Saturday, March 15, 2014

Blog for Ivy’s School–Elderberries

I blog for Ivy’s school and realized I those posts should be here as well. so here is one of them…...

In my quest to heal my family and stay healthy using natural remedies, I discovered the ELDERBERRY.  Cooked elderberries (raw, unripe elderberries can be poisonous) have been used for medicine for hundreds of years.  It is believed that elderberries can help with the flu, alleviate allergies, and boost overall respiratory health. (source)  Elderberries are an excellent source of Vitamins A and C and a good source of calcium, iron, and Vitamin B6.  (source) I came across one study showed that “symptoms of the flu were relieved on average, four days earlier and the use of rescue medication was significantly less in those receiving elderberry extract compared with placebo." (source)

So, how do you incorporate elderberries in your medicine cabinet? One of the most common ways to take elderberries is by making an elderberry syrup.  You can purchase the syrup already made, however….. making your own is so easy!  I used this recipe.  There are a few out there, but they only seem to differ with the measurement of ingredients.  

Making your own syrup:

Ingredients:

2/3 cup elderberries (I buy my elderberries here) which you can order here:
3 ½ cups water,
2 T fresh or dried ginger root,
1 tsp cinnamon powder,
½ tsp cloves or clove powder,
1 cup raw honey.  (I use raw local honey from the house down the street from the school.  Local honey has all kinds of extra benefits, plus I love supporting local businesses - and it is delicious!)


Directions

Pour water, eldberries, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves into a medium saucepan
Bring to a boil and then cover and reduce to a simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.  The amount of liquid in the plan will be reduced by about half.
Remove from the heat and let the mixture cool.
Pour through a strainer into a glass bowl.
Discard the berries.  Let the liquid cool to lukewarm and then add the honey and stir.
The standard dose is ½ tsp to 1 tsp for kids and ½ TBS- 1 TBS for adults per day.  When you feel any flu symptoms coming on, you can increase the amount by taking the same dosage but taking it 2-3 times per day. 

I have come across some information says you shouldn’t take elderberries for more than 5 days at a time, while I know that others take elderberries every day to prevent the flu during the entire flu season.  You just need to do what feels right for you.  We take it about once a week and my kids LOVE it, which is always a bonus.

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