by Matthew Wood
Emotions: • Aralia racemosa (nervous, assumes fetal position) • Cimicifuga (brooding before periods) • Geranium (difficulty separating from children) • Juglans nigra (too much under the influence of another, whether parent, spouse, or child) • Leonurus (history of bossy or fearful mother) • Nigella (PMS and hormonal changes) • Pulsatilla (happy/sad, PMS) • Turnera (performance anxiety) • Verbena (feels crazy before periods; tall, thin, stiff-necked, perfectionist, idealist; hormonal food cravings).
Hair: • AGRIMONIA (“bad-hair day”; “always doing something with her hair” such as bleaches, dyes—Wood; great for alopecia) • ARCTIUM (seed in oil on scalp) • Arnica (external) • Artemisia vulgaris (wash to maintain—Native American) • Betula (alopecia; oil or inner bark) • Cimicifuga (dark-haired women) • EQUISETUM (hair thin, breaks easily; nervous) • POLYGONUM MULTIFLORUM (darkens and thickens hair) • Prunus serotina (redheads) • Pulsatilla (blonde, fair-haired women) • URTICA (local application; returns color, thickens; confirmed).
FORMULARY
Alchemilla—with Trillium and Bidens (menorrhagia). BHP 1983, 19.
Angelica archangelica—with Equisetum, Medicago (early-onset osteoporosis).
Angelica sinensis—with Glycyrrhiza (after “surgical menopause”). Michael Moore.
Arctium—with Betula and Nettle (alopecia; local application). I would add Agrimonia.
Asparagus racemosa—with Vitex, cooked Rehmannia (postpartum tonic). “Practice changer,” from a Canadian naturopath.
Ceanothus—with Gossypium (internal), Phytolacca (mastitis; external).
Geranium—with Trillium, Nymphaea (leucorrhea; douche). BHP 1983, 151.
Helonias—with Artemisia abrotanum (amenorrhea). BHP 1983, 32.
Helonias—with Trillium (female tonic). BHP 1983, 60.
Hydrastis—with Trillium (uterine hemorrhage). BHP 1983, 114.
Leonurus—with Ballota (false labor pains). BHP 1983, 38, 130.
Leonurus—with Passiflora (menopausal insomnia).
Mitchella—with Cnicus (menstrual regulation in teenage girls).
Mitchella—with Rubus idaeus, R. canadensis (pregnancy tonic). Pinus spp.—with Prunus serotina. “Pitch Pine buds and small wild Cherry Tree, but two-thirds of the Latter boiled together—good for young Women whose Flowers are stopped by weakness of Nature”—Samson Occom, Mohegan medicine man, 1754.
Pulsatilla—with Petroselinum, Chamomilla, Viburnum prunifolium (dysmenorrhea). BHP 1983, 155).
Rubus—with Smilax (infertility).
Senecio aureus—with Avena, Hypericum, Viburnum prunifolium, Pulsatilla (menopausal disturbances).
Senecio aureus—with Chamomilla, Ruta (suppressed menses). BHP 1983, 184.
Senecio aureus—with Helonias, Leonurus, Salvia (delayed menses). BHP 1983, 195.
Trillium—with Krameria (menorrhagia from prolapse, atonicity). BHP 1983, 126.
Trillium—with Lycopus (menstrual bleeding), frequently used in the mid-nineteenth century.
Trillium—with Vinca major (metrorrhagia and menorrhagia). BHP 1983, 232.
Tsuga—with Trillium and Hamamelis (leucorrhea; douche). BHP 1983, 219.
Viburnum spp.—with Cinchona, Dioscorea, Zanthoxylum (cramps). BHP 1983, 67, 230.
Viburnum prunifolium—with Gossypium, Pulsatilla (dysmenorrhea). BHP 1983, 106.
THE HERITAGE GIFT OF THE NATIVE AMERICAN FEMALE REMEDIES
Western herbalism possesses nearly a dozen medicinal plants that are specifics for the female reproductive tract and only used secondarily, if at all, for other purposes. This includes black cohosh (Cimicifuga), blue cohosh (Caulophyllum), true unicorn root (Aletris), false unicorn root (Helonias), cramp bark (Viburnum opulus, V. trilobum), black haw (Viburnum prunifolium), birth root (Trillium), female regulator (Senecio aureus), wild yam (Dioscorea), raspberry leaf (Rubus canadensis), and partridge berry (Mitchella repens). These all grow in the Eastern woodlands of North America and were adopted from Native American practice. They comprise a precious “heritage gift” from the original inhabitants of this continent.
