The beneficial qualities of garlic have been described in many Western books and articles. Indeed, if not for the odors it generates, garlic could become as common a household drug item as aspirin.
Garlic is known scientifically as Allium sativum of the lilly family. It is known in Chinese as da suan and has also been called hu suan, with hu noting its Western origin. It is a strong-scented perrenial herb with long, flat, firm leaves that can be as broad as 2.5 cm (1 in.). Its flowering stem can reach 1.2 m. (4 ft.) high. Its bulb has several parts, or cloves, all enclosed in a thin, white or purplish membranelike skin, and measures up to 3 cm. (1.2 in.) or more thick. Garlic is a native of Europe and Central Asia and now also grows in North America and other parts of the world. It is cultivated worldwide primarily for use as a condiment. The bulbs are collected in the summer after the leaves have withered and are dried in the shade, if necessary.
Fresh garlic contains about 0.2% volatile oil (garlic oil), alliin, alliinase (an enzime that breaks down alliin), minerals (e.g. calcium, phosphorous, iron, and potassium), and vitamins (e.g., thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, and C), among other constituents. According to a report by the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Chinese garlic contains 70% water, 23% carbohydrates, 4.4% proteins, 1.3% ash, 0.7% fiber, and 0.2% fats. By comparison, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture figures, American garlic contains 61.3% water, 30.8% carbohydrates, 6.2% proteins, 1.5% ash, 1.5% fiber, and 0.2% fats. The vitamin and mineral contents of American garlic are also generally higher than those of Chinese garlic.
Garlic oil contains allicin and other sulfur-containing compounds such as allylpropyl disulfide, diallyl sisulfide, and diallyl trisulfide. Allicin is responsible for much of the pungent odor and taste of garlic. It is generated by the action of the enzyme alliinase on alliin. Under normal conditions, alliinase and alliin are separated from each other inside the garlic bulb. However, when the bulb is cut or crushed, the two are brought together and alliinase turns alliin (a nonvolatile odorless sulfur amino acid) into allicin (a pungent volatile sulfur compound).
Garlic has long been used in Western folk medicine for treating various ills, including arteriosclerosis, high blood pressure, colds, coughs, chronic bronchitis, earache, toothache, hysteria, dandruff, and pinworms.
In addition to their use in cooking, fresh and powdered dried garlic, along with garllic oil, are used extensively in seasoning all sorts of processed food and drink products in the Western world.
Come back next week for our second installment of "Garlic, that Odoriferous Lilly", when we will be discussing garlic's effects on the body.
This material is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. Here, Dr. Leung presents general information and home remedies using garlic as well as over 45 other herbs. Garlic information can be found on page 67 – 70. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Friday, April 27, 2007
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Chicory
Chicory is the root of Cichorium intybus L. (Family Asteraceae) and has the following properties: tonic, digestive aid, apetizer, cholagogue, diuretic, cardiotonic, mild laxative, and antibacterial. It is commonly and traditionally used to treat digestive problems, lack of apetite, liver and gallbladder ailments (e.g. gallstone, hepatitis, jaundice), and spleen problems.
Chicory root contains large amounts of inulin (up to 58% in fresh cultivated root), bitter principles (lactucin, intybin), coumarin glycosides, triterpenes, choline, and others. Inulin is made up mostly of fructose; although not digested by humans, it can serve as a potential source of commercial fructose after hydrolysis.
With its rich aroma and bitter taste, roasted chicory root is frequently mixed with coffee to enhance flavor and to reduce caffeine content. This practice is especially common in Europe.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including chicory on page 15. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Chicory root contains large amounts of inulin (up to 58% in fresh cultivated root), bitter principles (lactucin, intybin), coumarin glycosides, triterpenes, choline, and others. Inulin is made up mostly of fructose; although not digested by humans, it can serve as a potential source of commercial fructose after hydrolysis.
With its rich aroma and bitter taste, roasted chicory root is frequently mixed with coffee to enhance flavor and to reduce caffeine content. This practice is especially common in Europe.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including chicory on page 15. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Properties and Uses of Celery Seed
Celery seed is the fruit of the celery plant, Apium graveolens L. (Family Apiaceae). Also referred to simply as celery fruit, celery seed possesses diuretic, digestive stimulant, nervine, muscle relaxant, emmenagogue, and uterine stimulant properties. The most common traditional uses for celery seed are for rheumatism, arthritis, gout, bronchitis, and nervousness.
Celery seed conatains numerous types of chemical components, including coumarin glycosides, flavonoids, phthalides, and plant acids. There is some scientific evidence to support its sedative and muscle-relaxant properties, with the phthalides being the active principles. The seed also has antioxidant effects.
Other parts of the celery plant have been reported to have hypotensive (juice and extract of stem) and antiinflammatory (water extract of stem) activities.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including celery seed on page 13. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Celery seed conatains numerous types of chemical components, including coumarin glycosides, flavonoids, phthalides, and plant acids. There is some scientific evidence to support its sedative and muscle-relaxant properties, with the phthalides being the active principles. The seed also has antioxidant effects.
Other parts of the celery plant have been reported to have hypotensive (juice and extract of stem) and antiinflammatory (water extract of stem) activities.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including celery seed on page 13. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Schisandra is Wuweizi a.k.a. Five Flavored Seed
The dried ripe fruit of Schisandra chinensis (Turcz.) Baill. and other Schisandra spp. (Family Schisandraceae) are prized for their properties including lung astringent, kidney tonic, male tonic, adaptogenic, detoxicant, antimutagenic, antioxidant, liver protectant, central stimulant, and tranquilizing.
Schisandra berries have been traditionally used for cough, asthma, involuntary seminal discharge, impotence, insomnia, neurasthenia, chronic diarrhea, night sweat, spontaneous sweating, physical exhaustion, and excessive urination. More modern and recent uses include use as a treatment for liver diseases.
Schisandra is known as wuweizi (five-flavored seed) in Chinese because it tastes simultaneously sweet, sour, bitter, salty and pungent when chewed. In addition to its use as a medicine, it is also used as an ingredient in soup mixes.
Schisandra is one of those Chinese herbs without much adequate published English information even though there are many published reports on it in Chinese and Japanese.
It is a well-known tonic, especially for the male. Modern laboratory studies have found some of its constituents (e.g., lignans) to have strong antioxidant and liver-protectant properties. Its extracts and lignans are now being used to effectively treat liver diseases (e.g., viral hepatitis). In the West, silymarin (from milk thistle) is well known for its beneficial effects on the liver. One can soon add schisandra as its equal or superior.
A typical tonic like ginseng, schisandra's actions in the body are subtle. They cannot be readily duplicated in the laboratory. The antioxidant and liver protectant effects of schisandra just mentioned only give you an isolated glimpse of its various pharmacological effects. Believe me, there are too many to list here!
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including schisandra on page 83. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Schisandra berries have been traditionally used for cough, asthma, involuntary seminal discharge, impotence, insomnia, neurasthenia, chronic diarrhea, night sweat, spontaneous sweating, physical exhaustion, and excessive urination. More modern and recent uses include use as a treatment for liver diseases.
Schisandra is known as wuweizi (five-flavored seed) in Chinese because it tastes simultaneously sweet, sour, bitter, salty and pungent when chewed. In addition to its use as a medicine, it is also used as an ingredient in soup mixes.
