Alice, if you ever want to try some Melaleuce stuff, let me know..........or your friend. I'd be glad to include something you want in my order. I will save an order form and magazine for you. (Or you could probably get one from your friend too.)

I have to tell the mastick (sp??) story. Rick had re-done the bathroom tile in our upstairs bathroom. He came to me with a putty knife and asked if I had some magic stuff that would clean it. He had been rummaging around in the basement and tried all kinds of things. Nothing put a dent in it. So I got out the Melaleuca oil. With a napkin and a bit of oil, the stuff came right off. And it was REALLY coated with the stuff. He was amazed!!!! And he said, "And you gargle with this stuff????" It was too funny. I use it in my homemade herbal lotion too!!!!

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That is so funny, Barb. I'll wait until dh needs some goop removed from something and then calmly suggest he try the tto.

Alice

It's early... When I started reading your story, I was thinking "mastiff," as in the dog! That was quite the mental picture!!!! :ivyhead:

Ooooooo... I'd love to try some of your lotion sometime. Too bad we're on the other side of the States from each other! Oh, well, maybe someday the Lord will bless us and I'll be able to come crash one of your Chicago area get-togethers :great:

Oh would that be cool. I'll tellya IF Rick and I ever get to come out to Washington and visit his brothers in the Seattle area, I'll let ya know!!!!!

LOL on the Mastiff mental picture!!!

I am still trying to find a way to thicken my lotion. It comes out watery and I have to mix it with commercial lotion, which I don't like to do, but don't have an alternative. I just don't know what they do to thicken it. I'll have to do some more research.

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cellulose gum = xanthan gum, etc.

I was thinkin' that might work!!!!

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Barb,

At some point someone (chiro?) suggested that dh take l-lysine for a sleep aid. It does help him when he has occasional insomnia. You know I have chronic insomnia (FM), and since the pain in my neck has been accute, I've been taking it nightly. When I don't, I don't sleep very well.

I was wondering if there was a limit on its use? I looked in the PNH, but couldn't find any limit. I also looked online and couldn't find anything. Do any of your sources list a limit that is safe. I don't want to become "dependent" on it, but then again it is really helping! The PNH I have is from 2000, btw.

I know you aren't a doc, but I also know you have some good books, so I thought I'd ask

OK, ladies, I've been lurking here and found this discussion fascinating! I was wondering, Sharron...

I take EPCO and melt it, and stir in some tea tree and peppermint oils; let it cool, and use it to rub on my poor, tired feet. Works great! They are soft, cool and refreshed after a long day on them. Do you think the same recipe, using OO would work for a sore muscle rub? I have some; I take it for my fibromyalgia. Or maybe another essential oil would work better?

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Trina

Vice-President of the Intergalactic Order of Brussels Sprouts Haters

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Actually, Trina, I've been doing research on tea tree oil the past couple of days. Reality, what you are doing is better than OO from what I've read. OO actually burns on the skin. Tea tree doesn't -- rather, it is soothing! The tea tree oil works much better on my neck pain than does the OO, which I've been using for years.

The OO is really helping my pain/energy level from the inside out, though.

OH Trina, what a cool recipe!!!!! I have all that stuff (except the OO) and think I will try it.

Hmmmmmmm, L-lysine, well all I get so far on it is that it's an essential amino acid. That means that the body can't manufacture it on its own. So the body uses it up. I wouldn't worry about it causing a physical addiction. But of course ANYTHING can become psychologically addicting. Since it's an essential, the body is using what it needs. It is a building block of protein. I don't have very many references on Amino Acids. I found in my New Choices in Natural Healing by Bill Gottlieb that 3,000 mg is recommended for anxiety along with 5,000 mg of Vit. C, and 800 mg of magnesium (actually for people with angina). He also says for cold sore outbreaks to take 1,000 mgs. during an outbreak and then dropping down to 500 mgs after the outbreak is over. I've seen NO cautions so far on it becoming addictive. I wouldn't suppose that it could become addictive since it's an essential amino acid. BUT I would caution just on amino acids in general that they really are supposed to be taken in balanced amounts (in amounts that the body can use) and not going overboard on them. Amino acids are building blocks for the body, but getting them out of whack can lead to some problems.