By comparison, European, Chinese, and Ayurvedic medicine each contain less than half a dozen such specifics. From Europe we have lady’s mantle (Alchemilla), pasqueflower (Anemone pulsatilla), ergot (Secale), and peony (Paeonia); from China tang kwei (Angelica sinensis), peony root (Paeonia), and cooked rehmannia root (Rehmannia); from India shatavari (Asparagus) and probably others. Very few of these Old World remedies are used to make pregnancy or delivery more free of pain and stress, while fully six of the Native American remedies are used in this fashion. In China raspberry is a male remedy and is not used, as it is in Native American medicine, to render a safe and quick labor and a healthy mother and child.
We must ask, “What is the reason for this disparity?” Old World religious and social institutions sometimes diminished the importance and position of women in society, and organized medicine banned them from membership. However, the American Indian people imagined that such remedies existed, looked for them, and developed a materia medica for nearly every facet of female reproductive health, from puberty through the childbearing epoch to menopause. The modern Western herbalist is the bearer of this precious tradition and should be aware of the origin of these medicines and importance of maintaining knowledge about them in the face of racist supposition that the science of one culture is more sophisticated than that of others.
Male Sexual System
One of the few books to emphasize treatment of the male system is fortunately a very good one: James Green’s The Male Herbal: The Definitive Health Care Book for Men and Boys (2007). There is a real shortage of both remedies and specific indications for male remedies in the literature. Many indications we owe to single individuals; their contributions have been noted.
Like the female’s, the male sexual system is certainly influenced by hormonal imbalances. However, it too is composed of structures and tissues, and therefore responds to tissue state treatment. For example, new evidence indicates that prostate swelling may be caused by venous stagnation retaining androgens too long in the prostate. This could be treated by stimulants and astringents, which ease stagnation by improving blood flow and drainage. Impotence is influenced, not only by hormones, but also by fluid dynamics that influence erection—not to mention emotional issues.
Impotence, Sterility: • ACHILLEA (astringent and cooling; impotence, premature ejaculation—Bonaldo) • Aesculus hip. (pelvic venous congestion) • Alchemilla • Angelica sinensis (in men with depressed testosterone levels, low sperm count) • Arctium (improves lipid digestion and metabolism for hormone production) • Aristolochia serpentaria (depressed circulation and intestinal function; emotional distraction and cooling of the skin during lovemaking—M. Moore; small or homeopathic dose) • Astragalus (increases sperm count, muscle tone, sexual function) • AVENA (nervous, irritable men with seminal discharge too early, at stool, or with slightest excitement—Bartram; infertility—Rogers) • Betonica (weakness) • Capsella bursa-pastoris • Chimaphila (testicular atrophy) • CONIUM (homeopathic; side effects of long-term celibacy or sexual suppression) • Cordyceps (impotence; increases sperm activity) • CORNUS OFFICINALIS (asthenia, low sex drive) • Crocus sativus (impotence) • Gingko • Gossypium (arousal but weak ejaculation; low testosterone, low sperm counts—M. Moore) • Heracleum • Lactuca • Liriosma (aromatic astringent) • Lycopodium (homeopathic; weakness) • Nuphar (dry irritation; compulsively seeking sex for release of tension, but finding it unfulfilling—Hale, Donahue) • Nymphaea (lascivious thoughts interfering with sex, relationship) • Oplopanax • PANAX GINSENG (increases sex drive) • Panax quinquefolius (neurasthenia, loss of fluids; dry, atrophic, debilitated persons; exhaustion of brain, nervous system) • Polygonatum (said to increase semen production) • Polygonum multiflorum (low libido, sperm count, sperm motility; cf. following; use herb, not root) • POLYGONUM PERSICARIA (pelvic relaxant; premature ejaculation or priapism; can cause or cure both states
—Wolff) • Pulsatilla (constant anxiety and depression regarding sexuality; fear of no erection) • Salix nigra (excessive desire) • Salvia (excessive desire; premature andropause) • Smilax (sexual debility) • Quercus alba (varicose veins) • Rhus spp. (excessive urination, fluid loss, probably also impotence) • Sabal (malnutrition) • Schisandra • Silphium integrifolium (“make a new man out of an old one”—Howard; “renewed vision of life”—Schnell) • SMILAX (normalizes androgens) • TRIBULUS (impotence, infertility; with dysuria) • Trigonella • TURNERA (erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, testicular atrophy; performance anxiety) • Verbena (high ideals, neurosis) • WITHANIA (sexual debility, fatigue, anxiety; mix with ghee or honey).
