A longtime staple of traditional herbal medicine, preparations made from the leaves or flowers have been used to soothe coughs and congestion, ease headaches, and promote sleep, according to the International Herb Association, whose “Herb of the Year” for 2022 is viola.

Medicinal Uses for Viola

These popular, edible members of the botanical genus Viola have come to the attention of medical researchers. Scientists are studying the antibacterial, anticancer, and other properties of viola. Here’s a sampling of the research to date.

• Antibacterial

  The growing concern over antibiotics’ waning efficacy against pathogens and the lack of new medications have led to “the exploration of alternative sources of antimicrobial therapeutics,” according to the authors of a study into species of viola including V. inconspicua. They looked at viola’s cyclotides, stable peptides that exhibit bioactivity.

  Specifically, the researchers found “potent bioactivities against strains of the gram-negative bacteria E. coli and the highly virulent and multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae.”

• Pharmacological

  Another species, V. betonicifolia, is known in traditional medicine circles for its pharmacological properties, including anti-inflammatory, pain-relieving, and antidepressant.

• Nutritional

  Komal Rizwan and colleagues found “a good profile of micro- and macronutrients,” including vitamin C, in various parts of the plant. Calling for clinical studies, the authors said their review “suggests that V. betonicifolia is a promising source of pharmaceutical agents.”

• Anti-Cancer

  A laboratory study of an extract of V. odorata against breast cancer cell lines and stem cells showed “anti-migratory, anti-invasion and anti-colony formation activity.” The researchers noted breast cancer cell death and decrease in the size and volume of tumors.

  Except in cases of high concentration, the authors said, their data “suggest that Viola odorata extract mostly targets cancerous cells, not normal cells.” These studies suggest that viola is worthy of further examination as a potential addition to the human arsenal against disease.

Reprinted with permission from Earth Medicines: Ancestral Wisdom, Healing Recipes, and Wellness Rituals from a Curandera by Felicia Cocotzin Ruiz ($24.95, Shambhala Publications, 2021)

The Power of Fire

Whether you are relaxing around a campfire, hypnotized by its flames or listening closely to the news of a nearby brushfire, Fire captures everyone’s attention. An alchemist by design, Fire is transmutative. The energy behind its flame is one of mystery, change, and destruction.

Nonetheless, after even the greatest of destruction comes renewal and rebirth as demonstrated by the mythological phoenix. Illuminating people with its medicine, Fire is the strongest and most powerful of all the elements, and it is something that I was taught to respect.

Ceremonial Fire

Throughout my life, I have witnessed Fire keepers tending to Fire for ceremony or dance. Fire keepers are designated community members upholding the age-old tradition of keeping a fire strong and hot, working with it, praying to it, and showing it utmost respect.

Keeping the fire strong is not simply for heating stones that may be used in a sweat lodge or providing light and warmth for a dance. It is also representative of the spiritual energy of the ceremony or gathering, which is why a fire needs to remain strong and must never die out until the end of the ceremony.

Depending on the tribe or tradition, sacred aromatics may be placed on the hot rocks heated by this sacred flame. This exchange is an offering and a prayer of gratitude. It is a reminder that when you work with Fire to see it as a living entity.

Fire for Your Body and Spirit

Nourishing my body with the bright Fire of the sun is not only one of my beauty secrets for glowing skin, but it is also a key to good gut health.

Eating daily an array of colorful fruits and vegetables is nutritionally healing, and their colors transport me to memories of sunny days. It’s no wonder that when many of us experience high levels of stress or consume too many processed foods, we can send our digestive systems into high alert.

Nutrient-rich plant foods infused with the sun not only invigorate our metabolism, but they can also energize our spirit.

Warming Herbs and Spices

Warming herbs such as ginger have widely been used for the digestive system, helping with ailments such as an upset stomach, nausea, and indigestion.

While studying Ayurvedic cooking, I learned that several of my common kitchen spices could be eaten to increase the digestion of food and raise the metabolic process in our bodies.

This is valuable because a strong metabolism causes more heat in the body, which helps with the digestion process and is believed to help break down and transform food. This action is called agni, the fire of digestion.;

Hence, consuming the correct herbs and spices can “feed” agni and strengthen its energy, thus allowing for healthy ingestion of nutrients.

