Cetraria islandica: Herbal Cure for Urinary Tract Infection During Pregnancy, Digestive Problems, and Respiratory Infections
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Cetraria islandica, also known as Iceland moss or True Iceland lichen is one of the herbs that can be used during pregnancy to treat common health problems (ranging from mild to severe) safely. As a lichen, Icelandic moss is actually a combination of two organisms: a fungus and an algae. Though the fungal part of the Cetraria islandica plant can’t produce chlorophyll, the algae part of the plant can produce enough chlorophyll to nourish both organisms. The fungal part of the plant, in turn provides protection for the algae to ensure that both organisms survive in a symbiotic relationship.
The Cetraria islandica lichen looks like moss, but it also has a “leaf-like habit”. In other words, upon close inspection, this plant produces growth with the appearance of leaves even though it’s a lichen. The symbiotic fungal-algae relationship allows this herb to survive in harsh climates.
Cetraria islandica is unique as an herb that is both a demulcent and also a bitter. There are few herbs that combine these two medicinal effects on the body. As a pregnancy-friendly herbal tea (or tincture), Iceland Moss can be used to treat both digestive problems, urinary tract infection, as well as respiratory disease to name just a few of the medicinal applications for this herb.
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Cetraria islandica as a Food Medicine During Pregnancy
All parts of the Cetraria islandica plant are edible. After they’re dried, they can be soaked in water and added to an array of recipes. Boiling the plant material removes its bitterness. In Iceland, people use Icelandic moss to make bread, porridge, and soups among other things. It can, for example, be used in place of starch in some preparations of hot chocolate.
As a nutritive herb, Cetraria islandica provides a number of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that the body needs during pregnancy. As a lichen, Cetraria islandica belongs to a distinguished class of herbs that include the likes of Lecanora esculenta, the lichen believed to be the actual “manna from heaven” in Exodus 16 of the Bible along with Parmelia sulcata, Lobaria pulmonaria, and Cladonia rangiferina, some of the only lead agents that have the ability to inactivate prion diseases like Mad Cow, and Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease. This is no small fact and it’s worth mentioning here because Cetraria islandica contains many of the same medicinal substances as these other lichen herbs albeit in different proportions and quantities.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for Respiratory Infection During Pregnancy
Cetraria islandica is particularly famous for its effects on the respiratory system and dry, irritating coughs. As an antibiotic herb, Iceland Moss not only alleviates the urge to cough through its demulcent activity on the body, but it also works to treat infection. It lowers fevers more safely than an NSAID like ibuprofen or aspirin, all the while providing nourishment to the body to restore health during pregnancy.
The German Commission E Monographs (which offer a therapeutic guide to herbal medicine) has approved Cetraria islandica as a treatment for cough, bronchitis, dyspepsia / indigestion, loss of appetite, and inflammation involving the mouth or the pharynx. Though Cetraria islandica is applied to a lot of additional health issues during pregnancy, approval of a European agency adds another layer of credibility and trustworthiness to this pregnancy-friendly herb.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for Urinary Tract Infection while Pregnant
The usnic acid in Cetraria islandica has become somewhat famous for its ability to get rid of biofilm naturally. Indeed, biofilm, as a substance produced by pathogens to cover and protect them from the immune system, is a major cause of recurrent urinary tract infection during pregnancy. Prescription antibiotics aren’t able to penetrate the biofilm that pathogens build to protect themselves inside the body and though a natural cure for UTI during pregnancy using blueberry juice, for example, might work very well, it may not be able to prevent cystitis or recurrent UTI during pregnancy because the pathogens that cause UTI create a biofilm. Dimethylsulfoxide / DMSO can help penetrate the biofilm if the pregnant patient is “double-voiding” so as to prevent a reservoir from developing in the bladder, but women can also use Cetraria islandica to remove biofilm and kill UTI pathogens.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for HIV / AIDS during Pregnancy
It’s easy to underestimate the value of the gentle, pregnancy-friendly herbs, but due to its powerful medicinal effects, Iceland Moss was included in HIV / AIDs formulas in the early 1980s. This is a powerful herbal remedy for HIV / AIDs. In lab studies, Cetraria islandica had powerful antiviral effects that slows the replication of the HIV virus.
As an herbal remedy for AIDS / HIV that’s safe for use during pregnancy, Cetraria islandica was once used as a component of Formula I that was used to treat Mycobacterium avium intracellulare in AIDS patients, an opportunistic infection that’s related to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, another pathogen that can be treated using Cetraria islandica.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for Cancer During Pregnancy
People have a tragic tendency to underestimate herbal cures for cancer during pregnancy without realizing that there are some interesting associations between pregnancy and cancer. For example, though doctor’s and Big Pharma like for patients to believe that a surgical biopsy is required in order to diagnose cancer, in non-pregnant patients, it’s actually possible to diagnose cancer simply by giving the patient a pregnancy test. In a male or a non-pregnant female, a positive result indicates that the patient has cancer. The reason why this is the case is because cancer cells produce the same hCG hormone that the early embryo releases to promote the growth of new blood vessels (arteriogenesis) that feed the cancer cell. Indeed, cancer cells and newly formed embryos, in particular the trophoblast that surrounds the embryo and that later forms the placenta, and cancer cells are nearly identical. In the 1900s, an embryologist named Dr. John Beard studied the similarity between cancer cells and the trophoblast cells surrounding the embryo during implantation and came to regard cancer cells as false placentas. He developed the Trophoblast Theory of Cancer and used pancreatic enzyme supplements to cure cancer before the American Medical Association was developed. He boasted a cure rate of 13% using nothing but pancreatic enzymes to cure cancer, highlighting a relationship between not only cancer and pregnancy, but also between pregnancy-related health problems like gestational diabetes (another pancreatic issue of pregnancy), preeclampsia (which is often related to gestational diabetes) and cancer.
