Herbal Skin Salves
Before there was a pharmacy on every corner and a doctor at the other end of your cell phone, traditional healers relied upon the natural world to harvest, combine, and formulate herbal medicines to heal what ailed the people. Whether to dress a wound, heal irritation and inflammation, or soothe a baby's rash, Mother Nature provides a plethora of flowers, fruit, seeds, leaves, bark and pulp from which to create topical remedies. Even today we see a resurgence, with an estimat
When the Skin Erupts: Healing Eczema & Psoriasis
When those painful, itchy patches of eczema and psoriasis erupt, doctors of natural medicine ask, 'what is causing this condition to present at this time?' The Greek translation of eczema means "to boil out," so the question makes sense: holistic physicians look for the underlying root causes that bring about these skin eruptions. Although they create similar discomforts for the people afflicted, psoriasis and eczema are different in important ways. Psoriasis is a chronic aut
The Power of Vitamin D
Vitamin D: not only is it powerful, it's vital for good health. Although it's called a vitamin, D is actually a steroid hormone that acts as a catalyst for processes that protect our cells. Every tissue in the body needs vitamin D, yet a large percentage of the world's population is deficient, or borderline deficient, in this critical hormone. Even a mild deficiency can contribute to chronic and autoimmune diseases such diabetes, cardiovascular disease, depression, cancer (in
