The Medicinal Herb Info site was created to help educate visitors about the often forgotten wisdom of the old ways of treating illnesses. Many of today's drugs and medicines were originally derived from natural ingredients, combinations of plants and other items found in nature.

We are not suggesting that you ignore the help of trained medical professionals, simply that you have additional options available for treating illnesses. Often the most effective treatment involves a responsible blend of both modern and traditional treatments.

We wish you peace and health!

Diarrhea

Definition

Frequent passage of unformed watery bowel movements. It is a frequent symptom of gastorintestinal disturbances. Types of diarrhea: Acute, dysenteric, emotional, epidemic (in newborns), fatty, infantile, lienteric, membranous, mucous, purulent, simple, summer, travelers’.
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Causes

Diet; inflammation of the mucosa of the intestines; gastrointestinal infections; certain drugs; psychogenic factors. May be caused by incomplete digestion of food, food poisoning, stress, certain foods such as beans, infection, disease of the pancreas, cancer, drugs, laxatives, antacids, caffeine, parasites, colitis, viruses, bacteria or other microorganisms, consumption of water in foreign countries, foods or chemicals the body cannot tolerate, allergens, green fruits, and rancid foods.
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Symptoms

Sometimes accompanied by vomiting. Runny stools, cramping, frequent bowel movements, thirst, and abdominal pain, and possibly a fever.
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Treatment

Strong tea; whey; rice milk; arrowroot; corn flour; blackberry brandy. Gradual return to ordinary diet. Severe cases of diarrhea should be checked by a doctor, especially in children and infants. Loss of fluids can lead to dehydration and loss of minerals. Drink plenty of liquids, include hot carob drink, carrot juice, etc. If diarrhea persists or if there is blood in the stools, see the doctor. An allergy test to see if you have food allergies would be a good idea.
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Nutrients

Charcoal, 4 tablets every hour with water until the diarrhea subsides, (never take with other vitamins or drugs.

Kelp, 5 tablets per day, replaces lost minerals. Garlic, 2 capsules 3 times per day, kills bacteria and parasites.

Acidophilus, taken as directed on the label, replaces “friendly” bacteria. Calcium, 1,500 mg. per day, replaces the calcium depleted from the body and also helps in forming stools.

Digestive enzymes, taken as directed with meals, is high in pancreatin, needed in normal digestive processes. Oat bran, 4 capsules at bedtime, helps in forming stools.

Unsaturated fatty acids, taken as directed on the label, helps in forming stools.

Vitamin B complex, taken as directed on the label.

Vitamin C, 500 mg. 3 times per day. Vitamin D, 400 IU per day, is needed for calcium absorption.

Vitamin E, 400 IU per day, Protects the cell membranes that line the colon wall.
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Herbs
  • Agrimony
  • Alder
  • Allspice
  • Aloe
  • Alum, root, wild
  • Apple
  • Arbutus
  • Arnica
  • Arrowroot
  • Barberry
  • Bayberry bark
  • Bearberry
  • Beautyberry
  • Beechdrop
  • Benne leaves
  • Bilberry
  • Birch
  • Birthroot
  • Bistort root
  • Bitterroot
  • Bitter sweet
  • Blackberry root
  • Black haw
  • Black Indian hemp
  • Black root
  • Blueberry
  • Blue flag
  • Boneset
  • Burdock
  • Butternut
  • Calamus
  • Capsicum
  • Carrots
  • Cascara
  • Castor bean
  • Catnip
  • Cayenne
  • Celandine
  • Centaury
  • Chamomile
  • Chapparal
  • Cherry, wild, bark
  • Chestnut
  • Cinnamon
  • Cinquefoil
  • Cloves
  • Cohosh, black
  • Comfrey
  • Colombo
  • Coriander
  • Cranesbill
  • Crowfoot
  • Cypress
  • Dock, yellow
  • Elder
  • Elecampane
  • Elm, slippery, bark
  • Eryngo
  • Eucalyptus
  • Fireweed
  • Flag, sweet
  • Flaxseed
  • Frostwort
  • Garlic
  • Ginger, wild
  • Golden rod
  • Grape
  • Horseradish
  • Horsetail, grass
  • Hound’s tongue
  • Jasmine, yellow
  • Labrador tea
  • Lavender
  • Life everlasting
  • Life root
  • Lobelia
  • Lungwort
  • Marshmallow
  • Matico
  • Meadowblossom
  • Meadowsweet
  • Moss, Iceland
  • Mullein
  • Nettle
  • Oak, white
  • Onion
  • Peach tree leaves
  • Pennyroyal
  • Peppermint
  • Persimmon bark
  • Pilewort
  • Plantain
  • Pleurisy root
  • Pokeroot
  • Pomegranate
  • Poplar
  • Poppy seeds
  • Primrose, evening
  • Privet
  • Psyllium
  • Ragweed
  • Raspberry, red, leaves
  • Red root
  • Rhubarb, root
  • Saffron
  • Sage
  • St. John’s wort
  • Samson snakeroot
  • Sanicle
  • Sassafras
  • Savory
  • Shepherd’s purse
  • Spikenard
  • Stoneroot
  • Strawberry, wild, leaves
  • Sumac
  • Sumbul
  • Sunflower
  • Sweet gum
  • Tamarack
  • Tansy
  • Thuja
  • Thyme
  • Tormentil
  • Valerian
  • Wahoo, bark
  • Water Avens root
  • Water Pepper
  • White pond lily
  • Willow, black, American
  • Wintergreen
  • Witch Hazel
  • Yam, wild
  • Yarrow
  • Yerba santa

