Soothing a sore throat while beating infection: Home Medicine Cycle 32

The immune system is our defense against infection. But it is not one monolithic shield. Instead it is a system that works together with the other systems of the body. And as such it has stronger and weaker points. There are often--in specific individuals--weak points that provide infections with an easy gateway to the body—a literal Achilles’ Heel. 

Image licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

For many the vulnerable place is some section of the respiratory pathways and infection creeps in through colds. Others have vulnerable inner ears. For me the weak point is my throat. 

Most viral illnesses begin with a sore throat, even if that isn’t among their primary symptoms. And if I am weakened by a viral infection, the chances are high that I may develop bacterial strep throat. Almost all antibiotics I have ever taken were for strep throat. 

As a result I’ve made a study of the herbs that are useful for sore throats and throat infections. And in the last few years, my throat troubles have largely evaporated. 

There is a difference in how I treat a tickling in the throat or a raging inflamed throat. And there are things I do to prevent sore throats when other illnesses are around. Here are the things that work for me, which have resulted in two years without any significant sore throat, despite my personal vulnerability. 

Prevention:

When there are viral infections around or particularly if others have an illness involving a sore throat, I am particularly careful. I use echinacea tincture (recipe here) and echinacea flower tea for general prevention. Beyond that I drink strongly brewed lemon balm tea. See this page on how to brew potent herbal teas. I personally like it without honey and I use honey for acute infections, but that’s optional.

A tickling in the throat

Whenever I get a tickling sensation in my throat and feel that something might be coming on, I do the same as with prevention—echinacea and lemon balm. Plus I take a dose of plantain syrup. You can find the recipe for that here. 

Acute sore throat

If an infection takes hold and the throat is inflamed and painful, I will make strong lemon balm tea with added raw honey and fresh lemon juice. This will often cut the pain very effectively. Another option is lemon balm popsicles. Simply brew a strong lemon balm tea with honey, add yogurt and lemon juice and freeze. While some infections do better with hot treatment, popsicles are sometimes the only way to get a child to take medicine and it may be worth it. 

In an acute situation I also take lemon balm tincture. New studies are showing some surprising results with lemon balm, which appears to be specifically active against the bacteria that is responsible for most bacterial infections in the throat.

A simple herbal antibiotic is fresh garlic, either eaten in food (without cooking) or drunk as juice. It works both topically and systemically so the more the garlic or its juice touches the inflamed parts of the throat the better. The difficulty with raw garlic is that many people cannot swallow enough of it for it to work as a systemic antibiotic. Even a small amount of raw garlic eaten in food can help to prevent or treat throat infections however.

Another effective treatment is propolis tincture. It's made with 80 proof alcohol and must be diluted in water. When treating a sore throat it is best to gargle with the water and propolis tincture solution for as long as possible. Those with bee allergies should be very careful of propolis, since it Is a bee product.

Some people may find gargling with propolis to be unpleasant due to its distinctive taste. I am not sure why I dislike the taste of propolis. It smells good to me but I find the tincture to be unpleasant and it is hard for me to gargle with it. Still I do it because the combination of propolis and lemon balm tinctures is the one way I know of to prevent the need for synthetic antibiotics for strep throat.

There are herbal antibiotics which may be effective against strep throat, however most of them are not available locally and I haven’t been able to grow them myself or gather them in the wild yet. Purchased herbs are highly variable in their effectiveness and strep throat can become very serious and lead to permanent health problems if left untreated. Therefore I would only rely on herbs to treat a bacterial throat infection if I could see a professional herbalist with reputable supplies.

A sore throat that continues for many days or is accompanied by a significant fever should be treated as a potentially serious illness. Medical and healing professionals should be consulted. 

Superhero of the natural healing, propolis takes down viruses, bacteria and possibly cancer: Home Medicine Cycle 29

It isn't an herb but it comes from the sap of conifers and poplar trees. It's so effective that the name essentially meant "defense of the city" in ancient Greek. And unlike many natural healing substances it was specifically designed for the purposes we use it for. It just wasn't designed by humans.

That's propolis, the superhero of natural healing.

Public domain image of propolis in a hive

It's concocted by bees specifically to be antimicrobial and anti-fungal. To them it's literally the "defense of the city." They form a kind of gunk from sap and other specially selected plant materials and use it to patch their hives and cover up anything gross or infectious in the hive. Sometimes called "bee glue," it's sticky and eminently unwashable but for all that it can be used for serious medicinal power.

There are two words of caution about propolis. First of all, it can be an issue for people with allergies,. particularly bee allergies. It is never entirely free of bee products and enzymes, no matter how purified it is. So, be cautious with it if you have any sort of bee allergies or other serious allergies. 

