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"I am the Allower of my own Wellbeing"

A monthly newsletter written by Sherry Dell, PhD, CN

Volume 1, Issue 8
February, 2008

Osha Root: Winter's Friend

Winter brings the dark, the cold, and usually, the cold and flu season with it. In fairness, winter also brings cozy nights by the fire, great time for reflection, and lots of home cooked meals. But in case you're one who has suffered with the cold and flu season part of winter this year, I thought it would be helpful to share one of my favorite herbs with you.

Osha is the common name of a plant that grows only at high elevation (7500 to 10,000 ft above sea level) in the Rocky Mountains. It has the beautiful, fresh scent of the celery family. Technically, it belongs to the Apiaceae family which is the carrot/parsley family. Its scientific name is Ligusticum porteri, but it also goes by the names of Bear Medicine, Porter's Lovage, Chuchupate, and Colorado Cough Root.

Bears are known to dig up the root of the Osha plant when they come out of hibernation in the spring to cleanse their digestive system. They will also roll in the plant, dig up the root and chew it up into a paste and then wash its paws and face in it.

Like all herbs, Osha is helpful for many health issues. Relative to colds and flues it has these wonderful properties:

	anti-catarrhal: helps to move mucous from sinuses and respiratory tract
	anti-microbial: helps kill a wide variety of micro-organisms such as bacteria
	anti-viral: especially helpful in viral flues
	expectorant: helpful in loosening and bringing up heavy congestion from lungs

Other useful properties of Osha include:

	anti-allergy: helpful with immediate onset-type allergies and also prophylactically during allergy season
	anti-venomous: specifically snakes, spiders, wasps, bees, ants
	high-altitude sickness resolution: helpful with fatigue, headache, shortness of breath, and difficulty sleeping associated with altitudes above 7000 feet; chewing on fresh or dry root is perhaps most effective.
	carminative: helps to move gas from stomach or intestines
	emmenagogue: helps provoke menstruation

Again, as with all herbs, many forms of Osha can be useful. Chewing of the root mentioned above for high altitude sickness, compresses made from a strong root decoction, poultices made from mashing up the root and placing it on top of the wound, soak water made from strong root decoction can be used to soak the affected body part, tea, though strong tasting, can be made from infusing the cut and sifted root in hot water, and tincture, which is easily purchased ready made, is perhaps the most commonly used form.

Like all supplements, begin with small doses to determine reactions, preferably under the guidance of a trained herbalist.