Read more about Dr. John Beard’s Trophoblast Theory of Cancer here.
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The relationship between pregnancy and cancer and between pancreatic malfunction and pregnancy-related health problems is something worth noting if you wish to better understand how and why the body sometimes malfunctions during pregnancy. The pancreas has a tight relationship with the kidneys, which are considered the organs with the starring role during pregnancy, but the pancreas is also literally connected to the gallbladder via ductwork in 91% of all human beings. The gallbladder, as an organ that works closely with reproductive hormones and that reacts strongly to changes in reproductive hormone levels can produce gallstones or bile sludge that then clogs the ductwork leading to the pancreas. Pancreatic enzymes then are not properly deposited into the digestive system to digest food and they are also not absorbed into the bloodstream to travel throughout the body in search of cancer cells. Normally, when pancreatic enzymes are deposited into the digestive system, they digest food and then the enzymes that are leftover are absorbed into the blood. They travel through the body and they digest the protective sheath that hides cancer cells from the immune system. Without pancreatic enzymes traveling in the blood supply, cancer cells are free to produce a protective sheath and become invisible to the immune system. But the pancreatic enzymes that back up into the pancreas as a result of a gallstone or bile sludge can also destroy the pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin to cause gestational diabetes. In turn, this can increase blood sugar levels which can wreak havoc on the kidneys.
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Cetraria islandica is an herbal remedy that treats the kidneys and urinary tract, and the digestive system, including the pancreas, liver, and gallbladder. As a cure for cancer during pregnancy, Cetraria islandica would ideally be combined with Trifolium pratense / Red Clover and pancreatic enzyme therapy that included all of the following:
- Lipase
- Amylase
- Protease
- Chymotrypsin
- Trypsin
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A vitamin B17 / amygdalin supplement or amygdalin-rich foods would also be beneficial including either 4-5 raw, bitter, organic apricot kernels eaten up to 8 times per day. These apricot kernels are extremely bitter and they stimulate the gallbladder and digestive system, which is why you should only eat 4-5 of them at a time. If you have trouble eating apricot kernels, instead put organic, cold-pressed apricot kernel oil all over your body twice daily and allow it to soak in.
Read more about vitamin B17 / amygdalin as a cure for cancer during pregnancy here.
Bitter Apricot Kernels Organic Raw (1LB) -100% USDA Organic Certified – Product of Turkey (Free Electronic Book)
Additionally, if you have cancer during pregnancy, be sure to take Lugol’s iodine 2% (20 drops per day / 50 mg) per day along with the following supportive nutrients, which will make it possible for the body to absorb the iodine properly. Do not use nascent iodine, povidone iodine, or other forms of iodine as Lugol’s contains a mix of iodide and potassium iodide that has been used to cure breast cancer and other reproductive organ cancers:
Read more about the use of iodine to cure cancer during pregnancy here.
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Cetraria islandica Medicinal Effects
Cetraria islandica is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent that has the ability to remove biofilm to expose bacteria to the immune system and antimicrobial agents. Though Cetraria islandica has no known antimicrobial ability against Gram positive bacteria, fungi, or actinomycetes, it does have antimicrobial effects against various Gram negative bacteria and yeasts.
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- Supports the Thyroid Gland
- Used to treat malnourishment and debility
- Used to treat medical anorexia (loss of appetite / wasting)
- Antiparasitic
- Antibiotic
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- Aspergillus flavus
- Aspergillus oryzae
- Aspergillus fumigatus
- Trichophyton rubrum
- Athlete’s Foot (used as a compress and also taken internally)
- Nocardia corne
- Fusarium oxysporium
- Bacillus cereus
- Bacillus cereus var. mycoides
- Bacillus subtilis - This is a non-pathogenic organisms, but we include it here nonetheless because it is used as a model in research.
