Little Green Blog

Mother Nature bestows so many gifts upon us, providing all we could ever need for a long and healthy life; foods to nourish us, flowers, herbs and essential oils to restore harmony to the body-mind for example. Modern life has drawn us away from the healing skills of our ancestors and many of us have lost touch with the rhythms of nature.

Tapping back into some of the wisdom of the ages is one way to lead a more self sufficient and sustainable life. Hippocrates said “Let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food”. By learning about the power of some of the herbs we can grow, you can have your very own natural green, eco friendly medicine chest to treat minor ailments. By no longer needing to buy over the counter preparations for certain health conditions you no longer have to make an agonising choice over whether something is an ethical purchase.

Little Miss Green developed a cough last week. Luckily we have thyme and sage in the garden for making a soothing and immune boosting tea. A couple of sprigs of thyme on top of the wood burner to keep the air free from germs and her cough was soon gone.

Thyme has powerful antiseptic and expectorant properties. You only have to stroke the leaves lightly to release a powerful and warming smell that feels so good and invigorating!

Take a look at many regular brands of cough syrup aimed at children, and you’ll see that some of the ingredients are anything but natural and supporting for the body. Artificial sweeteners,
flavourings and bright chemical colourings adorn bottles of gloop supposedly there to help your child feel better. Hardly the ethical or sustainable choice and they should be no where near a healthy child, let alone a sick one.

Mother Nature provides us with all that we need in the form of safe, natural ingredients. All we have to do is tap into the wisdom of the ages and understand that one of the greatest healers is rest and time! So many medicines promise us instant relief and encourage us to carry on with our busy lives.

More often than not, the message from our body when we are ill is to slow down. Such a taboo thing in our modern lifestyle………..

Replacing those artificial sweeteners with honey and flavourings with healing fennel is easy with one of my favourite recipes which comes courtesy of ‘Herbal Remedies’ by Christopher Hedly and Non Shaw. ISBN 0-75256-463-3

Do get yourself a copy of this small book - it is one I have used over and over again. It will provide you with invaluable advise on how to treat a wide range of minor health conditions with things you will find in your kitchen cupboards or garden - self sufficiency at its best!

Home made recipe for cough syrup

Put the following in 1 1/2 pints of water, bring to the boil, cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes:

1/2 oz dried thyme
1/4 oz dried sage
1/4 oz dried chamomile
2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp aniseed
20 cloves
2 garlic cloves
pinch cayenne or ground ginger

Allow the liquid to cool a little and strain into a clean saucepan. Press the herbs with the back of a spoon to extract all you can

Return the strained liquid to the heat and simmer very gently, uncovered, until reduced to 7fl oz. The slower the reduction, the better.

Add 1lb of honey (or sugar if you vegan, but the honey does have its

own beneficial properties) to the pan. Dissolve slowly and simmer for a few minutes, stirring all the time until you reach a syrupy consistency.
Let the mixture bubble for a moment, but do not overheat otherwise the texture will change.

Pour the syrup into a clean bottle or jar (the old honey jar is perfect), label and date

Dosage

For children you can give 1 tsp 3-6 times a day
For adults, give 2-3 tsp 3-5 times a day

 

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