Monday, September 28, 2009
How To Avoid The Swine Flu Panic
On my mission, my companion and I had become friends with a family of Amish farmers near Bowling Green, Missouri, and we always stopped in for a visit whenever we drove down to Hannibal. One day my companion mentioned that he was from Spanish Fork, Utah, and the Amish nearly dropped their pitchforks in amazement.
"You must know Dr. Christopher!", they breathlessly exclaimed. But neither he nor I had ever heard of the guy.
This was as astonishing to them as if I, having come from Anaheim, had admitted to never having heard of Walt Disney. It was inconceivable that someone from Spanish Fork had never heard of the man whom the Amish considered Spanish Fork's most famous son. In fact Dr. Christopher had recently given a speech locally, at which many Amish had been in attendance.
Noah, the father of the family whose farm we were visiting (every Amish family is headed by a man named "Noah"; you can look it up) showed us a shelf full of jars and bottles of herbal remedies that Dr. Christopher had formulated, but it meant about as much to me at the time as if someone had shown me his collection of divining rods.
It's not surprising that my companion had never heard of this man from his own home town, for Dr. Christopher was rarely home. I learned much later that Dr. John Christopher, a Mormon from Spanish Fork, was known as "The Father of Modern Herbal Medicine". An avuncular figure who looked like a cross between Colonel Sanders and Mister Monopoly, Dr. Christopher had traveled the world studying ancient herbal healing traditions, from China and India to Native American shamans and Appalachian folk medicine.
What placed Dr. Christopher a peg above the average herbal practitioner was that he didn't simply go around collecting herbal recipes and folklore; he was interested in the actual chemical makeup and reactions of herbs on the body. In other words, he researched the medical-biological reasons that certain herbs reacted in certain ways to cure specific maladies, and found it all came down to the knowledge that herbs contain chemicals that when taken in the proper dosage and combination could actually cure illnesses that synthetic pharmaceuticals were merely treating. In this sense he brought herbal medicine out of the realm of ooga-booga witch doctoring and into the world of applied science.
This is not to say that Dr. Christopher did not also depend upon divine guidance. Initially inspired by the counsel in the Word of Wisdom that all wholesome herbs were ordained for the constitution of man, Dr. Christopher often sought God's guidance in formulating the various combinations of those herbs most likely to bring about a desired healing.
At one famous seminar he was teaching in Snowflake, Arizona, an audience member asked him if there were any herbal formulas that might protect us from the coming biblical plagues. Dr. Christopher hadn't really thought about it before, but said a silent prayer on the spot and then rattled off the formula.
This recipe has become famous as the Anti-Plague Formula, and I can testify from personal experience that it is THE cure for any flu virus. You can google the recipe and make it yourself if you want, but frankly it's so involved and time consuming that I find it easier to just buy it from someone else.
Fortunately for all of us, Dr. Christopher left a legacy in the form of dedicated students to whom he taught everything he knew, and some of them have set up shop and can provide you with his original formulas. You can find such people from here to Florida, but there are a couple of sources I particularly trust. I get my Anti-plague Syrup from a company called Western Botanicals, which happens to be based in Spanish Fork.
The reason I use the word "trust" here is because some years ago there were reports that some people purporting to sell herbal formulas based on Dr. Christopher's formulas were actually cutting costs by using fillers or substituting one herb for another, or even leaving expensive herbs out entirely. One famous manufacturer reportedly ran out of cayenne pepper one day and substituted cherry powder because no one could tell the difference by looking.
It's important to know your source for two other reasons: you want your herbs to be organically grown, and you want them grown in America. Many herbs from China and India are grown in fields containing human feces and other contaminants, and all foreign herbs are irradiated when they arrive here, which adds poisons and kills their medicinal properties.
When Herbs Don't Work
You may have tried taking herbs in the past and been disappointed because you didn't notice any benefit. Well, here's why: Most dry herbs don't work well. Except in a few cases, glycerine capsules filled with dry herbs just can't do the trick anywhere near as well as a liquid tincture.