- Bacillus sphaericus
- Bacillus thurigiensis
- Bacillus megaterium
- Escherichia coli / E. coli
- Enterobacter aerogenes
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- Mycobacterium smegmatis
- Cellulitis
- Pneumonia
- Osteomyelitis
- Abscess
- Salmonella typhimurium
- Staphylococcus epidermidis
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptomyces murinus
- Streptococcus faecalis / Enterococcus faecalis
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- Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- Helicobacter pylori
- Proteus vulgaris
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Aeromonas hydrophila
- Candida albicans
- Candida glabrata
- Candida utilis
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Mycobacterium avium intracellulare
- Mycobacterium tufu
- Sarcina lutea / Micrococcus lutea
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- Used traditionally to treat scurvy (vitamin C deficiency)
- Treats Skin Problems
- Used to treat vaginal discharge
- Treats Digestive System Problems
- Antiemetic / Prevents Nausea and Vomiting
- Improves appetite
- Treats Hiatal Hernia
- C. islandica is useful as a treatment for low-grade stomach infections that cause low stomach acidity (example: early treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection)
- C. islandica also treats stomach problems caused by too much acid in the stomach
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- Treats Reflux Esophagitis / Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
- Treats Indigestion / Dyspepsia
- Provides Gallbladder / Liver Support
- Promotes Fumaric Acid Production
- Supports Bile and Digestive Enzyme Release
- Helps the body absorb nutrients by repairing digestive tissues
- Nutritive (a highly nutritious food-herb)
- Alleviates gastritis / stomach inflammation
- Treats gastric ulcers / stomach ulcers
- Treats chronic digestive problems
- Gently expels intestinal worms and other parasites
- Treatment for dysentery or severe diarrhea
- Treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and other chronic digestive problems
- Treatment for food poisoning during pregnancy
- Reduces Fever
- Herbal cancer treatment (European Folk Medicine)
- Dementia treatment
- Herbal HIV / AIDS treatment
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- Mycobacterium avium intracellulare (MAC) in AIDS patients
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- Treats inflammation of the mouth and pharynx
- Treats poorly healing wounds (administer topically to the wound as a compress)
- Treats Respiratory Infection
- Treats Bronchitis
- Treats the Common Cold
- Treats Dry Cough
- Expectorant
- Anti-catarrhal / Removes excess mucus from the body
- Demulcent for gastrointestinal tract
- Demulcent for respiratory tract / softens tissues
- Used to treat chronic lung problems including advanced tuberculosis
- Used to treat Urinary Tract Infection
- Demulcent for urinary tract
Cetraria islandica: Increase Breast Milk Production Naturally
Cetraria islandica is safe for use during breastfeeding. After pregnancy Cetraria islandica can be used as a galactagogue to promote breast milk production naturally. The bitterness of Iceland Moss can be detected in a nursing mother’s milk, so be aware of this in terms of your baby’s response to Cetraria islandica while you’re nursing.
Cetraria islandica Medicinal Components
Cetraria islandica contains several important medicinal substances. Understanding these medicinal substances allows us to better understand what this pregnancy-safe herbal treatment is capable of doing medicinally in the body. While Cetraria islandica has not been studied to determine its full range of action, a quick look at the medicinal substances it contains can at least give us a sense of what this herb is capable of medicinally.
For a pregnancy-friendly herbal remedy like Cetraria islandica, it can be helpful to look at the medicinal substances that have been identified in the plant to better understand how it works, for example, to treat UTI during pregnancy, or how it can be used to treat respiratory, urinary tract, or digestive infection. For example, the antibiotic effects of the lichen acids in Cetraria islandica certainly contribute to its ability to treat UTI, digestive infection, or respiratory infection, but the medicinal action of lichenin as a mucilage also contributes to the healing properties of this herb. The digestive system, the urinary tract, and the respiratory tract, are all responsive to mucilaginous, demulcent herbs like Cetraria islandica that reflexively cause all of the mucus membranes to produce mucus to remove toxins and pathogens.
But while it’s definitely helpful to look at the medicinal substances in an herb like Cetraria islandica, that’s been ignored by science (relatively speaking), despite its strong traditional usage, it’s still important to acknowledge the entourage effect. The entourage effect is the combined effects of all medicinal agents to produce a final product that is greater than the sum of its parts and sometimes unpredictable in terms of how it affects the body. Two medicinal agents that have opposite effects on the body in terms of some parameter may manifest medicinally as one or as the other effect (depending on what the body needs) or as a balanced / neutral effect manifesting no change. Herbs often cause medicinal effects that are specific to what the patient needs which is why they have the ability to balance bodily functions.
Scientists who study plants regularly note that they don’t know how herbs work medicinally in the body. The only model of herbalism that I’ve ever found that makes sense in terms of the entourage effect involves the idea that plants have their own consciousness and they can “decide” what our bodies need. Of course, this idea that plants have a consciousness and they can use spirit / energy to make decisions about what our bodies need medicinally doesn’t make sense scientifically. It makes sense logically, but only if you’ve had personal experiences with an intelligent plant-consciousness (as through the use of sacred indigenous plants like Ayahusaca) or if you ascribe to the idea that all living things have a consciousness.)
No matter what you believe spiritually or energetically in terms of plants and plant consciousness, it can be helpful to understand the constituents of an under-studied plant like Iceland Moss to determine how best to use it.
Lichenin is a compound that resembles mucilage after it is boiled. This is the substance in Iceland Moss that soothes inflamed or irritated mucuos membranes. Though you drink or consume the Iceland Moss by mouth, the body responds to the presence of this mucilage in the digestive tract by increasing mucus production in the respiratory tract, sinuses, and nasal passages.
Lichenan has broad antiviral effects against Nicotiana sspp.
The presence of lichenin in this plant explains how Cetraria islandica works to calm a dry, irritating cough.
In animal models of dementia, Isolichenan at 100 mg per kilogram of body weight is able to repair memory impairment caused by the beta-amyloid peptide. As such, this substance may have valuable effects on spatial memory formation and dementia.
Cetrarin, also known as Cetraric Acid, is a micro-crystalline, white powder with a bitter flavor. It functions as an aperient, or as a laxative that promotes normal bowel movements. At high doses, this substance can cause diarrhea, but at the recommended dose of Iceland Moss, cetrarin treats and prevents constipation. Cetrarin is only slightly soluble in water, but readily soluble in alcohol which means that this substance may have more powerful and more noticeable effects when it is prepared as an alcohol tincture.
