My Favorite Things: Elderberry Syrup

A few weeks ago I was able to go elderberry harvesting with my friend Shula and our kids. It was a really fun day! We only hit three trees before my kids began to melt down, but it was enough for both of us to have two plastic grocery bags full of berries.  Elderberry shrubs can get quite big and are often confused with trees. They have large clusters of white flowers in the spring that ripen into dark berries in the summer. They are considered riparian and often associated with rivers, streams, and creeks and in grasslands adjacent to water. Here in the Central Valley, they are home to the Valley Elderberry Longhorn Beetle (it is currently listed as a threatened species). The beetle spends most of it’s life as a larva in the stems of the shrub, so be careful when harvesting. Normally the elderberries are ready to harvest mid-August through mid-September, it seems this year the harvest was shorter (at least in Sacramento) and the berries are drying out. (Sorry for the late post!)  Here is a picture of an elderberry shrub and of a bunch of ripe berries. You want to pick the berries after they have turned purple/black, but before they start to shrivel and the berries of a single plant often mature at different times. The prime harvest season is over in Sac, but if you live in a cooler climate, you may still have a chance. Also, since the berries ripen at different time, there may be a few left. The worst that could happen is you take a long walk along a river.

As many of you have read, I use elderberry syrup to prevent and reduce the length of illness. CLICK HERE for a list of previous post with elderberry syrup. Elderberry syrup is great for respiratory illness. It is an anti-inflammatory, has anti-viral properties, and helps build the immune system. We all take it twice a day at the first sign of a cold or virus and we usually recover quicker, coughs don’t linger, and no one has had a secondary infection in years. It can be taken regularly during an allergy season. I also give it to my children for a few days to a week before and after getting immunizations, traveling, or the first days of school. For babies I recommend Herbs-for-Kids brand or for older children and adults Natures Way’s Sambucus. But as much as we use, it becomes quite expensive, so I took a shot at making my own. I researched several different recipes online and came up with my own version:

Recipe for Elderberry Syrup

1. I  recommend thoroughly washing the berries and taking them of the stems in really cold water. The cold water will help to keep the berries from popping when cleaning them. I bough a pair of gloved just to use for using with food, since I was washing and juicing by hand. Try to get all the white film off the berries.
2. If you do not have a juicer, than place the berries in a big pot with just enough water to heat them thoroughly until they are soft (about 20 minutes). After they are soft, juice the berries by crushing them and straining them into another bowl or pot. I used a dishcloth over a colander over a bowl to place the berries in and press all the juice out. I also used my gloves as the berries were very hot. If you have a juicer, you can use it (I don’t have any advice here as I do not have one).
3. Once you have all the juice, add 15 cloves for every 3 cups of liquid, heat it on the stove until boiling, and let simmer. Since I plan on using the syrup medicinally, I simmered mine until it was reduced approximately by half. It you used a juicer and did not have to add water, you probably only need to boil it 10 minutes or so.
4. At this point, I separated 3 cups of the juice and froze the rest in three cup sections.
5. Optional: I also juiced a bag of frozen raspberries (smashed and strained them) and added that juice to the elderberry juice for flavor.
6. I recommend adding 1 cup honey and 1 cup sugar. Many recipes call for twice the amount of sugar, so you can add sugar until desired taste. I like using half local honey because consuming local honey can help build the immune system.
7. Store in well sealed bottles and place in a cool dark place until opened. Once opened store in the fridge.

I give my children (children over 2) 1-2 tsp. twice a day for prevention and treatment of viruses. I do not give it to them daily, but as needed. For adults take 2 tsp. 2-3 times per day. I don’t think you can overdose on it any more than any other berry, but there is a lot of sugar in the syrup. For children under two, I would recommend purchasing the Herbs for Kids Elderberry Syrup, just to be safe. So far everyone likes it just as much as the store bought syrup and some like it even better. If I give it to one child, I have to give it to them both to avoid unnecessary confrontations.

Words of Warning:

Elderberries should not be eaten raw. All parts of the plant contain the toxin hydrocyanic acid which is destroyed by cooking. Red elderberry (S. pubens) is considered poisonous and should not be used at all since cooking does not destroy enough of the toxin. Most of the berries in the Sacramento area are the blue elderberry. The stems and leaves have the highest concentration of hydrocyanic acid that is why I recommend removing them. I have seen some recipes that say not to worry about the smaller stems, especially if you are boiling it. I have also seen some recipes that do not boil the juice, I would strongly advise against eating the berries or drinking the juice raw.

In addition, my friend passed along some new information warning against using elderberry syrup for treating H1N1 virus (swine flu). A recent article published by Beeyoutiful on the prevention and treatment of swine flu notes that both elderberry and the swine flu increase production of T1 cytokines.

“Cytokines are a type of white blood cell, and a normal and essential part of a healthy immune system.  T1 cytokines are a particularly aggressive part of this segment of immune system super heros and typically are very crucial.  Some viruses, such as Swine Flu, can cause these cells to over respond and the T1 cells actually become deadly to the body…..A lot of our traditional favorite supplements and herbs can potentially cause more harm than good when dealing with the risk of a cytokine storm….Since T1 cells are more aggressive front runners than other T cells, supplements that directly support their production are among the most popular for quick recoveries.  Champion among these treasured products is elderberry syrup….Several studies show a clearly documented connection between elderberry extract  and rapid T1 cytokine production.  This part of what makes it so effective as an immune boosting preventative measure against viruses-it can stop the virus in its tracks before it takes hold.  However, because of the concern of a cytokine storm, if one becomes ill with one of these dangerous viruses I do not personally recommend treating with BerryWell (this company’s brand of elderberry syrup).  My personal guideline for usage right now is two-fold.  1.  Take BerryWell liberally as a preventative every time myself or my family members go out in public.  2.  Discontinue giving to any individual that exhibits symptoms and switch to other broader and safer immune boosting treatments.” For the full article CLICK HERE.

I agree with this advice. I still plan on using elderberry syrup as preventative medicine for my family, but if I see symptoms of swine flu (fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, headache, chills, and fatigue) I will discontinue use and go to the doctor to get tested. Only after I have confirmation that it is NOT swine flu will I continue usage. The article goes on to recommend other immune building supplements such as Vitamin D and probiotics. If you have read my previous posts, you would know that I am a strong supporter of probiotics. My children take them daily. I give them Kirman Labs Chewable Wafers. The dosage on the container is one wafer daily and that is equivalent to 20 billion individual units. That is a highly concentrated does (probably abut 3 times the average over the counter), so I give them each 1/2 wafer daily and a whole one when they are sick, traveling, or may be exposed to lots of new people. Also, I received an email that until September 20, you can receive $15 dollars off a purchase of $60 or more. Use the key code A2522 when checking out. (I do not receive any commission or benefits from Kirkman Labs). CLICK HERE for my previous post on probiotics.

When it comes to vitamin D I am cautious in giving it to children as you may have read in my previous post, on VITAMINS AND MINERALS. But at the same time, we live in a world of sunscreen and often are Vitamin D deficient. If you feel like you need to make sure your children are getting enough Vitamin D, I would look at all the food they eat that may contain Vitamin D, such as cereals, milks, snack bars, bread. etc. and verify that they will not be getting over 100% of the recommended daily does and/or discuss with their doctor on how much more to supplement them. For adults, I would recommend normally recommend a multivitamin with vitamin D. I believe that adults are far more deficient than children and less likely to overdose.

I hope everyone has a healthy cold and flu season. Even if you missed this years harvest there is always next year! I’ll keep you posted…

Note: the images of elderberries are not my own but borrowed.