Dry herbs are often ineffective because your body isn't able to extract all the nutrients from those capsules before they're excreted from your body. Remember, the potency of the herbs is in the chemicals contained within them, and most plants must be subjected to prolonged soaking for those chemicals to be extracted. The phyto-chemicals in some herbs can be extracted with spring water or glycerin, but parts such as roots and barks must be subjected to prolonged soaking in alcohol. So the most effective way to ingest herbal medicine is through liquid tinctures, which is what you get after herbs have been chopped, ground, pulverized, and soaked, preferably in alcohol.
Now, if you're reluctant to ingest a little alcohol with your plant medicine, it's time to man up, my brother. A ripe banana has more alcohol than a couple of droppers full of herbal tincture, and if it freaks you out that much, just squirt the tincture into a cup of herbal tea and the alcohol will instantly evaporate, leaving the medicine behind.
But if you really want to get well, stop being a sissy about it. Yes, God counsels against strong drink, but he didn't mean avoid minute amounts in the medicines He's provided. As I've written before here, God expects us to drink beer, and beer has a small amount of alcohol, so use that brain God gave you and stop being such a zealot.
Anyway, good news for you zealots: the Anti-plague Syrup I get from Western Botanicals is in a base of apple cider vinegar, vegetable glycerine, and pure honey, so you can take this if you get sick and still keep your temple recommend. The herbs contained therein are the most powerful natural antibiotics, anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-inflammation, anti-infection, and anti-just-about-anything you can think of. I keep a pint bottle in my fridge at all times, and I'm thinking I ought to have two.
You can can get them in sizes as small as two ounces, but you don't want that. The reason to keep a pint bottle on hand is because you're going to need it, and anyway it's pretty cheap. If you wake up some morning with the flu, you're going to need to take a tablespoon of the stuff every waking hour. But don't worry, you'll likely only have to do this for one day, because if you take it faithfully every hour, the next day your flu will be gone. Done. Over with. Personal experience.
And it's a good thing, too, because the last thing you feel like doing when you're too sick to stand is to force some crappy tasting liquid down your throat every hour on the hour for more than one day.
Even though I'm a firm believer in the power of herbal tinctures, I never have gotten used to their taste. They all taste as brown and bitter and skanky as they look. So what I do is this: I set up two shot glasses on the kitchen counter, one half filled with grape juice and the other full of grape juice. I add the tablespoon of tincture to the first, swallow it quick, and then follow that with the full shot of grape juice as a chaser before my mouth notices what I've just done to it.
It may be called Anti-Plague Syrup, but there's nothing syrupy about it, it's just flat and awful. But it works like nothing else, and the grape juice does hide the taste pretty well. (Many long-time users claim they don't mind the taste, and take it straight, but I don't see how I'll ever get to that level.)
Until three years ago I always got the flu, often four times a year, and it always turned into mycoplasma pneumonia for another six weeks, because I've always been asthmatic and susceptible to respiratory illness. That means I usually had only a few weeks in a row when I wasn't down sick. But since the first time I took the Anti-Plague Syrup, I don't fear the flu anymore, no matter how much the government and media scare machine hypes the latest bogeyman strain.
I hope I don't have to tell you to avoid the coming "Swine Flu" shot at all costs. If you aren't aware by now that the entire hysteria is a hoax you just haven't been paying attention. Section 89 of the Doctrine and Covenants warns us that we will need to rely on God's ordained plant medicines "in consequence of evils and designs which do and will exist in the hearts of conspiring men in the last days".
If you're looking for the conspiring men behind those evil designs, They're not that hard to find. The swine and bird flu viruses did not appear suddenly in nature. They were deliberately created in the laboratory and are spread through unwitting populations through vaccinations. You can find these conspiring men and read their own documents confirming that these viruses were deliberately created and unleashed for the purpose of controlling foreign populations. Dr. Leonard Horowitz, the noted expert on infectious diseases calls them out and names names here.
