| Alfred
Vogel, who took great pleasure in walking and working in the
Swiss countryside, enjoyed collecting and eating pine buds
on his walks as he knew of their effectiveness against coughs.
Here is an extract from one of his earlier publications, now
sadly out of print, which gives some background to his creation
of the delicious and efficacious pine syrup, Santasapina.
When we see the light green
pine buds breaking through the needles of the pine trees,
we know that they are not just beautiful to look at, but that
they are also full of healing properties. And it is from them
that pine bud syrup is made, which even our great-grandmothers
knew how to prepare with all its tasty qualities.
The syrup was sweetened with honey, and these ingredients
naturally increased its effectiveness in treating coughs and
catarrh. Often the children would feign a cold just to be
able to get the desirable sweet pine shoot syrup. Their craving
for sweets was well satisfied but the syrup lost a lot of
its aroma through the boiling process.
Today’s pine bud syrup, known as Santasapina, is considerably
better, since it is made in a vacuum at very low temperature.
All its aromatic substances, besides its fine active ingredients,
which come from the fresh sap pressed from spring buds and
shoots of Norway spruce, thus remain intact.
Fruit juice concentrate and honey provide sweeteners, making
this pine syrup a delightful treat especially for children.
A plant remedy that is not only effective, but also tasty,
naturally has a decided advantage over other medicines that
do not have a pleasant taste. Besides pine bud syrup, there
are also Santasapina lozenges that are a great aid in soothing
the bronchials when there is a risk of infection. Their expectorant
effect in hoarseness, coughs and catarrh can lead to fast
relief.
The
Nature Doctor by Alfred Vogel ISBN 1 85158 274 6 £12.99
paperback www.avogel.co.uk
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