Schisandra is one of those Chinese herbs without much adequate published English information even though there are many published reports on it in Chinese and Japanese.
It is a well-known tonic, especially for the male. Modern laboratory studies have found some of its constituents (e.g., lignans) to have strong antioxidant and liver-protectant properties. Its extracts and lignans are now being used to effectively treat liver diseases (e.g., viral hepatitis). In the West, silymarin (from milk thistle) is well known for its beneficial effects on the liver. One can soon add schisandra as its equal or superior.
A typical tonic like ginseng, schisandra's actions in the body are subtle. They cannot be readily duplicated in the laboratory. The antioxidant and liver protectant effects of schisandra just mentioned only give you an isolated glimpse of its various pharmacological effects. Believe me, there are too many to list here!
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including schisandra on page 83. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Gotu-kola
Gotu-kola, or Centella asiatica (L.) Urban (Family Apiadeae) is not to be confused with kola nuts (Cola nitida); the latter contain caffeine while the former doesn't. Gotu-kola is known for its wound-healing, detoxicant, antiinflammatory, diuretic, pain-relieving, and antibacterial properties. Either the leaves or the whole herb is used, with the most common traditional uses being for traumatic injuries, swellings, skin sores and boils, skin eruptions (e.g. measles), sunstroke, fever, and common cold. Other more modern or recent uses include treating wounds, skin ulcers, burns, leprosy, scleroderma, traumatic pain, jaundice, hepatitis, poisoning (arsenic, mushroom, cassava, etc.), syphilis, and mental problems.
Gotu-kola has been used by different cultures worldwide both as a medicine and as a food for centuries. The young plant is cooked or pickled and eaten as a vegetable in Southeasat Asia. It has been used as a medicine for thousands of years in China and India and its use there has been documented for at least two thousand years.
The active principles of gotu-kola are currently attributed to tri-terpenoid glycosides (wound-healing, antimicrobial, sedative, antiinflammatory, etc.) though other components present may also contribute to its total beneficial effects; they include steroids, fatty acids, flavonoids and other polyphenols.
Although gotu-kola is also advocated as an anti-aging herb and an aphrodisiac, so far there has been no credible evidence to correlate such effects.
The raw herb comes in highly variable qualities. Some are extremely dirty, with leaves mostly broken and containing large quantities of mud and dirt. Consequently, one should avoid the powdered herb unles it is from a reliable supplier, because it is a common industrial practice to use inferior quality materials to produce herb powders.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including gotu-kola on page 44.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Gotu-kola has been used by different cultures worldwide both as a medicine and as a food for centuries. The young plant is cooked or pickled and eaten as a vegetable in Southeasat Asia. It has been used as a medicine for thousands of years in China and India and its use there has been documented for at least two thousand years.
The active principles of gotu-kola are currently attributed to tri-terpenoid glycosides (wound-healing, antimicrobial, sedative, antiinflammatory, etc.) though other components present may also contribute to its total beneficial effects; they include steroids, fatty acids, flavonoids and other polyphenols.
Although gotu-kola is also advocated as an anti-aging herb and an aphrodisiac, so far there has been no credible evidence to correlate such effects.
The raw herb comes in highly variable qualities. Some are extremely dirty, with leaves mostly broken and containing large quantities of mud and dirt. Consequently, one should avoid the powdered herb unles it is from a reliable supplier, because it is a common industrial practice to use inferior quality materials to produce herb powders.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including gotu-kola on page 44.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Luffa for Health
Remove the skin, pulp, and seeds from ripe old fruits of Luffa cylindrica (L.) Roem. and Luffa acutangula Roxb. (Family Cucurbitaceae) and the remains are what we know as the luffa sponge. Among luffa's many properties, it can be used to promote blood circulation, to disperse fever, to break up phlegm, as a detoxicant, as an antiinflammatory, as an analgesic, and as a tranquilizer.
The most common traditional uses of the luffa sponge are rheumatism, arthritic pain, muscle pain, chest pain, amenorrhea, swollen and painful testicles, hemorrhoids, and inadequate milk flow in nursing mothers. A more recent use is in the treatment of shingles.
Apart from its usefulness as a bath sponge to remove dead skin tissue and to stimulate the skin, I bet you have never heard of luffa having so many medicinal properties and uses. It doesn't look like it conatins more than fibers to do anything to the body besides physical cleansing and stimulation of one's skin. But it has been used in Chinese medicine for at least a thousand years! And some of its uses have recently been substantiated by laboratory findings showing its decoction to have antiinflammatory, analgesic, and tranquilizing effects in mice.
Even though we normally associate luffa sponges only with physical actions on the skin, it is perhaps not too far-fetched to envision that some transfer of beneficial ingredients can occur during the physical contact to give the skin extra benefits other than just physical cleansing and stimulation. Thus, its detoxicant and antiinflammatory properties seem to offer some justification for the use of its powder and extracts in facial scrubs and skin cleansers.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including Luffa on page 59.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
The most common traditional uses of the luffa sponge are rheumatism, arthritic pain, muscle pain, chest pain, amenorrhea, swollen and painful testicles, hemorrhoids, and inadequate milk flow in nursing mothers. A more recent use is in the treatment of shingles.
Apart from its usefulness as a bath sponge to remove dead skin tissue and to stimulate the skin, I bet you have never heard of luffa having so many medicinal properties and uses. It doesn't look like it conatins more than fibers to do anything to the body besides physical cleansing and stimulation of one's skin. But it has been used in Chinese medicine for at least a thousand years! And some of its uses have recently been substantiated by laboratory findings showing its decoction to have antiinflammatory, analgesic, and tranquilizing effects in mice.
Even though we normally associate luffa sponges only with physical actions on the skin, it is perhaps not too far-fetched to envision that some transfer of beneficial ingredients can occur during the physical contact to give the skin extra benefits other than just physical cleansing and stimulation. Thus, its detoxicant and antiinflammatory properties seem to offer some justification for the use of its powder and extracts in facial scrubs and skin cleansers.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including Luffa on page 59.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Spice, Medicine, and More: Hot Pepper
It might be called capsicum, cayenne pepper, chili pepper, or tabasco pepper. Regardless of the variety of plant or what it is called, these peppers have one thing in common - their hot, pungent taste. Depending on the variety, the taste varies from mildly pungent to extremely pungent.
Imported within the last few hundred years to China, hot pepper was originally called fan jiao, or "barbarian's spice". (Just as whites used to call all nonwhites savages, the Chinese called all people outside of China barbarians.) Hot pepper was later called la qie, "pungent eggplant", because of its resemblance to the shape of an eggplant, and is now more commonly known as la jiao ("pungent spice").
Botanically, hot pepper is the fruit of Capsicum frutescens, Capsicum annuum or other Capsicum species of the nightshade family. Capsicum annuum is an annual herb up to 1 m (3 ft.) tall, but the other species are usually perennial shrubs. They are all native to tropical America and are now grown all over the world. Some varieties of C. annuum produce hot pepper, while otehr varieties of the same plant yield nonpungent fruits which are known as green pepper, paprika, bell pepper, or sweet pepper.
