Herbs & Herbal Remedies @ Green Papaya

Controversy erupted when a report in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology claimed chamomile tea might cause a potentially fatal allergic reaction-anaphylactic shock-in people allergic to ragweed. Herb conservatives immediately urged the millions of people with ragweed allergy to shun chamomile. Outraged herb advocates insisted chamomile was villified unfairly.

To settle the issue, researchers compiled every report of chamomile-induced allergic reactions from the entire world medical literature for the 95-year period from 1887 to 1982. The grand total: No deaths and 50 reactions-45 from Roman chamomile and just 5 from the German variety, the one typically used in the United States. Chamomile poses no health hazard. The only people who should think twice about using this herb (and its close relative, yarrow) are those who have suffered previous anaphylactic reactions from ragweed.

That doesn’t mean to say that reactions are impossible.

Large amounts of highly concentrated preparations have caused some nausea and vomiting.

Chamomile is on the Food and Drug Administration’s list of herbs generally regarded as safe. For otherwise healthy non-pregnant, non-nursing adults, chamomile is safe in amounts typically recommended.

Chamomile should be used in medicinal amounts only in consultation with your doctor. If chamomile causes minor discomforts such as nausea or vomiting, use less or stop using it. Let your doctor know if you experience any unpleasant effects or if the symptoms for which the herb is being used do not improve significantly in two weeks.

Adds Fragrance to the Garden

German chamomile is an annual that reaches 3 feet. The Roman herb is a perennial groundcover that rarely exceeds 9 inches. Both have downy stems, feathery leaves, and daisy-like flowers with yellow centers and white rays.

Most chamomile seed available in the United States is the annual German variety. It grows easily when sown in spring after danger of frost has passed Scatter the tiny seeds on well-prepared beds, then gently tamp down. Seedlings up to 2 inches tall transplant well. Taller plants do not.

German chamomile prefers sandy, well-drained soil in partially shaded gardens and tends to shrivel under full sun. It flowers at about six weeks and produces lush flowers even in the short summers of northern climes. The flowering lasts for several weeks, and if some flowers are left unharvested, the plant will sow itself. Don’t leave too many. This herb may become a pest.

Perennial Roman chamomile comes in two subtypes, single-flower and double-flower. Herbalists prefer the double flower variety, which adapts to almost any soil but favors moist, well-manured loam. The tiny seeds may be sown, but most gardeners prefer to propagate the plant from offshoots. Plant them about 18 inches apart in early spring.

Roman chamomile is quite hardy, but if your winters are particularly severe, protect the plants with mulch.

Oddly enough, Roman chamomile does best when it’s stepped on. In Britain, the plant is often used as a groundcover on garden paths. Walking on it releases the herb’s lovely apple fragrance and does not hurt the plant.

After harvesting, dry the flowers and store them in sealed containers to preserve theirvolatile oil.

In Germany, where herbal healing is more mainstream than it is in the United States, one pharmaceutical company markets a popular chamomile product called Kamillosan, which Germans use externally to treat wounds and inflammations, and internally for indigestion and ulcers. (This product is not available in the United States.) Chamomile is so popular in Germany that many there call the herb alles zutraut - “capable of anything.”

A slight exaggeration, perhaps, but chamomile does have a lot going for it.

Digestive Aid - Dozens of studies have supported chamomile’s traditional use as a digestive aid. Several chemicals (primarily bisabolol) in chamomile oil appear to have relaxing action on the smooth muscle lining of the digestive tract (making it an antispasmodic). In fact, one study shows chamomile relaxes the digestive tract as well as the opium-based drug papaverine.

Ulcers - Chamomile also may help prevent stomach ulcers and speed their healing. In one experiment, two groups of animals were fed a chemical known to cause ulcers. Those also given chamomile developed significantly fewer. Then the animals who developed ulcers were divided into two groups. Those fed chamomile recovered more quickly.

Women’s Health - Antispasmodics relax not only the digestive tract but other smooth muscles, such as the uterus, as well. Chamomile’s antispasmodic properties support its age-old use to soothe menstrual cramps and to lessen the possibility of premature labor.

Oddly enough, chamomile was also used to stimulate menstruation. The apparent contradiction remains unresolved, but European researchers have isolated a substance in chamomile that stimulates uterine contractions.

Women should feel free to try chamomile both to soothe menstrual cramps and to promote the onset of menstruation, but pregnant women should steer clear of medicinal amounts.