The polysaccharides in Cetraria islandica make up about 50% of the plant material. Polysaccharides have immune-stimulating effects that are particularly useful in combination with the antibacterial and antifungal effects of lichen acids, the mucilaginous effects of lichenin, and the digestive system detoxifying effects of cetrarin when the patient is suffering from a respiratory infection, urinary tract infection, or a digestive infection or disorder.
Polysaccharides in Cetraria islandica offer the following medicinal benefits:
- Antimicrobial
- Anti-inflammatory
- Immune modulating
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Furan Derivatives
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Lichen Acids
Various lichen acids have antibacterial and antifungal effects on the body.
The medicinal effects of fumarprotocetraric acid have been studied in a variety of different herbs. Extractions of fumarprotocetraric acid and the pure compound are both active against the following bacteria and yeasts:
- Bacillus cereus
- Bacillus subtilis
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptococcus faecalis
- Proteus vulgaris
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Aeromonas hydrophila
- Candida albicans
- Candida glabrata
- Sarcina lutea / Micrococcus luteus
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Protocetraric Acid
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Protolichesterinic Acid
Protolichesterinic Acid is active against Mycobacterium aurum, a non-pathogenic organism with a similar sensitivity profile to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Mycobacterium aurum has an MIC of 250 μg/ml.
Protolichesterinic Acid also has inhibitory activity against 35 strains of Helicobacter pylori with MICs at 16-64 μg/ml. This medicinal substance found in Cetraria islandica is able to inhibit 90% of Helicobacter pylori strains at 32 μg/ml. At this dose, Cetraria islandica performs at the same level as ampicillin, erythromycin, and metronidazole to treat Helicobacter pylori infection.
Protolichesterinic Acid also inhibits the DNA polymerase activity of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (HIV-1 RT). Protolichesterinic acid has a 50% inhibition at a dose of 24 μM. It has negligible cytotoxicity when cultured with a variety of mammalian cells.
By itself, usnic acid is too strong and too toxic for the human body, but within the context of other medicinal substances in plants like Cetraria islandica, usnic acid is a powerful biofilm eradicator that can make it much easier to kill pathogens living in the bladder, digestive system, ear, pericardium, and mouth. It has been studied in terms of its effects on the following:
- Bacillus cereus
- Bacillus subtilis
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Mycobacterium tufu
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptococcus faecalis
- Proteus vulgaris
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Aeromonas hydrophila
- Candida albicans
- Candida glabrata
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Cetraria islandica Contraindications:
Iceland moss has a high mucilage content so it can impair the absorption of other drugs or herbs. As such, it is best to use this herb by itself rather than in combination with other herbal remedies.
Also note that some Cetraria islandica products may contain heavy metals. If you suspect that your product contains heavy metals but you still need the herb for its medicinal effects, take spirulina to chelate heavy metals during treatment and for several months after use.
Cetraria islandica Dosage:
Cetraria islandica: A Pregnancy-Safe Herbal Tea
Administer the dried plant material as an herbal tea / infusion. Put 1.5-2 grams of the dried plant material in 1 cup of boiling water. Turn the heat down to low and allow the plant material to simmer for 3 minutes. Then, turn off the heat and let the water-plant mixture steep it for 10 minutes. Drink this infusion slowly over the course of an hour up to 3 times per day. In other words, during pregnancy, you can consume up to 6 grams of the dried plant material as an herbal tea / infusion.
Decoction vs. Infusion of Cetraria islandica
Cetraria islandica can be prepared either as a decoction or as an infusion. In a decoction, water is brought to a boil and then set to simmer. Herbs are then typically simmered in the water for 10-20 minutes. In contrast, in an infusion, water is boiled and then poured over the herbal dose in a mug so that the herb can steep for 10-15 minutes as the water is cooling. Iceland Moss can be prepared as a decoction or as an infusion. Or you can prepare it using a combination preparation method where you add the herb to boiling water set to simmer and allow it to simmer for 3 minutes before pouring it into a mug to cool.
Cetraria islandica: A Pregnancy-Friendly Herbal Tincture
Administer 3-3 mL per day of an alcohol tincture that contains 25% of the herb. The alcohol tincture works better for Cetraria islandica than other types of tinctures. Administer this quantity in divided doses 3 times daily to make sure that the medicinal agents provided by this herb stay available in the body. Administer 1-2 mL up to 3 times per day.
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Cetraria islandica Wound Compress
You can apply the liquids from Cetraria islandica infusion or decoction to a wound. For example, Cetraria islandica is an herbal cure for flesh eating bacterial disease / necrotizing fasciitis / gangrene. Apply the infusion / compress to a sterile cloth and leave it in place for 1 hour to treat poorly healing wounds, or wound infections that are not responding to other forms of treatment.
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Resources:
•
Guyett, C. (2022). The Herbalist’s Guide to Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Beyond. Aeon Books.
•
Hoffman, D. (2003). Medical Herbalism: The Science and Practice of Herbal Medicine. Healing Arts Press: Vermont.
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Cetraria islandica: Herbal Cure for Urinary Tract Infection During Pregnancy, Digestive Problems, and Respiratory Infections
"The Natural Women's Health Guide... to Pregnancy - BUY HERE!"