Hot peppers are widely used in seasoning foods and in folk medicine. The most common forms in which they are used for home seasoning are ground, pickled, and as tabasco sauce. Ground pepper soaked in vegetable oil is also a favorite of many Chinese. In America, extracts of hot pepper known as capsicum extracts, or oleoresin, are widely used in processed foods, including meat products, desserts, baked goods, alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. They also used to be popoular components of some topical pharmaceutical preparations for treating arthritis, rheumatism, neuralgia, and lumbago but are now seldom used for these purposes in America. However, one can still find them used in certain commercial preparations for stopping thumb sucking or nail biting in children.
The pungent taste is due to its constituent capsaicin and its derivatives. Their concentrations in dried hot pepper range from less than 0.1% (mildly hot) to 1.5% (extremely hot). Dried hot pepper also contains about 13% protein, 9% fat, 60% carbohydrates, minerals and an exceptionally large amount of vitamin A (close to the amount present in dehydrated carrots). Fresh hot pepper also contains a large amount of vitamin C (several times that in oranges) most of which is destroyed during the drying process. In order to benefit from the high nutritive value of hot pepper one has to have numbed tastebuds, since ordinarily one can hardly ingest enough hot pepper for it to be a worthwhile source of nutrients.
In traditional Western folk medicine, hot pepper is used internally to stimulate appetite and aid digestion, and generally as a tonic. Externally, it is used as a counterirritant in the treatment of rheumatism, arthritis, and other inflammatory conditions.
Hot pepper is a strong local stimulant or irritant to the skin, mucous membranes, and eyes. The smoke of burning hot pepper is especially irritating to the mucous membranes and was once used for torture in the Malay Peninsula. Prolonged contact with hot pepper or its extracts can result in dermatitis. Hot pepper also caused tumors in the livers of experimental rats when the rats were fed a diet that contained 10% hot pepper. All these undesirable effects of hot pepper are mentioned here to remind you to use it with moderation.
In Chinese medicine, hot pepper is generally used in the dried form; the ripe fruit is collected in late summer or early autumn and is usually sun-dried. It is traditionally used to increase appetite, to aid digestion, and to treat arthritis and rheumatism, as in Western folk medicine. In addition, it is used in treating abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, chilblains, ringworm, malaria, poisonous snakebite, bruises, and hematomas.
The use of hot pepper for treating chilblains has been well documented, first in an 18th -century herbal, then n later herbals, and finally in modern Chinese medical journals. In modern usage, for treating chilblains and frostbite, a weak decoction or water extract of the pepper is used before the blisters break. This can be prepared by boiling 30g. (1 oz.) of hot pepper (cut up) in 2,000 to 3,000 ml. (2-3 qt.) of water for three to five minutes and straining off the residue. The liquid is used while still warm to wash the affected areas. Alternatively, an ointment prepared from 30 g. (about 1 oz.) ground hot pepper with seeds, 15 g. (about 0.5 oz.) camphor, and 250 g. (8.8 oz) Vaseline can be used. The ointment is rubbed on the chilblains or frostbite until a local burning sensation is felt. In one report, in a medical journal from northeastern China, of 200 patients treated with a weak hot-pepper decoction once daily for up to eleven days (but mostly for under five days), 188 were reported cured, eight had some response, while four did not respond. Best results were obtained with chilblains or frostbite of the hands and feet.
To treat traumatic injuries such as bruises and sprains causing hematomas (swellings containing blood) or swollen and painful joints, an ointment made with one part dried pepper and five parts Vaseline is used. Prepared by adding the ground hot pepper to the melted Vaseline, which is then mixed well and cooled until it congeals, this ointment is applied once daily, or once every two days, directly to the injured area. In a 1965 report from a journal of traditional medicine from Zhejiang, seven of 12 patients thus treated were cured and three improved, while two did not respond to this treatment. In the effective cases, four to nine applications were usually used.
In addition to uses above, modern Chinese medicine also uses hot pepper externally to treat parotiditis (mumps) and leg ulcers.
The usual internal daily dose of hot pepper is 1 to 2.5 g (0.04 - 0.09 oz.). It should not be taken by persons with any of the following conditions: sores, boils, toothache, eye diseses, or hemorrhoids.
One of the oldest remedies for treating chilblains calls for simply peeling off the skin of hot pepper and leaving it directly on the chilblain.
The use of hot pepper in the treatment of poisonous snakebite is described in a 19th-century herbal. For this purpose, it recommended that the bitten person simply chew 11 to 12 whole hot peppers and the pain and swelling would subside. Blisters would appear and a yellow liquid would exude from the wounded area while the patient was healing. Alternatively, the hot pepper could be chewed into a mash and then applied directly to the woiund with the same effects. Instead of the usual pungent taste, the patient would gind the hot pepper to taste sweet. I wonder how much truth there is in this century-old record. If it were true, the hot pepper must react with the snake venom to change the physiology of the tastebuds.
Hot pepper is readily available in groceries and super markets.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using hot pepper as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about hot pepper and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Imported within the last few hundred years to China, hot pepper was originally called fan jiao, or "barbarian's spice". (Just as whites used to call all nonwhites savages, the Chinese called all people outside of China barbarians.) Hot pepper was later called la qie, "pungent eggplant", because of its resemblance to the shape of an eggplant, and is now more commonly known as la jiao ("pungent spice").
Botanically, hot pepper is the fruit of Capsicum frutescens, Capsicum annuum or other Capsicum species of the nightshade family. Capsicum annuum is an annual herb up to 1 m (3 ft.) tall, but the other species are usually perennial shrubs. They are all native to tropical America and are now grown all over the world. Some varieties of C. annuum produce hot pepper, while otehr varieties of the same plant yield nonpungent fruits which are known as green pepper, paprika, bell pepper, or sweet pepper.
Hot peppers are widely used in seasoning foods and in folk medicine. The most common forms in which they are used for home seasoning are ground, pickled, and as tabasco sauce. Ground pepper soaked in vegetable oil is also a favorite of many Chinese. In America, extracts of hot pepper known as capsicum extracts, or oleoresin, are widely used in processed foods, including meat products, desserts, baked goods, alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. They also used to be popoular components of some topical pharmaceutical preparations for treating arthritis, rheumatism, neuralgia, and lumbago but are now seldom used for these purposes in America. However, one can still find them used in certain commercial preparations for stopping thumb sucking or nail biting in children.
The pungent taste is due to its constituent capsaicin and its derivatives. Their concentrations in dried hot pepper range from less than 0.1% (mildly hot) to 1.5% (extremely hot). Dried hot pepper also contains about 13% protein, 9% fat, 60% carbohydrates, minerals and an exceptionally large amount of vitamin A (close to the amount present in dehydrated carrots). Fresh hot pepper also contains a large amount of vitamin C (several times that in oranges) most of which is destroyed during the drying process. In order to benefit from the high nutritive value of hot pepper one has to have numbed tastebuds, since ordinarily one can hardly ingest enough hot pepper for it to be a worthwhile source of nutrients.
In traditional Western folk medicine, hot pepper is used internally to stimulate appetite and aid digestion, and generally as a tonic. Externally, it is used as a counterirritant in the treatment of rheumatism, arthritis, and other inflammatory conditions.
Hot pepper is a strong local stimulant or irritant to the skin, mucous membranes, and eyes. The smoke of burning hot pepper is especially irritating to the mucous membranes and was once used for torture in the Malay Peninsula. Prolonged contact with hot pepper or its extracts can result in dermatitis. Hot pepper also caused tumors in the livers of experimental rats when the rats were fed a diet that contained 10% hot pepper. All these undesirable effects of hot pepper are mentioned here to remind you to use it with moderation.
