay a castor-oil-soaked flannel over it, cover, and leave it on all night, every night.

Charcoal & Flaxseed Poultice

The hot charcoal and flaxseed poultice draws waste out and keeps the lymph from backing up. Use it over a lump, over swollen lymph nodes, and over the liver during the day. Apply it as hot as can be comfortably tolerated, cover with plastic and a cloth, and leave it on overnight or at least 2 to 4 hours. Never reuse a poultice; it holds what it has drawn out. See the Charcoal & Flaxseed Poultice sheet for how to make it.

Blood Purifying Formula (Chaparral)

Dr. Christopher wrote that chaparral is “especially known for specific action in cancer,” calling it “a potent healer… to lymphatics” that “tones up the system and rebuilds the tissue” (The School of Natural Healing, p. 70). It is the backbone of the Blood Purifying Formula, along with red clover, burdock and poke root. Early laboratory studies found that chaparral’s main compound, NDGA, slowed some tumor cells in rats. Human studies have not yet confirmed this, and researchers call for more study (Pedersen, Nutritional Herbology, p. 70). In my practice, many members have used the Blood Purifying Formula over the years to clear tumors. Take it as directed on its formula sheet, traditionally two dropperfuls 4 to 6 times a day during a cleanse week, in a few ounces of grape juice.

Watch the lump. As the herbs loosen a tumor, it becomes less tightly packed so the waste can move out, and it can look bigger for a time before it shrinks. Don’t guess. If a lump keeps growing, have your doctor measure it so you know what is really happening.

Working Directly on the Lump: The Poultices

For a tumor that needs more than packs, two strong poultices draw the waste out through the skin. Both are powerful tools and belong with the Incurables Program, never on their own. Read the directions carefully and follow them exactly.

The Black Cancer Poultice. A dry mix of red clover blossoms, powdered poke root, slippery elm, bentonite clay, goldenseal and activated charcoal, blended into a paste with a liquid of apple cider vinegar, bloodroot, tea tree oil and garlic. It is an excellent support for skin cancer and has been a huge aid with breast tumors.

• Make the 50/50 solution: 4 oz raw apple cider vinegar and 4 oz distilled water. Add 1 oz bloodroot extract for every 8 oz of 50/50 solution.
• Blend: In a Magic Bullet, pour in 2 oz of the solution first, so the liquid is on the bottom. Add ¼ tsp tea tree oil for every 8 oz of liquid used. Add 1 to 2 Tbsp of the herbal powder mix on top (more for a larger poultice; start small), then more solution on top of the powder. Add 3 large garlic cloves for every 16 oz of liquid. Garlic is the big killer in this poultice and one to respect; adjust it to your preference. Blend until smooth, adding solution until it is a paste.
• Store in a lidded glass jar in the refrigerator for up to one week.
• For skin cancer: apply a thick layer over the spot twice a day and hold it in place with a bandage. It often dries to a hard crust, which can be soaked off in the shower or bath.
• For a tumor: smear a generous amount onto flannel, lay it over the tumor and bandage it in place. Leave it on overnight or 6 to 8 hours. It is best to alternate it with the castor oil pack.
• When the bleeders begin, add cayenne. As a tumor starts to break down, small bleeds can start. Dr. Christopher and Dr. Schulze both taught adding cayenne powder right into the poultice mix to help prevent them. Start with a nice rounded teaspoon in a regular batch, and a little more for a larger batch. If the bleeding is heavy, use a couple of teaspoons, up to a tablespoon. It all depends on what is going on with the tumor and the bleeders. If a bleed breaks through, pack it with cayenne powder.
• Don’t stop when it looks better. The poultice works all the way down if you stay with it long enough. Spots come back when people stop as soon as the surface looks healed. Keep going past that point.