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Recommendations

Blackberry root, chamomile tea and raspberry leaves can be beneficial if you have occasional bouts of diarrhea. Herbs can be added to applesauce, bananas, pineapple or papaya juice. Take cayenne capsules 2-3 times daily. Ginger tea is good for cramps and abdominal pain.

Slippery elm bark is also beneficial. Take 6 capsules or take 3 tsp. per 8 oz. of water.

A high-fiber diet is important. Eat oat bran, rice bran, raw foods, yogurt, and soured products daily. Increase liquids, adding sea water concentrate to steam-distilled water.

Do not take any medication to stop diarrhea for at least 2 days. This is the body’s way of throwing off toxins. Contact the doctor if any of the following conditions occur: the diarrhea lasts for more than 2 days; there is blood in the stool; the stool appears as black as tar; fever above 101 F.; severe pain in abdomen or rectum; dehydration is evident (dry mouth, wrinkled skin); or urination is reduced or stopped.

Do not consume milk products. Also, limit fats, wheat, and foods containing gluten.
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Suggestions

Rice water treatment can be beneficial. Boil 1/2 cup of brown rice in 3 cups of water for 45 minutes, strain, and drink 3 cups daily of the rice water. Eat the rice as well. The rice helps to form stools and supplies the needed B vitamins.
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Bibliography

Buy It! Back to Eden, by Jethro Kloss; Back to Eden Publishing Co., Loma Linda, CA 92354, Original copyright 1939, revised edition 1994

Buy It! Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants, by Steven Foster and James A. Duke., Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10000

Buy It! The Healing Plants, by Mannfried Pahlow, Barron’s Educational Series, Inc. 250 Wireless Blvd., Hauppauge, NY 11788, 1992

Buy It! Secrets of the Chinese Herbalists, by Richard Lucas, Parker Publishing Company, Inc., West Nyack, NY, 1987.

Buy It! Indian Herbalogy of North America, by Alma R. Hutchens, Shambala Publications, Inc., Horticultural Hall, 300 Massachusetts Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, 1973

Buy It! The Old Herb Doctor, by Joseph E. Meyer, Meyerbooks, publisher, PO Box 427, Glenwood, Illinois 60425, copyright 1984, sixth printing 1994.

Buy It! Earl Mindell’s Herb Bible, by Earl Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D., Simon & Schuster/Fireside, Rockefeller Center 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020

Buy It! The Rodale Herb Book: How to Use, Grow, and Buy Nature’s Miracle Plants (An Organic gardening and farming book), edited by William H. Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc. Emmaus, PA, 18049., 1974

Buy It! Planetary Herbology, by Michael Tierra, C.A., N.D., O.M.D., Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. WI 53181., Copyright 1988, published 1992

Buy It! The Complete Medicinal Herbal, by Penelope Ody, Dorling Kindersley, Inc, 232 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016, First American Edition, copyright 1993

Buy It! The Herb Book, by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974.

Buy It! The Yoga of Herbs: An Ayurvedic Guide to Herbal Medicine, by Dr. David Frawley & Dr. Vasant Lad, Lotus Press, Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, Second edition, 1988.

Buy It! Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Fifth Edition: A Practical A-to-Z Reference to Drug-Free Remedies Using Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs & Food Supplements, by James F. Balch, M.D. and Phyllis A. Balch, C.N.C., Avery Publishing Group, Inc., Garden City Park, NY

Buy It! The Nature Doctor: A Manual of Traditional and Complementary Medicine, by Dr. H.C.A. Vogel; Keats Publishing, Inc., 27 Pine Street (Box 876) New Canaan, CT. 06840-0876. Copyright Verlag A. Vogel, Teufen (AR) Switzerland 1952, 1991

Buy It!The Magic of Herbs, by David Conway, published by Jonathan Cape, Thirty Bedford Square, London, England. (Out of print)

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