Getting Pregnant Naturally_ Healthy Choi - Winifred Conkling [16]
You can find many herbal remedies in health food stores, but in recent years they have been showing up in conventional supermarkets and pharmacies as well. If you can’t find what you need at local stores, refer to the listing on pages 183-184 for information on mail-order companies that sell herbs.
USING HERBS
While all herbal medicines rely on plant materials, different medicines use different parts of the plant, such as the leaves, seeds, flowers, roots, bark, or berries. The particular “recipes” for herbal remedies have been refined and improved by herbalists over thousands of years. Though only a tiny fraction of the world’s plants have been tested for their medicinal potential, American herbalists use more than one thousand different herbs to treat a wide range of illnesses and medical conditions. The following remedies are among the key treatments for infertility.
Regardless of what plants they are made of, herbal medicines come in one of several forms, including:
Teas: Made by steeping one teaspoon of dried herbs or three teaspoons of fresh herbs in one cup of boiling water for five minutes or so, then straining. Most herbal teas are not strong enough to provide medicinal value, so in most cases you can drink as much herbal tea as you wish.
Infusions: Made much the same way as strong tea, with several important exceptions. The water should be just short of boiling (since boiling water releases important volatile oils in the steam), and the herbs are steeped for twenty to thirty minutes, so the resulting liquid is much more potent and often more bitter than tea. The infusion should be strained before drinking. Most infusions are made with one-half to one rounded teaspoon of dried herb or three teaspoons of fresh herb per cup of water. The standard dose for most infusions is one-half cup, three times a day.
Decoctions: Made like infusions, only the bark, roots, or berries of the herbs are simmered (never boiled), rather than merely steeped, for twenty to thirty minutes (or sometimes longer). Most decoctions are made with one-half to one rounded teaspoon of dried herb per cup of water. The standard dose for most decoctions is one-half cup, three times a day.
Tinctures: Made by soaking herbs in an alcohol solution (25 percent alcohol/75 percent water) for a specified period of time (from several hours to several days, depending on the herb). Commercial tinctures use ethyl alcohol, but apple cider vinegar, vodka, brandy, and rum are suitable for home use (and the brandy and rum can help to disguise the bitter flavor of some herbs). Because alcohol acts as a preservative, tinctures can be stored for up to two years. To prepare a tincture, soak one ounce of crushed dried herbs in five ounces of distilled spirits for six weeks. Shake the mixture every few days to encourage alcohol uptake of the herb’s active ingredients. The dosage for a tincture depends on the herb being used. Warning: Do not use methyl alcohol or isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) when making tinctures; they are toxic if taken internally.
Extracts: Made by distilling some of the alcohol off a tincture, leaving a more potent concentrate behind. Most commercial extracts use vacuum distillation or filtration techniques, which do not require the use of high temperatures. The dosage for an extract depends on the herb being used.
Powdered herbs: Made by removing the moisture from an extract, then grinding the solid herbal concentrate into granules or powders, which can be shaped into capsules or tablets. The dosage for powdered herbs depends on the herb being used.
Most of the herbal treatments mentioned in this book involve infusions or decoctions, which may have a sharp, bitter taste. If you don’t care for the flavor of an herbal remedy, try covering the unpleasant flavor with sugar, honey, lemon, fruit juice, or even flavored tea mix. You can also purchase prepared tinctures, extracts, or powdered herbs