In Chinese medicine, hot pepper is generally used in the dried form; the ripe fruit is collected in late summer or early autumn and is usually sun-dried. It is traditionally used to increase appetite, to aid digestion, and to treat arthritis and rheumatism, as in Western folk medicine. In addition, it is used in treating abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, chilblains, ringworm, malaria, poisonous snakebite, bruises, and hematomas.
The use of hot pepper for treating chilblains has been well documented, first in an 18th -century herbal, then n later herbals, and finally in modern Chinese medical journals. In modern usage, for treating chilblains and frostbite, a weak decoction or water extract of the pepper is used before the blisters break. This can be prepared by boiling 30g. (1 oz.) of hot pepper (cut up) in 2,000 to 3,000 ml. (2-3 qt.) of water for three to five minutes and straining off the residue. The liquid is used while still warm to wash the affected areas. Alternatively, an ointment prepared from 30 g. (about 1 oz.) ground hot pepper with seeds, 15 g. (about 0.5 oz.) camphor, and 250 g. (8.8 oz) Vaseline can be used. The ointment is rubbed on the chilblains or frostbite until a local burning sensation is felt. In one report, in a medical journal from northeastern China, of 200 patients treated with a weak hot-pepper decoction once daily for up to eleven days (but mostly for under five days), 188 were reported cured, eight had some response, while four did not respond. Best results were obtained with chilblains or frostbite of the hands and feet.
To treat traumatic injuries such as bruises and sprains causing hematomas (swellings containing blood) or swollen and painful joints, an ointment made with one part dried pepper and five parts Vaseline is used. Prepared by adding the ground hot pepper to the melted Vaseline, which is then mixed well and cooled until it congeals, this ointment is applied once daily, or once every two days, directly to the injured area. In a 1965 report from a journal of traditional medicine from Zhejiang, seven of 12 patients thus treated were cured and three improved, while two did not respond to this treatment. In the effective cases, four to nine applications were usually used.
In addition to uses above, modern Chinese medicine also uses hot pepper externally to treat parotiditis (mumps) and leg ulcers.
The usual internal daily dose of hot pepper is 1 to 2.5 g (0.04 - 0.09 oz.). It should not be taken by persons with any of the following conditions: sores, boils, toothache, eye diseses, or hemorrhoids.
One of the oldest remedies for treating chilblains calls for simply peeling off the skin of hot pepper and leaving it directly on the chilblain.
The use of hot pepper in the treatment of poisonous snakebite is described in a 19th-century herbal. For this purpose, it recommended that the bitten person simply chew 11 to 12 whole hot peppers and the pain and swelling would subside. Blisters would appear and a yellow liquid would exude from the wounded area while the patient was healing. Alternatively, the hot pepper could be chewed into a mash and then applied directly to the woiund with the same effects. Instead of the usual pungent taste, the patient would gind the hot pepper to taste sweet. I wonder how much truth there is in this century-old record. If it were true, the hot pepper must react with the snake venom to change the physiology of the tastebuds.
Hot pepper is readily available in groceries and super markets.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using hot pepper as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about hot pepper and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Monday, April 09, 2007
Common Purslane, Uncommon Benefits
Common purslane, or Portulaca oleracea L. (Family Portulacaceae), grows around the world. The aboveground parts are used. In addition to being used as a medicine, it is eaten as a vegetable or salad in many countries, especially in France and the Mediterranean. It is rich in nutrients (although amounts are highly variable depending on the report), including vitamins (A, B1, B2, C, niacinamide, nicotinic acid, alpha-tocopherol, beta-carotene, etc.), fatty acids (especially omega-3 acids, the highest among leafy vegetables), glutathione, flavonoids, coumarins, dopa, dopamine, and high concentrations of l-noradrenaline (0.25% of fresh herb).
Purslane has several known properties. It is heat disspiating and a detoxicant; it cools blood and stops bleeding. Several traditional uses are known, including headache, stomachache, painful urination, dysentery, enteritis, mastitis, lack of milk flow in nursing mothers, postpartum bleeding, bloody stool, bleeding hemorrhoids, and metrorrhagia. External uses include burns, earache, insect stings, inflammations, skin sores, ulcers, pruritus, eczema, and abscesses. Other, more modern uses include colitis, acute appendicitis, diabetes, dermatitis, and shingles.
By far the most common medicinal use of purslane in China is for the treatment of dysentery and bleeding. Although modern laboratory studies have shown it to have numerous biological effects, such as muscle relaxant (both smooth and skeletal muscles), hypertensive, antibacterial and antifungal, wound healing, antiinflammatory, uterine stimulant and diuretic, they don't explain why purslane is used for its various properties.
Nevertheless, since purslane is rich in conventional antioxidants (vitamins A, C and E, beta-carotene, gutathione, etc.) and omega-3 fatty acids, and because it has so many traditionally known benefits, it should be utilized more often.
Purslane has several known properties. It is heat disspiating and a detoxicant; it cools blood and stops bleeding. Several traditional uses are known, including headache, stomachache, painful urination, dysentery, enteritis, mastitis, lack of milk flow in nursing mothers, postpartum bleeding, bloody stool, bleeding hemorrhoids, and metrorrhagia. External uses include burns, earache, insect stings, inflammations, skin sores, ulcers, pruritus, eczema, and abscesses. Other, more modern uses include colitis, acute appendicitis, diabetes, dermatitis, and shingles.
By far the most common medicinal use of purslane in China is for the treatment of dysentery and bleeding. Although modern laboratory studies have shown it to have numerous biological effects, such as muscle relaxant (both smooth and skeletal muscles), hypertensive, antibacterial and antifungal, wound healing, antiinflammatory, uterine stimulant and diuretic, they don't explain why purslane is used for its various properties.
Nevertheless, since purslane is rich in conventional antioxidants (vitamins A, C and E, beta-carotene, gutathione, etc.) and omega-3 fatty acids, and because it has so many traditionally known benefits, it should be utilized more often.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Kudzu
Kudzu (synonym: Gegen) is another name for Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi. and P. thompsonii Benth. (Family Leguminosae). The part used is the root tuber. This is traditionally used for colds and flu and associated fever or headache, stiff and sore neck, diarrhea, measles, thirst, and drunkenness. More recently it has been used to treat hypertension, angina, pectoris, migraine, diabetes, nasal sinusitus, urticaria, psoriasis, and itching. It is also used externally for traumatic injuries.
The first written record of kudzu in China dates back to the fifth century B.C. and its first recorded medical applications date back about two thousand years. The kudzu plant is truly versatile and economic. Its root produces a starch similar to arrowroot starch, which is widely used by Asians (especially Chinese and Japanese) as a food and medicine; the root itself is also eaten in soups or is cooked alone or with other herbs for treating various conditions. Being rich in protein and other nutrients, the whole aboveground portion can be used in making animal feed. The fiber from the vine can be used in making textile.
After being introduced into the United States from Asia a little over a hundred years ago, one of the kudzu vines (Pueraria labata) has now run wild, especially in the Southeast. There, it overruns telephone poles, abandoned houses and cars, and is considered a pest. Instead of viewing it as a natural resource for use as human and animal food, as medicine and as industrial fiber, our government has been spending money to support program after program trying to eradicate it. What else is new?