The general signs that you may have a weak digestive fire are experiencing a poor appetite, feeling sleepy after meals, having excessive gas, and feeling heavy or lethargic.

Electuaries

An electuary is simply a mixture of powdered herbs and spices combined with honey to make a thick paste that you can take by the spoonful or add to warm water.

I have made electuaries using fresh plant material such as the zest of a lemon or grated ginger, but for the most part, they are traditionally made using dried powdered herbs and spices for a longer shelf life.

Any of these spices (listed below) are great for digestion and can be used on their own or blended to make your own special combination. It’s a straightforward method and a tasty way to introduce more Fire into your body.

Electuary for Digestive Fire

This recipe makes one small jar and is very flexible.

Ingredients

• [q:1/2] cup of runny honey
• 4 teaspoons ground spices of your choosing:
  • Anise seeds
  • Black pepper
  • Cardamom pods
  • Cayenne
  • Cinnamon
  • Coriander seeds
  • Cumin seeds
  • Dill seeds
  • Fennel seeds
  • Ginger

Equipment

• Small jar that can hold at least one half cup, or 4 fluid ounces

Directions

1. To begin, first decide which spices you would like to use from the list below, choosing one single spice or several spices for your creation. Don’t worry about exact measurements, but aim for roughly 4 teaspoons total. If any of your chosen spices are whole, you will first need to grind them using a mortar and pestle.
2. Once you have your blend of ground spices, place them in your jar and begin adding honey to create a thick paste, mixing and adjusting the honey if you want a thinner or sweeter electuary. Label the jar.
3. To use the electuary, take one small teaspoonful before meals to enkindle your agni.

The ability to inhale deeply is something we take for granted—until it doesn’t come easily.

Most of us experience at least short-term shortness of breath at some point in our lives because of common respiratory infections.

As many as 50 million Americans struggle daily with conditions such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema. Shortness of breath is also a classic symptom of both acute and long-haul COVID-19.

Difficulty breathing generally requires immediate medical attention, and regular or acute use of prescription drugs such as inhalers may be necessary.

However, many natural remedies offer supportive respiratory benefits.

Tips for Lung Support

Herbs for Lung Support

When choosing herbal remedies, we often combine a few herbs that seem particularly well suited for the& individual situation. Here are some of my favorite lung tonics.

• Mullein Leaf

  Mullein leaf (Verbascum thapsus, spp.) is classically used to soothe and open the airways while also easing spasm and cough.

  I like to combine it with soothing, slimy marshmallow root or leaf (Althaea officinalis) in tea or syrup, especially if the respiratory system feels dry. Strain well to remove mullein’s irritating hairs.

  Alternatively, use a tincture.

• Wild Cherry Bark

  Wild cherry bark (Prunus serotina, spp.) has such a long tradition for easing coughs and opening the lungs that cherry flavoring remains popular in conventional cough drops and syrups even though it lacks cherry’s medicinal action.

  The dry bark makes an excellent tincture, syrup, or tea to be used solo or combined with other herbs and honey. It’s specific for dry, irritated, unproductive coughs and helps to relax spasms and tightness.

• Horehound Leaf

  In contrast, horehound leaf (Marrubium vulgare) is popular for thick, wet, mucusy coughs, to help thin and expectorate the mucus.

  Commercial herbal cough-drop formulas often contain horehound.

• Reishi

  Reishi mushroom and mycelium (Ganoderma lucidum, spp.) have respiratory-tonic benefits, helping to decrease inflammation, reduce allergic response, modulate immune function, and improve oxygen utilization. The benefits are most noticeable after several months of use.

  Often combined with other mushrooms, reishi can be used solo or combined with herbs in decocted (simmered) tea, broth, double-extraction tincture, or a specially prepared capsule or powder. Cook the raw mushroom fruiting body before consumption.

• Additional Herbs

  Here are some additional herbs to explore for lung health. Each has its own specific indications.

  Some are common commercially while others grow easily in gardens and the wild—perfect (once properly identified) for do-it-yourself remedy making—but are rarely sold in stores.