Not only should you avoid the H1N1 shot, but you should never take any flu shot or allow anyone to administer any flu shot to your children. When most of the leading virologists, pediatricians, bio-medical scientists, and other experts warn against injecting into your body with the very poisons that are proven to cause autism, dementia, and Alzheimer's, you ought to sit up and take notice. And here's the kicker: those who have received flu shots are two and a half times more likely to actually come down with the flu than those who have not.
More than half of all doctors in the United Kingdom have refused to be inoculated with the H1N1 shot, and a growing majority of medical personnel here in America are taking the same position. If doctors and nurses are afraid of the flu shot, you should be too.
There will always be the danger of flu viruses, but the so-called Swine Flu is no more deadly than any other. This is not to imply that you are not in danger of catching this or any other flu; anybody can. Which is why if I were you I would have a pint of Anti-Plague Syrup on hand.
And there's something else you can take along with it for extra measure, another of Dr. Christopher's miracle mixtures which many have called The Cure For The Common Cold. You can find it under various labels such as Cyclone Cider, Herbal Super Tonic, or just plain Super Tonic. Some people take a couple of droppers full every morning just to balance their body's PH, and they claim they've never gotten sick. I've been using it at the first sign of sniffles or hayfever, and it stops those symptoms in their tracks.
I made some of this stuff up myself once. But only once. I have an industrial strength juicer and thought I was up to it. I'll never do it again, though. The vapors were so strong that it drove my wife and kids crying from the house and they didn't come back until hours later when they could no longer smell it a block away. I eventually had to leave myself; It was as if a teargas canister had gone off in my kitchen.
Here's what it's made of:
A whole white onion
A whole red onion
A cup of Garlic cloves
A whole horseradish root the size of a baby's leg
A whole ginger root the size of your fist
A couple of cups of fresh cayenne peppers (this is often hardest to find, because most supermarket cayenne is dried)
A cup of fresh habanero peppers.
Juice it all and add it to a cup of apple cider vinegar.
It goes without saying that all the ingredients above should be organic. Find some glass jars to put it in. It will never go bad.
If you try making this yourself, you'll know why the professional herbal manufacturers wear military grade gas masks whenever they mix up a batch, something I wish I had known before I did it.
The really good thing about this stuff is that you can pour it on salads, burritos, tacos, hash browns - just about anything, and it tastes really good once you get accustomed to it. Use it sparingly though, because it's HOT! Also, if you use it too much and too often, your marriage may suffer from lack of intimacy. (Again, personal experience.)
In addition to the Super Tonic, if you're trying to ward off a cold, I would always take a quality Echinacea blend with it. Echinacea builds your immune system and helps your body create T-Cells which eat the bad guys in your blood. Where you get your echinacea root tincture from is vitally important, because it is one of those roots that must be harvested fresh and soaked in alcohol in order to extract the needed chemicals, and some dealers merely soak it in water or glycerin. I buy my echinacea blends from Western Botanicals and Dr. Richard Schultz's American Botanical Pharmacy, because I trust them both.
Dr. Schultz has made an interesting improvement on some of Dr. Christopher's formulae, by providing what he calls his Cold and Flu Herbal "Shot". This is a small jar the size of a shot glass that contains both the Super Tonic and Echinacea blends along with a whole passel of tinctures designed to fight any possible cold or flu germs. The idea is you take one of these "shots" every morning for six days at the start of the cold and flu season, and it prevents you from getting sick even when everybody around you is contagious. I use them at the start of spring and fall.
I keep a six pack of these Cold and Flu Shots in my cupboard and a pint of Anti-Plague Syrup in my fridge, and I am invulnerable. It may seem like overkill to double up like this, but you don't know how well it's all worked for me. It's real medicine, the way God designed it.
God didn't intend for us to be afraid or sickly, so if you've been caught up in the fear of catching the swine flu, get ahold of God's medicine and reclaim your power from the fear-mongers.