The Poke Root Poultice. Used for tumors of the breast, during the second liver flush week of the Incurables Program. Grind fresh poke root fine, enough for one use, and roll it ¼ to ½ inch deep onto a piece of muslin or cheesecloth cut to cover the breast, with a hole for the nipple. Moisten once a day with poke root extract diluted to 1/16 strength (only if the root is dry), cover with plastic to hold the moisture, and change it every 2 to 3 days. Within about two weeks the skin breaks out in pustular sores as the waste comes out; continue one to two weeks after the breakout begins. When the drainage stops, wash with diluted apple cider vinegar and dust with bayberry powder; the skin heals in 7 to 10 days. The full procedure, with a member’s pictures of each stage, is on the Poke Root Poultice direction sheet.

• Support the lymph while you use it. Increase Echinacea to two ounces a day, six days a week. Keep M&L Salve over the tumor and any swollen lymph nodes, rebound 10 to 15 minutes a couple of times a day, and use the hot charcoal and flaxseed poultice over swollen nodes and the liver. Do an ELF each night for up to five nights. If the lymph nodes become painful and swollen, take a break and let the body catch up.

For Moles: BBB Mole Salve and Cellfood

A member in Florida introduced me to Cellfood and taught me how to use it. The BBB Mole Salve needs the Cellfood to do the good work:

• Twice a day, dab full-strength Cellfood on the mole with a Q-tip. Let it dry a few minutes, then cover it with the BBB Mole Salve to hold the moisture in. Cellfood alone dries the skin and slows healing, so use the two together. Expect several months.
• Drink Cellfood in water as well, following the directions on the bottle.

Scullcap, one of the five herbs in the BBB Salve, is very high in potassium, 2,180 mg per 100 grams (Pedersen, Nutritional Herbology, p. 155), and lobelia, blue cohosh and blue vervain all add more. That fits Dr. Christopher’s teaching that moles, like cysts and warts, form where the body lacks potassium. Blue vervain is also a powerful liver herb, and black cohosh stirs the liver, kidneys and lymph to carry the waste away (Dr. Christopher, The School of Natural Healing, pp. 291, 398).

BF&C: Rebuilding the Tissue

As the waste leaves, the tissue left behind needs rebuilding. BF&C (Bone, Flesh & Cartilage) feeds and knits tissue back together. Take the extract at 1 teaspoon three times a day, and use the BF&C Salve as an overnight pack over the area once the lump has softened, leaving the skin open and clear of salves for at least 6 hours each day.

Feeding the Body: Potassium Broth

Cleanse and feed: clear the waste out while flooding the body with the nutrients it needs to rebuild. Fresh vegetable juices (at least 32 ounces of carrot juice a day on the full program), Superfood, and this broth give the body the potassium it is missing.

Use distilled water for all teas, and when taking your extracts in hot water. If you use a hot water dispenser for your teas, using only distilled water greatly adds to the life of the unit.

Sun, Air, Movement and Bathing

• Move the lymph. The lymph has no heart to pump it; it depends heavily on movement and breathing. Rebound or walk every day.
• Hots and colds in the shower open the pores and drain the area. Finish with cold.
• Sun and air bath for 10 to 15 minutes a day.
• Bathe regularly to keep the skin open, so waste can leave through it.

Level of Commitment

How much is needed depends on what the lump is and how long the body has been building it:

• Gentle support. For moles, boils, small cysts and swollen glands. Clear the bowel, add potassium foods and broth, and work on the spot itself: the charcoal and flaxseed poultice, burdock tea, or the BBB Mole Salve with Cellfood.
• Focused cleansing. For benign tumors, fibroids, lipomas and stubborn cysts. Bowel cleansing, a week of liver flushing followed by a week of kidney flushing, castor oil packs over the lump with M&L Salve, the Blood Purifying Formula, and BF&C to rebuild.
• Incurables Program. For malignant tumors and large or long-standing growths. The full program, full time: bowel cleansing, Echinacea, juicing and Superfood, liver and kidney flushing, castor oil packs, and the poultices. The poultices are only one part; without the liver free to carry the waste away, they cannot finish the job.

