This month, we have been featuring the herb Marshmallow and what a better time to focus on rehydrating herbs than now? Currently, here in the Pacific Northwest we are living with dry winds, multiple wildfires, and the end of our dry season. It’s still hot and dry for a bit longer before the rains we are known for return. So, what are we to do while we wait for our environment to shift? One answer can be found in multiple herbal allies. Let’s jump in and find a few friends who can help us during times like these.

Systemic Dehydration

Before we get fancy with herbs, let’s get one thing established first. When the winds pick up, the sun beats down, and the humidity levels fall, our need to drink water increases. We lose more of our moisture when the air around us is drier. Add in smoke or other reasons for poor air quality, and our need for water increases even more. When we breathe in gunk, our respiratory tract needs to make more mucus to trap and move those particles out of our system - this takes water.

As a PNW resident, I’m much more accustomed to living in conditions where mold thrives more than dust. This past February (pre-COVID lockdowns) I had the opportunity to travel to Albuquerque for a Craniosacral Therapy class. For the first day, the dryness felt amazing. Then day two hit followed by days three and four, and man, I was dried out! If you’ve ever been to a conference, you know that level of coffee drinking required to stay attentive when you’re trapped in a hotel conference room for 10 hours a day, that did not help the situation.

Once I realized what was happening, I tried drinking massive amounts of water to replenish my stores, but it was too late. No matter how much water I drank, I kept drying out. I needed something to help lock that water in and keep it in my system. Lucky for me, I had some downtime, and on a walk, I stumbled across a little herb shop. Once inside, I knew exactly what I was looking for - Marshmallow! They didn’t have the root in stock, but they did have the leaves, so I made my purchase and walked back to where I was staying.

That Marshmallow leaf infusion was divine! I simply added a few spoonfuls of leaf to the bottom of a coffee mug and added warm water. I was eager, so I started sipping right away even chewing up the bits of leaf that entered my mouth aiding the release and development of mucilage. The rest I added to a larger glass and allowed this to infuse longer with cold water. Getting some moisture back in my system that would stay really helped.

Symptoms of dehydration in an adult include all of the symptoms we will cover in the article and:

• Dizziness upon rising

• Skin tenting

• Insomnia

• Fatigue

• Dark colored urine

• Confusion

Dry Skin

Dry skin can come from dehydration, but it can also be the result of a lack of essential fatty acids in your diet, or an inflammatory process such as dermatitis, psoriasis, or eczema. If the humidity has been low outside, or you have been inside with the heat on, dehydration is a likely culprit. If your diet is very low in healthy fats, and essential fatty acid deficiency could be the issue. For evaluating the nutritional quality of diet, I like the program cronometer I frequently ask my patients to evaluate their nutritional intake over a two week period before we make adjustments or add in targeted nutritional supplementation. If you have changed your skincare routine, gotten a new laundry soap, tend to garden or clean without gloves, or have recently been exposed to a new plant or metal, dermatitis may be the culprit. If you can’t positively identify and find relief for your dry skin, a trip to your medical provider is in order.

My favorite herb for dry skin is Calendula. This bright orange flower is full of skin healing medicine. In addition to drinking more water, when my skin is dry, I like to rub Calendula infused oil into my skin especially right after a shower when my pores are more open and the heat has softened my skin. You can also make a salve which incorporated bee’s wax to help increase your natural moisture holding capacity of your skin. If you click the Calendula link above, you will see instructions for making a Calendula infused oil.

Dry Eyes

Dry eyes can be amazingly distracting even to the point of interfering with sleep. As an individual living with a chronic inflammatory condition, dry eyes are not an uncommon occurrence for me. Over the years, I have found two herbal remedies that have helped me immensely:

• Euphrasia eye drops

• Castor oil - dropped right in the eye at bedtime

There are many over the counter eyedrops that one can try, but I haven’t found the same level of relief from those products. With anything you put in your body and especially your eyes, you want to make sure it isn’t expired, it isn’t cloudy, and it doesn’t smell off. If the container has been used for other purposes or for another person, it’s best to use a new one. You don’t want to risk an eye infection on top of dry eyes.

Another note, you should not drop full strength herbal tinctures into your eyes - the alcohol and sediment will cause pain. You can however add a few drops to sterile saline to use, or you can brew a strong tea with boiling water, strain the tea very well through a tightly woven cloth or paper coffee filter, cool and add to a shot glass or eye cup to wash your eye.

With Castor oil, you want organic, hexane free oil stored in a dark glass bottle. You don’t want to use it with contacts, and you will want to put the oil in your eyes right before you shut your light out for sleep. The oil will absorb and lubricate your eyes, but it would be hard to see through a film of oil.

Dry Nose

Dry noses bring bloody noses along with sores and discomfort. In addition to increased hydration, rinsing your sinuses with a neti pot or other nasal irrigation system can be amazingly helpful. Some people like to coat a cotton swab with a skin soothing salve and rub into the tissue, this can work too.

