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Why are Clove, Black Walnut Hull and Wormwood the best herbs to kill parasites?
If you’ve spent time researching natural anti parasite supplements you will be quickly greeted with 3 powerful herbs; Cloves, Black Walnut and Wormwood. This holy-trinity of antiparasite herbs have been used with success for thousands of years. Let’s find out why.
We all have parasites to some extent it’s simply unavoidable and shouldn’t be something to normally worry about. However parasites can quickly become a problem when they spread out of control, wreaking havoc on a variety of our organs and generally making our bodies feel miserable. The main issue when embarking on a herbal parasite cleanse, or any cleanse for that matter, is there is no one-size fits all. No single drug or supplement can address all forms of parasites. That’s why you will very often see 3 or more ingredients on any reputable product.
The benefit of using a natural anti-parasitic routine is simple. You do not require a doctors prescription to access them, you can find them very conveniently, and they do not contain toxic or synthetic additives that could potentially put extra strain on your organs. For this reason alone herbs should be the first choice for many people suffering with parasites, especially if you want to treat parasites yourself at home. What’s more, herbal formulas often have a variety of benefits to the body not just limited to their anti-parasite properties. For example many anti-parasite herbs have been shown to improve the immune systen, restore the good bacteria in your gut, and act as Adaptogens. These adaptogenic herbs can relieve stress by controlling the release of hormones that provoke stress in the adrenal glands. Moreover, adaptogens can even restore the body’s natural immune function and instruct it to react more effectively to different stressors.
With this in mind its clear why a herbal parasite cleanse is a good first choice for anyone dealing with this incredibly common issue. Let’s find out why cloves, wormwood and black walnut are the holy trio in natural anti parasite supplements.
Why are Wormwood, Clove and Black Walnut Hull Anti Parasitic?
The logic behind using this combination of herbs is simple. When addressing parasites you must target all stages of the parasites life-cycle.
If you kill the eggs, then the mature and juvenile parasites will simply lay more. If you kill the adults and juveniles, then the eggs will eventually hatch and repopulate into adults. See the problem? A parasite cleanse can only be successful when we target all stages of the parasite life-cycle at the same time.
So why are cloves, wormwood and black walnut the top recommended herbs for a parasite cleanse.
Cloves
Cloves are a type of spice derived from the flower of a tree named, coincidentaly enough, the clove tree, or (Syzygium aromaticum). The buds are first harvested and then dried out which is when they resemble their recogniseabley red screw-like shape with a rounded head. You can readily find cloves in this state or ground into a fine powder. Whichever type you find will have a very noticeable and strong aroma and flavour. (Clove tea is not something you’ll forget in a hurry, you can take my word on that!)
Cloves have been used both for culinary purposes and healing for centuries. The long list of medicinal benefits makes them a powerful antimicrobial, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory herb. Most people believe this is due to their high content of eugenol. This turpene ranges from very pale yellow to almost completely colourless, it is a highly aromatic oily substance that aside from clove, can be found in bay leaves, basil, nutmeg, cinnamon and other popular culinary herbs.
When used as an anti-parasitic herb however the strong presence of eugenol in the cloves are thought to reduce or even dissolve the hardened shell that surrounds parasite eggs.
What does the science say? Eugenol, the main compound found in cloves, has shown to be an effective therapeutic against Cerebral Malaria in lab conditions. It has also been proven effective against Leishmaniasis, a parasitic disease spread by sand-flys, as well as Giardia, a intestinal parasite. In addition eugenol was also proven effective treating Schistosoma, more commonly known as the blood fluke, showing a significant reduction in total worm burden by 19.2%, demonstrating precisely why cloves have been successfully used as a natural parasite cure for so long.
Black Walnut Hull
Whilst I’m sure many of us have indulged in the sweet yet distinctly recogniseable taste of a walnut. Their cousins the black walnut, or Juglans nigra, have some subtle differences. Firstly the black walnut has a much higher concentration of a compound known as juglone. This ingredient has been recognised for its anti-microbial properties as far back as ancient Rome. It is said black walnut shows an obvious growth stunting effect on other plants noticed by the clear lack of vegetation that grows near them. For this reason it has even be used successfully as a herbicide. It has this effect by inhibiting the growth of organisms that come into contact with it. This is the same process that occurs when juglone is consumed in humans, it kills offending microbes whilst remaining safe to the host.
It’s commonly said that the hull of the black walnut has the highest concentration of juglone, so the most effective anti-parasitic would be derived from the green hulls rather than the more mature brown hulls.
Its been shown that the main compound of the Black Walnut Hull, juglone, demonstrates strong antiparasitic effects specifically in protozoa (a common parasite that feeds upon organic tissue). In addition the infamous Toxoplasma gondii parasite showed high mortality when in concentration of juglone.
Wormwood
Wormwood, also known as Artemisia absinthium, is a perennial herb that will theoretically grow indefinitely and has been used medicinally for millenia. In fact the name Wormwood is derived from its ability to effectively combat intestinal parasites.
If you consume wormwood you will instantly recognise it as one of the most bitter herbs in existance. This bitter taste is what triggers an immediate digestive response in the body initiating a release of bile, digestive enzymes as well as inducing peristalsis. All of which are beneficial to the natural digestive process. This is why wormwood is now commonly being used to effectively treat digestive disorders such as crohns and SIBO.
Whilst human studies are scant there is much evidence to suggest wormwood is effective in naturally treating parasites. The exact method of action is unknown although some experts believe rather than killing parasites wormwood acts to paralyse them leaving them more suceptible to leaving in normal bowel movements. Even though more research is needed there has been evidence to show that wormwood induced worm paralysis, death and ultrastructural alterations, such as tegumental damage, lipid accumulation, and destruction of the nephridial canal and the intrauterine eggs, in a dose-dependent manner specifically when used against intestinal tape-worms.
Conclusion
If you embark on a parasite cleanse it can be a very serious endevour, but also extremely rewarding if you are successful. I recommend anybody to initially start with a natural anti-parasite cleanse before resorting to potentially toxic pharmaceuticals.
Those who decide to take a natural approach will likely be using some combination of the above three herbs. These herbs are readily available dried and powdered into capsules, extracted and concentrated in tinctures, or simply as a whole plant extract. All of these can be equally effective providing you use them. Remember a parasite-cleanse is only effective if you stick to it diligently and for a bare minimum of 30-45 days.
If you’re looking for recommended products that contain Clove, Black Walnut Hull & Wormwood- consider reading our Parasite Cleanse: A Daily Routine.
