Glandular fever
My 17-year-old daughter is suffering from glandular fever. Some days she is fine, on others her glands are badly swollen and her tonsils become infected. She is a keen singer and so her voice is also badly affected when she feels unwell. Aside from rest and avoiding stress, what else can she do? She’s taken a lot of antibiotics and we are concerned about the long term effects of this.
The Amazonian rainforest herb I want to recommend here was given medicinal plant status by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 1994 when it was emphasised that not since quinine was discovered in the bark of a Peruvian tree in the 17th century had a rainforest plant prompted such worldwide attention.
The herb is Cats Claw or Una de gato (which is its Spanish name); a large woody vine which gets its common name from the hook-like thorns that grow along its stems, looking for all the world like the claw of a cat.
Indigenous healers of the Amazon believe this herb “normalises” all the body’s systems and it has now even been used in conjunction with conventional therapies by cancer patients who have then reported fewer side-effects including hair loss, nausea, weight loss, secondary infections and skin problems.
Since recurrent glandular fever signals a compromised immune system and since Cats claw is a powerful immune stimulant, it should help your daughter stay well this winter. It would also be worth asking your doctor to test for a lingering Epstein-Barr infection which, if positive, can be eradicated by taking an English anti-viral herb, Elderberry, which acts specifically on this virus. Cats’ claw is now widely on sale in healthstores. I like (and use) Nutrition Now’s raspberry-flavoured Elderberry Support from Victoria Health (0800-413596).