Each
time things looked darkest, Steuart says he bailed himself out the only way he
knew that worked: farm-to-farm cold calls on Midwestern dairy farms.
Steuart
founded Steuart Laboratories of Mabel, Minnesota,
in 1982. He had become convinced that
his original product, an udder ointment for dairy cows, had the ability to heal
nasty sores on cows’ teats and udders.
Today,
Steuart Laboratories manufactures and markets several dozen herb-based healing
and pain products for both the human and livestock markets.
Many
of Steuart’s human products were developed as a result of stories he kept
hearing from his dairy customers who applied the dairy ointments and creams to
their own wounds and rashes.
“The
dairy barn is the perfect place to evaluate a skin product, because the dairy
farmer carefully examines his cows’ teats and udders twice a day and can
clearly see healing taking place,” Steuart says. “I’ve learned over the years
that, if a product works in the barn, it often ends up getting used in the
house, too.”
Steuart’s
top-selling human product is Steuart’s Pain Formula, a penetrating cream that
relieves joint and muscle pain associated with arthritis and injuries. Steuart
says he receives confirmation that Pain Formula is effective when re-orders
come in because the re-orders are often two or three times the size of the
original order.
“Pain
Formula will normally reduce pain within 5 to 15 minutes after application, and
can be effective for up to eight hours,” he says. “We have many customers who
say that sore knees or shoulders robbed them of sleep every night, and that
Pain Formula is the first product they’ve used that eliminates the pain.”
As a
result, Steuart says many customers have been able to cut down or completely
eliminate their use of over-the-counter or prescription pain medications, many
of which have serious side effects. He adds, however, that in some cases people
don't realize maximum pain relief until after several days of continuous use.
Another
of the company’s human products, Steuart’s Natural Wound Cream, promotes
healing of minor wounds and skin infections. Steuart claims it heals wounds and
scrapes faster than antibiotic creams and ointments because most antibiotics
kill white blood cells at the wound site. White blood cells, he says, are an
integral part of the healing process. “Natural Wound Cream allows the wound to
remain moist and doesn’t allow a hard, dry scab to form, so the wound heals
30-40% faster,” he says.
Steuart
says many diabetic customers have reported that Natural Wound Cream can heal
open wounds where other treatments have failed.
A key
ingredient in Natural Wound Cream, according to Steuart, is propolis (also
called “bee glue”), a resinous mixture that honey bees collect as sap from
trees and use as a sealant for unwanted open spaces in the hive. Propolis has a
long history of medicinal use, dating back more than 2,000 years when Greeks
used propolis for abscesses, Assyrians used it for healing wounds and tumors,
and Egyptians used it for mummification.
Propolis is a natural antiseptic plus it stimulates healing at the wound
site.
Many
of Steuart’s animal health products are formulated to help dairy farmers deal
with the serious milk-production conditions of chapped and injured teats and
udder sores. “I’ve read that 85% of dairy farms have cows with udder sores, and
this condition is difficult to treat successfully,” Steuart says. “Our
customers have proven over and over that our products heal udder sores.”
Steuart
products are also popular among horse owners, Steuart says. Miracle Heel is an
herb-based topical ointment that delivers antiseptic action that soothes and
promotes healing of wounds, abrasions and minor skin irritations. Miracle Heel
is also used by horse owners as a hoof conditioner.
A key
ingredient in many of Steuart’s products is comfrey, a perennial, bushy herb
with a black, turnip-like root and broad, hairy leaves. Comfrey extract has
been used as a skin treatment for centuries. One of the folk names for comfrey
is “knitbone,” a reminder of its traditional use in healing bone fractures.
Steuart
says he’s had invitations to work for “normal companies” over the past 30 years
but has stuck with his own business because the rewards have outweighed the
hardships. “It gives me goose bumps when customers tell me Steuart products
have eliminated their pain when nothing else they had tried could, and when
animal owners report that their animals’ wounds and sores were healed when
nothing else worked,” he says.
“I
remember sitting in a Perkins Restaurant many years ago, talking with a
diabetic woman who had leg ulcers that doctors and medicines had been unable to
heal,” he says. “I went out the car and got some healing ointment and squeezed
it into an empty salad-dressing container that was on our table. The lady used
the ointment in the days ahead and it eventually healed her ulcer. It’s that
kind of experience that keeps me going with this business.”
Steuart
Laboratories products are manufactured in two buildings on the main street of Mabel, Minnesota
(population: 710). The manufacturing plant is a licensed FDA over-the-counter
drug facility and a certified-organic food plant.
Products
are sold primarily through the company’s website: www.steuartlaboratories.com
This press release is
presented without editing for your information. MOTHER EARTH NEWS does not
recommend, approve or endorse the products and/or services offered. You should
use your own judgment and evaluate products and services carefully before
deciding to purchase.
