★★★★★
Thank you, Earth Clinic, for such valuable information. I recently came down with a sinus infection which progressed into my lungs. The constant coughing was keeping me from getting any deep sleep.
Then I found this page about mullein, which we have growing wild all over. So I went and picked some leaves and made me some tea with honey. The chest congestion and coughing has improved immensely! I got my first 2 nights of sound sleep in about 2 weeks! I brought some to work to add to my regular tea (I drink several cups at day during the winter) and I am feeling so much better.
Such a simple and beneficial solution with quick relief.
Many thanks again!
Flower's Mom
Coughs
★★★★★
I have used Mullein leaf for years and found it helpful. I have used it in a salve I make for coughs. I put it in a tea blend for coughs. And these things are helpful. Some time ago I made a tincture of mullein leaves. I have had it sitting in my cabinet for maybe years. (A vodka tincture will last for years.)
Last week, a couple of my children came down with a fever and cough. The cough was the relentless type. Cough salve was helping. Garlic oil, as always, helped a lot. But they really don't like the garlic oil (I put it on their back and/or chest, over the lung area.) I really prefer using things that are pleasant to them if at all possible. I decided to try some mullein tincture. I also had some tincture of olive leaf (which is an antiviral/antibacterial herb). My daugther, 12, was 2-3 days into the sickness when I started to use the tinctures. I would give her 1 teaspoon each of mullein and olive leaf tincture in 5 ounces of water (She is the size of a small adult.) It helped her a lot! I dosed her at least 4 times a day, sometimes more.
When two of my little boys (6 and 9) began to come down with the sickness, I immediately started them on the mullein and olive leaf tinctures. I gave each of them 1/2 teaspoon of each tincture, in 3 ounces of water. I gave them this 4 or 5 times a day. They were sick for just a day! The cough is still around some and I will continue to give the tinctures a couple of times a day.
My daugther, 11, was beginning to feel like she was getting sick. She started on the two tinctures right away. While she took a nap one day (which she never does) she never had a fever and never was down from it.
Mullein is sometimes called, "Great mullein." And indeed, it is great! It is a gentle but powerful herb. I love when a humble plant is such a wonderful medicine. It is even growing wild in fields near me.
Mullein Tincture Recipe
- 2 ounces of fresh mullein leaf (chopped fine) or 4 ounces of dried mullein leaf (I get mine from Mountain Rose Herbs.)
- 16 ounces of 100 proof vodka
Place herb into a mason jar. Pour vodka over it. Leave on the counter and shake daily for 2-6 weeks. Strain out the plant material with a coffee filter. Store the tincture in a cool dry place in a glass container.
~Mama to Many~
