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So, here's the Winter season! According to the Classics, 7th December marks the beginning of the second month of Winter. This middle month of Winter represents to us the festive season in which we celebrate light (December being the darkest month of the year) and our humanity. It comes from our innate need to come together on dark and cold evenings to create and share heat and light. We withdraw from much outdoor activities to rest and recover after many busy months. We are supposed to accumulate energy during the next couple of months or so. So, avoid doing harsh eliminations or energy wastage, i.e. detox or rushing around without stopping, in the next couple of months.


In some ways, we have adopted that innate need to withdraw and accumulate energy into acquisition of goods as presents and foods for the festive season. But remember that this is really our instinctual urge to accumulate and recharge our batteries. Look at trees, all their energy is withdrawing from the external parts (branches) into trunks and roots. Hence they lose their leaves. Look at animals; they either hibernate or look for warm shelter and sleep a lot.


In Chinese Medicine this energy, our batteries, is called Jing and it is placed in our Kidneys. We have two Kidneys, one is related to our pre-natal energy and the other to our post-natal energy. This means that the Kidneys are a kind of a bridge between our living energy and the energy we had brought in with us: ancestral or reincarnated. So, this month we reconnect with our roots, our families, to renew the connection to who we are and where we have come from. I encourage you to take time off to yourself to reflect on what you feel your human identity is here on Earth.


The next two months will give us this possibility to dive deep into our essence and identity. If, in that process, you rediscover or re-identify some aspects of yourself you have, but you have not realised you have had, it has the potential to give you a new shot of life, a renewed will to live. Sometimes it is simply a family connection, going back to your roots and feeling that connection can reignite life. Whether you feel part of the family or not (you feel more of an outcast), facing them up still reinforces the message about who you feel you are. Other times, it is slowing down and reflecting that gives us more clarity on your identity. In any case, make time to reconnect and reflect.


In Winter we should be like the stormy waters which calm down and reveal their transparency all the way to the bottom of the sea. You will benefit immensely on the mental level too! Physically, it will give you tranquil sleep, good body circulation, physical strength (especially in the lumbar back) and improved immunity to cold-borne diseases (such as viruses).


The post-natal Kidney "batteries" are further renewed during these Winter months by taking care of our "renewable" physical energy. The best way to renew it is to keep the body warm, circulation stable and resting sufficiently. If you suffer from cold, do warm up with hot coarse salt compresses and warming herbal teas (ginger, cinnamon, etc) and soups (especially with winter root vegetables). Brisk walking or jogging and winter sports are also indicated in this season to keep the circulation going and building up the body's strength and determination.


To keep you warm, nourished and sustained during this Winter I have prepared special herbal teas, meticulously made from personally harvested herbs and according to the principles of Classical Chinese Medicine. If you are interested in getting this special herbal tea edition, please contact me below:



 










You wouldn't look twice at Cocklebur discarding it as another infestatious plant. Children, however, seem to be drawn to its prickly fruits. By coincidence, it was just at the time I was studying this herb when my daughter came back from school with a pocketful of Xanthium fruits. I felt immediately attracted to its smell, which seemed tabacco-like at first but I later realised (when toasting them) that they have a roasted coffee smell.


It came to me as no surprise, when I dag into the literature on Cocklebur, that it includes "seven caffeoylquinic acid (CQA) derivatives"**. Yes, the same that are in your espresso and they are a type of antioxidants. Studies confirm that CQA have "protective effects against type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease"* meaning for prevention and treatment of these diseases and other, which I will mention later.


So, the first thing I did after collecting its fruits, toasting them and cleaning meticulously from the spikes (which unfortunately contain most of its toxic substances) I brewed them into a tasty tea, which resembles more a coffee in effect. And out of all the coffee alternatives I have ever tried I must say this one has the closest aroma to the roasted coffee out of all. Its bitter and acid levels are contained, unlike chicory, which is predominantly bitter and lacking the coffee aroma for satisfying my olfactory senses. It is said that precicely its aroma is what traditionally gave Xanthium its use in openeing up the nose passages.


In fact, it has such an intense aroma that more contemporary use of this plant has been tested as an essential oil. One study has confirmed the Xanthium EO "inhibited the growth of Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus subtilis, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger"***


It is not an intention of this post to list all the studies on Xanthium strumarium, which seem to be truly abundant. However, to give you an idea of the wide-range of compounds and effects this plant has I quote this study:

"Up to now, more than 170 chemical constituents have been isolated and identified from X. strumarium, including sesquiterpenoids, phenylpropenoids, lignanoids, coumarins, steroids, glycosides, flavonoids, thiazides, anthraquinones, naphthoquinones and other compounds. Modern research shows that the extracts and compounds from X. strumarium possess wide-ranging pharmacological effects, including anti- allergic rhinitis (AR) effects, anti-tumor effects, anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects, insecticide and antiparasitic effects, antioxidant effects, antibacterial and antifungal effects, antidiabetic effects, antilipidemic effects and antiviral effects."****


Despite it being seemingly a perfect, local alternative to coffee there are two problems here. The first one is the time it takes to clean the fruits of its spike manually if you have no industrial equipment and intend to harvest your own Cocklebur. The second reason is that this herb should not be consumed for long periods of time, due to its toxicity. Even after removing the prickly spikes from the fruits it is still classified in the Materia Medica of Chinese Medicine as a mildly toxic herb.