Cetraria islandica, also known as Iceland moss or True Iceland lichen is one of the herbs that can be used during pregnancy to treat common health problems (ranging from mild to severe) safely. As a lichen, Icelandic moss is actually a combination of two organisms: a fungus and an algae. Though the fungal part of the Cetraria islandica plant can’t produce chlorophyll, the algae part of the plant can produce enough chlorophyll to nourish both organisms. The fungal part of the plant, in turn provides protection for the algae to ensure that both organisms survive in a symbiotic relationship.
The Cetraria islandica lichen looks like moss, but it also has a “leaf-like habit”. In other words, upon close inspection, this plant produces growth with the appearance of leaves even though it’s a lichen. The symbiotic fungal-algae relationship allows this herb to survive in harsh climates.
Cetraria islandica is unique as an herb that is both a demulcent and also a bitter. There are few herbs that combine these two medicinal effects on the body. As a pregnancy-friendly herbal tea (or tincture), Iceland Moss can be used to treat both digestive problems, urinary tract infection, as well as respiratory disease to name just a few of the medicinal applications for this herb.
The Conditions of Pregnancy Living Database, BETA Release - NOW AVAILABLE! Click here to learn more...
Cetraria islandica as a Food Medicine During Pregnancy
All parts of the Cetraria islandica plant are edible. After they’re dried, they can be soaked in water and added to an array of recipes. Boiling the plant material removes its bitterness. In Iceland, people use Icelandic moss to make bread, porridge, and soups among other things. It can, for example, be used in place of starch in some preparations of hot chocolate.
As a nutritive herb, Cetraria islandica provides a number of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that the body needs during pregnancy. As a lichen, Cetraria islandica belongs to a distinguished class of herbs that include the likes of Lecanora esculenta, the lichen believed to be the actual “manna from heaven” in Exodus 16 of the Bible along with Parmelia sulcata, Lobaria pulmonaria, and Cladonia rangiferina, some of the only lead agents that have the ability to inactivate prion diseases like Mad Cow, and Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease. This is no small fact and it’s worth mentioning here because Cetraria islandica contains many of the same medicinal substances as these other lichen herbs albeit in different proportions and quantities.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for Respiratory Infection During Pregnancy
Cetraria islandica is particularly famous for its effects on the respiratory system and dry, irritating coughs. As an antibiotic herb, Iceland Moss not only alleviates the urge to cough through its demulcent activity on the body, but it also works to treat infection. It lowers fevers more safely than an NSAID like ibuprofen or aspirin, all the while providing nourishment to the body to restore health during pregnancy.
The German Commission E Monographs (which offer a therapeutic guide to herbal medicine) has approved Cetraria islandica as a treatment for cough, bronchitis, dyspepsia / indigestion, loss of appetite, and inflammation involving the mouth or the pharynx. Though Cetraria islandica is applied to a lot of additional health issues during pregnancy, approval of a European agency adds another layer of credibility and trustworthiness to this pregnancy-friendly herb.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for Urinary Tract Infection while Pregnant
The usnic acid in Cetraria islandica has become somewhat famous for its ability to get rid of biofilm naturally. Indeed, biofilm, as a substance produced by pathogens to cover and protect them from the immune system, is a major cause of recurrent urinary tract infection during pregnancy. Prescription antibiotics aren’t able to penetrate the biofilm that pathogens build to protect themselves inside the body and though a natural cure for UTI during pregnancy using blueberry juice, for example, might work very well, it may not be able to prevent cystitis or recurrent UTI during pregnancy because the pathogens that cause UTI create a biofilm. Dimethylsulfoxide / DMSO can help penetrate the biofilm if the pregnant patient is “double-voiding” so as to prevent a reservoir from developing in the bladder, but women can also use Cetraria islandica to remove biofilm and kill UTI pathogens.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for HIV / AIDS during Pregnancy
It’s easy to underestimate the value of the gentle, pregnancy-friendly herbs, but due to its powerful medicinal effects, Iceland Moss was included in HIV / AIDs formulas in the early 1980s. This is a powerful herbal remedy for HIV / AIDs. In lab studies, Cetraria islandica had powerful antiviral effects that slows the replication of the HIV virus.
As an herbal remedy for AIDS / HIV that’s safe for use during pregnancy, Cetraria islandica was once used as a component of Formula I that was used to treat Mycobacterium avium intracellulare in AIDS patients, an opportunistic infection that’s related to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, another pathogen that can be treated using Cetraria islandica.
Cetraria islandica: Herbal Remedy for Cancer During Pregnancy
People have a tragic tendency to underestimate herbal cures for cancer during pregnancy without realizing that there are some interesting associations between pregnancy and cancer. For example, though doctor’s and Big Pharma like for patients to believe that a surgical biopsy is required in order to diagnose cancer, in non-pregnant patients, it’s actually possible to diagnose cancer simply by giving the patient a pregnancy test. In a male or a non-pregnant female, a positive result indicates that the patient has cancer. The reason why this is the case is because cancer cells produce the same hCG hormone that the early embryo releases to promote the growth of new blood vessels (arteriogenesis) that feed the cancer cell. Indeed, cancer cells and newly formed embryos, in particular the trophoblast that surrounds the embryo and that later forms the placenta, and cancer cells are nearly identical. In the 1900s, an embryologist named Dr. John Beard studied the similarity between cancer cells and the trophoblast cells surrounding the embryo during implantation and came to regard cancer cells as false placentas. He developed the Trophoblast Theory of Cancer and used pancreatic enzyme supplements to cure cancer before the American Medical Association was developed. He boasted a cure rate of 13% using nothing but pancreatic enzymes to cure cancer, highlighting a relationship between not only cancer and pregnancy, but also between pregnancy-related health problems like gestational diabetes (another pancreatic issue of pregnancy), preeclampsia (which is often related to gestational diabetes) and cancer.
