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Understanding Herbs and Modern Medicine With Em’s Herbals
Understanding Herbs and Modern Medicine With Em’s Herbals
Using herbal medicine for health and wellness, Mitchell says, is great as a daily preventative routine that can provide many benefits for your body: helping it adapt to stress, reducing inflammation, balancing electrolytes and providing adequate levels of vitamins and minerals.
“One plant can have hundreds of compounds that can potentially address multiple systems at one time,” she says.
As an example, licorice root (photo below) has multiple uses for an individual. By positively affecting the adrenal glands through cortisol regulation and adrenaline response, the herb can be used to help the body adapt to stress. But it also happens to be an herb with both anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties, in addition to helping remove tarter from teeth.
“Herbs have a multi-faceted effect in the body with just one herb,” she says. “With very few exceptions—and there always are exceptions—herbs are safe. The majority of herbs can be taken safely, and without side effects.”
One of the drawbacks of many Western medications, Mitchell says, is the often-unfortunate cycle they perpetuate upon a person’s inter-connected bodily systems. A single medication may be prescribed to target a single condition and its symptoms, only to have that medication lead to issues requiring subsequent medications.
Mitchell sees herbal medicine as part of nature’s inherent intelligence, and humans as part of that intelligence. Still, despite most herbs being safe, gentle long-term approaches to dealing with a range of potential health issues, it’s still important to be careful.
“There are people out there who might claim themselves as natural healers that have intensive protocols with a lot of potentially toxic herbs for long periods of time,” she says. “Those can potentially do harm to people.”
Attempting to purge one’s self of parasites by ingesting large amounts of wormwood, for example, might get rid of parasites. But wormwood also has neurotoxic components that could cause other health issues.
Just as you wouldn’t carelessly experiment with pharmaceuticals, you shouldn’t be reckless with herbs. Pacheco recommends consulting a trained herbalist to determine the best practices for your personal health.
“Plants are meant to be used to promote health and wellness, in low doses for long periods of time,” she says. “Not in highly-concentrated doses of potent, powerful herbs targeting just one thing.”
For anyone wondering where to start with adapting herbal benefits to your own life, Mitchell recommends starting with basic, common, food-grade plants like chamomile, raspberry leaf, licorice, spearmint, or nettles (shown in image at right), among others. Try them, taste them, research their benefits, and see how they make you feel, she advises.
While herbal medicine is a huge topic, starting simple is a sure way to safely and carefully figure out how herbs can benefit your health and well-being.
“To use plants in order to help ourselves feel better, be healthier, and live our best lives,” she says, “should be a natural step for everyone.”
Summertime: Cooling Tips & Tricks
Summer's on full-bore now, as we've moved into the "dog days" of August. Cooling down the fire element is the order of the day! And we have some great herbal ideas for making that happen.
Chill out with iced teas. Our Hibiscus Cooler tea is a seasonal favorite, tangy and refreshing by itself, blended with lemonade for a caffeine-free Arnold Palmer, or mixed with your adult beverage of choice—you really can't go wrong!
And remember that many other herbal teas are delicious when you put them on ice. Get creative, and try your favorite single herb or herbal combination tea on the rocks. Staying hydrated will keep you going... putting a tasty tea in your pitcher can make that so much easier and more fun.
Keep the bugs away, and avoid those annoying bites! Em's Bug Blocker spray is an effective, nontoxic, mix of essential oils that repel the little suckers, and it smells nice too! There's room for your personal preferences here too, since any one or more of the these organic oils (Catnip, Citronella, Geranium, Lavender, Patchouli, Peppermint, Thyme) can be added to a carrier oil and applied to provide significant protection, with the fragrance profile of your choice.
Outdoor activities are awesome... but stuff happens, and herbs can help. Remember Arnica infused oil, or salve, for the bumps and bruises, like when you fall off the bike, or collide with the shortstop... Calendula infused oil, or salve, for the sunburn, and the cuts and scrapes... Chamomile infused oil, to soothe the chafing, or the bug bites you didn't quite avoid... Lavender or Rosemary infused oil, to relax the tight muscles, or ease the headaches, that might follow a long day in the sun.
