June 2005

Hello,

As we work our way into the summer season, I think it’s worthwhile to look at how some of our summer rituals and plants are related to the unfreezing of our feelings and warding off what some might call “depression.” A colleague at a medical conference recently remarked that in many ways, with the explosion of SSRIs for the treatment of depression in the last 20 years, psychiatrists must feel like general practitioners did at the onset of the use of penicillin. Has the medical establishment created another potential monster in SSRIs, using drugs to mask symptoms rather than working to heal the dis-ease?

There are many parallels between what happened with penicillin and infectious disease and the current story unfolding with SSRIs and depression. In this first summer issue, I talk about depression and how St. John’s wort captures the spirit of the Solstice, of John the Baptist, of the Beltane celebration and integrates that spirit into the human being as a medicine.

Also in this issue Amedeus shares with us his interesting vision of Life Elixirs, in particular the Paracelsus Elixir which was originally formulated some 400 years ago. In answer to a question from one of my readers, I address skin cancer and an alternative treatment. And in the full spirit of summer, Jessica Prentice gives us a great recipe for Mellow Mead, the honey beverage of legend, myth and mystery.

Wishing you a healthy summer, and I hope to see you in Oakland CA in late July.

Best,
Tom Cowan

Focus: Solstice, Spirit of St. John’s wort & Depression

Not so long ago at a medical conference, a colleague remarked that in many ways, with the explosion of SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) for the treatment of depression in the last 20 years, psychiatrists must feel like general practitioners did at the onset of the use of penicillin.

With introduction of penicillin, much in the practice of medicine changed. No longer was a strep infection a feared event and, to a large extent, mastoiditis (infection of the bone behind the ears following ear infections) and early deaths from pneumonia became a thing of the past. As time went on, however, people began to see the downside of antibiotics, and we now find ourselves in a kind of nightmare scenario in which micro-organisms have adapted to penicillin, new antibiotics are being developed but only slowly, and the whole spectrum of infectious disease, now in a changed and in some ways more virulent form, looms on the horizon. Perhaps it would have been better to think more deeply about the role on penicillin in the early days instead of waiting until we are fully in the midst of a crisis.

There are many parallels between what happened with penicillin and infectious disease and the current story unfolding with SSRIs and depression. A primary parallel involves diagnosis. I have pointed out in many places that “infections” are often not a primary event but rather a “cleansing” response. So too the whole diagnosis of depression is fraught with difficulty. As with all psychiatric illness based on a kind of subjective grading of symptoms, no two “experts” will agree on what is the actual definition of depression. The manuals of psychiatry give amounts of time and severity of symptoms, along with various somatic (body) reactions, but a constellation of symptoms is a different thing altogether than an actual definition of an illness. The bottom line is that the diagnosis of depression is based on the subjective understanding of the illness in the eyes of the psychiatrist. As many authors have pointed out — including Peter Breggin in Talking Back to Prozac, Thomas Szasz in The Myth of Mental Illness, Ivan Illich in Medical Nemesis, Robert Whitaker in Mad in America, and David Healy in Let them Eat Prozac — not only is there no consensus definition of depression, but the diagnosis varies widely across various cultures and has dramatically changed from an incidence of about one in 1,000 people in the pre-Prozac era to about one in 8 or 9 after the introduction of Prozac. Also there are no studies that show that Serotonin levels have anything to do with the phenomenon we call depression (see Let Them Eat Prozac for documentation of these facts).

In my practice of medicine over the past 20 years people with an incredible array of symptoms have come to me saying that they suffer from depression. This includes people with persistent sadness, or at least sadness that is the primary emotion they feel or at least remember that they feel. People with difficulty concentrating call this depression, people who are shy and have difficulty finding success in social encounters, people who have difficulty holding a job, and people who are angry, suicidal, bored, or even those who are trying to starve themselves all relate to this title of depression. I am in no way saying that each of these people doesn’t have a legitimate complaint nor that I wouldn’t love to be able to help them come to a deeper understanding and healing in their lives, I just don’t think that each of them suffers from an illness called depression. What is it then?

In studying the life history of the plant St. John’s wort, the beginning of a deeper understanding of these disparate symptoms and phenomena can come into clearer focus. St. John’s wort is the predominant “natural” medicine used to treat depression and it has been used in this context since antiquity. In those days, the illness was called “melancholia” and St. John’s wort was the “cure”.