A Loose Healing Plan

• First: have it checked. Know what you are working with: its location and size.
• Week 1: open the bowel. LBF, building up until the bowels move two or three times a day. Castor oil packs over the liver and bowel. Juices, Superfood and Potassium Broth every day.
• Week 1 onward: work on the lump. M&L Salve and a castor oil pack over it every night; the charcoal and flaxseed poultice over it and any swollen nodes during the day.
• Weeks 2 and 3: clear the liver and kidneys. A week of liver flushing, then a week of kidney flushing. Add the Blood Purifying Formula during the cleanse week. Repeat the flushing cycle as the program calls for.
• When the program is established: the poultices, if the lump calls for them, alongside the full Incurables Program.
• All along: rebuild. BF&C, potassium foods, movement, sun, air, bathing, and the heart work. Let go of what you have been holding.
• Every few weeks: take stock. Small lumps and boils can clear in days or weeks; tumors take months. If a lump keeps growing, have it measured.

Stories from the Work

More on Tumors & Lumps

• Cancer
• Skin Cancer
• Eleven Herbs for a Deep Blood Cleanse
• Knitting Bone, Flesh and Cartilage Back Together
• Mullein and Lobelia: Letting Locked Muscles Go
• A Simple Drawing Poultice: Charcoal and Flaxseed
• Echinacea: Telling the Immune System to Gear Up
• Superfood: Raw Material for Healing

This information is for education only. It is not meant to diagnose, treat or replace care from a qualified health professional.

Some wounds need more than closing. A deep gouge, an ulcer that has eaten into the flesh, a bedsore, or any serious injury where tissue has been lost has to fill back in from the bottom up. For these, I reach for a healing poultice: a blend of powdered herbs packed right into the wound, where it forms a protective herbal scab and feeds the body the raw materials it needs to grow new flesh. The wound grows shallower as the tissue fills in, healing from the inside out, often with little or no scarring.

First, Clear Any Infection

Before you begin, the wound has to be clean. Infection left in a wound will keep it from healing no matter what you put in it. So any time you are working to heal an ulcer or a deep wound, use the charcoal and flaxseed drawing poultice first, to be sure the area is clear of bacteria and infection. Once it is clean and clear, start the healing poultice.

What a Good Healing Poultice Contains

A good healing poultice might contain these five herbs, all powdered:

• Slippery Elm Bark, 4 parts. The heart of the blend. Its soothing mucilage binds the paste together, protects tender tissue and nourishes it.
• Plantain, 2 parts. A classic wound herb, used for generations to draw out infection and support healing.
• Goldenseal Root, 1 part. Long used to keep tissue clean and support it against infection.
• Comfrey Root, 1 part. Known as “knitbone,” used to support the growth of new cells and tissue.
• Cayenne, a pinch. Brings circulation into the area and helps stop bleeding.

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

Making and Applying the Paste

Mix a small amount of the powder with distilled water, aloe vera juice or aloe vera gel into a stiff, mud-like paste. Once any bleeding is under control and the wound is clean, fill the open wound with the paste and cover it with gauze or another natural-fiber bandage. Natural fiber lets the skin breathe; under plastic, the cayenne can feel hot.

As it dries, the poultice often hardens into a protective herbal scab. Each day, take off the bandage and soak or rinse the area during the daily bath. If the poultice washes out, pack the wound again and cover it. If the scab holds, just add more paste on top as needed. Don’t worry if some of the material stays in the wound; the body takes it in and uses those nutrients to grow new flesh.

Ulcers and Bedsores

Ulcers and bedsores need circulation brought back into the area. Before each application, soak the area in hot cayenne water, made with ½ teaspoon of cayenne tincture to each gallon of hot water. Feet can soak right in it. For sores on the back or bottom, soak a towel in the hot cayenne water and lay it over the area, changing it as it cools, for half an hour. Alternating hot and cold, 7 of each, during the daily bath helps too.

