Today someone reading my post about cinnamon and honey weight loss tea asked whether it would be safe to use during pregnancy. I looked through my herbals and found a recipe for easing pregnancy, which uses cinnamon, so that indicates to me that cinnamon could be safe for pregnant women (and their unborn dear ones.)

From John Lust’s herbal, The Herb Book: The Complete and Authoritative Guide to More Than 500 Herbs:
This is said to prevent nausea and miscarriage. It is also for reducing labor pains and increasing milk production.
1 part cinnamon
5 parts blackberry leaves
5 parts milfoil
10 parts raspberry leaves
Steep 1 teaspoon in 1/2 cup boiling water. Take 1/2 to 1 cup daily in mouthful doses.

Note that there’s to be NO OVERDOSING… which is what I need to address concerning the cinnamon and honey diet. Though the cinnamon may be safe in normal amounts, drinking large amounts might not be safe during pregnancy. Plus, I wonder about the wisdom of trying to diet during pregnancy. This is something a pregnant woman should definitely discuss with her physician.

In addition, you should be aware that there are certain herbs intentionally used (by some) to terminate pregnancies. Here’s the list of common herbs a pregnant woman should avoid:

Angelica
Birthroot
Blue Cohosh
Brooklime
Bugloss
Cotton Root Bark
Ergot
Golden Seal
Ground Pine
Juniper
Male Fern
Motherwort
Mayapple
Pennyroyal
Potassium Permanganate
Rue
St. Johns Wort
Savin
Tansy
Thyme
Valerian
Yarrow
This information is derived from two sources, Herbs & Things - Jeanne Rose’s herbal, and Rodale’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs.

All these are likely to cause abortion to occur. DON’T try this at home! I’m against abortion in general so I’m hoping this won’t be taken by anyone as a way to terminate a life. I put the list here for the benefit of herb-using women who want to preserve their pregnancies.

This list of herbs said to ease childbirth comes from John Lust’s The Herb Book:
Althea
American Spikenard
Bennet
Birthwort
Black Cohosh
Blind Nettle
Blue Cohosh
Cannabis
Columbine
Comfrey
Common Groundsel
Cotton
European Ragwort
Flax
Garden Raspberry
Garden Violet
Goat’s Rue
Horehound
Iceland Moss
Lady’s Mantle
Pansy
Primrose
Ragwort
Shepherd’s Purse
Silverweed
Spikenard
Squaw Vine
Wild Red Raspberry
Wormwood

NOTE - some of these are mentioned on the ‘do not use’ list… I’d especially avoid Blue Cohosh! Rodale’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Herbs says it isn’t safe to use.

And about the Wormwood - I wouldn’t use that either. I know that too much of that is a danger.

Personally, I’d stick to something simple like Raspberry Leaf Tea which is well-known to be good for pregnancies.

Jeanne Rose wrote: “Raspberry leaf tea has been used for hundreds of years by women throughout their pregnancy to ease the pains of labor, to prevent miscarriage, and to increase the milk supply. It was mentioned by Pliny in his medical botany books. For the tea: one ounce of the leaves is steeped in twenty ounces of water for fifteen minutes, strained, and drunk - at least two cups per day. The leaves are also used as an astringent for diarrhea, as a gargle for sore mouths, and as an infusion to wash external ulcers and wounds. The berries are excellent eaten during a bout of diarrhea.” - Herbs & Things, page 100.

Also, note on the list of herbs that ease pregnancy, Cannabis is listed. This is Marijuana.. which is, in my opinion, a miracle healing herb… but I recommend that mothers do NOT use it during pregnancy or at any other time. The reason is that use of Marijuana is cause for child welfare agents (CPS or DHS social workers) to take children from their mothers. Especially during pregnancy, this is a real danger. I have met a young woman who used Marijuana to ease birth pains, who never got to take her child home from the hospital because THC was found in her baby’s urine. You will notice, if you give birth in a hospital, one of the first things they do is slap a urine sack on the infant to collect urine for drug testing. YES, this is true! And babies with any kind of drugs in their system are taken away from their parents. So DON’T use Cannabis/Marijuana while you’re pregnant. It just isn’t safe. If you use it you might need my other site: Fighting Child Protective Services CPS False Accusations, and I wouldn’t wish that upon anyone.

