Pine needle tea/wine for Coronavirus?

LaurieLovesLearning
LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
edited November 2020 in Herbal Medicine-Making

This site is promoting pine needle tea (on Instagram) as a substance that can kill this particular virus. They featured a doctor claiming this. That is a pretty big claim with no proof to back it up.


My question is...how effective is it with any type of virus and how many cups per day would be good? I'd it best as a preventative or just as well during? I know there has been discussion about spruce needle use on TGN, but I dont remember pine needle discussion.

Note that their tea actually has more than just pine needles.

It certainly sounds pleasant.

Comments

  • alindsay22
    alindsay22 Posts: 129 ✭✭✭

    Agree with Laurie, Pine needles are a great source for vitamin C and the tea could easily be made at home. We use chamomile around here for everything because my kids like it, it's safe and very calming. Mullein and elderberry are two more staples in our house during flu season. Mullein is my go to for respiratory illness - both as protective and for quicker recovery. Elecampagne is another herb with an affinity for the respiratory system - reduces cough and as an expectorant.

    I don't think anyone can say they know what kills the virus - or this would be over. I did read that the Chinese are treating with intravenous vitamin C though. Best I feel I can do is support with herbs prior, during and after.

  • judsoncarroll4
    judsoncarroll4 Posts: 5,490 admin

    I'm planning on making some pine needle wine. Basically, it is the same as the tea, but you ad sugar and when it cools, add some yeast and let ferment. I may add some medicinal mushrooms to this batch and consider it a preventative. I have such nasal allergies to pine pollen - I'll throw in a cup or so of male cones... maybe it will help with my allergies, like honey does when the bees have been visiting whatever one is allergic too!

  • LaurieLovesLearning
    LaurieLovesLearning Posts: 7,573 admin
    edited March 2020

    @torey Thanks! Its took a bit to figure out that name, but it is very true. I forget a lot, but still have a great drive & capacity to learn something if I am interested. I then put everything I have into it, consuming everything that I can get my hands on, meanwhile separating real fact from fiction based on solid criteria.

    I have done this for many years. I can tell you so much about aquarium fish, trees & shrubs, gardening, history, cooking & baking, chickens, cattle, homebirth, homeschooling, bible related things...did I say chickens? Haha! ...and now herbs. I will never reach the end of that path of learning. 😳😁 Its great! I am always learning!

    Thank you for helping me learn further about pine needles. I just have to go get some already.

    @alindsay22 Thank you for further suggestions.

    @judsoncarroll4 What a good idea.

  • judsoncarroll4
    judsoncarroll4 Posts: 5,490 admin

    Well, one benefit of living in the NC sandhills (temporarily) is that I harvested a good 5 lbs of pine needles within 10 minutes...

  • Linda Bittle
    Linda Bittle Posts: 1,518 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I think any tea that you will actually drink is helpful in relieving symptoms. Ones that have properties to strengthen and support the lungs are especially good to have on hand.

    Hydration is so important during and illness, and I like to have a variety of choices on hand.

    However, making claims that a tea or herbal remedy can kill a virus or cure a disease is highly unethical. Eventually, the FDA will get around to addressing that with the seller.

  • silvertipgrizz
    silvertipgrizz Posts: 1,990 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @judsoncarroll4 Is the yeast you use for your wine the.. is it the champagne yeast? If not which one?

  • judsoncarroll4
    judsoncarroll4 Posts: 5,490 admin

    For most new recipes, I just use dry instant bread yeast. After I make a few batches and refine the recipe, I'll try specific wine or beer yeasts. Sometimes though, wild yeast is superior. But rule of thumb is cheap first.... fine tune it if it is good enough.

  • silvertipgrizz
    silvertipgrizz Posts: 1,990 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @judsoncarroll4 This is great info. Does this mean that the yeast used does not affect the taste? And I take it the dry instant bread yeast you use is or could be 'rapid rise' ...that's what I often use in my bread dough.

  • lmrebert
    lmrebert Posts: 363 ✭✭✭✭

    @LaurieLovesLearning I think all things vitamin C right now since they’re using high dose IV treatment with great success (in China) even though they’re keeping that info from our panicking public at this time... guess drug companies should dabble in vitamins if we want them to be advertised... anyway... this is a respiratory virus... pine is good for vitamin C and keeping things open so pine by logic is a good pick. it also has chamomile which is calming for the dry unproductive cough this virus gives... they’re recommending 1-2 cups per day up to 3-4 and last vip before bed makes sense ... I would probably not purchase theirs and make my own and throw in some other herbs and echinacea etc

  • judsoncarroll4
    judsoncarroll4 Posts: 5,490 admin

    Sure. I use what ever bread yeast is cheapest at the grocery store. All yeasts tastes awful while it is still active in the must (fermenting juice). After 30 days or so, most of it dies and settles to the bottom. When it does, (rack) transfer your wine to a clean container, leaving as little of the dead yeast (lees) behind. The more the wine clears, the more the flavor improves. In the end, differences between yeasts can be very subtle. Bread yeast is tough and tenacious, and doesn't need as much care as wine yeasts.

  • silvertipgrizz
    silvertipgrizz Posts: 1,990 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @judsoncarroll4 Not meaning to be a pain, but I love fermenting and have so much more to learn:

    Then why bother with the specialty yeasts.. wine, champagne etc?

    Where/what is your resource for your knowledge that I can read and not keep pestering you?🤣

    Thanks for the info!!

  • judsoncarroll4
    judsoncarroll4 Posts: 5,490 admin

    Yeasts all have their individual flavors and characteristics. As wines age, the unique and subtle flavors of both the fruit and the yeast become more pronounced... and that can be the difference between fine wine and more common wine. If you want to make a wine similar to a certain European wine, you need similar fruit, soil, yeasts and climate. Beer yeasts are more complex the yeast determines if it is ale (top fermenting) or lager (bottom fermenting) and define the character of the beer.... lambic, etc. Champaign yeast has a knack for fermenting wine to a semi-dry state, then coming back to life after bottling to carbonate. You can make your wine, beer, cider, mead, etc with any yeast, to your taste.

  • silvertipgrizz
    silvertipgrizz Posts: 1,990 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @judsoncarroll4 Thanks much, that explains a lot.