I remember when I was growing up, kudzu often showed up on our dinner table in the form of a soup, for what my grandma used to call too much "hot air" among us. In Cantonese folk medicine, "hot or feverish air" or simply "hot" conditions are characterized by one or more of the following: headache with a feeling of heaviness in the head, dryness of mouth, bitter taste in the mouth, bad breath, canker sores, blisters in the mouth, swollen gums, dry and uncomfortable feeling in the throat, bloodshot eyes, pain during urination, etc. Many of these "hot"conditions can now be correlated to viral or bacterial infections. Other foods good for these indications include mung bean, chrysanthemum, and watercress. Kudzu root and flower are also used to treat hangovers. Maybe my grandma served kudzu root soup serreptitiously for one of my uncles who was known to hit the bottle once in a while.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including kudzu on pages 54-55. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
The first written record of kudzu in China dates back to the fifth century B.C. and its first recorded medical applications date back about two thousand years. The kudzu plant is truly versatile and economic. Its root produces a starch similar to arrowroot starch, which is widely used by Asians (especially Chinese and Japanese) as a food and medicine; the root itself is also eaten in soups or is cooked alone or with other herbs for treating various conditions. Being rich in protein and other nutrients, the whole aboveground portion can be used in making animal feed. The fiber from the vine can be used in making textile.
After being introduced into the United States from Asia a little over a hundred years ago, one of the kudzu vines (Pueraria labata) has now run wild, especially in the Southeast. There, it overruns telephone poles, abandoned houses and cars, and is considered a pest. Instead of viewing it as a natural resource for use as human and animal food, as medicine and as industrial fiber, our government has been spending money to support program after program trying to eradicate it. What else is new?
I remember when I was growing up, kudzu often showed up on our dinner table in the form of a soup, for what my grandma used to call too much "hot air" among us. In Cantonese folk medicine, "hot or feverish air" or simply "hot" conditions are characterized by one or more of the following: headache with a feeling of heaviness in the head, dryness of mouth, bitter taste in the mouth, bad breath, canker sores, blisters in the mouth, swollen gums, dry and uncomfortable feeling in the throat, bloodshot eyes, pain during urination, etc. Many of these "hot"conditions can now be correlated to viral or bacterial infections. Other foods good for these indications include mung bean, chrysanthemum, and watercress. Kudzu root and flower are also used to treat hangovers. Maybe my grandma served kudzu root soup serreptitiously for one of my uncles who was known to hit the bottle once in a while.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including kudzu on pages 54-55. For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Cucumber: Medicine from the Garden
Common throughout the world, cucumbers are consumed raw, cooked, and pickled, or in other ways. Westerners like them raw in salads and rarely eat them cooked, but peoples in the Far East, especially the Chinese, usually eat them cooked. When I was a child my family only occasionally ate cucumber raw, and always after it had been meticulously washed, because of an age-old Chinese tradition of avoiding raw foods for hygienic reasons.
Known scientifically as Cucumis sativus of the gourd family, the cucmber plant is an annual herb that grows by trailing along the ground or by climbing a support. It is believed to be native to Asia, probably the Middle East. According to Chinese records, cucumber was introduced to China around 100 B.C. (during the Han Dynasty) from countries to the west by way of what later became known as the Silk Route, later taken by Marco Polo. For six to seven hundred years, cucumber bore the name hu gua, meaning "foreign melon", but a later name, huang gua, meaning "yellow melon" is now more commonly used.
Numerous varieties of the plant produce fruits (cucumbers) of different sizes, shapes, colors, and flavors. They are easy to grow and, depending on the variety, range in shape from nearly round (rare) to elongate (common), and in taste from nonbitter to quite bitter, especially at the stem tips. Some cucumbers of the elongate type can reach 1 m. (3 ft) in length, but most are between 10 cm (4 in.) and 30 cm (1 ft.) long.
Like most vegetables and fruits, raw cucumbers contain large amounts of water (95%). The rest is made up of about 1% protein, 3% carbohydrates, minor amounts of fats (0.1%), minerals and vitamins (e.g., A, Bs, and C), none in unusually high concentration. Cucumbers also contain minor amounts of numerous other biologically active constituents. Their bitter taste is due to compounds known as cucurbitacins, one of which has been found to have antitumor effects on experimental animals.
In Western folk medicine, cucumber is considered a diuretic and a laxative. Externally the juice is said to be good for soothing skin inflamations, burns, and irritations, and for treating freckles and wrinkles.
The first recorded medicinal use of the cucumber was in the 7th century. In Chinese medicine, cucumber is considered to have heat-dissipating, diuretic, laxative, and detoxifying effects. Its major uses include the treatment of excessive thirst, sore throat, laryngitis, acute conjuctivitis, and burns. In most Chinese homes, however, whether eaten raw or cooked as a soup, cucumber is used only for keeping cool in summer, when it is in season, or in early autumn to soothe dry lips and throat.
The leaves, roots and stems are also used in Chinese medicine: the leaves and roots for diarrhea and dysentery; the stems for dysentery, urinary disorders and sores. Both fresh and dried forms are used. The leaves and roots are collected in the summer or fall and are sun-dried. The stems are collected in early summer before or at the time of flowering and are dried in the shade.
While the medicinal uses of cucumber stems are of relatively recent origin (18th century), the first recorded uses of cucumber leaves and cucumber roots date back to the 8th and 16th centuries, respectively. They are used both internally (as a decoction) and externally (as a mash), with internal doses for roots and stems of 28 to 56 g. (1-2 oz.) daily. The traditional dose for the leaves is one leaf for a one-year-old child. (Presumably more for older children or adults - but this is not stated.)
Cucumber stems have recently been used clinically in China for treating high blood pressure. Their effectiveness is described in a report of 1973 in which 53 of 64 patients with hypertension responded when treated with tablets of dried cucumber stems. The treatment consisted of taking 12.5 g. (0.04 oz.) of tablets three times daily for one to two months. Side effects were minimal. Only five of the patients experienced a burning sensation in the stomach after taking the tablets; this was reduced or disappeared when the patients took the tablets after meals.
In a report of 1972, decoctions or extracts of cucumber seedlings (with roots and leaves removed) were also effective in treating high blood pressure. Of 62 patients thus treated, 54 responded, half with their blood pressure down in the normal range.
One of the more popular home remedies for treating dryness of lips and throat and preventing laryngitis or sore throat in late summer and early fall is to use a soup prepared from old, well-ripened cucumbers. The soup is prepared just like a regular vegetable soup and drunk often during this period.
In a traditional remedy for treating painful acute conjunctivitis, a well-ripened cucumber is used. A hole is made at one end and the seeds and pulp are removed. It is then filled with Glauber's salt (sodium sulfate). After the hole is sealed, the filled cucumber is hung in the shade for some weeks until white crystals accumulate on the surface. The crystals are then scraped off and used to prepare a solution for eye drops.