One more very important thing! Use moderation, no matter what herb you choose, whether you’re pregnant or not. Too much of any herb can be dangerous. If you’re not certain a herb is safe, ask your obstetrician or (if you’re breastfeeding) your pediatrician.

Here are the links to the herbals I used for this post:

Earlier this month I reached my limit of patience with weight gain. My clothes were getting tighter and I had to do something to turn things around. Being as I was particularly desperate, I decided to cleanse my system with the Lemonade Diet. Ever heard of it?

I first heard of the Lemonade Diet (aka: Master Cleanse or The Master Cleanser) on an Internet message board about two and a half years ago. The person writing there warned that it wasn’t for everyone. I agree, because it takes incredible determination and commitment that most people won’t have. The process is somewhat grueling, but the results are a much cleaner body, internally.

Actually, once the fast starts, after a day or two, there’s not much desire for food… so it usually isn’t hunger that’s difficult. I don’t want to go into all the particulars of the fasting process, but it is complex and people indulging in this process are encouraged to get the definitive book on the topic, The Master Cleanser, and read it through first.

The book, which is more like a semi-thick booklet, was first published in 1976 by Stanley Burroughs. It claims that cleansing the body through fasting is “basic for the elimination of every kind of disease.” He wrote that the Lemonade Diet started over forty years before as a cure for stomach ulcers. The diet takes ten days to heal. Ten days is the minimum, though many people fast longer, up to forty days, and even beyond.

The Lemonade Diet is also an effective weight loss diet, and that’s what I needed. The book states “fat melts away at the rate of about two pounds a day” and during the first few days of my fast, that was true for me. Toward the end of my ten-day fast it slowed down a bit, but I was happy to lose thirteen pounds in ten days. That’s a start.

The lemonade recipe is simple, and here’s my generalized version of it. Take the juice of two medium sized lemons, add two to four tablespoons of real maple syrup (to taste, with less if you want to lose weight), add water to make one quart, and add a tiny tiny tiny bit of cayenne. I’ve seen other versions of this recipe on the web wherein a bit of salt is added, and it is considered an electrolyte replacement drink (like Gator-Aid). But with the Lemonade Diet, add no salt.

This is what I drank for ten days straight. We’re supposed to drink six to twelve cups per day. I figured that meant at least three lemons. I personally had trouble drinking more than six cups. I supplemented with cold spring water. Lots of it. We’re allowed a cup of peppermint tea once daily. Plus we have to do an internal cleansing routine consisting of laxative tea at night plus a salt water flush in the morning. This is very effective in getting toxins to move on out of the body. It is essential to the success of the fast because detox symptoms build up if the salt water flush isn’t used.

The back of Burroughs’ Master Cleanser book contains information on how to break the fast, recipes for sustaining healthy eating after the fast, and other health information. It is all good advice… and don’t forget, if you plan to do the fast, reading the book first is very important.

Should I, or shouldn’t I?

I think I should.

I’ve noticed that even though I haven’t posted here since September ::blush:: I’m still getting lots of wonderful comments, especially on the Cinnamon and Honey Weight Loss Tea article. And yesterday someone from Cheshire Kitchens left a heart-warming comment on my Lentil Tacos - Tortillas Made From Rice Flour recipe article.

Thank you, comment-writers! You make me so very happy!

So I took another look at this blog. I love the topic. I love sharing my recipes. The reason I quit writing is that I was feeling overwhelmed with responsibilities, work on other websites, and writing aspirations. So I thought maybe cutting down on the number of blogs I had might help — but I see this blog continues to grow and inspire people despite my absence, so I’m going to come back and give you more of my attention and time.

Yes, I am the sleeping giant of this blog. The woman behind the words…. and I am delighted to know that there are people out there finding gems of value in the postings I’ve left here.

May there be many more postings, visitors, and comments in the days to come!