St. John’s wort is so named because it flowers in Europe on St. John’s Day (June 24) which is close to the summer solstice. This feast day celebrates the reputed birthday of John the Baptist, the prophet of the New Testament, who was by all accounts somewhat of a zealot, even perhaps what we would call today a “madman”. In former times, the celebration of the summer solstice and St. John’s Day was marked with a huge bonfire in the village square, an unusual happening seeing as how this would generally be one of the hottest days of the year. Like St. John himself, it’s a bit mad, or what we today call crazy, to do such a thing. Remember, however, that the summer solstice follows soon after the Pagan festival of Beltane which in Europe was the day when the villagers lit huge fires, did ecstatic chants and drumming, wore masks, and were “allowed” to have sex that night with anyone of their choosing without repercussions (although I can imagine some interesting discussions in the homes in the following days and weeks). It seems as if in the interest of mental health people in the pre-depression era knew that a little craziness, or allowing oneself to more freely experience a wider range of emotions, from passion to ecstasy, was a way to allow a kind of freedom of the soul that had a hygienic, even therapeutic effect.

The plant, St. John’s wort, captures the spirit of the solstice, of John the Baptist, of the Beltane celebration and integrates that spirit into the human being as a medicine. It is not a medicine that treats depression for the simple reason that there is no such actual phenomenon as depression. Rather, it allows the possibility of an “unfreezing” of the emotional world so that a wider range of emotions can be experienced, a kind of physiological bonfire for the soul even though it may be the warmest day of the year.

It should come as no surprise that a plant that lights a fire would be most active at the time of the summer solstice. It should also be no surprise that this plant would actually store oil in its leaves, the red oil glands giving rise to the name Hypericum perforatum (perforated leaves), and oil being the warmth carrier in nature. And, it should be no surprise that the St. John’s wort warmth stimulates the enzymes in the liver that carry out detoxification, since the Greeks considered a congested liver as the source of melancholia.

St. John’s wort is not only a medicine for frozen souls, it is a teacher for our whole culture. This humble plant is calling us to give freer reign to our feeling lives, not so much so that we do crazy things, but so that we don’t. Repressed, hidden feelings, emotional wounds covered up become toxic and literally poison our livers. Narrowly defining our emotional lives creates resentment, anger, the feeling of powerlessness and then we strike out. In contrast to the metaphor that lives as St. John’s wort, Prozac and other SSRIs have little to teach us. They may alleviate the unpleasant feelings and severe despair that so many suffer from today, but in return there is a blunting of the whole emotional life, exactly the wrong direction we need to go. For those who wonder about the safety of these powerful medicines, you might want check out the books mentioned above and the website, www.ssricitizen.org, which tells the harrowing story of one man’s descent into the hell of SSRIs and his uncovering of the truth of these drugs in the following years. And finally, I would call for the return of the community bonfire which can capture the warmth of community and the experience of joy that are so necessary for a healthy inner life.

Therapeutics: Coenzyme Q10

One of the therapeutic “rules” I try to follow is to not use isolated “nutrients” in lieu of complex foods, herbs, and animal organ preparations. The major exception I make to this rule is Coenzyme Q10 because, as you can see from the selected studies I have posted online, both the research evidence and my personal experience has taught me that CoQ10 is a valuable and safe medicine in a variety of situations.

I currently have four cancer patients whose cancers seem to be resolving, that is either the tumors have shrunk or the tumor markers (e.g., PSA or Thyroglobulin) have significantly decreased or gone down to normal. In three of these cases, adding CoQ10 in therapeutic doses to the regimen seemed to be the turning point. I have also seen good results with patients with a variety of ailments of the heart and/or circulation who have had positive responses to proper doses of CoQ10. And, as you can see from the studies, CoQ10 has shown promise in the treatment of a variety of neurological diseases including Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, migraine headaches, and others. So what is this magic substance?

CoQ10, also known as Ubiquinone, so named because it is ubiquitous in our cells, is a fat soluble (meaning found in fat, absorbed in fat, and utilized in fat metabolism) “nutrient” that is a catalyst for the production of energy from the mitochondria. This, of course, opens up whole vistas of insights and questions. Is there a special reason for these mitochondria that “produce” our energy? The best guess as to the origin of mitochondria which are found in most cells (but not all) is that they originally were free-living bacteria that parasitized our cells, somehow got “stuck” in there and eventually made us their home. That is, they embedded themselves in our individual (and other mammalian) cells so that, presumably, we would provide them with food and shelter. In return, they use our food and turn it into energy we need to carry out our lives. CoQ10 seems to be the prime catalyst or stimulant to this mitochondrial production of energy and probably its rate-limiting step. Therefore it affects all health processes because one cannot heal, white blood cells cannot migrate to the site of the infection or tumor, and circulation cannot flow properly without adequate energy being generated by our cells. This is the role of CoQ10.

