In 1922, the Canadian nurse, René Caisse (1888 - 1978), met a woman who had been cured of breast cancer by this herbal mixture.
The nurse made this herbal mixture famous by treating thousands of cancer patients with it. The name of Essiac is put together of the letters in her surname.
The remedy is still used. You can either buy the tea ready-made or - with some inconvenience - you can make it yourself.
The tea is made with spring water or distilled water and consists of:
- 120 g. of Burdock root, Arctium lappa, cut small.
- 80 g. of Common sorrel, Rumex acetosella, cut small.
- 20 g. of Elm bark, Ulmus rubra, pulverized.
- 5 g. of Turkish rhubarb root, Rheum palmatum, pulverized.
The tea should be stored in screw-capped dark bottles in the refrigerator since it is not preserved, but it must not be frozen.
Instructions
- Pour 5 l. of spring water or distilled water into a stainless steel pot - do not use aluminium pots. Let the water boil for a couple of minutes.
- Put 150 g. of the well-mixed herbs into the water and let the mixture boil for 10 minutes without a lid. Make sure to stir once in a while using a wooden spoon.
- Turn off the heat and let the tea draw for 12 hours with the lid on. After half the drawing time has passed, stir the mixture once.
- After the 12 hours, re-heat the tea but do not let it boil. Just before reaching the boiling point, turn off the heat and let it cool for a couple of minutes.
- Strain the tea into a new container. Use stainless steel or glass. It cannot be recommended to use plastic or aluminium. After straining the tea once, you can use a jellybag to finely strain the tea once more.
Approx. 3.5 l. of ready, strained tea will be made from the 5 l. of water with herbs.
Pour the finished and - at present - still warm tea into dark bottles with tightly fitting screw caps and store them in the refrigerator. However, the tea must not be frozen.
The tea will not be conserved and therefore can easily be attacked by mildew. For this reason, hygienic measurements must be taken when preparing the tea. If mildew appears, the contents must be discarded and the bottle must be thoroughly cleaned before reuse. Besides scalding kitchen tools, they can be cleansed with hydrogen peroxide.
Dosage
60 - 120 ml. of ready-made Essiac is diluted with a similar amount of warm spring water or distilled water.
The dose mentioned above is to be sipped 2 - 3 times a day in small sips on an empty stomach.
The best times for drinking the tea are early in the morning and before bedtime.
Do not eat for at least 1 hour after drinking Essiac tea.
Side effects
There have been reports of tumours having grown after consumption of Essiac before starting to dissolve.
Essiac is not known for causing side effects, but if the dose is too high, symptoms such as headache, thin stools, muscle- and joint pains, and flu-like symptoms can appear.
Reduce the dose and drink more water.
Warning
Pregnant women, breast-feeding women, people with brain tumours, and children under the age of 12 should not take Essiac.
