Rosemary Gladstar - Herbs for Children’s Health: How to Make and Use Gentle Herbal Remedies for Soothing Common Ailments. A Storey BASICS® Title

To all of the earths children, small and large, young and old. May we steward the plants and the earth they grow upon in such a way that they remain in sweet abundance for future generations of plant lovers, so that when you walk upon the land with your grandchilds hand in yours, you can show them the same sweet medicines of the earth.

As I was finishing the last pages of the first edition of this book, my young nieces Samantha (then age 10) and Lindsey (age 6) were coming over to spend a night with their Aunt Rosie so we could share a day of herbal delights. Ive been planning for the last few days the things I wish to do with them, I wrote. Theres so much thats green and beautiful and so many wonderful things to do with plants. Well make my famous herbal face cream, make lip balms, and maybe do herbal steams and facials. These young girls are fully grown now, and they both still have that deep love of the earth and its natural gifts that was nurtured in their childhood.

My granddaughter Lily is next in line to come to Grammys School of Herbal Healing. Lily, already eight years old, has grown up on an herb farm and knows her herbs quite well. Recently she invited her entire class on a field trip to her family farm, Zack Woods Herb Farm. Though her parents were there to help, it was Lily who took her fellow students on an herb walk, proudly pointing out the wild plants and the rows of neatly growing medicinal herbs. She had fun instructing her friends how to use them in salves, in teas, and as poultices, and judging by their enthusiasm and excitement, the kids were all interested.

Well be taking Lily camping in a few days, and just like when her older cousins came to visit, I have planned an assortment of activities that are plant-related. We will make plant presses to press some of the common wildflowers and leaves for her first herbarium. Ill remind Lily why we dont pick some of the woodland plants growing around our campsite either because they are rare, so we want to help protect them, or else because some plants, like poison oak, protect themselves with toxic oils that cause a painful rash to those who are foolish enough to grab them. Well also make a special campers flower essence to remind us of our trip together. And maybe on one of the warm summer evenings well stop to watch the fireflies and tell the stories that the trees are whispering to us....

It is at times like these that I am reminded most of my own early encounters with plants. I am forever thankful for the lessons my grandmother taught me as a child in her gardens. Though I have gone on to study plants with great teachers and have traveled around the world to learn ever more about them, it is still those teachings that I learned at the feet of my grandmother that were planted the deepest and have stayed with me the longest. No matter how little you think you may know about the plants or how much that knowledge is a gift to pass on. And its especially important today to pass those little seeds of wisdom and knowledge along to children. What we learn to love as children, we will love, respect, and protect as adults. It is these children and this generation that will be the future caretakers of our herbal traditions and the stewards of healing plants. Lets teach them well.

A long time ago, when I was just a child, my grandmother took me into her gardens and introduced me to her weeds. When we walked in the scented oak forest, she rubbed my skin with fresh bay leaves, assuring me it would prevent poison oak and keep the insects from swarming over us. When I fell in the nettle patches, she soothed the painful welts with the fresh juice of that plant. Her teachings were without fuss. Strong and powerful, like her, her words sank deep and took root in my heart. That magic my grandmother taught me in the garden of my childhood stayed with me throughout my life, and I have continued the journey into the green.

Ive studied the healing power of herbs with many gifted teachers, traveled to many regions with rich herbal histories, come to know a great many more plants, and studied the science as well as the art of herbal healing. Still, the things I learned as a child with my grandmother have remained some of the most powerful teachings of my life. It is those simple yet powerful lessons that I seek to pass on to you and your children.

The very act of studying herbs and using plants for health and well-being instills in most people a deep appreciation for Mother Earth and a more balanced way of living. If we teach our children early a love of the earth and a respect for plants and nature, they grow up with a much greater sense of balance and engagement, especially in this age of technology and dissociation from the natural world. In what has been termed a nature-deficient society, children especially need and benefit from a close association with plants and the great outdoors. The ancient system of healing with plants is one of the practical and eminently useful ways we can connect deeply with nature. And when we learn to connect with nature as children, its a lesson we carry with us for life.

Not only do herbs serve as wonderful teachers for our children, but they also provide an effective, gentle system of healing for them. Childrens bodies are sensitive and respond naturally and quickly to the healing energy of herbs. Administered wisely, herbs do not upset the delicate ecological balance of childrens small bodies (as does much of modern medicine) but rather work in harmony with their systems.

Contrary to popular opinion, herbs and orthodox medicine are not at odds; they are two systems of healing that can complement one another. Herbs work wonderfully to help resolve the simple aches and ailments of everyday life, to nourish the body so that its better able to ward off and fight infection, and to help restore constitutional wellness. Allopathic medicine, in turn, is a superior system for life-threatening illness, when acute symptoms need to be brought under control rapidly.

Though allopathic medicine can work quickly, effectively, and efficiently, it is single-minded in its healing approach: get rid of the symptoms quickly before they do harm. Unfortunately, as we are learning, the harm is often in the medicine itself. Pharmaceutical medications are strong, especially so in the small bodies of children, and can have unhelpful side effects. So, of course, use pharmaceuticals when necessary, but whenever possible, rely instead on gentle, time-tested herbal remedies. Herbal medicine is not only effective but also ecologically sane (not polluting the waterways and soil as modern drugs are known to do) and cost effective (you can even grow much of your own medicine!).

If you intend to use both herbal and allopathic medicines in caring for yourself and your family, make sure your doctor or health care provider is familiar with both systems, and consult with him or her whenever youre in doubt about whether its appropriate to use herbs and pharmaceuticals together. The herbs mentioned in this particular book have no unwelcome interactions with pharmaceuticals; they are gentle and safe to use even with very young children. But if you progress to using other herbs and natural remedies, you may want a knowledgeable holistic health care provider as a guide.