Papaya - a world class meat tenderizer, natural digestive aid, prevents ulcers, and also a soft contact lense cleaner.Healing with Coltsfoot
Scientists are sharply divided on coltsfoot. The German medical text Herbal Medicine calls it “the remedy of choice” for cough, adding, “coltsfoot tea has proved particularly effective in emphysema.” But herb conservative Varro Tyler, Ph.D., calls it carcinogenic and “no longer appropriate therapy”.
Cough and Asthma - Coltsfoot may help treat respiratory problems in several ways. It contains a substance (mucilage) that may soothe the respiratory tract.
A German study using experimental animals showed the herb increases the activity of the microscopic hairs in the breathing tubes that move mucus out of the respiratory tract.
Another experiment shows that the herb suppresses a substance (platelet activating factor or PAF) in the body that is involved in triggering asthma attacks.
Rx for Coltsfoot
If you want to put coltsfoot’s traditional cough-suppressing powers to the test, you should consult with your physician. Use of this particular herb continues to be somewhat controversial in the United States. Coltsfoot (and comfrey) have been banned in Canada and herb critics in the United States are pressing for a similar ban.
In European countries where coltsfoot is routinely used, the herb is taken as an infusion or tincture. As the taste is somewhat bitter, it is often taken with a little honey.
Coltsfoot should not be given to children under the age of 2.
Herb conservatives in this country recommend slippery elm as a safe herb to calm coughs.