[Disclaimer: There are untold armies of government trolls lurking around the internet just looking to cause trouble, so if I could afford a lawyer, he'd probably advise me make the following statement: The foregoing article consists of my personal opinions protected by my first amendment rights to freedom of speech and to my religious beliefs. The statements I make concerning natural formulas above have not been evaluated by the Federal Food and Drug Administration. My claims of their efficacy are based on my own personal experience, and are included as my personal testimony. The manufacturers mentioned above make no claims that their products are intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease, and they have not solicited my endorsement. Indeed, I mention them here without their knowledge or consent, but as a convenience to my readers. Only a competent medical professional is qualified to advise you on your health care, and only large pharmaceutical conglomerates are capable of creating medications that are safe and effective for the treatment of all known ailments. Everyone knows that God lacks the research facilities and resources available to the pharmaceutical companies, and the idea that a loving God would design plants for his children that contain healing properties is, of course, ridiculous.]
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Oh great. Now I'm getting spammed in the comments section...
ReplyDeleteHi Alan,
ReplyDeleteNever heard of your blog before, but this was an interesting post. I've received my Herbalist degree from Dr. Christopher's School of Natural Healing (I HIGHLY recommend their courses BTW), and love the Super Garlic Immune formula. I take it by the spoonful (you'll get there :D), had some today in fact.
I've posted a video of Dr. Christopher talking about the anti-plague formula on my website that you might be interested in.
Thanks again for the great post. Not sure I agree totally with everything, but a thorough post nonetheless.
-Addison
It's tough to argue with crazy...
ReplyDeleteHortongirls:
ReplyDeleteYep. It is.
Thank you for the informative post. I am pleased when members of diverse religious groups find some common ground. Plus I'm going to look up that medicine also! We've already been sick at our house but it would be nice to be more preventative in the future. Thanks again, Sabrina
ReplyDeleteAlan, I would email you if I knew how, but I am not blog-savvy. I just wanted to thank you for your articles regarding war and accountability of soldiers. Also, I appreciate the point that they are not to blame so much as we who tolerate these invasions.
ReplyDeleteHave you not also encountered the prevalent notion that Gordon B. Hinckley supported the invasion of Iraq and therefore, all good Church members, by definition, should enthusiastically support the war.
Ron Paul's message is almost explicitly supported in the scriptures, but LDS friends have told me that they liked him but for one thing -- he was against the war.
You explained everything else so well, how would you respond to someone who is convinced that the Lord has spoken through His prophet -- and that the Invasion of Iraq is righteous?
Blessings,
Allison
Also, is it possible to email you?
ReplyDeleteAllison
Allison, thank you for your astute comments. You can reach me at:
ReplyDeleteRockWaterman@gmail.com
It is interesting that so many members came away from President Hinckley's talk with the impression that he was in favor of the war. Perhaps it was because his talk was so wishy-washy that people came away thinking that whatever opinion they held, that was what the prophet was saying.
I've challenged people to show me anywhere in that talk where the prophet so much as HINTS that he was conveying the will of the Lord in that talk. At one point he came right out and told us he was expressing his own opinion, and that opinion was that this attack in Iraq would probably be over quickly and put the matter to rest.
So much for "the prophet will never lead the people astray".
I intend at some point to address that talk on this blog, but there are several ideas ahead of that one, and I don't get much written here as it is.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Well, it happened.
ReplyDeleteI told a friend about the items mentioned in this post, and said friend flatly told me that he refused to buy the Cold & Flu Herbal "Shot" pack. Not because of the price, but because Coffee is listed as one of the ingredients.
I told him I'd check up on him again in the middle of next flu season.
Oh, Buh-ruther!
ReplyDeleteDid you happen to mention to your friend that the prohibition is against "hot drinks", and that the cold juice of a coffee bean is not a hot drink, but a medicine?
God tells us that he has placed all plants on the earth for our good (even arsenic in apple seeds is beneficial in its place). Does your friend assume that the coffee bean is the work of Satan?