Note: “Some say tequila works also.…”—Michael Moore (1994).
Sexual Overexcitement: • Arnica (overexertion) • Avena (nervous exhaustion) • Betonica • Dioscorea (seminal emissions with lustful dreams; weak knees, cold genitals—Bartram) • Eryngium spp. (urethral irritation) • Humulus (excessive desire; priapism) • Lactuca (priapism) • Mentha piperita (chronic use of peppermint can decrease sex drive) • Nuphar (compulsive unfulfilling sex for relief of tension and irritation—Hale, Donahue) • Nymphaea (lascivious thoughts; lovesickness) • Panax ginseng • Piper methysticum (excessive sexual activity) • Polygonum multiflorum (herb) • Polygonum persicaria (premature ejaculation, priapism) • Salix nigra (lascivious thoughts, nocturnal emissions) • Turnera (intellect interferes with arousal—Donahue) • Verbena (neurosis).
Prostate: • Aesculus hip. • Agrimonia (bacterial prostatitis) • Agropyron (sub-acute and chronic enlargement, prostatitis, strangury, hematuria) • ANEMOPSIS (boggy prostate; discharge, inflammation) • Angelica sinensis (enlarged, with dull ache, in older men) • ARCTIUM • Barosma (prostatitis) • Betonica (inflammation) • Arctostaphylos (bacterial infection; with muco-purulent or acidic urine) • Barosma (bacterial infection; with muco-purulent or acidic urine) • Bidens • CEANOTHUS • Chimaphila (swollen, indurated) • Cimicifuga (with pelvic and sacral pain) • Collinsonia (portal backup from liver, gall bladder) • Cucurbita pepo (male nutrition; oil) • Echinacea • EPILOBIUM • EQUISETUM (enlargement, acute inflammation) • ERYNGIUM MARITIMUM (enlarged prostate; prostatitis with frequent urination, irritability) • Eupatorium purpureum (sub-acute, chronic, after inflammation; pelvic and sacral pain) • Fouquieria (congestive prostatic enlargement in sedentary men) • Gossypium (enlarged, with pelvic congestion; dull ache in older males; after protracted celibacy) • Hydrangea • Hydrastis (mucosal tonic, antimicrobial) • Juniperus (enlarged, with discharge but no inflammation) • Leonurus (BHP) • Mahonia • Mitchella (with urethritis; congestive prostatic enlargement, in sedentary men—M. Moore) • Monarda (inflamed) • Nuphar (acute) • Piper methysticum (from excessive sexual activity; with urethritis—M. Moore) • POPULUS TREMULOIDES • Pulsatilla (prostatitis; depressed, nervous) • PRUNUS PYGEUM (swelling, inflammation; perhaps this remedy can be used in small or homeopathic doses—unfortunately, it is being unsustainably harvested and faces environmental concerns) • RHUS SPP. • SABAL (for vata men; swollen, painful) • Salix nigra • SALVIA APIANA (enlarged, with dull ache in older males; tendency to congestion in general, phlegmatic; decreases sex drive while in use—LeSassier) • Selenicereus • Senecio aureus (prostatitis) • Silybum • Smilax • Thuja (enlarged, inflamed; incontinence) • Tribulus terrestris (enlarged, inflamed) • TRIFOLIUM (concentrate, for cancer; internal) • URTICA (enlargement, pain, urgent urination; root) • VACCINIUM MYRTILLUS • Verbascum (root) • Zea.
Testicles, Orchitis, Epididymitis: • Angelica sinensis (hydrocele; chronic, in elderly) • Bryonia (tender with pressure) • Ceanothus (hydrocele) • Chimaphila (to prevent atrophy) • Clematis (orchitis, inflammation) • Collinsonia (varicocele, hemorrhoids, portal backup from liver; gall-bladder congestion) • Eryngium maritimum (hydrocele) • Fouquieria (pelvic congestion) • Galium • Hamamelis (varicocele) • Lactuca (blow to testicle; pain, inflammation) • Paeonia • Phytolacca (orchitis; hard nodes in groin) • Pulsatilla (congested, enlarged, sensitive; inflammation from mumps) • Rhus tox. (non-venereal skin eruption on scrotum from sex; homeopathic) • Sabal serrulata (atrophy) • Salvia apiana (chronic, in elderly) • Sambucus ebulus (hydrocele) • Serenoa (atrophy) • Thuja (hydrocele) • Trifolium (swollen, inflamed; mumps) • Turnera (atrophy) • Viola.
Note: Tonic foods for the testicles include pumpkin seed, tomatoes, and goji berries. An active sex life is also good for the prostate.
