Slippery Elm - the funny sounding herb with serious significance.

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Overview and Value of Slippery Elm.

Slippery Elm Bark Extracts INCI Name Ulmus Fulva Extract Slippery Elm Bark Powder slippery-elm inner bark extract Elm trees extract Ulmus rubra Muhl Ulmus fulva Muhl Ulmus pumila L photo picture image The Slippery Elm is a small tree abundant in various parts of North America.

 The branches are very rough, the leaves long, unequally toothed, rough with hairs on both sides, the leaf-buds covered with a dense yellow Wool. The flowers are stalkless.
 The inner bark has important medicinal value and is an official drug of the United States Pharmacopoeia.

 The bark, which is the only part used, is collected in spring from the bole and larger branches and dried. Large quantities are collected, especially in the lower part of the state of Michigan. As the wood has no commercial value, the tree is fully stripped and consequently dies.

 The bark as it appears in commerce for use in medicine consists only of the inner bark or bast and is sold in flat pieces 2 to 3 feet long and several inches wide, but only about 1/8 to 1/16 of an inch in thickness. It is very tough and flexible, of a fine fibrous texture, finely striated longitudinally on both surfaces, the outer surface reddish-yellow, with patches of reddish brown, which are part of the outer bark adhering to the inner bast. It has an odour like Fenugreek and a very mucilaginous, insipid taste. The strips can be bent double without breaking: if broken, the rough fracture is mealy, strongly but finely fibrous. The clean transverse section shows numerous medullary rays and altemate bands of bast parenchyma, thus giving it a chequered appearance. A section moistened and left for a few minutes, and again examined, shows large swollen mucilage cells.

 The powdered bark is sold in two forms: a coarse powder for use as poultices and a fine powder for making a mucilaginous drink. The disintegrated bark forms, when moistened, a flexible and spongy tissue, which is easily moulded into pessaries, teats, and suppositories.

 It is recommended that ten-year-old bark should be used.

 The powder should be greyish or fawncoloured. If dark or reddish, good results will not be obtained. The powdered bark is said to be often adulterated with damaged flour and other starchy substances.

 Slippery elm inner bark is very rich in mucilage, a complex mixture of polysaccharides that form a soothing gelatinous fiber when water is added. The pleasant tasting high fibre 'gruel' or porridge made by adding water to the bark was traditionally used as both a food and a medicine by First Nations peoples, and later by European colonists. The mucilage was traditionally used internally for soothing sore throats and tonsillitis, coughs, dryness of the lungs and digestive upsets, and externally for healing wounds and other skin inflammations. Slippery elm tree and root bark were also used as folk remedies for treating many serious degenerative diseases. The bark is particularly recommended for soothing gastric diseases.

 The viscous fiber has several beneficial effects on digestion:

 1) it reduces bowel transit time;
 2) it absorbs toxins from the bowel;
 3) it increases fecal bulk and dilutes stool materials thereby reducing stool contact with the intestinal mucosa; and

 4) it enhances beneficial bacteria in the gut and provides an excellent substrate for bacterial fermentation. Eliminating estrogenic anaerobes from the gut can significantly help the body to regain critical hormone balances that are required for basic health.

 The bark has noted anti-inflammatory activity and because the mucilage resists hydrolysis and digestion by stomachs acids and enzymes, it therefore maintains it's soothing action throughout the entire digestive system. Slippery elm bark mucilage also helps to moisten the throat, nasal passages, and lungs. Slippery elm bark was also traditionally used for treating abscesses, dysentery, urinary conditions and fever. Poultices were traditionally used to support bone and joint health, reduce swollen glands and stop the spread of infections.

 Often used as a digestive tonic, Slippery Elm helps soothe the mucous membranes of the throat and the entire digestive tract. It's a popular herbal ingredient in natural throat and cough lozenges. In capsules, this herb makes a wonderful stomach-soother and digestive aid.

 Slippery elm is a deciduous tree native to the United States and Canada. The inner bark of the slippery elm was used widely by the Native Americans and later by the early American settlers. In fact, a gruel made from slippery elm bark sustained George Washington's army during the bitter winter at Valley Forge.

 Slippery elm is rich in nutrients, easy to digest and soothing to the digestive system. For centuries people have used it to support the digestive system and to maintain regular waste elimination.

 Slippery Elm is also known by the names Red Elm, Moose Elm and Indian Elm. It helps relieve digestive discomfort and provides mucilage to soothe the digestive tract. Mucilage is a long chain of sugars (polysaccharides) that make a slippery substance when combined with water.

 Slippery Elm is rich in nutrients and easy to digest, making it an excellent food during times of digestive discomfort. It can be made into gruel. In times of famine, early American settlers used it as a survival food; George Washington and his troops survived for several days on slippery elm gruel during the bitter winter at Valley Forge.

 Slippery elm supplies mucilage to soothe the digestive and intestinal tracts. Mucilage is a long chain of sugars that form a slippery substance when combined with water. Mucilage can settle the digestive tract, absorb toxins from the bowel and help maintain regular elimination patterns.

 NSP Slippery Elm bark is guaranteed to be the finest available, packaged in preservative-free capsules to ensure that you are getting optimal nutrients without unwanted substances.*

 These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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last edit date:23th,June.2009.