Aconite
I've just shaken off a streaming cold. I don't get very many colds (fortunately) but I am only human and everyone is prone to 'picking things up' when they are over tired.
This time I decided to try homoeopathic remedies as well as my usual herbal support.
Aconite is one of the oldest homoeopathic remedies, first proved by Samuel Hahnemann and described in his Materia Medica Pura. It's a short acting remedy valuable in acute inflammatory conditions and considered a 'go to' remedy for many common colds.
Aconitum napellus is a member of the buttercup family Ranunculaceae and is a very pretty plant. It has dark blue flowers with purple sepals and there are over 100 different species. Aconitum lycotonum is known as 'wolfsbane' and was once used to kill wolves by poisoning baited meat. It has also passed into folklore with it's association with werewolves.
Some of it's common names include 'Monkshood' and .Mourning Bride' and it is one of Britain's most poisonous plants.
Why they would you consume such a toxic plant ?
Back in the 1880s Rudolf Arndt and Hugo Shultz discovered the therapeutic benefits of small doses of poisons. Where weak doses of a stimuli would stimulate healthy living systems, moderate amounts would interfere with them and large amounts destroy them. This hypothesis is recognised in pharmacology as 'hormesis' and is a dose-response phenomenon. A toxin showing hormesis has the opposite effect in small doses than in large.
Which is pretty much the same principal that homoeopathy also espouses. Doses in homoeopathic remedies are very, very dilute and therefore perfectly safe to use.
In homoeopathy aconite is described as an excellent remedy for 'sudden illness, aches, colds, coughs, sore throat, flu, chills and fever. It aids a quick recovery from colds especially if they have developed following exposure to changes in the weather. Very cold or very hot, windy or inclement weather which may results in sudden onset of sneezing, ear pain or a dry cough. The person may feel thirsty for cold drinks or present a flushed face.'
On Tuesday I felt the first inkling that I was starting a cold, by the night I was running a fever with sudden ear pain so I reached for my homoeopathic first aid kit to see what I could take. As with all homoeopathic remedies you should try to match the remedy to the symptoms but aconite seemed to fit the bill.
It is most effective if taken for the first 24-48 hours-to stop a cold in its tracks.
So of course I used all my other tried and tested cold remedies. Up the Vitamin C in take, the Zinc supplements and Echinacea to boost the immune system. I also take oregano oil capsules for the first day or so of a cold.
Oregano contains phenolic acids and flavonoids which increase resistance to bacteria and are anti-inflammatory.
Rest and drink plenty of fluids-I'm not re-inventing the wheel here. Lemon juice and honey, homemade chicken soup with lots of cayenne pepper. Homemade chicken soup contains an amino acid called cysteine which helps to thin mucous and the pepper will help raise the internal body temperature.
Garlic is well known for colds as is cinnamon (a natural antibiotic) and turmeric for it's anti-inflammatory properties.
Some or all of the above may be helpful the next time you are fighting a cold but I'm convinced by using aconitum napellus. I felt better within three days and the cold didn't settle on my chest.
I'll be ordering in some more supplies !
This time I decided to try homoeopathic remedies as well as my usual herbal support.
Aconite is one of the oldest homoeopathic remedies, first proved by Samuel Hahnemann and described in his Materia Medica Pura. It's a short acting remedy valuable in acute inflammatory conditions and considered a 'go to' remedy for many common colds.
Aconitum napellus is a member of the buttercup family Ranunculaceae and is a very pretty plant. It has dark blue flowers with purple sepals and there are over 100 different species. Aconitum lycotonum is known as 'wolfsbane' and was once used to kill wolves by poisoning baited meat. It has also passed into folklore with it's association with werewolves.
Why they would you consume such a toxic plant ?
Back in the 1880s Rudolf Arndt and Hugo Shultz discovered the therapeutic benefits of small doses of poisons. Where weak doses of a stimuli would stimulate healthy living systems, moderate amounts would interfere with them and large amounts destroy them. This hypothesis is recognised in pharmacology as 'hormesis' and is a dose-response phenomenon. A toxin showing hormesis has the opposite effect in small doses than in large.
Which is pretty much the same principal that homoeopathy also espouses. Doses in homoeopathic remedies are very, very dilute and therefore perfectly safe to use.
In homoeopathy aconite is described as an excellent remedy for 'sudden illness, aches, colds, coughs, sore throat, flu, chills and fever. It aids a quick recovery from colds especially if they have developed following exposure to changes in the weather. Very cold or very hot, windy or inclement weather which may results in sudden onset of sneezing, ear pain or a dry cough. The person may feel thirsty for cold drinks or present a flushed face.'
On Tuesday I felt the first inkling that I was starting a cold, by the night I was running a fever with sudden ear pain so I reached for my homoeopathic first aid kit to see what I could take. As with all homoeopathic remedies you should try to match the remedy to the symptoms but aconite seemed to fit the bill.
It is most effective if taken for the first 24-48 hours-to stop a cold in its tracks.
Oregano contains phenolic acids and flavonoids which increase resistance to bacteria and are anti-inflammatory.
Rest and drink plenty of fluids-I'm not re-inventing the wheel here. Lemon juice and honey, homemade chicken soup with lots of cayenne pepper. Homemade chicken soup contains an amino acid called cysteine which helps to thin mucous and the pepper will help raise the internal body temperature.
Garlic is well known for colds as is cinnamon (a natural antibiotic) and turmeric for it's anti-inflammatory properties.
Some or all of the above may be helpful the next time you are fighting a cold but I'm convinced by using aconitum napellus. I felt better within three days and the cold didn't settle on my chest.
I'll be ordering in some more supplies !
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