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Herbs: Slippery Elm bark - powder

Excerpts from The ABC Herbal

This mucilaginous herb also helps absorb toxins in the bowel. In fact, it is very soothing to the entire digestive system. It is useful especially for diarrhea, bowel weakness or as a mild nourishing food for sick children. Since the herb is slightly sweet, it is one that children will often take readily if it is mixed in some cereal, applesauce or fruit juice. We have also blended it with fruit juice and used it to make a "mock" chocolate drink by mixing it with hot milk and honey.

Excerpts from The How to Herb Book

Slippery elm is an amazing, mild-flavored, highly nutritious herb. It is used in many combinations and poultices not only because of it medicinal properties but also because of it cohesive quality that helps hold the other herbs together.

• In case of famine, it would be an excellent herb to store and to forage for eating.

• Mucilaginous and expands when mixed with water. Does not mix easily, use a blender, wire whip, fork, or shake in bottle, etc.

• Should be taken with lots of water.

• Contact healer both internally and externally. Coats, relaxes, and heals all inflames tissues including irritated and inflamed mucous membranes of stomach, bowels, and kidneys.

• A gentle herb – one of the best for diarrhea especially for babies. It normalizes the stools, soothes, coats, and heals the entire intestinal tract lining.

• Used in enemas for scalding diarrhea because of soothing and healing qualities. The flavor hints of burnt caramel candy – most babies willingly eat a slippery elm mixture.

• Good for ulcers and delicate stomachs.

• Great of hiatal hernias. Must be taken in tea form or powder stirred in water for this. Capsules would dissolve in the stomach and the hernia would not be coated since it is above the stomach.

• Used for vaginal douches.

Has been used in the following:

Excerpts from Nutritional Herbology

When ground to a fine powder, this bark makes an excellent flour extender and can be used in a variety of recipes. Some writers claim that it has a food value equal to that of oatmeal and have recommended it as a wholesome and nourishing food for invalids and children.

The demulcent, emollient and wound healing properties of slippery elm are due to its mucilage content. The mucilage is viscous fiber that lowers the bowel transit time, absorbs toxins from the bowel, regulates intestinal flora and soothes the lining of the digestive tract.

The demulcent effects are also active when the herb is used externally as a poultice or in an ointment.

The most popular use of slippery elm is as a demulcent expectorant. This property is explained by the ability of tannins to combine with mucous and precipitate it.

Slippery elm decoctions are consumed hourly to coat the throat and allow the tannins to congeal the mucous build-ups, thus facilitating the expulsion of excess mucous. Beware of respiratory formulas based on slippery elm that are in capsules or tablets to be swallowed as this negates any demulcent action on the throat.

Contains mucilaginous compounds that decrease the thickness while increasing the production of mucosal fluids. These compounds soothe inflamed tissue, decrease bowel transit time and absorb toxins from the bowel. It also contains astringent compounds that shrink inflamed tissues. Slippery elm has been used to treat asthma, bronchitis, colitis, coughs, weak digestion and inflammatory bowel disease.

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