Breathe a little easier when wildfire smoke darkens the skies. Open Air tea is a good-tasting formula that helps to reopen your lungs, and to reduce the oxidative damage from inhaling the residues from these all-too-common events.
Summer's not over till it's over... we're loving it, and we truly hope you and your family are making the most of every moment, whether you're working, playing, or just goofing off in the sun.
Stay cool, and have a great rest of your summer!
Start of Summer Sale: 15% Off All Salves & Infused Oils
Summer sun, work and play outdoors, can be rough on your skin and hard on your body! Soothing herbal salves and oils can ease sunburns and rashes, help heal cuts and bruises, and cool down irritation.
Beginning today, June 19, and running through July 7, we're offering a 15% discount on all of our salves and herb-infused oils. Don't miss this chance for special deals on these wonderful organic shop-made products:
...You just can't go wrong with these terrific oils and salves!
Spring 2021 Newsletter
Spring 2021 Newsletter
For those of us who love plants, springtime is always a time for great rejoicing! As our communities turn back toward normal social interaction, we're celebrating the triumph of natural life. Let the festivities begin!
Taraxacology is the word coined to describe the study of Dandelions, that large, widespread, and familiar genus of flowering plants. The most common species is Taraxacum officinalis, the edible and medicinal weed that was brought to North America by the English colonists who arrived on the Mayflower. Dandelion, a hardy perennial, is one of the most important flowers for providing nectar to pollinators in the early spring. May and June are the peak season for Dandelion flowers, but some can be found blooming throughout the year.
Dandelion greens are part of traditional cuisine for many cultures including Kashmiri, Albanian, Sephardic Jewish, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Chinese, Slovenian, and Korean. The flower petals are used to make wine, and the roots are used in root beer and herbal coffee blends.
As far back as records go, the plant has been part of traditional medicine practiced in China, Europe, and North America. Naturally, we offer both the leaves and roots of this humble and beloved herb which offers so many benefits.
A promising, recently developed use of Dandelion involves using its latex, the thick milky liquid secreted when the plant is cut or broken, for producing rubber for tires. German scientists have bred a variety of the plant that is particularly rich in latex and can be used for commercial rubber production, with qualities comparable to rubber made from rubber trees.
The Dandelion, popping through cracks in the sidewalk—and robustly persisting in lawns and gardens, in spite of determined efforts to eliminate it from manicured landscapes—is an evocative symbol of nature’s generosity and tenacity, and the inspiration for a classic Rolling Stones song from the Summer of Love.
Like the Dandelion, herbal healing just keeps on coming back, and will never be rooted out by detractors who strive to replace it with a monoculture of allopathic medicine!
One of our key values at Em’s Herbals is supporting and reaching out to other local businesses and groups.
• We are looking forward to working with our neighbors at the Growing Veterans project (shown in the image above) in Whatcom County, Washington, to plant and harvest herbs at their nearby organic farm.
• We are selling our flagship Calendula and Arnica salves at the two Community Food Co-op stores here in Bellingham.
• We’re collaborating with local naturopathic physicians to create custom label specialty products for their practices.
• We created an occasional pop-up shop at the wonderful Icing on the Cake cupcake bakery in downtown Bellingham.
• We’ve donated salves and other items to a foot care clinic for homeless people just down the road in Skagit County.
• And we plan to set up a table at the Whatcom County Home and Garden Show in Lynden, as in previous years, this coming September 24-26.
As the flowering time for St John’s Wort (shown at right) draws near, we’re planning to harvest fresh flowers to infuse into oil, another great product that we offer seasonally—perfect for topical use, especially in cases of nerve pain or skin eruptions.
Happy Spring!
Em's Herbals: featured in local news!
Em’s Herbals: The Connection Between Healthy People and a Healthy Planet
By Steven Arbuckle, Whatcom Talk, May 7, 2021
Emily Mitchell is a fourth generation Whatcom County resident who values her deep local roots and wants to preserve the local beauty we enjoy. As the owner of Em's Herbals, her herbs, teas and body care products focus on the health of one person at a time, while her business practices aim to keep the community healthy and strong.