Infection salve around the top edges of the ulcer speeds the healing. Keep it to the edges, though; the oily salve makes it hard for the poultice to stay in the wound.

Here is my video on caring for wounds and bedsores:

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

Bleeding gums, loose teeth and gum infections don’t have to be the slow slide they so often are. Two simple herbal formulas, one a rinse and one a powder, work beautifully together to bring circulation back into the gums, tighten loose teeth and clear infection from the mouth.

The idea behind them is an old one. Native Americans would place thin strips of inner oak bark between the gums and lips and leave them there through the day or night, and it would heal sores of the gums and tighten loose teeth.

The Tooth and Gum Rinse

This formula increases the circulation to the teeth and gums. Used regularly, it helps tighten teeth and gums and stop the bleeding that comes with plaque buildup and gingivitis. It is antibacterial and antifungal, and goes after oral infection on contact.

A good tooth and gum rinse might contain:

• Echinacea, 20 parts. The largest part, a strong immune herb that fights infection in the mouth on contact.
• Bayberry Bark, 8 parts. A strong astringent that tightens and tones spongy, bleeding gums.
• White Oak Bark, 4 parts. One of the great astringents, long used to firm the gums and tighten loose teeth.
• Cayenne (Habanero), 2 parts. Drives fresh circulation into the gums and the roots of the teeth.

Tea Tree, Peppermint and Clove essential oils are stirred in after the herbs are extracted. Tea Tree is antibacterial and antifungal, Clove soothes and numbs, and Peppermint freshens.

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 use it: for best results, use a water pik. Put 4 to 6 droppersful in the reservoir with warm water and use the strongest setting you can tolerate; used daily, gum bleeding often stops within about a week. Or add 2 droppersful to 2 ounces of water and rinse thoroughly, swishing and straining the water through all the teeth. It can also be massaged directly into the gums with a cotton swab.

The Tooth Powder

This powder helps strengthen the gums against bleeding and pyorrhea-type infections, helps tighten loose teeth, and brightens the teeth’s luster. A good tooth powder might contain these seven powdered herbs:

• Comfrey Root, 6 parts. The largest part, valued for soothing and knitting tissue back together.
• White Oak Bark, 3 parts. Firms the gums and tightens loose teeth.
• Horsetail Grass, 3 parts. Rich in silica, which the body uses to build strong bones and teeth.
• Peppermint, 3 parts. Freshens the mouth and gives the powder a clean taste.
• Oatstraw, 1 part. A gentle, mineral-rich food for bones and teeth.
• Cloves, 1 part. Soothes sore gums and helps fight infection.
• Lobelia, ½ part. A small amount to relax and carry the other herbs into the tissue.

Mix the powders well and keep them in a tightly closed jar.

How to use it: to brush, wet your toothbrush, dip the damp bristles in the powder and brush as usual. For problem gums, mix about a tablespoon of powder with a little distilled water into a firm, fairly dry paste, pack it under the gums and around the teeth on the upper and lower jaws, and leave it on all night. If it won’t stay in place, wrap the paste in gauze. For severe cases, pack it six nights a week, while brushing regularly, until there is clear improvement, then go on brushing with the powder.

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

A Word About Black Walnut and the Teeth

A member once asked about a “Dr. Christopher dental formula” made mostly of black walnut hulls. I searched Dr. Christopher’s material and could not find it; the tooth powder above is the only one he wrote of. I would also have great reservations about putting black walnut directly on the teeth. Black walnut is an excellent dye and could likely dye the teeth black. It is the strongest herb in nature for clearing fungus, and it is high in calcium, so if it is found of value for the teeth, take it as an extract in a cup of tea rather than applying it to the teeth.

For more, see Infection: Teeth, Gums & Mouth and Herbal Aids for Clearing an Infection in the Teeth and Gums.

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