Dave, I'm sorry you even have to be acquainted with saps like that.
Sadly, if there's one thing my mission experience taught me, it's to know when to understand that some people simply don't want to be taught anything different than what they've been raised to believe.
ReplyDeleteAs a member of the church who grew up outside of Utah, it isn't easy to convince Utah Mormons of some of the follies that have arisen around here. The greatest one is that, "When the prophet speaks, it's always scripture and we should do what he says without question." And when I bring up the actual wording of Section 89, they pull the "God didn't tell Abraham how to build the ark" statement. I then ask them to show me the written revelation where coffee and tea are completely forbidden. My favorite response so far is how that's written in "Preach My Gospel."
I could continue on about how the church membership overemphasizes that book nowadays, but at this point I'm preaching to the choir.
I've got my six-pack of the Cold and Herbal "Shots" all ready to begin consumption beginning on the day of the vernal equinox. Would you recommend drinking those straight or mixing them into a juice cocktail?
ReplyDeleteI drink them straight, Dave. They have a strong pepperminty taste that is not as bitter as some concoctions. But I also have a bit of grape juice to follow it up. It's quite hot.
ReplyDeleteI think that's a good idea to take them on the equinox. I've read that somewhere, but I don't know why.
This is going to be... an acquired taste, no doubt.
ReplyDeleteYou see now why I have a swig of grape juice at hand. Grapefruit juice also does a pretty good job of cutting the sharpness.
ReplyDeleteThe closest I have on hand is Apple-Grape juice and that worked nicely this morning. So far I've tried drinking it straight, mixing it with a juice cocktail, and then straight again while plugging the nose (that didn't work).
ReplyDeleteThree to go so I'll likely just down it and then chug a glass of juice.
I think I picked up a touch of food poisoning from something I ate yesterday and have been basically bedridden since, so this morning I began taking the hourly dose of anti-plague syrup.
ReplyDeleteIt's been easier to take than the herbal shot, but I haven't tried taking it straight yet.
Sure enough. I'm feeling a lot better today than I did yesterday. Not 100% but certainly well enough to go back to work.
ReplyDeleteThis is the blog entry that finally got me to take a closer look at Dr. Christopher and his herbal legacy. I have long had a feeling that I should look more seriously into herbal medicines and treatments, but laziness and inertia kept me from doing anything, that is until getting two stents over the last two years for Angina and CAD (Coronary Heart Disease) and, finally, your blog finally got me a "round tuitt". I am now adding cayenne pepper to my "treatment" (after subtracting statin drugs", and have purchased a number of Dr. Christopher's books to have on hand as reference (my main Christmas present to myself). I still suffer from too much laziness in seriously studying the books and programs, and in changing my diet to be more healty, though I am slowly making changes. I feel like God has been telling me to learn about herbs, and I think my Angina and stent treatments were the things he had to allowed in order to motivate me to actually start doing something (yea, I am still just starting).
ReplyDeletenice information about oil. i heard but not use this , but now i read more about this from your blog. i like your nice information , your blog gives us a lots useful information abt oil. thanks to share with people,
ReplyDeleteHerbs First
Did you know you can make anti plague by infusing vinegar instead of juicing those ingredients. Chop up all the ingredients, medium diced, and put 1 part of each in a quart jar. Aim to fill about half of the quart jar. Pour braggs apple cider vinegar the rest of the way to fill jar and let it sit on the counter for about a month. Shake whenever you think of it. Then strain out the solids and retain the vinegar. Because it is vinegar you dont have to refrigerate it. It wont drive your family away, i promise. I have two and a half quarts in my medicine closet. I have heard that some people dehydrate the solids and use them as a food seasoning too. I havent tried that yet.
ReplyDeleteRebecca C.
That sounds like an easier way to get it done, Rebecca. Although these days I just take the easy way and order a pint of the stuff every three months from WesternBotanicals.com
ReplyDelete