Her interest in simple and natural well-being was sparked by a sore throat she suffered while working as a waitress in New Mexico. A co-worker gave her a remedy that had her feeling better quickly: a tincture of osha root, which had been picked nearby. “I was floored,” she says. “I just couldn’t believe that you could just go outside in your backyard and dig up a root. At the same time, I grew up on the shores of Lake Whatcom, in Bellingham, picking huckleberries and salal berries in the abundance of nature. And so something kind of clicked for me.”
That experience led her to pursue a degree in botanical medicine in New Mexico, and Mitchell opened a retail herb shop in Eugene, Oregon, where she lived for several years. She returned to Bellingham and moved the business with her, but after a couple of years decided to focus on a different project. “My husband and I have seven children between the two of us, so you can imagine I was pretty busy,” she says. “Then, once everybody got settled into school in 2015, I realized this was the business I was meant to be in."
Em’s Herbals started online as an Etsy shop and soon outgrew the space she’d made for it in her kitchen. By January of 2020, it had moved into a newly renovated warehouse on Bakerview Road. During all this growth, Mitchell continues to keep an eye on her roots. “I believe it’s very important that we support each other, that we take care of each other, especially in hard times,” she says. “By keeping the community and the local economy strong, we’re less likely to be adversely affected by changes in the world economy, which we have little or no control over.”
One thing that Mitchell can control is the way she participates in that world economy. “When you have to bring herbs in from across the ocean, you’re burning fossil fuels. Then they come to port and sit in a warehouse, maybe for six months, before they get distributed,” she says. “The amount of carbon that has been used to transport and process and get them to your local grocery store has an impact on the environment.”
This led Mitchell to cultivate partnerships with suppliers as close to her own backyard as possible, who share her values. “If we can support Pacific Northwest businesses, particularly in Washington and Oregon, that’s where we go first. Especially smaller farmers who really care about their products,” she says. “Growing Veterans is an amazing organization that we’re thrilled to be in partnership with, that supports that reintegration of veterans into the community by farming, and being able to connect with other veterans.”
She has received help from some in her community, like when Icing on the Cake invited her to set up a table of her goods in their retail space. And she has given to the community, sometimes in the form of the products donated to a foot clinic for the homeless of Skagit County, and more recently, an industrial sized soup kettle donated to Bellingham’s Lighthouse Mission.
With her fresh, local, high-quality herbs in hand, Em’s Herbals produces a line of flagship products that Mitchell is excited to share. “We have pure calendula and arnica salves, and pure arnica and calendula oils. We infuse and hand-press the oils in-house,” she says. “We also make them into salves using only four ingredients, so they’re perfect for people with skin or fragrance sensitivities.”
While the recipe is kept as simple as possible, the effects are far-reaching. “Calendula makes a great choice for the sensitive population, especially newborns. It’s great for things like diaper rash and cradle cap,” Mitchell says. “We actually call it the ‘good for everything’ salve: it has antibacterial properties and antioxidant properties, it’s for skin healing, scar healing, scratches, abrasions, bee stings, sunburns, it’s pretty all-purpose. I heard one herbalist say that if you have a jar of calendula salve in your house, you’ll never buy Neosporin again.”
The other part of that line of products is meant to work on troubles that lie beneath the skin. “The arnica is used for muscle soreness, tennis elbow or rotator cuff issues, deep bruising, broken ribs, those kinds of things. We put as much arnica into the oil as we can to get a high helenium content, the anti-inflammatory constituent,” says Mitchell. “A lot of arnica cream on the market is actually homeopathic, and that means there’s not actually any detectable plant material in the product, so we’re pretty proud of our plant-based arnica.”
Although work and family keep her busy, Mitchell still finds time for adventure, and points out one of her favorite aspects of our region: its ferry system and islands. “Jumping on a ferry and getting out is such a unique and special function of our area, and I feel like we’re extremely blessed,” she says. “We’ve got bald eagles that fly over our house, and blue herons that land on our dock—the diversity and the vibrancy of the area is really unparalleled.”
https://www.whatcomtalk.com/2021/05/07/ems-herbals-the-connection-between-healthy-people-and-a-healthy-planet/
Earth Day Sale! 20% off all bulk herbs April 22
Earth Day Sale! 20% off all bulk herbs April 22
For more than 50 years, April 22 has been a special day to focus on the beautiful living sphere that symbolizes the interconnected web of natural life.