  • licorice root
  • elecampane root
  • usnea
  • nettle leaf
  • peppermint leaf
  • rosemary
  • thyme
  • bee balm
  • oregano
  • Korean licorice mint
  • anise hyssop
  • hyssop
  • plantain leaf
  • lobelia
  • pleurisy root
  • garlic
  • cayenne
  • turmeric
  • onion
  • Pycnogenol

Conventional Care

In many cases, natural remedies can be used alongside conventional care.

Always check with your healthcare provider and pharmacist for herb-drug interactions, and consider seeking the guidance of a skilled holistic practitioner in complicated cases.

General Lung Support

• Lifestyle

  It’s important to eat a whole-foods diet, move regularly, get quality sleep, and manage stress.

• Diet & Nutrition

  For reducing inflammation, consider foods rich in bioflavonoids and other antioxidants, including berries, deeply hued vegetables, spices like turmeric, and green tea.

  Limit or avoid refined foods, sugar, alcohol, and anything you’re sensitive or allergic to—dairy and gluten may be irritants.

• Supplements

  Daily vitamin D and omega 3 fish oil may be supportive.

Steph Zabel is the charismatic founder of Herbstalk, a grassroots Boston-based event that connects herbalists with people who want to learn more about herbalism and holistic topics.

The popular annual event, typically held in June, is on hold due to COVID-19, but we caught up with Zabel to learn about other online offerings.

Questions for Steph Zabel

Herbstalk is on pause for now, but please describe your new online class.

A dear friend of mine, Jenny Hauf of Muddy River Herbals in Canton, MA, and I put together “Connecting with the Living Land.” Jenny is an amazing herb grower and ecological landscaper. We decided to join forces and offer this interweaving of growing and gardening with practical home use of herbs and a deep seasonal aspect. We follow the Celtic Wheel of the Year, and we talk about each point on the Wheel of the Year, what it means, and how we can be more deeply connected with the energy of that time.

Can you give more detail about the “Wheel of the Year”?

The Wheel of the Year is a combination of the four solar or astronomical points of the solstice and the equinoxes. Halfway between those points are what are called the Celtic fire festivals. The fire festivals were perhaps considered even more important to the Celtic people because they are agricultural holidays. Imbolc was the time when the lambs started to be born and the milk was coming back, and Beltane was the time of fertility and when marriages were made. It’s fascinating, and it's so grounding to work with those points on the Wheel of the Year.

Is there anything else you'd like to share about how it might benefit people to live by the circular year?

It is such a paradigm shift when we start living in a circle rather than a straight line, which is the linear time frame that the dominant culture exists with. When we return to circular time, which is the natural time of earth, of the cycles of the earth, we become more human because we’re grounded in natural cycles.

With the Wheel of the Year, we’re following the solar cycle and then on a more rapid basis we can follow the lunar cycles every month. Combining those two cycles helps us to ground into our place of being on the planet and to feel more human.

Is there a website where people can learn more?

The class information is available online. People can also contact me through my website, Flowerfolk Herbs, Check for updates on Herbstalk, too.

As a teacher and creator of Herbstalk, what do you hope to convey to your students and attendees?

I hope to inspire sparks of relationship that each person can create for themselves with the natural world. I like to be the catalyst and help people feel empowered to take that first step towards their relationship with the natural world.

A lot of my teaching is about day-to-day uses of plants and herbs, but it's also gone beyond that because we're working with plants in a more spiritual way. I think plants help us to see our own spirit. They bring a wholeness into our lives and they help ground us physically and in the landscape we live in, but they also remind us of our human nature and of our spiritual nature as well.

What are your overall beliefs that tie in with how you live your life and what you teach?

My love of the natural world influences a lot of my beliefs—the belief that the Earth is alive and the belief that we can have relationships with non-human beings, plants in particular.

It influences my spirituality as well. For many years, I kept things to myself, but over the past few years, I started to share my work in the world. The spirituality aspect is really Earth-based for me—connecting with the seasons and the traditions of my ancestors and looking at the wisdom of the natural world. We can learn from engaging with the natural world on a day-to-day basis.