Read more about Dr. John Beard’s Trophoblast Theory of Cancer here.
Red Clover Leaf & Flowers - Dried Trifolium pratense Leaf & Flowers C/S by Nature Tea (4 oz)
The relationship between pregnancy and cancer and between pancreatic malfunction and pregnancy-related health problems is something worth noting if you wish to better understand how and why the body sometimes malfunctions during pregnancy. The pancreas has a tight relationship with the kidneys, which are considered the organs with the starring role during pregnancy, but the pancreas is also literally connected to the gallbladder via ductwork in 91% of all human beings. The gallbladder, as an organ that works closely with reproductive hormones and that reacts strongly to changes in reproductive hormone levels can produce gallstones or bile sludge that then clogs the ductwork leading to the pancreas. Pancreatic enzymes then are not properly deposited into the digestive system to digest food and they are also not absorbed into the bloodstream to travel throughout the body in search of cancer cells. Normally, when pancreatic enzymes are deposited into the digestive system, they digest food and then the enzymes that are leftover are absorbed into the blood. They travel through the body and they digest the protective sheath that hides cancer cells from the immune system. Without pancreatic enzymes traveling in the blood supply, cancer cells are free to produce a protective sheath and become invisible to the immune system. But the pancreatic enzymes that back up into the pancreas as a result of a gallstone or bile sludge can also destroy the pancreatic beta cells that produce insulin to cause gestational diabetes. In turn, this can increase blood sugar levels which can wreak havoc on the kidneys.
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Cetraria islandica is an herbal remedy that treats the kidneys and urinary tract, and the digestive system, including the pancreas, liver, and gallbladder. As a cure for cancer during pregnancy, Cetraria islandica would ideally be combined with Trifolium pratense / Red Clover and pancreatic enzyme therapy that included all of the following:
- Lipase
- Amylase
- Protease
- Chymotrypsin
- Trypsin
AMVILAB Proteolytic Enzymes: Trypsin & Chymotrypsin, Proteolytic Enzymes Supplement, Supports Tissue Health, Reduces Edema & Inflammation Caused by Tissue Injury, Fast Recovery - 60 Capsules
A vitamin B17 / amygdalin supplement or amygdalin-rich foods would also be beneficial including either 4-5 raw, bitter, organic apricot kernels eaten up to 8 times per day. These apricot kernels are extremely bitter and they stimulate the gallbladder and digestive system, which is why you should only eat 4-5 of them at a time. If you have trouble eating apricot kernels, instead put organic, cold-pressed apricot kernel oil all over your body twice daily and allow it to soak in.
Read more about vitamin B17 / amygdalin as a cure for cancer during pregnancy here.
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Additionally, if you have cancer during pregnancy, be sure to take Lugol’s iodine 2% (20 drops per day / 50 mg) per day along with the following supportive nutrients, which will make it possible for the body to absorb the iodine properly. Do not use nascent iodine, povidone iodine, or other forms of iodine as Lugol’s contains a mix of iodide and potassium iodide that has been used to cure breast cancer and other reproductive organ cancers:
Read more about the use of iodine to cure cancer during pregnancy here.
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Cetraria islandica Medicinal Effects
Cetraria islandica is a broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent that has the ability to remove biofilm to expose bacteria to the immune system and antimicrobial agents. Though Cetraria islandica has no known antimicrobial ability against Gram positive bacteria, fungi, or actinomycetes, it does have antimicrobial effects against various Gram negative bacteria and yeasts.
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- Supports the Thyroid Gland
- Used to treat malnourishment and debility
- Used to treat medical anorexia (loss of appetite / wasting)
- Antiparasitic
- Antibiotic
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- Aspergillus flavus
- Aspergillus oryzae
- Aspergillus fumigatus
- Trichophyton rubrum
- Athlete’s Foot (used as a compress and also taken internally)
- Nocardia corne
- Fusarium oxysporium
- Bacillus cereus
- Bacillus cereus var. mycoides
- Bacillus subtilis - This is a non-pathogenic organisms, but we include it here nonetheless because it is used as a model in research.