FORMULARY
Gossypium—with Cucurbita pepo (prostate tonic).
Humulus—with Scutellaria and Valeriana (reduces excess desire).
DEVIL’S WEED (DATURA SPP.)
“Put the seeds of Datura in the pockets of a man who abuses women; it will drive him crazy.”
—TIS MAL CROW.
Anyone who is acquainted with the properties of this plant can see the logic of this application. On a more positive note—
PERIWINKLE (VINCA SPP.)
“Venus owns this herb, and saith that the leaves, eaten by man and wife together, cause love between them.”
—NICHOLAS CULPEPER (1652, 196)
Endocrine System
The major hormone-secreting glands of the endocrine system form a “cascade” from top to bottom: from the hypothalamus (which “reads” the blood and sends out messages to correct imbalances), to the pituitary (undertakes command of the hypothalamus), then to the thyroid (regulates metabolic levels), the adrenal cortex (mediates stress response), and the gonads (regulate sexual function). These form a feedback loop and operate as a relative unit, returning signals to the hypothalamus. Other glands and organs also communicate by hormone but are not a part of this “cascade” and are therefore not listed here.
The anterior pituitary gland regulates the thyroid, adrenal cortex, gonads, and thus the production of human growth hormone (HGH) and prolactin (for milk production). The posterior pituitary regulates retention of water by the kidneys (and blood pressure) and oxytocin (uterine labor contractions).
The liver breaks down old hormones, and therefore functions in effect as part of the endocrine system; if the blood is not well cleansed of old hormones, the hypothalamus will not be able to accurately monitor hormone signals in the blood. Hormones also pass through the extracellular fluids, so the extracellular matrix surrounding all the cells must be kept clean. This is assisted by lymphatic drainage. So the liver, cellular matrix, and lymph must all be well maintained for proper endocrine function to occur.
My “stick-man” approach to the endocrine system, describing it as a “cascade” from the top down, is a standard model for learning the subject, and I think it is the best way to organize a repertory. However, Stephen Buhner correctly describes the endocrine system as a circle. He emphasizes that the heart, set like a gem in the midst of the circulatory system, also acts as an endocrine-secreting gland. The environment of the heart is controlled by hormones and neurotransmitters that are controlled by the hypothalamus and the heart; therefore, to maintain its “comfort” within this ever-fluctuating environment, the heart also sends signals back to the hypothalamus. The thyroid controls the temperature of the interior of the body, the posterior pituitary controls the peripheral blood pressure (through vasopressin), adrenaline influences fluctuations in blood pressure, etc. The heart reacts to all of these changes and sends signals back to the hypothalamus, so the whole system is a circle (or even a sphere) emanating out from the hypothalamus and back again. For more detail, see The Secret Teachings of Plants by Stephen Harrod Buhner (2004).
My knowledge of the endocrine system and the majority of the remedies listed below is derived from discussions with Phyllis Light and her class handout “Dysfunctions of the Endocrine System” (2001). Many of our alternative medical ideas about the endocrine system are not recognized by mainstream medicine. However, a huge number of patients are unsatisfied by conventional treatment, suggesting that biomed
icine may well have much to learn here.
Hypothalamus and Pituitary
The major symptoms of hypothalamo-pituitary imbalance are oversensitivity to heat and cold; stress in general; emotional lability; and (in women) irregular menstrual cycles.
Anterior Pituitary: • ARALIA RACEMOSA (nervous, exhausted; “burned-out adrenals,” dark circles under eyes—LeSassier; has a slight preference for women) • Arctium (strong but yet-to-be-defined action) • Caulophyllum • Cnicus • DAUCUS (irregular menses and other hormonal imbalances) • ELEUTHEROCOCCUS (“adrenal burn-out;” dark circles under eyes—LeSassier; smaller doses may be more effective) • Foeniculum • Fucus • Inula • Hypericum (detoxifies, so that hypothalamus can more clearly assess/adjust blood) • Medicago • Mitchella • Panax ginseng • Panax quinquefolius • Passiflora • Piper methysticum (small-to-moderate dose relaxes, large dose stimulates) • Pulsatilla (emotional lability, menstrual irregularity) • Salvia • Sassafras • Smilax • Turnera • Trigonella • Urtica • Vitex (to reduce FSH [follicle stimulating hormone]).
Posterior Pituitary: • Citrus limonum (excess urination; fresh juice, essential oil, dried peel) • Ledum (needs confirmation) • Rhus spp. (excess urination and other fluid discharges).