How did Herbstalk evolve?

Herbstalk started about 10 years ago. At that time, I was going through a period of deep learning about the Earth and studying with different teachers. I was being drawn to the world of plants and seeing this path open up before me. I was living in Somerville, MA, and wondering why there weren’t more public educational gatherings about herbs. I started asking that question, and then one of my friends said, “Why don’t you start something like that to bring together herbalists?” That was a terrifying thought. But as I thought more about it, I thought, “Why not?”

I started slowly putting it together with the purpose of creating a space where people, especially people living in cities, have an opportunity to connect and learn more about the plants growing around them. In the urban environment, to connect with each other personally and bring all these aspects of a community and healing and love of the natural world together with the intent to make it as accessible as possible. We still have work to do in that regard, but I've always looked at Herbstalk as this gateway.

I love that it’s in Somerville because a lot of times people just walking by will look at what's going on and say, “What is this?” And they'll come in and then get absorbed in the whole event. I love that it's open and casual like that. My hope was always to inspire people and to share this love I have of plants and the natural world.

You have a MA in ethnobotany and studied plant medicine in Spain, Mexico, and Dominica. How did your love for plants and herbs evolve?

I remember loving plants when I was a little girl. Fortunately for me, my paternal grandmother also really loved plants. She grew up on a farm, and I have memories of us walking around her 10-acre property, talking about the plants there. My mom also always had wonderful gardens.

As a student in middle school and high school, whenever I had to do a project, I always did something related to plants. I did a project about herbs that monks used in medieval times. I was really into the rainforests. There has just always been this thread of connection to plants. I think my family's interests helped to nurture that, but as a side note, we lived in highly developed suburban areas during my formative years, and there wasn't a lot of wild nature close by. I think that made me more attuned to the plants in the garden and the trees around me. I liked finding those pockets of beauty wherever I was.

Who or what are go-to resources for you?

There are so many people whose writing I love. One of them is Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. She is an incredibly beautiful, eloquent writer about our interaction with the natural world. I love Herbal Rituals by Judith Berger because it's written by a woman living in New York City and how she engages with the seasons and the natural world. I also recommend Mary Reynolds’ The Garden Awakening: Designs to Nurture Our Land and Ourselves.

There are different writers who have influenced me in connecting more with the Celtic world and Celtic spirituality. Glennie Kindred has written a few books about the Wheel of the Year and trees, including Sacred Earth Celebrations. I'm also influenced by spiritual thinkers or teachers like Eckhart Tolle and writer Richard Rudd.

How do herbs play a role in your everyday life?

A lot of it is kitchen medicine. Working on a daily basis in my food and the meals I cook for my family and teas and vinegars, all sorts of concoctions going on.

Herbs play such an important and uplifting part in the beauty of my life through being in the garden and growing them and just being with them. I feel, in a way, the plants are permeating all aspects of my life. Even when I'm not specifically taking a tincture say, or making a tea, they're always with me all the time, and I hope to just acknowledge that and not take them for granted.

Do you have any favorite herbal teas? Do you make a lot of iced teas?

Yes, I love making iced teas, sun teas. I make lunar teas on the full moon every month. I'm picking and drying so many things in the summer and preserving them in different ways. Making a lot of vinegars. Herbal-infused honeys too.

If you’re like many people, you think of parsley as little more than a garnish on the edge of a dinner plate. But the International Herb Association’s Herb of the Year for 2021 is a nutritional powerhouse and a great flavor enhancer. The chimichurri recipe below is a perfect example.

Two types of parsley are common in the US. Curly-leaf parsley is frequently used as a garnish. Flat-leaf or Italian parsley has a more robust flavor and is more often used in cooking.

What Are the Benefits of Parsley?

• When eaten raw, parsley freshens the breath. In tea, it may boost circulation of the blood.
• Parsley also may help regulate blood pressure, clear bladder infections, and help prevent kidney stones.
• It’s rich in vitamins A, C, and K while also providing potassium, manganese, and other minerals.

