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1 comment on desertortoisebotanicals.com/blogs/news/sonoran-plant-profile-yerba-santa
| Sonoran Plant Profile: Yerba Santa DesertTortoiseBotanicals.com #expansivebreathing #YerbaSanta does one thing especially well. It #opensupthelungs and removes and #dissolvesaccumulatedphlegm . This effect is felt up in the sinuses as well, thus its use in #hayfever and #sinusitis . Whenever the lungs feel encumbered by excessive moisture Yerba Santa is indicated. It stimulates and irritates the #mucousmembranes of the pleural lining to loosen up and #sweatoutthephlegm accumulated. It is one of my go-to remedies for the upcoming season. I have come to notice a certain phenomenon in our area. In just such years as this one, especially, the accumulated moisture of the summer season, if not expressed properly from the body can lead to solidified concretions in the lungs once the cold season arrives. Various factors will influence this including diet, weather, environment, personal constitution, etc. Along with Cottonwood leaf buds and Gumweed flowers, Yerba Santa works well to, as I say, "sweat out" this accumulated phlegm. It first needs to be liquified before it can be excreted. Irritating the lungs without first liquifying can prove ineffective for clearing the mucous. Yerba Santa does both. It is both #mucolytic and #expectorant . Any congestion from the #uppertolower respiratory tract is improved with Yerba Santa. Here the tea works best, particularly of the more wooly species (E. crassifolium is a good example) as they are more drying. The resinous species make the best tincture, but were also traditionally used as a quid or chewed to extract the plant juices. Not only was this done for medicine, it was a favorite "past-time" to create a sort of #plantchewinggum from the leaves rolled into a ball and dried in the sun. At first, somewhat bitter, a #sublimesweetness follows. The resins just don't convert as well into a tea. Another way to extract the medicine of Yerba Santa is via an oxymel preparation. As a vinegar decoction preserved with honey, by nature, it is directed towards the lungs with an expectorant and drying effect. Yerba Santa only serves to improve on this aspect. Another traditional method is to inhale the vapors emitted by the simmering herb. &Jeffq 2019-08-25 13:20:29 |