My preference is to make a Marshmallow root infusion and add a Tbsp of this to my neti pot saline solution and use this as a rinse. The addition of the mucilage lends a soothing and moistening level to the treatment.

Dry Mouth

Dry mouth again can be caused by dehydration, but it can also come from other conditions such as Sjogren Syndrome (which can also cause dry eyes too) or as a side effect of many different medications. You will want to identify the cause of your symptoms in order to treat them effectively.

Dry mouth has the added complication in that it can increase oral disease such as cavities and gingivitis. We need our saliva not only to digest our food and help us swallow, but also as a level of protection keeping our oral microbes in check.

In addition to drinking water and marshmallow tea, there are several herbs that act as sialogogues or saliva producing herbs. One new to me herb this year that fits this category is Toothache Plant (Acmella oleracea). When chewing on these bright yellow and red flowers, you get an overwhelming buzzing sensation in your mouth followed by a wash of saliva. One must be careful to not overindulge in this sensation as you can overdo it, so it may not be the right choice for you.

Another herb that is a go-to for dry mouth for me is licorice root. You can make a tea, take a bit of the solid extract, or simply chew on a bit of root. Licorice is moisturizing, anti-inflammatory, and a great liver herb. Do take care as some people can develop high blood pressure from regular licorice consumption. If this is you, Marshmallow is always a good herb to fall back on.

Dry Hair

Dry hair usually is the result of exposure to dry environments or hair care practices. Dry brittle hair can also be caused by thyroid disease, iron deficiency, or other nutrient deficiencies that often come with poor digestion. While you work with your healthcare provider to explore the cause(s) of your dry hair, you can perform a deep moisturizing treatment in the form of an oil treatment.

I’ve found the best oils for this to be Argan, Jojoba, Castor oil, and Olive oil. You can mix or just go with one. You can infuse your oil with other herbs such as Calendula, Comfrey, Chamomile, Lemon balm, Lavendar, etc to also treat a dry itchy scalp and add a pleasant scent, or use plain oil.

For this I recommend adding the oil to dry hair, wrapping your hair in a towel, and allowing the oil to sit on your hair for 20 minutes. Then you can rinse and wash your hair with a gentle shampoo.

I do not recommend using coconut oil as the acidity of this oil can cause hair breakage as I’ve experienced personally, and any oil that comes in contact with your face can cause acne.

If your hair is an important part of your identity, you may wish to find a hairdresser who resonates well with you, uses ethical and safe products, and is well versed in haircare. Locally, I work with Rosebud Boutique in downtown Troutdale and have found them amazing to work with.

Dry Irritated Lungs

With dry irritated lungs there is one herb that jumps straight to mind for me - Mullein. The fuzzy leaves of this local plant are great medicine for the lungs when drunk as an infusion. Honey adds to the benefits, and some herbalists recommend mixing with milk to add another layer of benefit.

Mullein tea can be made and enjoyed as a simple (one herb) or combined with other herbs like Marshmallow, Licorice, and elecampane. Elecampane root makes a fantastic oxymel (extraction in honey and vinegar) which is shelf stable for several months. If you aren’t much of a tea drinker, you can take an oxymel by the spoonful and drink copious amounts of water.

Dry Digestive Tract

The symptom I associate most strongly with a dry digestive tract is constipation. Again, we can focus on increasing our water intake, but again, we may need something to help hold that moisture in place. This is where Marshmallow can play a role, but I really like ground Flax seeds for this purpose. Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption also works really well for constipation that is due to a lack of moisture (and fiber). Just remember, we are using the fiber to absorb and hold water making our bowels easier to move. If you just add in fiber and don’t send water in with it, you will actually make yourself more constipated and risk creating an obstruction.

Another thing we can do is stimulate our digestive tract to send out all its juices. Bitter herbs such as dandelion, mustard greens, burdock root, skullcap, and gentian can help here.

Dry Vagina

Let’s face it, dryness here is uncomfortable, can be painful, and is no fun. For chronic vaginal dryness, do reach out to your healthcare provider to evaluate your overall health including your hormones. And while you are investigating this use a natural and friendly lubrication product such as cocoa butter, coconut oil, or a safe water-based lubricant such as sliquid organics. If you use condoms, only used a water-based product as the oils can cause condoms to breakdown and lose their integrity.

You too can be on your way to a WAP. Don’t click that link unless you are in a place where you can watch a music video praising a well lubricated vagina. If you already knew about it, you know what I’m talking about. If this is new to you, now you know what everyone is talking about.

We are creatures of moisture! Our bodies need water for all functions. When we dry out, we wilt just like a plant. Stay well hydrated, use some herbal support when indicated, and if you are still having issues, go talk to your healthcare providers to see if there is something you are missing. Don’t rule out side effects of medications as a cause. If this is the case and the medication is doing its job well, you can try some of the tips here to see how they work for you. If the drug isn’t doing it’s job well and there is another treatment you can try, it may be time to make a switch. Symptoms are the language of the body and are designed to get our attention. Are you paying attention?

To our health!