CoQ10 is called an anti-oxidant in the literature, probably for this reason: With a lack of energy, tissues are left unprotected and become more subject to oxidative damage and, as one study shows, to the effects of agricultural chemicals. Therefore, CoQ10 is needed in every detoxification process in the same way that any process needs energy in order to run. One of the continual tragedies of current medical practice is the well known side effect of statin drugs. These drugs (Lipitor, Zocor, etc.) deplete the body of its CoQ10 stores, probably because being a toxin, it shifts the energy needs of the body in the direction of detoxing the drug, leaving the patient exposed to fatigue, congestive heart failure, and a host of neurological illnesses.

Also of note, the literature consistently suggests the use of high doses of CoQ10 in the treatment of the various illnesses, at least 200 mg per day in circulatory disorders and cancer and up to 2400 mg per day in neurological illnesses. As followers of the Nourishing Traditions dietary approach, we can probably do with less because the main dietary sources of CoQ10 are the animal fats and liver which we value so much in this regime. This is yet one more example of how the dietary wisdom of our forefathers is being vindicated in modern medical studies.

Guest Columnist:

Life Elixirs
Contributed by Amedeus Babbo

What is the origin of Life Elixirs? The concept is a very old one indeed, rooted in Medieval Europe but not limited to Europe. We know that the ancients Egyptians had Life Elixirs, the composition of which has been lost to time. The word “elixir” comes to us from Arabic, via Middle English and Latin: al, the + eksir, philosopher’s stone.

Life Elixirs, healing, and medicine itself all have their origins in mysticism. In fact, the universal symbol of modern medicine, the caduceus of Hermes Trismagistus, is not a medical symbol at all. Rather, it is a mystical symbol borrowed from the Alchemists, representing the Hermetic Sciences, of which healing is a part. Historically, because these disciplines held a place of high prestige, many people sought to acquire the healing arts through force of study rather than the maturing and ennobling of the Spirit. The origin of the Life Elixirs of the Caucasian peoples is Christian mysticism.

Life Elixirs restore or maintain life and health. They enliven the life forces within us — spirit forces — which in turn displace what is antagonistic to life, i.e., the unclean spirits which in this context are more familiar as toxins. There are even legendary remedies that restore youth but these, in general, have psychic consequences. Paracelsus Elixir is a classic “life elixir” from the 16th century that harmonizes all of the major internal organ functions, thus benefiting the whole body. Many shortened or modified versions of this formula are sold, often called “Swedish Bitters”. However, the original formula for this “life elixir” was created by Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, better known as Paracelsus, a Swiss physician and alchemist. His authentic formula uses 18 herbs in specific proportions with specific preparation methods.

Based upon the belief that a human being is comprised of a physical body, an astral body (the soul), and a spiritual body, in health all three bodies are aligned and operating in unison and simultaneously. Thus a natural remedy is prepared to positively and deliberately affect either the physical body, soul, or spirit — or any two, or all three. This effect is achieved as much by the method of preparation as by the ingredients used. The criteria for selecting the ingredients of a remedy are very different from how they are to be directed or delivered. A “Life Elixir” is by definition a liquid, but among the many types of liquids, which are the most appropriate for delivery? A true Elixir is prepared by using alcohol, preferably made from grapes. The alcohol becomes the medium that ultimately carries the remedy from the physical to the soul or spirit depending on how it is prepared. To this day, in fact, alcohol is still referred to as a “spirit”. Grape alcohol (brandy, cognac or grappa) is preferred because, compared to grain or root alcohols, it is considered to be “clean”.

There is an unquestioned understanding among the Alchemists that the Spirit and Soul link into the physical body through the physical heart, as the reciprocating gateway between the activity of the physical, astral and spiritual. Remedies taken in alcohol are taken by the blood, after digestive refinement, into the heart and to the soul — which once fortified by the remedy in turn acts on the physical body to heal it. A poison has the exact opposite effect, in addition to possibly damaging the soul, one of the greatest tragedies of our times.

