Weathering the season's worst: turn to natural care when there is no time to be sick - Healthy by Choice

Vegetarian Times, Dec, 1995 by Karin Horgan Sullivan

As winter gradually takes hold, our natural response is to slow down, rest and reflect. But bowing to the demands of the holidays, we often find ourselves doing quite the opposite. This disruption of our inborn rhythms can leave us stressed out, exhausted and susceptible to illness. When we suffer from the excess that marks the season--eating too much, getting stressed out or coming down with a nasty cold--we may need a little help to restore our physical and emotional balance; natural remedies fill this need gently and effectively.

TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING

No matter how moderately we eat the rest of the year, December has a way of turning into one long feeding frenzy. Obviously, we don't recommend overindulging in food or drink, but we also know that a decadent chocolate torte or a mango-champagne cocktail can turn even an iron will to mush.

For relief of stomach upset and heartburn, turn to the class of herbs called carminatives, says Don Brown, a naturopathic physician and editor of the journal Quarterly Review of Natural Medicine. Carminative herbs are rich in volatile oils, which stimulate digestion, relax the stomach muscles and reduce gas. Chamomile, says Brown, falls in this category and is his favorite tummy remedy: "[In Europe], it's the herb of choice for general nausea, gas and upset stomach." Peppermint is another effective carminative.

You can make a tea from whole chamomile or peppermint, but Brown says that the volatile oils will be better preserved by using tinctures (highly concentrated liquid herbal extracts sold in natural food stores); just mix a teaspoon or so of tincture in a cup of warm water and drink. (Peppermint can be difficult to find as a tincture; to make a tea from the whole herb, place a tablespoon or two of herb in a cup or glass jar, then pour in a cup of boiling water. Cover so the volatile oils don't escape, steep for 10 to 20 minutes, then strain.

According to David Hoffman, a renowned medical herbalist and the author of The New Holistic Herbal (Element, 1990), another category of herb that improve digestion is the bitters, which help the stomach produce more digestive juices, hastening the breakdown of fat and protein. Yellow dock, gentian and dandelion root are all bitters, and these particular herbs also act as laxatives. If you're tempted to bypass the herbs' bitter flavor by popping a capsule, don't. The bitter taste on the tongue is what triggers the herbs' effect, so these too are best taken as tinctures or teas, before or after a meal. These herbs are woodier than chamomile or peppermint, so tea from them is prepared a bit differently. Place a teaspoon or two of the herb in a cup of cold water, then cover and simmer gently for 10 to 15 minutes.

Feeling the effects of too much drink? Hoffman says an infusion of meadowsweet (follow the instructions for peppermint tea) will reduce stomach acidity and ease nausea by soothing the mucous membranes of the digestive tract, which can become inflamed by alcohol. Also, meadowsweet contains salicyclic acid, the active ingredient in aspirin.

SO MUCH TO DO, SO LITTLE TIME

Finding just the right gifts, cramming too many events into an already crowded schedule, coping with family tensions ... it's no wonder that Seymour Diamond, M.D., director of The National Headache Foundation, reports that the number of people who visited his office for treatment last year went up 20 percent right before the holidays. The chronic stress of the holidays also can suppress the immune system, leaving us more vulnerable to illness.

No matter how frazzled you feel, the power to reduce the pressure is within reach. "It's not things that are stressful but how we perceive them," says Paul Rosch, M.D., president of the Yonkers, N.Y.-based American Institute of Stress and a clinical professor of medicine and psychiatry at New York Medical College. Rosch likens the differing ways people deal with stress to riding a roller coaster: "You see the people in back with white knuckles, their eyes shut--they can't wait for the ride to be over. Up front you have the wide-eyed thrill-seekers relishing every plunge. The difference between those up front and those in the back is the perception of their sense of control. You can teach people to move from the back of the roller coaster to the front."

The key is to make a list of all your stresses, dividing them into things you can control and things you can't; then try to let go of the things you can't control and work on the things you can. Unfortunately, says Rosch, very few people actually take the time to make such a list becoming mired in anxiety and frustration instead. Say you're obligated to attend a dinner where you will encounter an argumentative and critical relative. Instead of dwelling on unpleasant scenarios that may never happen, look at the upcoming situation with a positive slant, says Rosch. You could plan to avoid the person or think of things to say that will defuse, rather than provoke an argument--anything that will give you a better sense of control.