Several years ago, when I first began the discovery of "Prep" websites, I found myself drawn to the learning of of tinctures, salves, teas, tisanes, and other forms of herbs. I had just had a really horrendous experience with a prescription used for lowering cholesterol and felt in my heart that this was NOT Gods way of healing the body. I am, to this day, convinced that each ailment known to man can be met with an herb created by God for just that purpose. I find it hard to believe that we need a scientist, in conjunction with a chemist, to concoct an artificial chemical, to heal the simplest of illnesses. So, I began a journey of self learning that has only grown more interesting to me over the last years. The more I learn, the more I want to learn! After all, it makes a sort of perfect sense doesn't it? That a wonderful God who created us and provided every other need we had would also provide the means of healing our bodies too?
As a Christian, I love the idea of Gods mysteries all falling together like pieces of a huge jigsaw puzzle. For instance, Do you have poison ivy? The puzzle piece next to that would be Jewel Weed. Weak heart? The next piece would be Hawthorne. Do you have the flu virus? Try Elderberry! And on and on it goes, with the pieces falling into place like a beautiful mosaic of complimentary colors. Each piece aligned with its complimentary "other half".
So you've heard or read on the internet possibly, that using Black Elderberry (Sambucus Nigra), during a viral illness can lessen your symptoms and decrease your number of sick days overall. This is very true, and there have been many scientific studies done that have verified this. You can of course buy Elderberry preparations at your local drug store for an exorbitant price. Personally, I can't afford to spend $12.00 or more on a 4 oz. bottle. I would rather make my own tincture several quarts at a time and be assured that I have enough on hand at all times for the entire family. If this is something that interests you, I would recommend that you buy dried Elderberries from a reputable seller. There are several different types of Elderberries that grow in the United States and some can make you ill! The true medicinal variety is the Sambucus Nigra. For my personal use, I like dealing with a company that I've used many times know as Herbalcom. They can be found on the web at www.herbalcom.com and are reasonably priced and pleasant to work with!
Making your tincture is easy and a relaxing way to spend an hour or two. You will need to have or purchase some quart size canning jars, a supply of Elderberries, and (YIKES) a couple of litres of high test Vodka! OK, now, before you stop reading because of the alcohol content, realize that the alcohol is absolutely necessary to leach out all the active components of the berries. Many cold and flu meds you buy over the counter contain alcohol too! What you must realize is that you'll be taking this tincture one tablespoon at a time. Now that we've cleared that problem up, lets go over the recipe.
Using dried Elderberries, fill each quart jar one third (1/3) full of berries. Carefully fill jar with Vodka right to the brim, and cap with the screw down lids. Store in a dark, cool shelf, shaking the jar at least once daily. In four weeks your tincture will be ready for flu season! At that time you can strain the spent berries out of your tincture and you can recap your jars or decant tincture into smaller, more manageable bottles. Always keep the tincture in glass containers, plastics can leach out and contaminate your tincture. So there you have it! Your first "tincture" is done and there was nothing to it at all. When we have the flu coming on, we take a TBSP 3-4 times daily along with plenty of fluids. The tincture goes down very well added to a cup of tea with some honey.
*As always, these are recipes I use for my family. When borrowing these recipes, you are taking responsibility for their use with your own family as I cannot prescribe medications for others!*
No comments:
Post a Comment