and replenishes bowel fl ora. It is ideal for calming children as well.
Herbs for the bowel, bloodstream, and lymph systems can also be of
vital assistance to the liver: mullein fl ower, lobelia leaf, burdock root, and
cascara sagrada aged bark.
Neck or breast lumps may point to a congested liver with insuffi cient
blood and oxygen. Probably digestion is poor and in need of repair.
Cleansing the liver and toning digestion will greatly help. Use dandelion
root, milk thistle seed, and gentian root.
Weak tendons and ligaments and brittle nails can be a result of an
overstimulated sympathetic nervous system and overworked liver and
gallbladder. Eat lots of cabbage and broccoli and use burdock root,
dandelion root, yellow dock root, barberry root bark, and Bupleurum root
in teas or tinctures.
Skin disorders such as acne and psoriasis usually suggest that the liver
and digestive system are in trouble. Milk thistle seed, dandelion root,
barberry root bark, and burdock root will all help. Performing a liver
cleanse will also be of great benefi t (see chapter 6).
Digestive, spleen, and liver imbalances are often mirrored in blood
sugar problems and indigestion — use wild yam root, Siberian ginseng
root, Astragalus root, licorice root, burdock root, and dandelion root and
leaf.
For the emotions of the liver — anger, sadness, emotional depression,
and frustration — use milk thistle seed, lavender leaf, and dandelion root
and leaf. Drink herb teas like mint, lavender, and chamomile.
natural healing
Spring is when sap rises and trees and plants burst into new growth. Birds
can also be heard joyfully singing their songs of love and wooing. In
ancient Chinese medicine, the element of wood ruled the liver and
gallbladder. Spring cleanses are therefore traditionally centered on liver
cleansing (see chapter 6). Additionally, massage the liver area daily for one
minute. Take daily hot and cold showers. Use castor-oil packs over the
liver if it is swollen (see chapter 3). Release anger and anxiety
constructively so that they do not get stuck in the liver and gallbladder;
exercise will greatly help. Don’t forget to drink plenty of water in order to
fl ush out all extraneous toxins, hormones, and other unwanted congestive
elements.
The Colon (Bowel) or Large Intestine
In 1995, nearly thirty-one thousand people in Britain were diagnosed
with colon cancer, and twenty thousand are expected to die as a result. It is
the third most common cancer, and could easily upgrade to second if our
body systems 161