Errors and Corrections

No matter how many obsessive compulsives, editors, technical reviewers, and
intense authors have read my manuscript material before publication in book form
there are always errors that, seemingly, cannot be found until the day the book
comes back from the printer. I apologize for those - we do try our best but still
fall short. (Perhaps all of us instinctively understand the Navajo admonition to
always have errors in what you do so as not to irritate the gods). The following
are errors in my books that bother me. Some have been corrected, some have not.
In those cases where they have not been corrected some of the reasons are: the
publisher will not make the suggested changes, the publisher is out of business,
the book is out of print.

Please note that in my books, the following sections are either incorrect or
unclear and should be amended as noted.

	THE SECRET TEACHINGS OF PLANTS:
	There are a number of minor errors in the text, mostly grammatical. The main one that bothers me is that the word "and" on page 168, about the 13th line down on the far right of the page, should be removed. The line should read: ". . . a particular kind of thinking - a thinking specific to the heart - through imagination."
	In Secret Teachings I refer to research showing that the heart contains 60-65% neural cells. This is incorrect. Regrettably I relied on research by someone I felt to be reliable and did not check his primary sources. I still have not been able to find out what the primary sources are. However, from a review of primary materials that I can find it appears that the number of neural cells in the heart runs between 15 and 25%. I suspect that the source I used meant to say that 60-65% of non-muscle cells in the heart are neural cells. My apologies.

HERBS FOR HEPATITIS C AND THE LIVER:

1. If you have a liver biopsy and your liver is showing degradation at level 3
or higher (2 you can go either way) you should definitely use STANDARDIZED milk
thistle capsules 1200 mg day just before bed for at least 90 days - in addition
to any protocols mentioned in the book. I am aware of one instance where liver
degradation did NOT halt with the use of nonstandardized milk thistle even though
all other symptoms of the disease reversed.

If you do not have a liver biopsy and you are showing a range of symptoms of
liver disease (low energy, poor skin condition, and so on) I would suggest you
use standardized milk thistle for 90 days at the above dose.

2. Selenium should be used as a part of the protocols discussed in the book.
While I do discuss selenium in the book it is not emphasized enough nor is it
listed in the protocol as a suggested supplement. It is crucial for lowering
viral load. Selenium is perhaps one of the major substances that can be used to
lower viral levels in the body. Please note, dosage is in MICROgrams. A maximum
dosage of 400 micrograms per day.

3. page 28, bupleurum.

There is concern about negative interactions with bupleurum and interferon
therapy. This has been mostly anecdotal - I have heard that there is a negative
drug/herb interaction but have not seen anything specific concerning bupleurum
itself.

There have been, however, eighty or more cases of pneumonitis that have occurred
in those taking a Chinese herbal supplement who have ALSO been taking interferon.
The supplement: shosaiko-to (japanese name) or Xiao-chai-hu-tang (Chinese name)
is definitely not something to take when you are also taking interferon.
Interferon causes neutrophils to accumulate in lung tissue, the herbal supplement
shosaiko-to interacts with interferon to stimulate this process and through a
variety of interactive mechanisms eventually damages lung tissue by stimulating
excessive inflammation in the tissues. However without interferon the supplement
is safe to use and does not appear to possess these side effects. In fact, at
least one clinical trial with hepatitis c has shown that it is effective when
used as a primary treatment for hepatitis c.

There are a number of assumptions being made about bupleurum's safety or lack of
safety that are not necessarily true in this instance. The herbal combination
known as shosaiko-to contains a number of herbs in different percentages:
licorice root (5%), bupleurum root (16%), pinellia root (14%), ginger root (11%),
jujube (11%), Chinese skullcap root (8%), Asian ginseng root (8%), peony root
(16%), and cassia bark (11%). This herbal combination is sometimes known as minor
bupleurum formula and it has been assumed that the bupleurum is what is causing
the problem - most likely from the name of the formula. However, as is usual in
this kind of situation there have been no studies to definitively prove which
herb (or combination thereof) is causing the problem. It is probably not the
licorice as that is being used intensively in Japan along with interferon as an
interferon potentiator and these kinds of side effects are not being seen there.
It is also probably not the ginger or ginseng as these kinds of problems have not
been reported with the extensive use of those herbs. That still leaves pinellia
root, jujube, Chinese skullcap root, peony root and cassia bark as possible
culprits and does not rule out that the unique combination of this formula is
itself producing the problem.

Shosaiko-to SHOULD NOT BE USED IF YOU ARE TAKING INTERFERON

Until it is know exactly which herb is causing the interactive side effects with
interferon, if you are on interferon the following herbs should be used with
extreme caution:

bupleurum
pinellia root
jujube
Chinese skullcap
peony root
cassia bark

HERBAL ANTIBIOTICS:

1. page 25. Cryptolepsis should be cryptolepis. I have seen both spellings used
but in most instances (about 70%) the spelling is usually cryptolepis and is the
preferred form of the plant's Latin name.