Regarding materials, it should be understood that every herb is a container of accumulated material/spiritual substances gathered specifically by the inborn, guiding intelligence of that plant. In light of this, DNA becomes inadequate in explaining why things grow as they do. This inborn intelligence is what causes a plant to differentiate itself from any other plant and sustains itself as a distinct species. Intelligence — as an attribute of Spirit — is itself non-material, therefore no material substance has intelligence outside of itself. The life of all material substance comes out of the non-material that it contains or is attached to it. This spirit substance is its actual essence.

These intelligences that are ordained to be attached and accumulated by a plant are specific to that plant. There are several different types of intelligences in every plant, one for every characteristic that a plant or material may have: one for fragrance, one for each color, one for each flavor, for each part of the plant, for the structure and shape the plant may have, and so on. The intelligences together build the plant from living materials they gather and cooperatively compile them into an orderliness and structure that makes the plant a living thing.

If you accept this explanation, every plant is therefore a container of accumulated material substances ordered by specific spiritual intelligences in their unseen spiritual activity. The total finished product (plant, mineral, animal) will have a specific geometry, color, fragrance, and proportion that identify the characteristics of the intelligences that assembled them and the materials (and their content) they used. This finished form is consistent and identifiable with each species, uniquely yielding what is called a “signature”. This signature is specific to the species; it is the species. Thus, an apple tree can always be identified as such, a horse can always be recognized as a horse, and so on and so forth. This signature can tell a person with proper spiritual maturity what is spiritually contained within the external structure, whether it is clean or unclean, the purpose the form is serving within creation, for what it might be used, and much more. This is true of all living things without exception. In creation all things must identify themselves externally.

When plants, minerals, metals, or animal components are combined into remedies, it is their living spiritual intelligences and corresponding activities that actually meet, combine and work with or against one another. The material substance itself is merely the physical container or abode, what these intelligences are physically “bound” to. Their individual activity and attributes do not change, but the combination of different spiritual intelligences changes the character of the overall combination. It is a bit like mixing colors. Once mixed you lose the colors you started with and a totally new color is born; once mixed they cannot be separated. At times the combinations are sympathetic to one another and at times antagonistic, sometimes complementary and sometimes not. This is the anatomy of a remedy, good or bad. The art of combining is less a function of learning and more born out of maturity and experience.

The average person might have difficulty imagining the unseen activities of the vital forces that govern life. In the past those capable of seeing this activity were sometimes called insane by the learned of the world. Among these where the Alchemists, and many Alchemists were persecuted for daring to talk of sound to those who could not hear and light to those who could not see. They described a different world view, a spiritual one. To this day modern science has no clue as to how and why vital forces work. They are permitted to see only the gross materiality of the process. As a result they cannot guide their processes, they force them. The result is unsettled spirit substance, a poison. Because this poison is very reactive, it is mistaken as a remedy.

Life Elixirs were exclusively produced by the Alchemists and some of their formulas still survive today. But without having a clear view of the unseen spiritual activity around us, no one could knowingly combine the ingredients to produce a true Life Elixir.

Life Elixirs have another very important property. When they are knowingly combined because of their specific spiritual properties, they can also be conductors or attractors of similar spiritual properties and activities. Just as copper is an excellent conductor of heat or electricity, so can these Elixirs be made to conduct or accumulate spiritual energies in addition to those already contained from the constituent plant ingredients, through process of consecration or blessing — beneficial mental impregnation.

As “woolly” as all this may sound, the concept is actually quite simple. Like attracts like: Good attracts good and evil attracts evil. If someone has a negative disposition, they will seek out like reinforcement. Even if the negativity is very passive it can be strengthened inadvertently through the ingestion of other similar “unclean spirits”, i.e. toxins and poisons. Today these influences are ubiquitous and, attracted by the personality of an individual, these accumulations through disease can actually kill their host. This reflects the emotional component of an ailment which is actually the impetus of all ailments.

When used for strictly physical purposes Life Elixirs are excellent healing remedies because they expel the accumulated wastes where the ailment has its seat. To put it another way, the remedy is carried to the soul which, finding its strength through the remedy, assists the physical body to heal the physical body and expel the toxins.

When Life Elixirs are used spiritually they are called Fluid Condensers. Put more accurately, since the spiritual has precedence over the physical, Life Elixirs actually are well combined Fluid Condensers that have practical ceremonial spiritual applications. They are also very conducive and useful for specific spiritual activities, making them excellent healing remedies.