In the thousands-of-years-old tradition of Ayurveda, the stomach is viewed as a fire that transforms food into vital essences of life (prana). In Chinese medicine, the digestive system is comprised of the stomach, viewed as a cauldron in which food cooks, and the intestines, a storage vessel in which food ripens in a manner similar to a compost pile, after which nutrients are distributed to every tissue.

Both systems recognize that physical, mental, and emotional well-being are dependent upon the digestive system. If we are depleted nutritionally, we are depleted physically, mentally, and emotionally. It all begins in the gut, which in modern times has been called the “intestinal microbiome.”

The Intestinal Microbiome

The intestinal microbiome is made up of a host of bacteria and fungi. Between 2013 and 2017, nearly 13,000 scientific investigations picked apart various aspects of gastrointestinal health. This work makes direct correlations between the gut and the mind, immunity, obesity, depression, autism, diabetes, cancer, and virtually every other disease that can be named.

The influences of the digestive system are facilitated through complex mechanisms that involve prebiotics, probiotics, fermented foods, toll receptors, dendritic cells, T-cells, anti-inflammatory cytokines, and a host of other physiological processes that underscore the simple premise that we are what we eat, and more specifically, we are what we eat, digest, and assimilate.

The Internal Composting System

Everyone knows the importance of compost in gardening and farming. Proper composting requires larger materials be broken down into smaller particles. The addition of water begins a process of generating trillions of microbes that work to break down organic materials into simpler organic and inorganic compounds that create and sustain life.

The digestive process is the same.

1. Chewing breaks down large particles, bathing them in saliva and digestive enzymes to break down carbohydrates.
2. The stomach’s hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes break down proteins and kill potentially pathogenic microbes.
3. In the small intestine, those digestive enzymes are mixed with bile from the liver and pancreatic enzymes to break down and transport sugars and fats and dispose of metabolic wastes.

The efficiency of this entire process results in either a healthy or unhealthy intestinal microbiome.

How to Promote a Healthier Gut

Improper chewing, insufficient hydration, insufficient digestive enzymes or bile production, or disruption of the microbiome through excessive consumption of sugar or antibiotics all lead to an unhealthy microbiome.

An unhealthy microbiome results in gas, indigestion, and abdominal bloating.

Luckily, traditional healthcare systems, and now modern research, provide an abundance of strategies for optimizing digestive processes and nurturing a healthy internal composting system.

Integrating these strategies into our lives can help us reap the myriad of health benefits that come with a healthy intestinal microbiome.

• Probiotics

  A healthy gut requires an abundance of living microorganisms called probiotics for breaking down foods and transforming them into usable fuel and micronutrients. Many probiotic supplements exist, and a considerable amount of research reports on their efficacy in improving gastrointestinal issues, including diarrhea, ulcerative colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome as well as other conditions, including hay fever and periodontal disease.

• Prebiotics

  Prebiotics are precursors to probiotics and feed the microbes stimulating the body’s own production of probiotics.

  Fermented foods similarly initiate the process of generating healthy microbes and are an integral part of most cultural diets, even in the United States (pickles and apple cider vinegar). While fermented foods have reached fad status, only small but regular amounts of these are needed to help generate healthy microbes (think pickled ginger at an Asian restaurant and kimchi or sauerkraut).

  Prebiotics mostly occur as undigestible fibers from complex carbohydrates and are high in foods such as Jerusalem artichoke and onion (inulin), medicinal mushrooms, oats, and barley (beta glucans), fruits and berries (pectin), and a host of others available through the diet or through supplementation.

• Ayurvedic Herbs

  Herbals also promote a healthy digestive tract, including three Ayurvedic formulas.

  • Trikatu

    Trikatu, made up of black pepper, long pepper, and ginger root, stimulates stomach secretions to more efficiently break down food particles and proteins.

  • Hinga Shtak

    Hinga Shtak helps allay gas, indigestion, and abdominal bloating and is specific for candida overgrowth.

  • Triphala

    Triphala, itself a prebiotic, is the most widely used herbal formula in Ayurveda for supporting overall digestive health.

• Herbal Bitters

  Additionally, herbal bitters stimulate the production and release of bile and digestive enzymes into the small intestine. Teas of ginger root or the combination of cumin, coriander, and fennel cultivate a healthy intestinal microbiome.