That's no weed: Local herbs may have the power to heal
The greenary that we trample ,the flowers we pick for bouquets, even the most unassuming weeds that sprout up after a spring rain are actually much more than miracles of nature. Most of the humble weeds, flowers, shrubs and herbs that we see every day have powers that go beyond the simple ability to brighten the environment. Some heal, some soothe, some prevent and some will knock you flat.
The fascination with herbs, which goes back thousands of years, is enjoying a revival of late. Dissatisfaction with modern medicine and a desire to get back to nature is driving the trend toward natural ways of healing.
“People are so stuffed with chemicals that it is now striking how many side effects, complications and allergies have resulted from them,” said Natalia Zubytska, a renowned Ukrainian herb therapist and the founder of Green Planet, a nationwide chain of herb drugstores.
Zubytska said that in her travels around the world she has noticed an international rebirth in herbal medicine.
“By the year 2010, the world will switch mostly to herb‑based medicine,” Zubytska predicted. “It has become obvious today that chronic diseases can be healed with herbs alone.”
While not many conventional doctors would agree, there is no disputing the fact that herbal medicine has been around a lot longer than chemical compounds.
“Millenniums ago, our forefathers would eat the first root, berry or leaf and watch the effect – what relieved a headache, what helped stop a diarrhea,” Zubytska said.
During Soviet times, folk medicine was frowned upon and considered village quackery. At that time, out of more than 1,500 medicinal herbs growing in Ukraine, only about 90 could be found in drugstores.
But following independence, folk medicine began to flourish again.
“Official medicine is called ‘scientific,’ but that doesn’t mean that folk medicine is non‑scientific,” Zubytska said. “Official medicine is based on lab research and experiments. For centuries practitioners of folk medicine have been conducting research in nature, on people, and passing the results in a traditional way.”
Volodymyr Vuksta, who goes by the name of Goltis, is one person who is keeping herbal knowledge alive. Goltis first began learning about herbs in the 1960s from his grandmother Vera Piskar, who was a healer in a village near Uzhgorod.
Today, a bodybuilding and survival coach, Goltis leads seminars and writes articles about health and herbs.
“Each herb has colossal healing potential,” Goltis said. “And if everything is done properly, herb healing can affect all systems of the body.”
Herbs heal because of their high cell vibrations, Goltis explained. The higher the vibrations, the less the human body is vulnerable to a disease. All food has vibrations – the highest vibrations are in herbs and berries and the lowest are in meat products. The vibrations of consumed food affect the vibrations of the body.
In theory, herbs’ high vibrations make them an ideal food: In an instant, the body absorbs the vital elements stored in the herbs and transforms them into energy, while it takes several hours to digest non‑herbal foods. Therefore, Goltis assures, a person can survive on herbs alone.
So if you are lost in the woods with no food, the menu is extensive and varied: from wild garlic and parsley to oak or birch tree leaves, or even weeds, like dandelions.
Plants can be divided into several groups according to their effect: those that purify blood, such as nettles, calendula or veronica; those that increase vitality, such as ginseng or rhododendron; soothing herbs, such as valerian root, peppermint or lemon balm; and vitamin herbs, such as wild rose, black currant leaves or, again, nettles.
Certain herbs are best for healing specific organs, such as the heart, kidneys, lymph nodes, liver or brain.
Other herbs are used for external healing, such as purifying skin, eliminating swelling or strengthening hair.
For those craving more specific info, there are an abundance of herb encyclopedias for sale at Petrivka book market. Most of the Russian‑ and Ukrainian‑language reference books are illustrated with pictures, and include the Latin and folk names, the healing properties and other details, such as which part of the plant to use, where and when to gather them, and how to store and consume them.
Usually it is best to pick herbs while they are blossoming, which lasts three or four weeks. But each herb has one season of the year when it is prime for picking.
You need to consider such factors as the moon phase, the time of day (some herbs are best picked before the morning dew evaporates, and others at the sunset), and the herbs’ location.
Herb picking hints:
l Gather herbs away from the roads or industrial sites.
l When picking, always choose the strongest family: the one with the brightest flowers, thick stems, and those that contain many plants in a bush. Pick plants with your bare hands, one by one.
l Dry them in a dark, well‑ventilated place.
l The average storage period for most herbs is one year.
l The best way to store herbs is to put them in glass jars with lids of flax cloth to let them breathe, and in a dark place, like a cupboard. Don’t grind or separate them but store them in large pieces.
l The time between the Trinity (June 23) and Ivana Kupala (July 6) is considered the best for picking herbs.
Where to buy herbs:
Vendors sell dry herbs at the entrance of many food markets, such as Lukyanivka,
Bessarabsky and Sinny. A permanent herbs stand is located at the underground
near the entrance to Demiyivsky market at Moskovska Ploshcha.
Most herbs cost Hr 2 per pack.
Green Planet drug store, 15 Reytarska, 229‑5932.
On Sundays at 11:45 a.m., listen to Zubytska Ukrainian‑language
program on herbs on State Radio Channel 1.
For more info on herbs, check out the Russian‑only site www.phyto.boom.ru.