It must also be mentioned that an essential part of producing a Life Elixir involves the Biblical concept of a thing being “clean or unclean”. An unclean spirit mentioned in the Old Testament is translated into today’s jargon as a “poison”.  “Clean” does not mean its physical appearance, but its spiritual content. Some plants, animals, minerals and at times people are considered unclean and therefore detrimental and should be avoided. Others are considered clean and are beneficial and life sustaining. Plants that are clean have a fresh and “clearing” quality about them. They do not smell bad either before ingestion or after digestion — they have a fragrance. A Life Elixir begins with “clean” ingredients.

Given the proper formula, the preparation method for a Life Elixir is deceptively simple, using very simple implements. A few clean pots, sealable glass or glazed earthenware, water, fruit alcohol, clean tightly woven cloth for filtering, a stove and a clean and pure mind and heart are all that is needed.

Since the activity within all living things is spiritual, this essence must be captured/accumulated and held once extracted within a suitable medium. Alcohol, a liquid fire element whose heat is capable of extracting and being a “spirit” itself, becomes the ideal medium to hold and preserve the spirits extracted in the proposed remedy. Simple Life Elixirs are therefore made with alcohol. Brandy or any fruit derived alcohol will do, but grape alcohol is best.

Life elixirs are used in very small quantities, usually by the teaspoonful, sometimes by the drop.

The Amalux Life Elixir formula is not our own. It was formulated by the legendary physician and Alchemist Paracelsus. There are many versions and variations derived from this 460-year-old formula, which has been in constant use since it was conceived. One lesser, shorter version of the Paracelsus formula was found by a physician in Sweden and became known as Swedish Bitters, which act as exceptional stomach bitters but are not a Life Elixir. We have the original, complete formula from the actual medical writings of Paracelsus, and we are certain that it is authentic and most effective.

Our Life Elixir contains 18 herbs, some common, some less well known, including an herbal combination compounded with honey to form what is called a “theriac” or “electuary”. These herbs are licorice, nutmeg, aloe, Turkish rhubarb, calamus, myrrh, theriac venetian, zedoary root, dittany, gentian, angelica root, kaolin, carline thistle, camphor, tormentilla, mace, senna, saffron — all in a very specific, calculated and non-uniform proportion.

This Elixir is very easy to prepare, and for those who are concerned about alcohol, we have an alcohol free formula.

About the author: Amedeus Babbo is founder and president of Amalux Natural Herbal Products, whose Paracelsus Elixir is based on the original 16th century formula. You can find out more on his website, www.amaluxherbal.com.

Recipe: Mellow Mead

A Recipe from Jessica Prentice

Summer Solstice, when the days are at their longest, is an active time for flowers that turn all that sunlight into nectar, and also an active time for the bees making honey from that nectar. In turn it was an active time for our foremothers and forefathers who fermented Mead, the honey wine of legend, myth, and human history, brewed from the precious sweet golden produce of those busy bees.

Mead was traditionally drunk on the summer solstice. This recipe for lactofermented mead has very little alcohol but showcases the flavor of honey, and is delicious.

Ingredients:
2/3 cup raw, unfiltered honey
1-1/2 cups filtered water hot but not boiling
6 cups filtered water
1/2 cup kefir grains–rinsed grains from making milk kefir, or water kefir grains

Directions:

Pour the honey into a clean, 2-quart mason jar
Pour the hot water over the honey and stir to dissolve
Pour the rest of the filtered water into the jar
Add the kefir grains
Cover the jar and put it in a warm place for one week
Strain into two glass bottles with screw-tops. I use the bottles from the mineral water Gerolsteiner. Put an even amount into both bottles. If they are 1-quart bottles they should be full; if they are 1-liter bottles, add enough water to fill to the top. Screw the lids on tightly, label and date the bottles, and return to the warm place for another week.
Transfer to the fridge. Once they are cold you can enjoy them anytime!
Yield: 2 quarts or 2 liters.

Jessica Prentice is both a professional chef and a passionate home cook. She currently conducts cooking classes, writes a monthly New Moon Newsletter on her Wise Food Ways website, and offers monthly Full Moon Feasts in the Bay Area. She is a Bay Area chapter head for the Weston A. Price Foundation for wise traditions in food, farming, and the healing arts. She is at work on a book about food and culture, due out in Fall 2005 from Chelsea Green Publishing. © 2005 Jessica Prentice