In the midst of COVID-19 stress, one positive is that many of our most experienced herbalists are freely sharing information and protocols for immune, antiviral, and respiratory support herbs. Below is my running list that I am adding to as a I come across new information. Many of these protocols are good to have for general viral illness support and/or prevention (strengthening the immune system).
Its important to remember that COVID-19 is a new virus that we are still learning about, and we have no basis for claims that these herbs can “treat” or “cure” the virus. That being said, many of these herbs have a history of use for prevention, immune health, and for supporting the body during viral/respiratory illnesses. We are hearing reports from China that they have been using herbs in combination with other treatments within the hospitals (see first article below).
It seems prudent to consider immune herbs like astragalus and mushrooms as a risk reduction strategy, especially in vulnerable populations (keep in mind they are not a replacement for good public health and personal hygiene practices).
Its also interesting to note that the Chinese herbal approach includes use of several plants that are very common, if not invasive, here – Japanese honeysuckle flowers and forsythia fruit. I am certainly viewing these plants in a different light and am grateful to have them around. I suppose I will let more of the honeysuckle stick around this year and hope to be able to offer a workshop for medicine making with them.
I do have a limited supply of many of these herbs that are listed in the links below – so please contact me if you need something!
Donnie Yance: https://www.donnieyance.com/herbal-remedies-for-acute-viral-infections/ and fever advice: https://www.donnieyance.com/dont-fear-a-fever-the-importance-of-working-with-not-against-the-immune-system-in-warding-off-infection/
Herbalista: https://herbalista.org/covid-19-care-center/
Leslie Alexander and the simple yet effective medicine of Salt: https://www.facebook.com/leslie.alexander.7524/posts/10218364593118743
Paul Bergner: https://www.naimh.com/coronavirus?fbclid=IwAR0t427Lowsrpnbs95tegNYlOxUH7piFmrdHzjyvuYLrCG-2cBSz8JTuDdQ
Rosalee de la Foret: https://www.herbalremediesadvice.org/herbs-for-immunity.html
Sam Coffman: https://www.facebook.com/whatqigonnado/posts/10216348963261150
Stephen Buhner: https://www.stephenharrodbuhner.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/coronavirus.txt.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1rnVBLbmASnrPysJIqrb1nrGuJ3DvpNuQ3qP8YOjcUMc8kHH-oV_vpGXY (note that some Buhner’s info is controversial)
TCM approaches: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32065348
Thomas Easley: https://www.eclecticschoolofherbalmedicine.com/covid-19/
A formula: BRAVE elixir for immune and respiratory health: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PNbydtICFuHE1GdU8Sbxx-wRUmZhzQDL/view?usp=sharing
An interesting snippet: Jonathan Treasure is recommending folks discontinue CBD (unless using to manage severe condition such as seizure) due to it being a mild immunosuppressive https://twitter.com/herbological?cn=ZmxleGlibGVfcmVjc18y&refsrc=email
Lexington herbalist Andrew Bentley’s YouTube video: Outbreaks, Epidemics, and COVID-19