Cucumbers are sold at groceries and in supermarkets. The leaves, roots, and stems of the cucumber plant can be obtained from home gardens.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using cucumber as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about cucumber and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Known scientifically as Cucumis sativus of the gourd family, the cucmber plant is an annual herb that grows by trailing along the ground or by climbing a support. It is believed to be native to Asia, probably the Middle East. According to Chinese records, cucumber was introduced to China around 100 B.C. (during the Han Dynasty) from countries to the west by way of what later became known as the Silk Route, later taken by Marco Polo. For six to seven hundred years, cucumber bore the name hu gua, meaning "foreign melon", but a later name, huang gua, meaning "yellow melon" is now more commonly used.
Numerous varieties of the plant produce fruits (cucumbers) of different sizes, shapes, colors, and flavors. They are easy to grow and, depending on the variety, range in shape from nearly round (rare) to elongate (common), and in taste from nonbitter to quite bitter, especially at the stem tips. Some cucumbers of the elongate type can reach 1 m. (3 ft) in length, but most are between 10 cm (4 in.) and 30 cm (1 ft.) long.
Like most vegetables and fruits, raw cucumbers contain large amounts of water (95%). The rest is made up of about 1% protein, 3% carbohydrates, minor amounts of fats (0.1%), minerals and vitamins (e.g., A, Bs, and C), none in unusually high concentration. Cucumbers also contain minor amounts of numerous other biologically active constituents. Their bitter taste is due to compounds known as cucurbitacins, one of which has been found to have antitumor effects on experimental animals.
In Western folk medicine, cucumber is considered a diuretic and a laxative. Externally the juice is said to be good for soothing skin inflamations, burns, and irritations, and for treating freckles and wrinkles.
The first recorded medicinal use of the cucumber was in the 7th century. In Chinese medicine, cucumber is considered to have heat-dissipating, diuretic, laxative, and detoxifying effects. Its major uses include the treatment of excessive thirst, sore throat, laryngitis, acute conjuctivitis, and burns. In most Chinese homes, however, whether eaten raw or cooked as a soup, cucumber is used only for keeping cool in summer, when it is in season, or in early autumn to soothe dry lips and throat.
The leaves, roots and stems are also used in Chinese medicine: the leaves and roots for diarrhea and dysentery; the stems for dysentery, urinary disorders and sores. Both fresh and dried forms are used. The leaves and roots are collected in the summer or fall and are sun-dried. The stems are collected in early summer before or at the time of flowering and are dried in the shade.
While the medicinal uses of cucumber stems are of relatively recent origin (18th century), the first recorded uses of cucumber leaves and cucumber roots date back to the 8th and 16th centuries, respectively. They are used both internally (as a decoction) and externally (as a mash), with internal doses for roots and stems of 28 to 56 g. (1-2 oz.) daily. The traditional dose for the leaves is one leaf for a one-year-old child. (Presumably more for older children or adults - but this is not stated.)
Cucumber stems have recently been used clinically in China for treating high blood pressure. Their effectiveness is described in a report of 1973 in which 53 of 64 patients with hypertension responded when treated with tablets of dried cucumber stems. The treatment consisted of taking 12.5 g. (0.04 oz.) of tablets three times daily for one to two months. Side effects were minimal. Only five of the patients experienced a burning sensation in the stomach after taking the tablets; this was reduced or disappeared when the patients took the tablets after meals.
In a report of 1972, decoctions or extracts of cucumber seedlings (with roots and leaves removed) were also effective in treating high blood pressure. Of 62 patients thus treated, 54 responded, half with their blood pressure down in the normal range.
One of the more popular home remedies for treating dryness of lips and throat and preventing laryngitis or sore throat in late summer and early fall is to use a soup prepared from old, well-ripened cucumbers. The soup is prepared just like a regular vegetable soup and drunk often during this period.
In a traditional remedy for treating painful acute conjunctivitis, a well-ripened cucumber is used. A hole is made at one end and the seeds and pulp are removed. It is then filled with Glauber's salt (sodium sulfate). After the hole is sealed, the filled cucumber is hung in the shade for some weeks until white crystals accumulate on the surface. The crystals are then scraped off and used to prepare a solution for eye drops.
Cucumbers are sold at groceries and in supermarkets. The leaves, roots, and stems of the cucumber plant can be obtained from home gardens.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using cucumber as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about cucumber and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Part 2: Open Sesame... Seed, That Is
In last week's Sesame post we gave some general information and described some of the effects that sesame seed (from Sesamum inidcum) has on the body. This week in part 2, as promised, we will delve into the traditional uses of sesame seed as well as some typical home remedies.
The sesame plant was introduced into China during the Han Dynasty, around the second century B.C. Its seeds have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for over 2000 years and are first described in the Shennong Herbal, where they are listed in the nontoxic category of drugs. They are considered to vitalize the internal organs, to be particularly beneficial to the kidney and liver, and to "moisten dryness", as in treating constipation. Black sesame seeds are regarded as superior to white sesame seeds in medicinal value and are the ones customarily used in Chinese Medicine. They are currently an officially recognized drug in the People's Republic of China, being listed in its pharmacopeia for the treatment of dizziness, blurred vision, and tinnitus (imaginary roaring noise) resulting from anemia, premature graying of hair, loss of hair after an illness, and constipation. Other uses recorded in traditional herbals include the treatment of lack of milk in nursing women, rheumatoid arthritis, paralysis, and general weakness after an illness. Sesame seeds are also used to treat insect bites, sores, and hemorrhoids. The normal daily internal dose is 9 to 15 g. (0.3 to o.5 oz.), taken as a decoction, pills, or powder. Externally, a decoction of the seeds is used to wash affected areas or the mashed seeds are applied directly.
Internal use of sesame seeds should be avoided by individuals with spleen problems and by those who have loose stools.
Although many recipes using sesame seeds for a wide variety of conditions can be found in traditional and modern herbals, by far the most common uses of the seeds in Chinese homes are as nutrients, tonics, and laxatives. All three effects can be obtained from a drink (perhaps more appropriately called a soup) made from sesame seeds and rice. When I was growing up in Hong Kong, my family would occasionally make this soup to treat constipation in one of us, as well as for the rest of the family. We children ate the soup because it tasted good. It is prepared the same way as "almond milk", replacing the almonds with sesame seeds. Briefly, the seeds and rice are soaked together in water. When well-soaked they are ground to a paste, followed by straining, diluting and sweetening to taste with sugar or rock candy. Like almond milk, the consistency of sesame seed soup varies, depending on the amount of rice and water used. This soup is often prepared by the Cantonese in Hong Kong during dry weather to soothe and lubricate internal organs, particularly the bowels.
In a recipe from an 8th-century herbal for treating aching limbs accompanied by swelling, five parts of sesame seeds are heated to remove excess water, ground, and mixed with one part of wine. After soaking overnight, the wine is drunk as needed.
In the same herbal, a recipe for treating kitchen burns and scalds calls for grinding sesame seeds into a paste and applying it to the affected areas. This paste can also be used for treating insect bites, especiallly spider bites.
To treat toothache with swollen gums, a 4th-century recipe calls for boiling one part of sesame seeds in two parts of water until one part of liquid remains. The liquid is then used for gargling. It is said to work wonders.
According to a recipe from an early 15th-century herbal, sores on the head and facial areas can be treated by simply chewing raw sesame seeds and applying the resulting wet mash to the sores.
According to Li Shizhen's Ben Cao Gang Mu, to increase milk flow in nursing mothers, sesame seeds are roasted, ground, and mixed with a small amount of salt.