- Bacillus sphaericus
- Bacillus thurigiensis
- Bacillus megaterium
- Escherichia coli / E. coli
- Enterobacter aerogenes
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- Mycobacterium smegmatis
- Cellulitis
- Pneumonia
- Osteomyelitis
- Abscess
- Salmonella typhimurium
- Staphylococcus epidermidis
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptomyces murinus
- Streptococcus faecalis / Enterococcus faecalis
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- Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- Helicobacter pylori
- Proteus vulgaris
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Aeromonas hydrophila
- Candida albicans
- Candida glabrata
- Candida utilis
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Mycobacterium avium intracellulare
- Mycobacterium tufu
- Sarcina lutea / Micrococcus lutea
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- Used traditionally to treat scurvy (vitamin C deficiency)
- Treats Skin Problems
- Used to treat vaginal discharge
- Treats Digestive System Problems
- Antiemetic / Prevents Nausea and Vomiting
- Improves appetite
- Treats Hiatal Hernia
- C. islandica is useful as a treatment for low-grade stomach infections that cause low stomach acidity (example: early treatment of Helicobacter pylori infection)
- C. islandica also treats stomach problems caused by too much acid in the stomach
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- Treats Reflux Esophagitis / Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease
- Treats Indigestion / Dyspepsia
- Provides Gallbladder / Liver Support
- Promotes Fumaric Acid Production
- Supports Bile and Digestive Enzyme Release
- Helps the body absorb nutrients by repairing digestive tissues
- Nutritive (a highly nutritious food-herb)
- Alleviates gastritis / stomach inflammation
- Treats gastric ulcers / stomach ulcers
- Treats chronic digestive problems
- Gently expels intestinal worms and other parasites
- Treatment for dysentery or severe diarrhea
- Treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) and other chronic digestive problems
- Treatment for food poisoning during pregnancy
- Reduces Fever
- Herbal cancer treatment (European Folk Medicine)
- Dementia treatment
- Herbal HIV / AIDS treatment
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- Mycobacterium avium intracellulare (MAC) in AIDS patients
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- Treats inflammation of the mouth and pharynx
- Treats poorly healing wounds (administer topically to the wound as a compress)
- Treats Respiratory Infection
- Treats Bronchitis
- Treats the Common Cold
- Treats Dry Cough
- Expectorant
- Anti-catarrhal / Removes excess mucus from the body
- Demulcent for gastrointestinal tract
- Demulcent for respiratory tract / softens tissues
- Used to treat chronic lung problems including advanced tuberculosis
- Used to treat Urinary Tract Infection
- Demulcent for urinary tract
Cetraria islandica: Increase Breast Milk Production Naturally
Cetraria islandica is safe for use during breastfeeding. After pregnancy Cetraria islandica can be used as a galactagogue to promote breast milk production naturally. The bitterness of Iceland Moss can be detected in a nursing mother’s milk, so be aware of this in terms of your baby’s response to Cetraria islandica while you’re nursing.
Cetraria islandica Medicinal Components
Cetraria islandica contains several important medicinal substances. Understanding these medicinal substances allows us to better understand what this pregnancy-safe herbal treatment is capable of doing medicinally in the body. While Cetraria islandica has not been studied to determine its full range of action, a quick look at the medicinal substances it contains can at least give us a sense of what this herb is capable of medicinally.
For a pregnancy-friendly herbal remedy like Cetraria islandica, it can be helpful to look at the medicinal substances that have been identified in the plant to better understand how it works, for example, to treat UTI during pregnancy, or how it can be used to treat respiratory, urinary tract, or digestive infection. For example, the antibiotic effects of the lichen acids in Cetraria islandica certainly contribute to its ability to treat UTI, digestive infection, or respiratory infection, but the medicinal action of lichenin as a mucilage also contributes to the healing properties of this herb. The digestive system, the urinary tract, and the respiratory tract, are all responsive to mucilaginous, demulcent herbs like Cetraria islandica that reflexively cause all of the mucus membranes to produce mucus to remove toxins and pathogens.
But while it’s definitely helpful to look at the medicinal substances in an herb like Cetraria islandica, that’s been ignored by science (relatively speaking), despite its strong traditional usage, it’s still important to acknowledge the entourage effect. The entourage effect is the combined effects of all medicinal agents to produce a final product that is greater than the sum of its parts and sometimes unpredictable in terms of how it affects the body. Two medicinal agents that have opposite effects on the body in terms of some parameter may manifest medicinally as one or as the other effect (depending on what the body needs) or as a balanced / neutral effect manifesting no change. Herbs often cause medicinal effects that are specific to what the patient needs which is why they have the ability to balance bodily functions.
Scientists who study plants regularly note that they don’t know how herbs work medicinally in the body. The only model of herbalism that I’ve ever found that makes sense in terms of the entourage effect involves the idea that plants have their own consciousness and they can “decide” what our bodies need. Of course, this idea that plants have a consciousness and they can use spirit / energy to make decisions about what our bodies need medicinally doesn’t make sense scientifically. It makes sense logically, but only if you’ve had personal experiences with an intelligent plant-consciousness (as through the use of sacred indigenous plants like Ayahusaca) or if you ascribe to the idea that all living things have a consciousness.)
No matter what you believe spiritually or energetically in terms of plants and plant consciousness, it can be helpful to understand the constituents of an under-studied plant like Iceland Moss to determine how best to use it.
Lichenin is a compound that resembles mucilage after it is boiled. This is the substance in Iceland Moss that soothes inflamed or irritated mucuos membranes. Though you drink or consume the Iceland Moss by mouth, the body responds to the presence of this mucilage in the digestive tract by increasing mucus production in the respiratory tract, sinuses, and nasal passages.
Lichenan has broad antiviral effects against Nicotiana sspp.
The presence of lichenin in this plant explains how Cetraria islandica works to calm a dry, irritating cough.
In animal models of dementia, Isolichenan at 100 mg per kilogram of body weight is able to repair memory impairment caused by the beta-amyloid peptide. As such, this substance may have valuable effects on spatial memory formation and dementia.
