From the August 2000 Idaho Observer:

Chapparral: Nature's Detergent for the Body

Most of us bathe regularly to cleanse the outside of our bodies, but how often do we think about cleansing the inside?

By Ingri Harkins

The Cure-All: Chaparral (Larrea Tridentata)

Chaparral is one of the best non-toxic blood purifiers on earth. The history of chaparral dates back to ancient Indian times when medicine men administered chaparral tea brewed from the leaves of the desert creosote bush.

The Shoshone Indians used chaparral tea as a cold remedy, a diuretic and a venereal aid. The Papago Indians used chaparral both internally and externally. It was considered a universal remedy for stiff joints, festering sores, poisonous bites and menstrual cramps. The dried and powdered leaves were used on a newborn infant's navel to promote healing and a tea of the leaves was applied externally to the mother's breasts to stimulate the flow of milk.

The Pima Indians relied on chaparral when they needed an emetic to cleanse the stomach. The resourceful Pima sometimes heated creosote bush branch tips to obtain healing sap which they dropped into the cavity of an aching tooth.

The Coahuilla Indians called chaparral a-tu-kul and drank chaparral tea for bowel complaints and consumption. They also gave it to horses suffering from distemper and colds.

It is interesting to note that the scope of native pathology consisted of bowel and stomach complaints, coughs, colds, milk fevers, sore eyes (from fire smoke), sprains, muscle soreness, injury and occasional rheumatism. After white contact which included white man's trading items of sugar and alcohol, measles, whooping cough, smallpox, venereal disease and tuberculosis were introduced.

Chaparral was an official medicament in the United States Pharmacopoeia from 1842 through 1942 and was listed as an expectorant and pulmonary antiseptic.

Before my mother knew about other herbs for healing, our family used chaparral as a cure-all for whatever ailed us. The alkalinizing, cleansing action of chaparral could always be counted on to do the job of affecting a cure since most of our illnesses were caused from excess toxicity accumulating in our bodies. The most dramatic cure was when my mother developed a polyp in her uterus which was the size of a small lemon and the doctors who diagnosed her condition recommended a hysterectomy. She politely declined and began drinking chaparral tea and taking chaparral capsules in earnest. A couple months later when she returned to the same doctors for a pap smear and diagnosis, they were sure they must have made some mistake since their was not a trace of the original tumor and her pap smear came back totally normal. We have since shared the value of using chaparral with other women with tumors or cysts in their reproductive organs. All the women that have used chaparral on a daily basis for several weeks report back that their tumor/cyst has disappeared and are ever so grateful for learning about this wonderful plant.

Chaparral is best known today as an anti-cancer agent. There are countless testimonies of people who have used this herb successfully to rid their bodies of melanomas, tumors, and most forms of cancer. Jason Winters Tea, a popular cancer remedy, contains chaparral as its number one ingredient. Winters claims that he cured his cancer using his proprietary formula of three herbs.

I have often referred to chaparral as an internal detergent. I tell people: “So you bathe everyday but never think about giving the inside of your body a bath? If you do not do regular detoxing and internal cleansing, you are welcoming health problems into your life.”

So how does chaparral work to reduce and eliminate malignant tumors and other complaints? The following is paraphrased from Dr. Kelly's book, One Answer to Cancer:

As a blood purifier, chaparral cleanses deep into the tissues and assists the body in eliminating toxic debris. In our modern society our pancreas, liver and other tissues and organs are so congested with poisons from pharmaceutical medications, sprays, metallic poisons and other pollutants that our organs cannot carry on normal activity. This serves as an antagonist to the enzyme, mineral and vitamin metabolism in our bodies. In cancer specifically, the pancreatic enzymes are locked with the antagonists and are rendered totally ineffective. By chelating these antagonists (with chaparral) from the pancreatic enzymes, we find that the person's own cancer defenses take over and destroy the malignant tumor. It has also been found that chaparral works well in chelating the toxins and drug residues out of those who have been drug addicts.

Fifteen years ago I was in Tempe, Arizona, working at Gentle Strength Food Co-op in the herb section. Many people came to our department for various ailments. Although we were not supposed to diagnose and prescribe, I couldn't help sharing with people the power of the creosote bush that was native to the area. One man in his late 20s wanted something that would help his complexion. I suggested that he take six chaparral capsules a day for a week and then take ten capsules a day after that, spread out in doses of three times a day. He came back after a couple weeks elated with the results. His complexion had improved dramatically. But the most significant change for him was his steady weight loss and increased energy level. He began sharing chaparral with all his family members and his mother, who had suffered from arthritis, was also deriving tremendous relief by taking chaparral capsules daily. He came in every couple weeks for more and more chaparral capsules to share with his friends and others who crossed his path.

Another woman came in who was suffering terribly from poison ivy. I suggested she make a poultice with chaparral leaves and leave it on overnight. She, too, came by to thank me since the itchy rash was completely gone when she removed the poultice in the morning.

Naturopath Eileen Marsh gave the following testimony:

“I started taking two tablets of chaparral with each meal and in six weeks I noticed a marvelous sense of well being. I also noticed a little 'crick' noise I had heard in my knee when I went upstairs had vanished. So then I decided to take four with each meal and see the effect, for I always believe in being my own guinea pig. After five days I noticed that a warty cyst on my skin had completely flattened. I had been trying for at least a year to get rid of it. Now I know that it helps arthritis and has an effect on 'lumps' and bumps.

“I then experimented with taking five with each meal. This made me feel wonderful. It made me have four to five bowel movements a day, so although it is not a laxative, it helps the bowel. I have a cancer patient who is taking 24 tablets a day, six with each meal and six just before retiring. It has already reduced the swollen look of his face and enables him to pull his ear now without pain, all in one week, so it does have a beneficial effect.”

Before trying this yourself, you need to know that chaparral is the most powerful detoxifier I know of. Most people experience their skin breaking out in pimples or rashes when taking it the first few days. Start out slow and increase your water intake. A dear friend of mine who had terrible body odor and admitted to having taken LSD regularly over the course of a year in his youth, took a concentrated blood purifier whose main ingredient was chaparral. He experienced hallucinating at the job site and luckily trusted my explanation of chaparral's properties and continued to take the product. The first week of consumption is often an unpleasant experience as one can go through a period of headaches and low energy as the toxins surface. However, the end results are definitely worth the temporary, initial discomfort.

I, personally, have known when chaparral needs to be incorporated into my daily regimen. After experiencing a lot of stress coupled with chemtrails, I knew I was due for several weeks of daily chaparral ingestion. Most of us do not do anything until crisis hits and it hit me in the form of hayfever. I immediately began to make up chaparral and cayenne capsules and am gratefully experiencing the benefits.

Chaparral is very inexpensive and can be purchased in many forms at your local health food store. Through my many years of using and recommending this herb, I have found no adverse side effects. The FDA attempted to take it off the market in the early 1990s claiming that it caused damage to the liver. It has since been vindicated enough to be available today. The pharmaceutical industry has long been envious of products that grow wild in your own yard since they cannot patent them. As long as natural, inexpensive remedies in the form of herbs or weeds are growing around us, we need to learn how to utilize them.

We encourage you to make chaparral a key ingredient in your own personal pharmacy.