Li Shizhen also gives a remedy for swollen and painful hemorrhoids: Boil sesame seeds in water and use the liquid to wash the affected area.
To treat unhealing sores and carbuncles, black sesame seeds are roasted well and ground to a paste, which is applied directly to the sores or carbuncles as a poultice. This recipe is from a 7th-century herbal.
Sesame seeds area readily available in grocery stores and supermarkets.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using sesame as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about sesame and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
The sesame plant was introduced into China during the Han Dynasty, around the second century B.C. Its seeds have been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for over 2000 years and are first described in the Shennong Herbal, where they are listed in the nontoxic category of drugs. They are considered to vitalize the internal organs, to be particularly beneficial to the kidney and liver, and to "moisten dryness", as in treating constipation. Black sesame seeds are regarded as superior to white sesame seeds in medicinal value and are the ones customarily used in Chinese Medicine. They are currently an officially recognized drug in the People's Republic of China, being listed in its pharmacopeia for the treatment of dizziness, blurred vision, and tinnitus (imaginary roaring noise) resulting from anemia, premature graying of hair, loss of hair after an illness, and constipation. Other uses recorded in traditional herbals include the treatment of lack of milk in nursing women, rheumatoid arthritis, paralysis, and general weakness after an illness. Sesame seeds are also used to treat insect bites, sores, and hemorrhoids. The normal daily internal dose is 9 to 15 g. (0.3 to o.5 oz.), taken as a decoction, pills, or powder. Externally, a decoction of the seeds is used to wash affected areas or the mashed seeds are applied directly.
Internal use of sesame seeds should be avoided by individuals with spleen problems and by those who have loose stools.
Although many recipes using sesame seeds for a wide variety of conditions can be found in traditional and modern herbals, by far the most common uses of the seeds in Chinese homes are as nutrients, tonics, and laxatives. All three effects can be obtained from a drink (perhaps more appropriately called a soup) made from sesame seeds and rice. When I was growing up in Hong Kong, my family would occasionally make this soup to treat constipation in one of us, as well as for the rest of the family. We children ate the soup because it tasted good. It is prepared the same way as "almond milk", replacing the almonds with sesame seeds. Briefly, the seeds and rice are soaked together in water. When well-soaked they are ground to a paste, followed by straining, diluting and sweetening to taste with sugar or rock candy. Like almond milk, the consistency of sesame seed soup varies, depending on the amount of rice and water used. This soup is often prepared by the Cantonese in Hong Kong during dry weather to soothe and lubricate internal organs, particularly the bowels.
In a recipe from an 8th-century herbal for treating aching limbs accompanied by swelling, five parts of sesame seeds are heated to remove excess water, ground, and mixed with one part of wine. After soaking overnight, the wine is drunk as needed.
In the same herbal, a recipe for treating kitchen burns and scalds calls for grinding sesame seeds into a paste and applying it to the affected areas. This paste can also be used for treating insect bites, especiallly spider bites.
To treat toothache with swollen gums, a 4th-century recipe calls for boiling one part of sesame seeds in two parts of water until one part of liquid remains. The liquid is then used for gargling. It is said to work wonders.
According to a recipe from an early 15th-century herbal, sores on the head and facial areas can be treated by simply chewing raw sesame seeds and applying the resulting wet mash to the sores.
According to Li Shizhen's Ben Cao Gang Mu, to increase milk flow in nursing mothers, sesame seeds are roasted, ground, and mixed with a small amount of salt.
Li Shizhen also gives a remedy for swollen and painful hemorrhoids: Boil sesame seeds in water and use the liquid to wash the affected area.
To treat unhealing sores and carbuncles, black sesame seeds are roasted well and ground to a paste, which is applied directly to the sores or carbuncles as a poultice. This recipe is from a 7th-century herbal.
Sesame seeds area readily available in grocery stores and supermarkets.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using sesame as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about sesame and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Forsythia
Forsythia fruit is the ripe fruit, with or without seeds, of Forsythia suspensa (Thunb.) Vahl. (Family Oleaceae).
Forsythia fruit is one of the most common components in Chinese herbal formulas for treating the common cold, influenza, and allergies (e.g., hay fever). With continuous documentation of at least three thousand years, it is traditionally considered a detoxicant for treating so-called "toxic" and "hot" conditions. These conditions correlate with modern inflammatory and infectious diseases, including viral and bacterial infections, as well as allergies. The properties and uses of forsythia fruit now appear to have considerable scientific support.
In recent laboratory studies, Chinese scientists have found its decoction (water extract) and other extracts (e.g., alcohol extract) to have antiviral, antibacterial, antiinflammatory, antypyretic, antiallergic, and antioxidant activities in vitro and in experimental animals. Chemical studies have revealed various active constituents, including relatively large amounts of oleanolic acid (0.73 to 2.28%) and other triterpenes, phenols (e.g. forsythol), sterols and flavonoids. Although oleanolic acid has antiallergic and liver protectant and forsythol antibacterial activities, they cannot account for the varied biological effects and total traditional properties of forsythia fruit. Again, this is nothing new when it comes to scientific investigation of herbs using the typical single chemical drug appropach, where researchers are only looking for a one-to-one effect. In herbal medicine, there is no such thing. At best you are looking at a rare occasion where a single chemical of an herb is responsible for one or two of its specific properties, such as ephedrine from mahuang (Ephedra spp.), berberine from huanglian (Coptis spp.) and quinine from chichona bark. However, these specific chemicals with specific effects don't account for the total traditional properties and uses of these herbs.
Like other scientists, I don't have a clear idea how forsythia fruit works in taking care of colds, flus and allergies. But based on personal experience with this and related herbs and after almost twenty years of intensive searching and accumulating traditinonal and modern Chinese herbal data, including a collection of most of the major Chinese herbals ever published and over sixty modern Chinese journals (quarterly, bi-monthly and monthly) on traditional herbal medicine, I can tell you that traditional Chinese formulas for treating "toxic" and "hot" conditions are superior to modern cold, flu and allergy medicines. Some of these formulas have been safely used for hundreds of years.
While modern medicines only offer temporary relief of symptoms (often simulataneously causing toxic side effects), the traditional Chinese herbal formulas take care of the virus ("evil") as well as strengthen the body, with many fewer toxic side effects, if any at all. My family and friends have been using two or three of these formulas with considerable success. I would be very upset if I were forced to use modern drugs by some biased and self-serving bureaucrats; so would my family and friends.
Extracts of forsythia fruit are now also used in numerous types of cosmetic products, including hair care (e.g., hair growth liniments and antidandruff shampoos), skin care (e.g., acne cream) and foot care (e.g., athletes foot) products for their antimicrobial and traditional detoxifying properties.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including forsythia on pages 30-32.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Forsythia fruit is one of the most common components in Chinese herbal formulas for treating the common cold, influenza, and allergies (e.g., hay fever). With continuous documentation of at least three thousand years, it is traditionally considered a detoxicant for treating so-called "toxic" and "hot" conditions. These conditions correlate with modern inflammatory and infectious diseases, including viral and bacterial infections, as well as allergies. The properties and uses of forsythia fruit now appear to have considerable scientific support.
