Chickweed ~ Weight Loss is Just the Beginning

To many gardeners, Chickweed is a nuisance. They see it as a little white-flowering weed. Much like peppermint, once it's established, it can be hard to get rid of. 

But, if you can get past that little "flaw," you'll find that Chickweed is one of the most versatile and useful of herbs. If your parents or grandparents were medicinal tea users or are familiar with home remedies, I'm sure they are familiar with it's benefits.

First, and foremost, it's a tasty little tea herb. I drink it quite often and many times, I don't even use honey. It has it's own, very pleasant citrus-sweet kind of taste. Chickweed has often been used to help with weight loss because it has a light cleanse benefit. It's mild diuretic effect detoxifies and helps the function of your urinary tract, bladder and kidneys and flushes waste and fat right on out. My family and I are introducing ourselves to Rick Warren's Daniel Plan diet/lifestyle; one of the things we are encouraged to have as much as we want is water and herbal teas; since this little tea is herbal AND a mild diuretic, it fits this plan very well. Just think: a good-tasting herbal tea that suppresses your appetite AND calms your cravings!!

Even though I am a tea enthusiast, you may also take Chickweed as an herbal supplement in capsule form. Barring any allergies, this is one of the safest weight loss supplements. 

**Please Note** Using several cups (more than 3 or 4 per day) of Chickweed tea will result in a laxative "effect." So, be careful how much you use. 

Here's something for EVERY woman ~ Chickweed tea is well known to help reduce AND heal uterine fibroid cysts! Most uterine fibroids are made of fat and plaque that builds up in the uterus of those who are prone to this condition. Once again, Chickweed's cleansing/flushing action help shrink those fibroids. My research recommends 3 cups of tea per day.

Another benefit of Chickweed's cleansing/flushing action is that it may also help with Irritable Bowl Syndrome. Drinking 2-3 cups when symptoms erupt, will help with intestinal absorption and help with bowl function.

In many parts of the world, Chickweed tea is a well-known remedy for respiratory problems. At first signs of a chest cold or flu, start the tea pot singing. 
 
Once again, thanks to the flushing action of this multi-function little herb, you may start feeling better a little quicker. If you can, make a tea that's half-and-half Chickweed and Slippery Elm Root for a great throat-coat tea. Cuts down on those nasty coughing fits.

As Chickweed tea flushes and cleanses, Chickweed salve or strong tea dabbed on the skin draws and heals. It is especially good for topical skin issues for everything from acne to rashes to cuts and scrapes to bug bites. I know this for a fact because this is the very reason that I started my research on the uses of Chickweed. As you can already see, I "stumbled" upon quite a treasure trove of usefulness. 

As health and beauty buyer at the health food store I work at, I am blessed to receive products to try out to see if we would like to carry them in the store.  Early last fall, I tried a beautiful hand and body cream that had Sandlewood in it. As I am not usually an allergy-prone person, I had no problem agreeing to try it. It was lovely ~ smelled so good and it's creamy texture went on smoothly and then would sink right into my skin. Shortly after starting to use it, I began itching like crazy, I thought that my annual "winter itch" had started a little early. No problem ~ I'll just use more of my lovely new Sandlewood cream. :-) Well, silly me, it took a couple of weeks of INTENSE SUFFERING as my itching got so bad that I would scratch until I literally drew blood ~ which, of course, made terrible scratches and scabs all over my arms and legs ~ until I realized that the very thing I was using was causing my problem. I used my chamomile salve which gave some relief, but I still had some itching and, of course, as I healed I now had more scars and scabs from all my scratching. I was never so glad for long sleeves in my life!

So, after doing my research, I discovered what seemed to be "the miracle of Chickweed." I started making a strong tea ~ a packed-full tea ball that I let steep for 20 minutes. I dabbed a cottonball into the tea and swiped it, at least twice a day, over my hands, arms and legs. Almost instantly, my itching stopped and I have since lost almost all of my unsightliness. 

You can see a few little scar-spots on top of my hand that's all that's left where it had, before, looked like I had been playing with and been scratched-up by a naughty little kitten. I am so happy to be almost back to normal.

Wow! What a great find! All those benefits in one little herb. If you have any other uses for Chickweed, please let us know.

Blessings from Ohio . . . Kim<><