Herbal helpers for healthy holidays

By Jonathan Evans Herbalist & co-owner, the Herbarium Special to PRIME Happy Holidays to all! You have survived Thanksgiving, which seems to be preparation for the marathon eating associated with Christmas and New Year. Help for holiday tummy Here are some suggestions for the next round of overindulgence. If you are hosting a party, try having some sliced papaya or pineapple available. These fruit are not only delicious, they clean the palate an are great digestive aids. If fruit is not on your list, try having papaya or bromelain tablets on hand. For your family, it is best to have a full spectrum digestive enzyme on hand. These typically contain enzymes to break down fats, protein, carbs and vegetable matter. If your buttons are bursting, these handy little capsules can really give relief. Dandelion and milk thistle can also aid in cleansing the liver, which is really going to get a workout this season, as you indulge in rich, fatty foods and desserts, and eggnog. Then there are probiotics, which are combinations of various good intestinal floras to repopulate your gut and aid in digestion, among other things. And for that post-party head If someone you know tends to go a little overboard at the holidays with eggnog, champagne, and such, we have a great little remedy called "hang over tea". Two cups the morning after the night before can really put you right. B-complex vitamins are also a very good remedy for hangovers. Stay warm with herbs With cold weather coming, a couple of helpful hints are in order. Try putting cayenne pepper or ginger powder in your boots. Sprinkling about a teaspoon of either spice into your boots will help keep your feet toasty warm for hours. You can also do a ginger bath, which will keep you warm. Warning! Do not put ginger powder into the tub and then climb in .you will get such a surprise! Contact us at the Herbarium for instructions or tune into our radio program on WHYN AM560 Saturdays at 10 am. Spice up you holidays & stay healthy I recently did a talk for a women's group and discussed some other aspects of holiday spices, beyond the cooking phase. Did you know that the cloves you put into the ham not only adds a great flavor, but that cloves are antibacterial, anti viral, very helpful for digestive problems and helps to preserve the meat? Cloves may even help get your system back on track after travel. Cloves fight a type of bacteria which plays a role in Traveler's diarrhea, according to Dr. Gary Elmer PhD, associate professor of medicinal chemistry at the University of Washington School of Pharmacy in Seattle. Cinnamon has to be one of the top spices for us. It smells wonderful, it tastes great and the Creator added a few surprises. Cinnamon is anti microbial, anti-fungal, anti- bacterial, helps regulate blood sugar/insulin levels and lowers cholesterol. If you add orange and a few other spices to the mix, you get a recipe for mulling spices. Try hot mulled cider, apple juice, lemonade pear cider or of course wine. Originally, the mulling spices helped to save poor or old wine, to at least make it fairly drinkable. Who knew it was actually good for you. The fragrance of the spices has a completely different action in your body, but that is an aromatherapy issue that I will leave to my wife, Kathy, the clinical aromatherapist. So on behalf of myself, my family and all of us at the Herbarium, I wish you all a happy peaceful Christmas and holiday time, and a prosperous and healthy New Year. JonathanPlease send your questions on botanical remedies to Natures Rx : Jonathan Evans via e-mail at info@theherbarium.com, or by regular mail at The Herbarium, 264 Exchange Street, Chicopee, MA 01013. And remember to tune in to "Herbs for Health and Healing" Saturdays, 10 a.m. on WHYN 560AM!