In fact it is the millennial use of Xanthium strumarium, in Chinese: Cang Er Zi, 苍耳子, that has inspired so much of the modern research. Cang Er Zi means "Deep Green Ear Seed", however, the lower part of the character contains the word granary and the upper part the word plant/herb. So, we could translate it as Plant Granary Ear Seed. "Plant Granary" explains the relation to the western name Xanthium, xanthos from Greek meaning blond/yellow. It refers to the Cang Er Zi fruits turning from green to yellow as they mature, the same as the grains.


"Granary" already suggests its uses for Damp conditions (granary refers to Stomach which is damp in nature); the Deep Green refers to its Liver affinity and its ability to treat Wind conditions and eye conditions that result in headaches; Ears to its ability to open the orifices, particularly the ears and the nose, the last one giving it affinity to Lungs. Cang Er Zi is warming so it is used to treat Cold conditions.


In fact, the ancients have found the best use of Xanthium in opening up the blocked sinus cavity (sinusitis) with the Xanthium Powder/Cang Er Zi San formula. According to the Classical Chinese Medicine if your cold becomes sinusitis (cold plus phlegm) and continues unresolved it will result in aches and pains in your limbs, aka rheumatic pains. Hence it brings me to suggest that Cang Er Zi is perfect for this cold season in cases you cannot get rid of your blocked nose and especially if you start noticing musculoskeletal aches at the same time.


Its bitter taste makes it duretic and its slightly spicy taste makes your skin breathe and eliminate. This aids Wei Qi, which are your defences. The sweet taste of Cang Er Zi is relaxing. My final judgement of Xanthium is that it is a potent and balanced herb if used in acute conditions for a short period of time. It may not be my everyday coffee alternative but at least when I need it I will look forward to its coffee aroma.


If you would like to find out if Xanthium is the right herb for you, book an appointment for a consultation.


References:



 




The 7th of November will mark the beginning of Winter according to the classic Su Wen text. Depending on where you live in the northern hemisphere you may feel it more or less wintery around you. Here in the central Italy it definitely does not feel wintery yet; feeling yet that autumnal stillness, the leaves have just began to turn yellow and the air is still smelling of fungus. All that seems like a little extension to Autumn energy as in reality, the beginnings and endings of seasons are never clear cut.


If you remember my October update, Autumn is related to Lungs and Large Intestine. Being at the far end of the Autumn there is more emphasis on Colon and clearing out activity. Think about your garden or a park near you or a tree growing near your house. It is at the end of Autumn that we need to clear out lots of dead leaves fallen to the ground.


Analogically, the end side of Autumn season is the best time to consider what we still want, or better, need to let go of before the Wintery withdrawal and accumulation season initiates. At least here in Italy we seem to have those last chances to clear out things or energy from our homes, bodies, minds and emotions.


So let's start with your body. Is your body moving smoothly or have you had your rheumatisms, headaches, constipations, extra-weight, swellings, candida in your body recently? If those symptoms have come up in the Autumn months that is clearly an indication that cleansing is necessary. It is the best time to help your Colon in clearing out by cutting down or cutting out the foods that slow down your peristalsis: glutinous grains and meat in particular. Adding, however, extra fibre from fruits, veggies and pulses. It is ideal time to help your Colon with probiotics too, remembering that you can get it from fermented foods too!


How about your mind? Are you able to get clarity at work and in other activities? If you struggle with too many thoughts that keep you awake at night you need to sit still more often and teach your mind to let go of habitual mental unrest. In the morning, plan your day consciously according to your priorities. Focusing on what is necessary to do at hand and sweep away cluttering and unproductive thoughts. Make a conscious effort to address that which is necessary. Face head on your obligations, including bills or payments, handle and resolve difficult issues with friends and family, etc. Putting things aside will hold and block the energy so resolving them will release a lot of energy which you will notice in your affairs moving ahead.


Or perhaps you have noticed that after relaxing Summer months you got back into the stressful whirl of work and life that has by now created in you feelings of anger, frustration, withdrawal, lack of enthusiasm, even fear of not not making it. Although we all have our own dynamics to work on, this period of late Autumn is a perfect time to just let go of painful feelings irrespectively of where they originate from. The energy that is out there right now is so helpful in doing just that: detach from all those destructive emotions that only stop you from experiencing life fully.


To add to this Autumnal energy we are astrologically in between two Eclipses (the Solar and the Lunar between the 25th October and 7th November), the energy of which will continue afterwards for a while. It powers the energy of introspection and reset, which is perfect for clearing the old and setting the new, clean plate for time to come; be it in your life or in your habits that ultimately create your health and wellbeing.


To start with take one habit, physical, mental or emotional that has been around for too long or you got rather tired of. Make a conscious effort to change your attitude towards it; let go of the need to repeat it. All along remember: habits cannot make who you are, put yourself in charge of your habits!


If you don't know where to start, you can book an appointment to get some help from ancient traditional diagnosis and treatment; click on the button below to proceed.



 




Thank you for joining in!

​© 2023 by Dorota Kowal. All rights reserved.

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