The second issue is simply the practical considerations of use. Propolis doesn't dissolve in water much at all. It dissolves reasonably well in alcohol and some in glycerin. As such, it's most effective when used as a tincture. Some people also just chew a piece for mouth infections and colds. But tincture is the most common form and the resulting mixture is very potent and usually bright yellow. It will coat anything it touches with an unwashable layer of bright yellow, including your teeth.

Mind you, it's very good for your teeth and would be great for preventing cavities, but your teeth would look horrible for a couple of days. So, most people try to knock it back to the back of the throat and swallow it without letting it touch their teeth. This is tricky and even the glass you use will be impossible to clean with anything but strong alcohol. (Paper cups are a good option with proplis.)

Yes, there are sanitized versions of propolis you can buy that aren't sticky and don't turn everything they touch bright yellow. But I suspect those preparations have so little propolis in them that they don't contain enough of the medicinal qualities. I have a toothpaste that supposedly contains propolis and it's okay but nothing spectacular. It also is only very mildly yellow. 

I like the taste of many bitter herbal remedies but I'm not personally fond of propolis, even though many people describe the taste as pleasant. I do take it, however, because there is nothing that will deal with fungal infections or a sore throat like propolis. It can compete well with many synthetic antibiotics and fungicides and is far better for you. 

You can usually obtain propolis from bee keepers. The best way to process it is:

Propolis chunks - Creative Commons image by Rade Nagraislovic

1. Freeze the pieces.
2. Then crush them with a hammer or mortar and pestle while they're still frozen and brittle. 
3. Put the resulting powder into a jar you are prepared to devote to propolis tincture forever.
4. Pour 80 to 100 percent alcohol over it. About one part propolis to two parts alcohol is recommended.
5. Shake well and let it sit for a couple of weeks.
6. I've been told that some people strain the stuff but I have never found anything that will strain the liquid without becoming immediately plugged by the propolis itself. Instead, I let it settle and skim the more liquid tincture off the top of the jar for use. 

Here are some of the ways natural healers are using propolis extracts, according to the latest research.

• Gargle with propolis tincture diluted in water for sore throats, thrus, cancer sores and other mouth infections. The tincture applied topically in the mouth and throat is very effective. Swallowing it also has systemic immune boosting and antimicrobial results.
• A study found that propolis is superior to the drug acyclovir in fighting genital herpes. It is also used for cold sores around the mouth for the same reason.
• Propolis shows significant antimicrobial activity in the treatment of peridontitis, a stubborn mouth infection.
• Propolis is used for sores and bacterial infections (including tuberculosis). It is also active against many viruses (including influenza, H1N1 swine flue and common colds)
• Propolis fights fungus and infections of single-celled organisms called protozoans. 
• People sometimes apply propolis directly to the skin for wound cleansing abd as an oral rinse for speeding healing following surgery around the mouth, nose and throat.
• Propolis is used to treat chronic ear infections in children with a history of ear infections and no known cure.
• A study from the 1990s showed the usefulness of propolis extracts in preventing viral respiratory infections or colds in children in preschools and schools.
• Studies are ongoing with exciting findings about how propolis and its flavonoid constituents protect human white blood cells from radiation sicknesses.
• New research is showing incredible anti-cancer potential in propolis compounds. It is already being used to treat cancers of the nose and throat; for boosting the immune system; and for treating gastrointestinal problems. 
• Caffeic Acid phenethyl ester (or CAPE) is a molecular compound found in propolis and almost nowhere else. CAPE has grabbed the interest of researchers for its medicinal properties, but its anti-cancer capacity is the most stunning. A study from the "Journal of Radiation Research" shows that only two days after being exposed to a medicinal compound with CAPE, "46% of lung cancer cells had been destroyed and the cancer growth was reduced by 60%. Three days after the treatment 67% of cancer cells were dead." Other studies have found that CAPE prevents the growth of colon cancer cells and induces cell death of the malignant cells without harming healthy cells. Other types of cancer cells also respond to treatment with the CAPE in propolis, including breast, gastric, skin and pancreatic cancer and glioma cells, a form of inoperable brain cancer. When propolis is used as a whole the effects are even better than with isolated CAPE compounds.

Propolis is one of the more advanced medicinals I have featured here. I do so simply because of the fantastic results, though I do caution that it is more difficult to use than many herbs and it's good to get a licensed herbalist's or doctor's individualized advice with a lot of these health concerns. 

I love to hear from you and I'd especially like to hear of the experience of other homecrafting herbalists with propolis. Drop a note and be sure to share this post in order to spread up-to-date information.