Buckthorn
Buckthorn is a deciduous tree that grows up to 20 feet tall. The bark is green when the tree is young, but turns to gray as it ages. Flowers are green and white and bloom between May and July. Berries of Buckthorn are black when mature.
Rhubarb
Rhubarb has a long history of herbal usage. The primary result of rhubarb root as an herbal medicine is a positive and balancing effect upon the digestive system. Rhubarb is one of the most widely used herbs in Chinese medicine. Rhubarb roots are harvested in the fall from plants that are at least six years old. The roots are then dried for later use. The root is used as an anticholesterolemic, antiseptic, antispasmodic, antitumor, aperient, astringent, cholagogue, demulcent, diuretic, laxative, purgative, stomachic and tonic. Rhubarb roots contain anthraquinones which have a purgative effect, and the tannins and bitters have an an effect that is opposite that of an astringent.
Ginger
Ginger is an herb. The rhizome (underground stem) is used as a spice and also as a medicine. It can be used fresh, dried and powdered, or as a juice or oil. Ginger is commonly used to treat various types of “stomach problems,” including motion sickness, morning sickness, colic, upset stomach, gas, diarrhea, nausea caused by cancer treatment, nausea and vomiting after surgery, as well as loss of appetite.Other uses include treating upper respiratory tract infections, cough, and bronchitis. Fresh ginger is used for treating acute bacterial dysentery, baldness, malaria, poisonous snake bites, rheumatism, migraine headache, and toothaches.
Dried ginger is used for chest pain, low back pain, and stomach pain.
Goldenseal
It is a small perennial herb, with a horizontal, irregularly knotted, bright yellow root-stock, from 1/4 inch to 3/4 inch thick, giving off slender roots below and marked with scars of the flower-stems of previous years. The flowering stem, which is pushed up early in the spring, is from 6 to 12 inches high, erect, cylindrical, hairy, with downward-pointing hairs, especially above, surrounded at the base with a few short, brown scales. It bears two prominently-veined and wrinkled, dark green, hairy leaves, placed high up, the lower one stalked, the upper stalkless, roundish in outline, but palmately cut into 5 to 7 lobes, the margins irregularly and finely toothed. There is one solitary radical leaf on a long foot-stalk, similar in form to the stem leaves, but larger, when full-grown being about 9 inches across.
Fennel
Fennel is a mild appetite suppressant and is used to improve the kidneys, spleen, liver and lungs. Fennel is also commonly used help with heartburn and water retention, and helps support blood pressure. Fennel relaxes the smooth muscle lining the digestive tract. It also helps banish gas. Fennel is excellent for obesity and increases the flow of urine.
Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne Pepper High in Vitamins A, C, B complex, potassium and calcium, Cayenne Pepper is a wonderful healing aid for the digestive system, and can actually increase the nutritional effectiveness of foods and herbs eaten with it. Cayenne is traditionally used to cure constipation, stomach aches, cramping, gas and promotes weight loss. It can be used as a diuretic as well, helping in the elimination of built-up waste in the intestines.