Tranquilizer - Chamomile’s long history as a tranquilizer also has a scientific basis according to researchers who showed that the herb depresses the central nervous system. Try an infusion when you feel anxious, or add a handful of chamomile flowers to a hot bath.

Arthritis - In animal studies, the herb successfully relieves arthritic joint inflammation. Animal findings don’t necessarily apply to people, but chamomile has been used traditionally to treat arthritis. Try it and see if it works for you.

Infection Prevention - The Eclectic physicians of America were on the right track using chamomile compresses to prevent wound infections. Some studies show chamomile oil applied to the skin reduces the time it takes burns to heal. Other studies show the herb kills the yeast fungi (Candida albicans) that cause vaginal infections, as well as certain bacteria (Staphylococcus). Chamomile also impairs the replication of polio virus. For cuts, scrapes, or burns, brew a strong infusion, cool it, and apply in compresses.

Immune Stimulant - No one knew why chamomile prevented infections until British researchers discovered that the herb stimulated the immune system’s infection-fighting white blood cells (macrophages and B-lymphocytes). Drink some when you have a cold or the flu. It does no harm, and it just might help.

Rx for Chamomile

Use an infusion or tincture to take advantage of chamomile’s many proven healing benefits.

For a pleasant, refreshing infusion, use 2 to 3 heaping teaspoons of flowers per cup of boiling water. Steep 10 to 20 minutes. Drink up to 3 cups a day.

In a tincture, use ½ to 1 teaspoon up to three times a day. When using commercial preparations, follow package directions.

Weak infusions of chamomile may be given cautiously to children under age 2 for colic. For older children and people over 65, start with low-strength preparations and increase strength if necessary.

For a relaxing herbal bath, tie a handful of chamomile flowers into a cloth and run your bathwater over it.

For cuts and scrapes or burns, brew a strong infusion. Soak a clean cloth in the liquid and apply it as a compress.

Pretty Flowers, Potent Medicine

Family: Compositae; (includes Daisy, Dandelion, Marigold)

Genus and Species: Matricaria chamomilia (German or Hungarian); Anthemis Nobilis (Roman or English)

Also known as: Camomile, Matricaria, Anthemis, Ground Apple

Parts used: Flowers

In the tale of Peter Rabbit, Peter eats himself sick in Mr. McGregor’s garden, then gets chased out at the wrong end of the angry man’s hoe. When he gets home, his mother gives him chamomile tea.

Peter’s mother was a wise herbalist. Chamomile is one of the best herbs for indigestion. It also soothes jangled nerves. Perhaps Peter’s mother also feared his ordeal would give him an ulcer: Chamomile may help prevent and heal them. Or perhaps Mr. McGregor’s hoe grazed Peter’s tender bunny skin. A chamomile compress can help heal many wounds.

Unfortunately, few who sip chamomile tea know what a healer they hold in their paws. Sorry-hands.

Herb of the Sun

Actually, chamomile is not one herb, but two-German (or Hungarian) chamomile and Roman (or English) chamomile. The two plants are botanically unrelated, but they both produce the same light blue oil used in healing since ancient times.

Chamomile’s daisylike flowers reminded the ancient Egyptians of the sun. They used it to treat fever, particularly the recurring fevers of malaria.

The Greek physician Dioscorides and the Roman naturalist Pliny recommended chamomile to treat headaches and kidney, liver, and bladder problems. India’s ancient Ayurvedic physicians used it similarly.

Germans have used chamomile since the dawn of history for digestive upsets and as a menstruation promoter and treatment for menstrual cramps.

Seventeenth-century English herbalist Nicholas Culpeper recommended chamomile for fevers, digestive problems, aches, pains, jaundice, kidney stones, “dropsy” (congestive heart failure). and “to bring down women’s courses” (promote menstruation) .

British and German immigration introduced both charnomiles into North America, though most of the chamomile grown here today is the German variety.

America’s 19th-century Eclectic physicians recommended chamomile poultices to speed wound healing and prevent gangrene. They prescribed infusions for digestive problems, malaria, typhus, menstrual cramps, menstruation promotion, and for all birth-related difficulties: to quiet fetal kicking, stop premature labor, relieve sore breasts and nipples, suppress milk production, and relieve infant colic.

Best-Seller

Today chamomile is one of the nation’s best-selling herbs. It’s a favorite tea, by itself or in blends. Its apple aroma is the fragrance in many herbal skin-care products. And it has been used in shampoos since the days of the Vikings because it adds luster to blond hair.

Contemporary herbalists recommend chamomile externally to spur wound healing and treat inflammation, and internally for fever, digestive upsets, anxiety, and insomnia.