To honor this holiday, we're offering a generous discount on our key product line—bulk herbs. Brew them up as teas, infuse them into tinctures, oils, or salves, add them to recipes... so many possibilities. (Sale runs this Thursday from midnight to midnight, PDT.)
Stock up on your favorites, or try something new!
Eyebright and Sage: Two of your best friends in the pollen zone!
Spring is here… it’s magical, it’s a miracle. Light, warmth, birds, blossoms!
Also, for many of us… uh-oh! Those blossoms mean pollen. The trees are beginning to bloom, and soon the grass pollens will be taking their turn. Sneezes, sniffles, itchy eyes, scratchy throats!
Naturally, we’re always writing about our Aller-Geez tea blend right around this time of year. It’s a great combination of herbs for relieving the symptoms of seasonal allergies.
Right now, let’s just focus on two of its key ingredients, Eyebright and Sage. They’re amazing, time-tested plant allies that are well worth getting to know.
Eyebright (Euphrasia officinalis, also known as E. rostkoviana) is a curious little plant, found in temperate Eurasia and North America. It grows 4-15 inches high, a flowering semi-parasitic weed that piggybacks on other plants, absorbing some of its nutrients and water from their roots. (In the image above, it’s shown growing in a patch of clover.) So cultivating Eyebright requires the presence of host plants, often grasses.
Eyebright’s name refers to its classic use for inflamed eyes, recorded in Europe as far back as the Middle Ages. It reduces excessive fluid secretions in hay fever, sinusitis, colds, earaches, and coughs. Known active components in Eyebright include histamine-inhibiting flavonoids like quercetin and luteolin, terpene-based iridoids such as aucubin—all with proven anti-inflammatory actions—and astringent tannins. It has antimicrobial activity, in addition, that can prevent or treat the infections that sometimes thrive where fluid and mucus gathers.
In mythology, Euphrasia's namesake Euphrosyne was one of the three Graces (pictured at left), who was given the plant to bring joy to people plagued with poor eyesight. The great medieval herbalist Culpepper praised Eyebright for strengthening the brain, among other virtues. If you've experienced hay fever, you've probably noticed that it's often accompanied by the dreaded brain fog. Eyebright, traditionally an herb of the Sun, can help clear that fog!
Sage (Salvia officinalis) is another plant venerated since ancient times, a member of the Mint family that originated in the Mediterranean zone. It's notable for its drying action on all kinds of bodily fluids, including respiratory mucus, perspiration, bleeding, and breast milk.
Sage offers a multitude of other benefits, including the anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antinociceptive (pain relieving), antioxidant, antimicrobial, antimutagenic, antidementia, hypoglycemic, and hypolipidemic effects that are documented in a 2017 literature review. Sage and its Salvia cousins are also known to help cognitive function—so again, help is on the way here for allergy brain fog.
Each of the other ingredients in Aller-Geez Tea, Chickweed, Nettles, and Licorice Root, are stellar for quelling allergy symptoms in various ways as well. Buy the blend ready-made, or order one or more of these herbs individually, and do a little research on your own body to see how each one works for you as single medicines.
Many conventional allergy medications are notorious for their side effects. Many common antihistamines may cause sedation and sleep problems, and even increase risks for dementia with continued use. Steroids can increase the incidence of diabetes, osteoporosis, glaucoma, cataracts, high blood pressure, and a number of other problems. Eyebright and Sage help us move in the other direction, toward enhanced overall health and longevity! This year, why not ride out the pollen season with these safe and potent plant medicines?
Spring Sale: Stock up on meltables while it’s cool!
Spring Sale: Stock up on meltables while it’s cool!
15% off all our salves, lip balms, and infused oils, through April 15
Hot weather during shipping can be hard on oil-based products like our salves and herb-infused oils!
Some leading online marketers are planning to stop shipping meltable products, (including salves, waxes, chocolates, etc.), from April through October this year.
Recognizing this reality that affects so many of our customers, we’re offering all of you a cool 15% off on our fine salves, herb-infused oils, lip balms, and ingredient oils, starting now and running through April 15.
This is the perfect time to stock up on these terrific items!
