Clark - Herbal remedies for children: a guide to treatments for common childhood illnesses

A PARENTS GUIDE TO TREATMENTS
FOR COMMON CHILDHOOD ILLNESSES Demetria Clark Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Clark, Demetria. Herbal healing for children : a parents guide to treatments for common childhood illnesses / Demetria Clark. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-57067-214-9 1.

HerbsTherapeutic usePopular works. 2. ChildrenDiseasesAlternative treatmentPopular works. I. Title. RJ53.H47C53 2010 615.3210835dc22 2010042693 Book Publishing Company is a member of Green Press Initiative.

We chose to print this title on paper with 100% postconsumer recycled content, processed without chlorine, which saves the following natural resources:

33 trees 917 pounds of solid waste 15, 105 gallons of water 3,136 pounds of greenhouse gases 10 million BTU of energy

For more information on Green Press Initiative, visit www.greenpressinitiative.org . Environmental impact estimates were made using the Environmental Defense Fund Paper Calculator. For more information visit www.papercalculator.org . Printed on recycled paper This book is not to be used as a replacement for medical guidance. It is not intended as medi-cal advice. Using herbal remedies may involve some risk.

Because of this, the author, writer, publisher, and/or distributors of this book are not responsible for any adverse effects resulting from the use of the herbal remedies described herein. If your child has been diagnosed with any illness or condition, consult with your doctor or health-care practitioner before using herbal remedies. Review the information and assess all information and formulations for use for your family. Do not use a remedy or an herb if you suspect or believe it will not be the proper application. 2011 Demetria Clark and Carol Wiley Lorente Cover and interior design: John Wincek All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced by any means whatsoever, except for brief quotations in reviews, without written permission from the publisher.

Published by Healthy Living Publications, an imprint of Book Publishing Company P.O. Box 99 Summertown, TN 38483 888-260-8458 www.bookpubco.com ISBN 978-1-57067-214-9 Printed in Canada 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To all the families with questions
and the parents who want to find another way,
and to all the people who believe
that nature nurtures.

APPENDICES Like the nurturing mother she is, Demetria has gathered her herbal wisdom and her many years of experience as a parent and community herbalist and set it forth in this imminently practical and useful book on herbal caregiving for children. She calls it a gentle guidebookand it is gentle, safe, and easy to followbut its also richly enlivened with Demetrias passion and love for the plants. As she shares in the opening line of the introduction, I did not come to herbalism; herbalism came to me. As a young child growing up in the bush of Alaska, she knew clearly what she wanted to be and do with her life, something truly rare in our day and age when even adults often dont discover their true passion in life until they are much older.

Plants and healing herbs claimed Demetria from an early age, and they became a way of life for her. Her lifetime experience using herbs for daily health and healing both as a community practitioner and a family herbalist shines through in the pages of this book. There are endless good recipes, tips on keeping our children healthy, instructions on how to make your own herbal remedies, an overview of the historical and traditional basis of herbal medicine, along with an in-depth discussion of the safety issues of using herbal remedies for children. But what makes Dementrias book so special and readable is the rich interweaving of her personal stories and experiences both as a parent and as a practicing herbalist. Reading Herbal Healing for Children is like sitting down with a wise, old herbalist over a cup of steaming tea and having a personal consult or friendly chat. What do I do for my childs ear infection or a high persistent fever? you might ask.

Demetria offers not only an explanation of what might be the underlying cause of the imbalance, but also lists several effective herbal remedies that are known to work well. Most of the remedies are simple, cost effective, and easily doable. Some are found in the kitchen cupboard or growing in your garden. And like any wise healer, always thinking of the child first, she offers cautions and guidelines for when it might be necessary to call in a doctor or other health-care professional. When unsure of what to do, Demetria kindly directs us where to find an answer either through an extensive resource list or through the plants own gentle guidance. Like the earth goddess for whom shes named, Demetria fills us with her earthly wisdom and practical advice: Herbs are a gift from the earth.

Just as parents are natural healers, herbs are natural medicines. and Humans are not mere tenders of the natural world but are an integral part of it, and the natural world is an integral part of us. So grab a cup of tea, pick up this trusty book, and enjoy. What youll readily find is a safe, gentle introduction to the use of herbs for children and the sacred tradition of herbalism. Rosemary Gladstar
herbalist and author of Herbal Healing for Women

Thank you to all of my students, who taught me more than I could ever imagine, and who accepted me for my passion and in spite of my shortcomings. I have been blessed to be involved with all of you.

I am grateful to my lifelong friends and family: Annie, thank you for understanding and being my dear, wonderful friend. John, you are a source of intellectual sparring, old-time life memories, and friendshipthank you for keeping the link. Wendy, thank you for sharing memories and for being an incredible friend, mother, and woman. Kathy, you are wild, wise, and lovely, and a perpetual beacon. Angel, thank you for singing, for being no mans rib, and for being a person of trust in a strange world. Carol, thank you for being a friend and for sharing the spirit of innovation with me.

Barry, thank you for being you, saying it straight, and being an incredible father-in-law. Kathy, I appreciate you so much. Joe, thank you for teaching me to work for what I know is right and to follow through on my passion. Mom, thank you for teaching me about passion and for sharing with me your belief that love will change the world. Gretchen, I am grateful that you are my opposite and that you help me to see the other side of things. Griffin, thank you for being a strong man and a good father.