Herbally Yours

Thyme: the fourth in the Scarborough Fair quartet, in addition to it’s culinary uses, has been used for centuries as a strewing herb, and to treat respiratory and gastro-intestinal ailments. Some of its properties include analgesic, expectorant, antiseptic antifungal, anti viral, and insect repellant.
Studies have proven it to be effective against many gram positive and gram negative bacteria including Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.

It has been used for decades for bronchitis, whooping cough, fungal infections, and has been used in toothpaste to prevent gingivitis.

In test studies thyme has been found to lower blood pressure and strengthen the heart functions in addition to it’s carminative and antispasmodic functions.

For an unrelenting cough try a cup of thyme tea sweetened with a little honey. Thyme not only will calm the cough and help expel phlegm, but will also open up the airways of the branchial tubes and lungs and is a wonderful respiratory stimulant.

To make thyme honey, loosely pack fresh or dried thyme in a jar and fill the jar with honey. Place the jar in a pan of water and allow the water to simmer for an hour. You may find it necessary to put a “grate” under the jar to prevent it from overheating. I use a canning jar ring for this purpose. Add hot water if necessary as the water simmers.

Remove the jar from the water and cap it tightly. Allow to set for 6 weeks. At this point you can either reheat the honey and strain, or leave the thyme in it. Add a spoonful of thyme honey to any herbal tea. While it is true that heating the honey will destroy some of its antibacterial properties, it will still make a wonderful addition to your herbal medicine collection.