The American Botanical Pharmacy                                                                            Page 63  
CHILDREN/ANIMAL DOSAGES . MIXING THE FORMULAE . ALCOHOL  

CHILDREN AND ANIMAL DOSAGES

HOW TO CALCULATE: Children vary dramatically in size and shape. One 5 year old can be very different from another. In my clinic, I found the safest and most effective way to dose children was by weight. After all, we want to adjust their dosage by how much their metabolism can handle. The surest way to do so is by weight. Simply make a fraction and put the child's weight over 150 pounds. Look at the following example. I am sure it will clarify what I am saying.

Childs's weight : 30 pounds       = 1
                           150 pounds          5       of the adult dose

If a child's weight was 50 pounds they would take 1/3 [one third) of the adult dosage. You can use this same formula to dose animals. A small 10 pound dog or cat would be 1/15 [one fifteenth) the adult dose and a 1500 pound horse would be 10 times the adult dose.

ADDITIONAL NOTES FOR CHILDREN: I have seen thousands of kids over the years in my clinic. I've had bruises on my shins from being kicked by some of the more stubborn ones. I have found that by mixing most herbal tonics 1/2 [one half tonic] and 1/2 [one halfw pure maple syrup], you can get it down any kid. Call it candy if you Need to . By diluting it 50% just take this into consideration and give the child twice as much of the children's dosage you already figured out. I have also noticed how smart children are. You must convince the child that the herbal formulae taste good and if you have a scary look on your face they will know you are lying. Making herbal Popsicles or having a tea party is far better than strapping them down with a funnel. Love, hugs and kisses can go a long way.

MIXING THE DIFFERENT HERBAL FORMULA

Many people are overly concerned about mixing the different herbal formulae. This is not necessary. Although you can hinder the effectiveness of the herbs (like using the female and male in the same mouthful), you can't hurt yourself . No explosions will occur.

I tried to get all of my patients to look at herbal formulae in the same way they look at food. You never have to worry about eating a squash with a carrot thinking it might kill you.

Herbs ARE foods and foods are herbs. It is true that herbs tend to have more concentrated amounts of plant Chemicals in them, but they are still very safe to mix. Even industrial strength herbal formulae will tell you by their taste how much is enough. If you overdose or mix badly the worst outcome is usually nausea.

If you are taking numerous different herbal formulae, such as in The Incurables Program, try to space them out possible (1/2 [one half] hour is enough) and do not take too many in the same mouthful.
PROBLEMS CONSUMING ALCOHOL IN TINCTURES?

Occasionally a few people have an emotional or spiritual aversion to consuming alcohol. On this I will make the statements.

The base of the majority of my formulae is mostly distilled water but some do have a pure grain alcohol content. Grain alcohol dissolves and extracts certain important phytochemicals, plant chemicals that are necessary for the different formula to be effective. Therefore, it is better than just water alone. For example, the diosgenin in Discorea Villousa (wild yam) is only soluble in alcohol and not in water. The alcohol also helps the herbs to assimilate quickly into your body and preserves the formula, which gives it an almost indefinite shelf life (over 5 years, if not over 50 years).

The amount of alcohol per dose is so insignificant that there is more in some mouthwashes. The amount of alcohol in the average dose of tincture is equal to the amount of alcohol in a ripe banana. This dosage has be tested on people who are alcohol sensitive with no adverse reactions. It is also a safe amount for anyone in a 12 step program or Alcoholics Anonymous. If you're still concerned about the alcohol, you can place the tincture in a cup, pour boiling water into the cup, and the alcohol will evaporate in seconds.
GOVERNMENT WARNING: None of the above statements have been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration or the American Medical Association.