Today, we’re going to talk about a herb called Wormwood today. It belongs to a family called Artemisinin or Artemisia. There are many different Artemisias. Artemisia annua, for example. Artemisia vulgaris, or the common Wormwood. We believe that the Artemisia vulgaris is rolled up in little sticks that people in China use for like a moxibustion.
That’s the problem, though.
We used to work years ago in acupuncture clinics, and if they would have these sticks rolled up, burning and waving them over people’s bodies, it would smell like they’re having big dope sessions in those rooms. It’s a wonderful herb, Artemisia. It’s a very bitter herb – it’s one of the most bitter herbs known.
We’ve got this wonderful book here. We love collecting old books. “The Model Botanic Guide to Health.” This was the first herbal medicine book in Australia. It’s a classic. Look at this picture of the gentleman here. Check this picture of this man out. Look at the beautiful mustache. Isn’t that a gem? This book was really from the turn of the century. When we read about the usage of Wormwood in this book from 1895, they basically say you just get the flowery tops, cut them off, throw them in a big earthenware vessel, pour one pint of boiling water on it, leave it overnight, strain it, and in the morning you have a tablespoon of that in a wine glass full of water. Herbs used to be given in wine glassfuls. Usually in watery solutions.
Because it’s so bitter, according to Dr. Fox in this book, it’s wonderful for dyspepsia. It’s a really good herb to use for burping, bloating, for poor functioning stomach. The bitterness helps the stomach to promote the production of acids. Sugars have the opposite. Sugars shut the stomach down. Bitter things increase it. Wormwood also contains an active ingredient called thujone. Thujone is also known to make people go a bit loopy and a bit crazy. You have to be careful, because it can be almost used as a narcotic agent. You may have heard of the drink called absinthe. One of my favorite French composers, Erik Satie, wrote beautiful plays and lovely piano music. He died of absinthe poisoning. Lots of people who lived in France turn of the century right up to the 1920s-30s died of absinthe poisoning because it had an alcohol content of 60 to 70 percent made on a base of Wormwood with a high thujone content. It drove people crazy. It made them really go loopy and strange. You need to be very careful with herbs with very strong active ingredients like thujone in them.
If you look at WebMD or sites like that, they’ll say “known toxin.” They’ll immediately say don’t touch these things. A lot of doctors readily tell people to take paracetamol, which is one of the leading causes in the States right now of liver toxicity. A lot of people die of paracetamol poisoning. Not many people die in America at the moment of absinthe poisoning or jumping off bridges after they’ve drunk Wormwood or stuff like that. Be careful what you read.
Wormwood in the hands of a herbalist like me, or someone who’s qualified to use it, is a very good herb to use. What does the name say? WORM-wood. Is it good for Candida? WORM-wood. Will it cure Candida? WORM-wood. It’s for worms. It’s for parasites. It’s anti-helmintic, so it works on worms. Round worms, pin worms, hookworms, tapeworms, all kinds of worms. It’s also good to actually give a tablespoon of that regularly to an animal; mix it in with food. It’s also good to use in drop amounts for kids, for worms. You need to understand about dosage. So before you rush off and go dose all your animals up with it, you need to be very careful what you’re doing.
It’s a fantastic agent to use as an anti-parasite product. Artemisinin is a very powerful ingredient found in Wormwood. It’s an incredibly powerful thing to use in conjunction with a parasite protocol.
I didn’t put Wormwood in Canxida Remove for a couple of reasons. I’m targeting not so much worms with people, but I’m targeting other kinds of parasites. I’m also targeting dysbiosis, or bad bacteria. Bacteria that have gone bad. We’re targeting predominantly yeasts, bad bacteria, and various kinds of parasites that are non-worms. Saying that, Canxida Remove will have a good effect on worms. If you want to treat worms, use Wormwood. If you want to improve the function of the liver and gallbladder, use Wormwood. If you want to improve the stomach’s function, use Wormwood. But use it in conjunction with the advice of a herbalist. Don’t just go and rush off and buy stuff and start taking it. It’s not a good idea.
Herbs have been used for a long, long time. This book here is a very old book. It just shows you these sort of things go right back. I’m also looking on the internet now at a wonderful book. Mrs. Grieve’s “Modern Herbal.” One of my favorite books. If we look at the uses of Wormwood go back to 1577 there are references of it of people using it. These herbs have been used a long time. It’s a bit like a gun. When used by a person with more than one brain cell, it can actually be a very powerful tool. But when used by someone with no brain cells, it can kill people and cause destruction. Common sense, same old, same old. Thanks for tuning in.