Valentine's Day Popup Shop
Valentine's Day Popup Shop at Icing on the Cake
We were recently invited to open a popup shop for Valentine's Day, last Sunday, in a wonderful local woman-owned business, the Icing on the Cake cupcake place in downtown Bellingham. As it turned out, the weekend was marked by a rare appearance of snow, so the afternoon was quiet and serene, with few people venturing out for treats, unfortunately—everything I've tasted from this place is amazing!
Vivian's company was delightful (the lovely person shown in the photo above); we made a couple of sales, despite the weather; and we look forward to returning to the shop in a couple of weeks, and regularly in the seasons to come. We'll announce the dates here as they approach, and we hope you'll come and visit if you're nearby!
Icing on the Cake—on a sunny day
New Research: Ginger and Autoimmune Disease
Ginger is an outstanding anti-inflammatory herb and functional food! Today, a PubMed search on the word brings up more than 4,000 hits, covering a wide range of research topics, from antiviral activity to nausea, obesity, and cancer.
Autoimmune disease is an especially challenging category for medical treatment, and appears to be a growing problem, especially in the most developed countries. (Note—we're pleased to offer high quality organic Peruvian Ginger Root!)
Quoting from "New research finds ginger counters certain autoimmune diseases in mice," a recent Science Daily post:
Through the End of This Month: 30% Off Infused Oils
There's still time to take advantage of a nice discount on our shop-made herb-infused oils!
Infused oils are so easy to use, and such a great way to access the healing power of herbs! Pure Arnica Oil and Pure Calendula Oil are two of our favorite and most popular products, made with herbs that work best when directly applied to your skin. Lavender and Chamomile are beloved plants that are also amazing as topical applications.
We make our infused oils by combining organic flowers with organic Jojoba and Sunflower oils, steeping them for a full month or longer, then pressing, straining, and bottling. They’re great as massage oils, straight from bottle or diluted; added to your bath; as carriers for essential oils; or blended into salves, soaps, or other creations.
Four fantastic flowers—you may just want to collect the whole set!
- Arnica—for trauma, bruises, and aches.
- Calendula—a wonderful disinfectant and wound healer, perfect for eczema or diaper rash.
- Lavender—calming, relaxing, and focusing, and magic for headaches.
- Chamomile—soothing relief for all kinds of inflammation; antibacterial and antispasmodic.
Don't miss this chance for big savings on these wonderful oils!
Midwest-grown, Freeze-dried, Premium Harvest Elderberries!
Midwest-grown, Freeze-dried, Premium Harvest Elderberries!
We're excited about our newest Premium Harvest offering: certified organic, freeze-dried Elderberries, cultivated by a grower cooperative in the US Midwest!
Freeze drying preserves more than 95% of the beneficial phytochemicals—a single cup of freeze-dried berries is equivalent to more than two cups of fresh or frozen fruit. These tasty berries are perfect for salad toppings, cereals, and smoothies, and can readily be crushed into powder for easy incorporation into your Elderberry recipes and projects.
Almost all of the Elderberries (and Elderberry products) available in the US are imported from Eastern Europe, where the wild harvested fruit is considered certified organic. The delicious farmed American Elderberries we're featuring here are sweeter than the European species, and contain greater amounts of nutrients than most wild harvested berries, and lower levels of cyanogenic glycosides.
Elderberry syrup is a traditional children's remedy for the cold and flu season. Elderberries have been given as a mild laxative, yet also they are reportedly helpful for diarrhea; anecdotal evidence indicates possible benefits for intestinal dysbiosis. Herbalists have prescribed the berries to increase perspiration and urine flow, and as a remedy for various conditions including hay fever, nerve pains, rheumatism, and cancer. Recent studies also suggest a role for Elderberry's antioxidant properties in alleviating complications of diabetes.
The research on Elderberry's antiviral, immune-enhancing properties is some of the most conclusive of its kind, as it includes well-controlled clinical studies on human subjects, in addition to the in vitro experiments which are often cited in support of such activities. (Note—there is absolutely no evidence to support speculation regarding Elderberry playing any role in stimulating harmful immune dysfunction such as the infamous "cytokine storm.")
Our Premium Harvest herbs are well worth their higher price, and available in limited quantities. Give these terrific berries a try, while we've got 'em!