Cetrarin, also known as Cetraric Acid, is a micro-crystalline, white powder with a bitter flavor. It functions as an aperient, or as a laxative that promotes normal bowel movements. At high doses, this substance can cause diarrhea, but at the recommended dose of Iceland Moss, cetrarin treats and prevents constipation. Cetrarin is only slightly soluble in water, but readily soluble in alcohol which means that this substance may have more powerful and more noticeable effects when it is prepared as an alcohol tincture.
The polysaccharides in Cetraria islandica make up about 50% of the plant material. Polysaccharides have immune-stimulating effects that are particularly useful in combination with the antibacterial and antifungal effects of lichen acids, the mucilaginous effects of lichenin, and the digestive system detoxifying effects of cetrarin when the patient is suffering from a respiratory infection, urinary tract infection, or a digestive infection or disorder.
Polysaccharides in Cetraria islandica offer the following medicinal benefits:
- Antimicrobial
- Anti-inflammatory
- Immune modulating
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Furan Derivatives
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Lichen Acids
Various lichen acids have antibacterial and antifungal effects on the body.
The medicinal effects of fumarprotocetraric acid have been studied in a variety of different herbs. Extractions of fumarprotocetraric acid and the pure compound are both active against the following bacteria and yeasts:
- Bacillus cereus
- Bacillus subtilis
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptococcus faecalis
- Proteus vulgaris
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Aeromonas hydrophila
- Candida albicans
- Candida glabrata
- Sarcina lutea / Micrococcus luteus
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Protocetraric Acid
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Protolichesterinic Acid
Protolichesterinic Acid is active against Mycobacterium aurum, a non-pathogenic organism with a similar sensitivity profile to Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Mycobacterium aurum has an MIC of 250 μg/ml.
Protolichesterinic Acid also has inhibitory activity against 35 strains of Helicobacter pylori with MICs at 16-64 μg/ml. This medicinal substance found in Cetraria islandica is able to inhibit 90% of Helicobacter pylori strains at 32 μg/ml. At this dose, Cetraria islandica performs at the same level as ampicillin, erythromycin, and metronidazole to treat Helicobacter pylori infection.
Protolichesterinic Acid also inhibits the DNA polymerase activity of HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (HIV-1 RT). Protolichesterinic acid has a 50% inhibition at a dose of 24 μM. It has negligible cytotoxicity when cultured with a variety of mammalian cells.
By itself, usnic acid is too strong and too toxic for the human body, but within the context of other medicinal substances in plants like Cetraria islandica, usnic acid is a powerful biofilm eradicator that can make it much easier to kill pathogens living in the bladder, digestive system, ear, pericardium, and mouth. It has been studied in terms of its effects on the following:
- Bacillus cereus
- Bacillus subtilis
- Mycobacterium tuberculosis
- Mycobacterium tufu
- Staphylococcus aureus
- Streptococcus faecalis
- Proteus vulgaris
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Aeromonas hydrophila
- Candida albicans
- Candida glabrata
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Cetraria islandica Contraindications:
Iceland moss has a high mucilage content so it can impair the absorption of other drugs or herbs. As such, it is best to use this herb by itself rather than in combination with other herbal remedies.
Also note that some Cetraria islandica products may contain heavy metals. If you suspect that your product contains heavy metals but you still need the herb for its medicinal effects, take spirulina to chelate heavy metals during treatment and for several months after use.
Cetraria islandica Dosage:
Cetraria islandica: A Pregnancy-Safe Herbal Tea
Administer the dried plant material as an herbal tea / infusion. Put 1.5-2 grams of the dried plant material in 1 cup of boiling water. Turn the heat down to low and allow the plant material to simmer for 3 minutes. Then, turn off the heat and let the water-plant mixture steep it for 10 minutes. Drink this infusion slowly over the course of an hour up to 3 times per day. In other words, during pregnancy, you can consume up to 6 grams of the dried plant material as an herbal tea / infusion.
Decoction vs. Infusion of Cetraria islandica
Cetraria islandica can be prepared either as a decoction or as an infusion. In a decoction, water is brought to a boil and then set to simmer. Herbs are then typically simmered in the water for 10-20 minutes. In contrast, in an infusion, water is boiled and then poured over the herbal dose in a mug so that the herb can steep for 10-15 minutes as the water is cooling. Iceland Moss can be prepared as a decoction or as an infusion. Or you can prepare it using a combination preparation method where you add the herb to boiling water set to simmer and allow it to simmer for 3 minutes before pouring it into a mug to cool.
Cetraria islandica: A Pregnancy-Friendly Herbal Tincture
Administer 3-3 mL per day of an alcohol tincture that contains 25% of the herb. The alcohol tincture works better for Cetraria islandica than other types of tinctures. Administer this quantity in divided doses 3 times daily to make sure that the medicinal agents provided by this herb stay available in the body. Administer 1-2 mL up to 3 times per day.
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Cetraria islandica Wound Compress
You can apply the liquids from Cetraria islandica infusion or decoction to a wound. For example, Cetraria islandica is an herbal cure for flesh eating bacterial disease / necrotizing fasciitis / gangrene. Apply the infusion / compress to a sterile cloth and leave it in place for 1 hour to treat poorly healing wounds, or wound infections that are not responding to other forms of treatment.
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Cetraria islandica is a lichen which is a plant that consist of an algae and a fungus. This relationship between algae and fungus confers special medicinal properties to this pregnancy-friendly herb.