Upon further reading in PNH in the chapter about Amino Acids (page 34 in my book) they say to not take an individual amino acid for an extended period of time. Aspartic Acid (nutrasweet and equal), glutamic acid, homocysteine, serine, and tryptophan are especially, particularly cautioned as they could cause neurological damage. They say to take an individual supplement only for 2 months at a time and then take a break for two months. They also say one should take a balanced amino acid supplement (with all of them in an amino acid complex containing both essentieal and non-essential) at a different time from the one essential one. Sounds like you should alternate the individual and the complex, e.g., 2 months with the ind. and then 2 months with the complex and so on. Further, individual amino acids should be taken on an empty stomach in order to keep the competition with amino acids in foods down to a minimum. Conversely, complexes should be taken WITH food, about a half hour before OR after eating. IF taking both individual and complex, they should be taken at different times from each other.

Don't know if this answers your question. You might want to look into getting a balanced complex for DH when he's taking the 2 month break from it.

Amino Acids are VERY fascinating compounds and are essential for life.

BTW, PNH has explanations for all the amino acids in the chapter about them. Some can be taken in toxic amounts, L-Lysine not being one of them as far as I can tell.

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Footnote: the "L" forms of them are considered to be more compatible with human biochemistry. And individual ones should be taken with B6 and Vitamin C to enhance absorption.

This discussion is in no way meant to be a prescription for any of these amino acids, it is for informational purposes only.

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Thank you so much, Barb, that is really helpful. I am actually taking it with B-6, and I'm not sure if there is any C in my calcium supplement (I take it at night.) Dh doesn't need it very often, but I've been taking it nightly because of my pain level. It really has been helping me sleep.

HI, herb-y friends,

Wow - how interesting about the amino acids. I will review what y'all said and see if dh wants to try any of that for his insomnia.

Re thickening oils: I love the coconut oil idea. In fact, that was what I was planning to try with my homemade plantain oil, but I never picked the plantain this summer. :(

The books suggest adding beeswax to infused oils to make ointments. The recipe calls for 1 tablespoon grated beeswax to one ounce infused oil. Combine and heat very gently for a minute or two until beeswax is melted. Stir well and pour into ointment jars. After it cools, assess "hardness." One may need to remelt and either add more beeswax or more oil to get the desired texture.

I think I will try Trina's recipe too. I think I even have all the ingredients!

Alice

Alice, that beeswax sounds much better than xanthan gum, imho, for Barb's lotion! Where does one get beeswax though??? I've only ever seen it in honeycomb and that is sooooooo expensive!

Boy, I understand about "not picking" -- we had a fig tree FULL of figs. I did all this research and found recipes and how to freeze them, etc. I was going to have several gallons of them in the freezer for kiddos and dh to munch on... Well, in spite of the fact that I asked a number of times, they never got picked! Our sunflowers nearly didn't get picked either -- and about 1/2 of them are moldy :crying:

I was out inspecting my herb garden yesterday and I discovered that my Rosemary bush has become gargantuan in the past couple of months! I like it on my roasted chicken and once in a while throw it into something-or-other, but generally, it is very strong and I don't use it as much. Any ideas, oh herb women???

Sharron,

I have seen beeswax in the HFS; mine sells it in bulk for candlemaking. It comes in chunks and in little beads. I have never priced it, though. Maybe a craft store would have it, too?
I got the idea for the foot cream when I saw Burt's Bees Coconut Foot Cream in the HFS; I figured, hey, I can make something like that cheaper. I had the tea tree oil already, and picked up some peppermint oil 'cause I thought that would feel good on feet. Worked great.
Also, a friend of mine had a yard overgrown with sage and rosemary. She bought some grapevine wreaths at the craft store, weaved (wove?) the dried rosemary stalks into it, along with some dried baby's breath and holly berries, and sprayed the whole works with fixative to keep it from shedding (did the same with sage, but used styrofoam and stuck the leaves in with a glue gun). They are beautiful and smell great. She's an artist, and good at that stuff.

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Trina

Vice-President of the Intergalactic Order of Brussels Sprouts Haters

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