2. page 42, grapefruit seed extract (GSE). There are a number of controversies
raging about GSE, specifically that its activity is due not to the herb itself
but to substances added to it, specifically a particular preservative. The
controversy overlooks that grapefruit itself has been found in numerous studies
to possess exceptionally high antibacterial activity. The only way that GSE could
be found to have NO antibacterial activity once the preservative is removed is
if there were NO grapefruit plant parts in it at all (which I suppose is possible
if the companies are of really low moral stature). The controversy also overlooks
the excellent use that many clinicians have had from the extract.

3. on page 43-45 I outline a way to make GSE - to be at all effective this
formulation should NOT be made from the seeds alone but from the rind, pulp, and
seeds of the grapefruit fruit.

4. page 55, licorice side effects. I have found in practice that the use of the
whole root does in fact produce fewer side effects than the extracts. However,
some of the same side effects still occur: higher blood pressure, water
retention. These occur with less frequency and generally occur in those of middle
age - i.e. those who have gone through menopause. I have used licorice for
over 20 years now and find the herb moving more and more into the drug category
for me due to its potency. Should be used with caution in those with high blood
pressure.

5. page 57 Usnea. if you wish to activate the immune stimulating action of this
plant (which is contained within the inner white cord of the plant - the
polysaccharides) you need to heat the plant prior to tincturing it. Slow cooking
in water in a crock pot for several hours then adding alcohol to the cooled
decoction will work.

SACRED AND HERBAL HEALING BEERS:

1. Honey takes a long time to ferment and I did not stress this enough in the
book. If you are using honey to make a mead you should definitely use a
hydrometer to test if the fermentation is complete - the fermentation can be so
slow in the later stages of honey fermentation that you cannot tell by the eye
if it is done or not. If you bottle too soon you risk exploding bottles as the
honey will continue to ferment for a long time to come. I have heard reports of
people fermenting their meads up to a year in the fermenter.

2. I was on deadline and did not complete my work with root beers to my
satisfaction before I had to turn the book into the publisher. NOTE: sassafras
is VERY astringent and single sassafras beers are not that good to the taste
unless you lower the amount of herb used to a tiny amount - think 1/2 ounce to
5 gals water. I suggest the book: Homemade Root Beer, Soda, and Pop (Storey
Books, 1998). There are quite a number of excellent recipes using natural herbs
in the book. Here is a root beer adaptation that I like.

5 tablespoons chopped dried sassafras root bark (the author also suggests the use
of 20 inches freshly dug sassafras root the thickness of a pencil - which I have
not tried)
9 tablespoons chopped dried sarsaparilla root (either smilax or aralia can be
used)
2 tsp dried burdock root
2 tsp dried licorice root
1 piece vanilla bean 3 inches long
2 cups brown sugar
one gallon water
yeast
follow normal beer recipe for fermentation and bottling

The ten root spring tonic on page 55 of the book is great and uses the roots of
spikenard, dandelion, sassafras, Queen Anne's lace, dock, burdock, American
ginseng, chicory, licorice, and sarsaparilla, and the berries of sumac, saw palmetto, and juniper. Probably the best tonic beer you could make.

ONE SPIRIT MANY PEOPLES

In the book I, at one point, refer to Carol McGrath's accent as Irish, my apologies. She comes from a section of Canada with a strong Irish settlement population who have retained a Gaelic accent, which is what I should have called it.

In the material on Bruce Lee and the attempts of the Chinese community to prohibit his teaching of martial arts to any not of his ethnic group I repeated an urban legend that is not true. Specifically that they had broken his back during a fight. The fight in fact did take place and he did win, winning thereby the right to teach any he wished. However, his back was not broken in that fight but was severely injured during unrelated training.

I quote Arvol Looking Horse in some detail about his support for people of any blood or ethnic group being allowed to use the sacred pipe for prayer. Regrettably, he has altered his opinion on this and is now ethnically exclusive on the issue.

	THE FASTING PATH:
	The title of this book should be: Transformational Fasting; I hate the title the publisher created only slightly less than I hate the cover itself. Add to the resource page, page 186: The best place for medically supervised water fasting in a clinic setting is: True North Health 6010 Commerce Blvd, #152 Rohnert Park, CA 94928 707-586-5555 www.healthpromoting.com

	HEALING LYME
	Page 106, under "Specific indications for Lyme disease:" last line. This should be "bartonella coninfection." NOT "ehrlichia coinfection."