Medical Preperations

Medical Preperations

Herbal preparations supply a large part of the medicines that healers use, particularly for Home Stones not located near a city. Herbs may be prepared in specific ways for specific purposes. Some preparations are used when they are ready. Others are stored in containers for future use and have a longer time of potency. Preparation Timing Applied Decoction Stored Internal Infusion/Tea Immediate Internal Ointment/Paste/Salve Stored External Poultice Immediate External Soap Stored External Syrup Stored Internal Tincture/Extract Stored Internal/External DecoctionA decoction is herb that is boiled with water. This is a highly concentrated form of the herb. It should be taken on an empty stomach and 1 hour before a meal. Add 1 tablespoon of bark or root to 1 quart of water. Boil until half of the water is evaporated. Strain and store in a cold place until needed. Dosage is 1-3 teaspoons of the liquid added to a cup of warm water. InfusionAn infusion (tea) is herb that is steeped. Boiling water is poured over the herb and the herb allowed to steep. Each dose should be made fresh. It should be sipped, not gulped down. The reason for this is that the slow sips give the liquid the chance to mix with the enzymes and saliva in the mouth, allowing the herbal medicine to enter the bloodstream. It should be drunk warm, not hot, on an empty stomach and 1 hour before a meal. Add 1 teaspoon of herb to 1 cup boiling water. Steep the herbs for 10-25 minutes, covered. General dosages should be 3-4 cups per day. Ointment / Paste / SalveOne of the best forms of preparations for the treatments of ailments, especially those outside of the body, is the salve. It does need a preservative and sul paga is a usual preservative. A salve also is one of the most inexpensive forms of herbal preparations for a healer to use. Be careful when choosing the vessel for preparing the salve; ceramic or glass is best. Salves should be stored in airtight containers. The basic ingredients are fat (Kur preferred), a small of amount of paga, the herb or herbs of choice, and beeswax. Heat the fat to just boiling. Add the herbs and simmer for about 3 hours. If part of the recipe for the salve includes the use of bark or roots, place these in the fat first, and after 1 1/2 hours, add the flowers or leaves. If using fresh herbs, always take the lid off of the container, this allows water to evaporate from the herbs. After the fat and herb mixture is ready, strain off the herbs from the liquid and add the beeswax. (1 1/2 ounces of beeswax will be required for each pint of fat that is used). Add 1/2 teaspoon of paga to each pint of fat used. Mix well. The mixture should still be hot with the beeswax melting into the strained herbal and fat mixture. It may be necessary to test for consistency, placing a small amount of the mixture on a plate and placing it in a cold room for awhile. When the correct consistency is reached, pour into labeled tins. If the salve is not thick enough, keep adding beeswax until it is. PoulticeThis is used when herbs need to be applied externally, such as for a burn or for a wound. Pour boiling water over the herbs using just enough to dampen them or evenly cover the plant matter. The object is to moisten it. When it is evenly wet, strain away the liquid and place herbal matter between 2 pieces of rence or rep cloth. Apply the cloth and herbs against the affected area and allow soaking into the injury. SoapDepending on what is added to the basic soap formula, it can be used for everyday cleaning, beauty, or medical purposes. Since it has more than one purpose, mention of it is made here and the instructions for making soap are included in its own section. For medical purposes, it will be referred to as antiseptic soap. SyrupA syrup is a pleasant tasting form of liquid that is used when the person is in need of the medicine’s effect immediately, or in the case of a cold or chest complaint when breathing is labored. It is made with honey, a natural sugar and decongestant. For this preparation, herbs should be dried. Herbs are decocted (boiled) and then strained. Honey is then added and the mixture is cooked for a further 30 minutes. Add a flavoring. Bottle the mixture. TinctureA tincture is a highly concentrated form, an herb extract in liquid form. Tinctures can be used externally and internally, however care must be taken by the healer preparing the tincture that the herb being used may, indeed, be ingested. A good example may be a tincture of yarrow that may be used to clean out a wound, or comfrey, which would also clean and kill the pain from a wound. Tinctures may be made from either paga or a liquid form of fat (Kur preferred), depending upon the healer or usage. To each pint of paga, add 4 ounces of an herb or herbs. The paga or alcohol extracts the medicinal alkaloids and volatile acids from the herb. The mixture should be allowed to soak for 2 weeks, shaking it daily. At the end of 2 weeks, strain off the liquid from the herbs and pour into labeled bottles.