In recent laboratory studies, Chinese scientists have found its decoction (water extract) and other extracts (e.g., alcohol extract) to have antiviral, antibacterial, antiinflammatory, antypyretic, antiallergic, and antioxidant activities in vitro and in experimental animals. Chemical studies have revealed various active constituents, including relatively large amounts of oleanolic acid (0.73 to 2.28%) and other triterpenes, phenols (e.g. forsythol), sterols and flavonoids. Although oleanolic acid has antiallergic and liver protectant and forsythol antibacterial activities, they cannot account for the varied biological effects and total traditional properties of forsythia fruit. Again, this is nothing new when it comes to scientific investigation of herbs using the typical single chemical drug appropach, where researchers are only looking for a one-to-one effect. In herbal medicine, there is no such thing. At best you are looking at a rare occasion where a single chemical of an herb is responsible for one or two of its specific properties, such as ephedrine from mahuang (Ephedra spp.), berberine from huanglian (Coptis spp.) and quinine from chichona bark. However, these specific chemicals with specific effects don't account for the total traditional properties and uses of these herbs.
Like other scientists, I don't have a clear idea how forsythia fruit works in taking care of colds, flus and allergies. But based on personal experience with this and related herbs and after almost twenty years of intensive searching and accumulating traditinonal and modern Chinese herbal data, including a collection of most of the major Chinese herbals ever published and over sixty modern Chinese journals (quarterly, bi-monthly and monthly) on traditional herbal medicine, I can tell you that traditional Chinese formulas for treating "toxic" and "hot" conditions are superior to modern cold, flu and allergy medicines. Some of these formulas have been safely used for hundreds of years.
While modern medicines only offer temporary relief of symptoms (often simulataneously causing toxic side effects), the traditional Chinese herbal formulas take care of the virus ("evil") as well as strengthen the body, with many fewer toxic side effects, if any at all. My family and friends have been using two or three of these formulas with considerable success. I would be very upset if I were forced to use modern drugs by some biased and self-serving bureaucrats; so would my family and friends.
Extracts of forsythia fruit are now also used in numerous types of cosmetic products, including hair care (e.g., hair growth liniments and antidandruff shampoos), skin care (e.g., acne cream) and foot care (e.g., athletes foot) products for their antimicrobial and traditional detoxifying properties.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including forsythia on pages 30-32.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Part 1: Open Sesame... Seed, That Is
Used extensively worldwide, sesame seeds are the seeds of a cultivated annual herb known scientifically as Sesamum indicum of the sesame family. In Chinese the sesame plant is called zhi ma or hu ma, meaning "oily hemp" or "foreign hemp". A native of southern Asia and now cultivated in Burma, China, India, Sudan, and many other tropical countries, the sesame plant is hairy and grows to a height of about 1 m. (3.3 ft). It has an erect stem with leaves that vary in shape and size from oval to narrow and oblong or palmately three-lobed, measuring 3 to 10 cm. (1.2 to 4 in.) long, with petioles 1.5 to 5 cm. (0.6 to 2 in.) long. The plant flowers from June through August. Its fruit is a capsule containing numerous seeds. Sesame seeds are harvested during the fruiting period (August and September) after the capsules have turned yellowish black. Whole plants are cut at their base and tied in bundles, with their tops together, and dried under the sun. After drying the seeds are separated by thrashing, and extraneous, non-seed material is removed. Further drying yields the sesame seeds sold commercially.
Two major types of sesame seeds, black and white, are derived from the black and white varieties of S. indicum respectively. The small shiny seeds are smooth, oval, and flattened. They are nutritious and contain about 55% oil (fats), 26% protein, and 9$ carbotydrates. They also containVitamin E, folic acid, nicotinic acid, and minerals (especially calcium). Sesame seed oil contains mainly oleic and linoleic acids (each about 43 %), 9% palmitic acid, 4% stearic acid, and small amounts of sesamol and sesamolin.
Sesame seed oil, also known as benne oil or teel oil, is obtained by pressing the seeds. There are two kinds of oil, one prepared from roasted, and the other from unroasted seeds. The former has a vrey fragrant aroma and the latter has hardly any aroma at all. Roasted sesame seed oil is a popular condiment in Oriental foods. On the other hand, unroasted sesame seed oil is used primarily in pharmaceuticals. It has similar properties to those of olive oil; it is used as a vehicle (carrier) in intramuscular injections and in other pharmaceutical preparations for its laxative, emollient (softening) and demulcent (soothing) properties. Roasted and unroasted sesame oils cannot be used interchangeably.
In Western countries, sesame seeds are commonly used on bread, crackers, and rolls. The white variety is generally preferred.
Experiments performed over the past few decades, mainly by Western scientists, have found sesame seeds to lower the blood sugar level but to increase the liver and muscle glycogen levels in rats.
Sesame seed cake, obtained after expressing the oil, when used as feed, was found to be toxic to domestic animals. Calves eating too much of this sesame seed cake were found to exhibit signs of eczema, hair loss, and itching.
To Be Continued.
Come back next week when we will discuss sesame's traditional uses and reveal a few home remedies in part 2 of "Open Sesame... Seed, That Is".
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using sesame as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about sesame and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Two major types of sesame seeds, black and white, are derived from the black and white varieties of S. indicum respectively. The small shiny seeds are smooth, oval, and flattened. They are nutritious and contain about 55% oil (fats), 26% protein, and 9$ carbotydrates. They also containVitamin E, folic acid, nicotinic acid, and minerals (especially calcium). Sesame seed oil contains mainly oleic and linoleic acids (each about 43 %), 9% palmitic acid, 4% stearic acid, and small amounts of sesamol and sesamolin.
Sesame seed oil, also known as benne oil or teel oil, is obtained by pressing the seeds. There are two kinds of oil, one prepared from roasted, and the other from unroasted seeds. The former has a vrey fragrant aroma and the latter has hardly any aroma at all. Roasted sesame seed oil is a popular condiment in Oriental foods. On the other hand, unroasted sesame seed oil is used primarily in pharmaceuticals. It has similar properties to those of olive oil; it is used as a vehicle (carrier) in intramuscular injections and in other pharmaceutical preparations for its laxative, emollient (softening) and demulcent (soothing) properties. Roasted and unroasted sesame oils cannot be used interchangeably.
In Western countries, sesame seeds are commonly used on bread, crackers, and rolls. The white variety is generally preferred.
Experiments performed over the past few decades, mainly by Western scientists, have found sesame seeds to lower the blood sugar level but to increase the liver and muscle glycogen levels in rats.
Sesame seed cake, obtained after expressing the oil, when used as feed, was found to be toxic to domestic animals. Calves eating too much of this sesame seed cake were found to exhibit signs of eczema, hair loss, and itching.
To Be Continued.
Come back next week when we will discuss sesame's traditional uses and reveal a few home remedies in part 2 of "Open Sesame... Seed, That Is".
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using sesame as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about sesame and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Medicine from Marigolds
You may not think of medicine when you see a marigold flower, but that might change after you read this.
Two species of marigold are used in Chinese medicine - the big, or Aztec, marigold and the French marigold. Big, or Aztec, marigold is known scientifically as Tagates erecta and French marigold as Tagates patula, both of the composite family. In Chinese, Aztec marigold is called wan shou ju, meaning "long life chrysanthemum", and French marigold is known as xi fan ju, meaning "Western chrysanthemum", denoting its foreign origin. The whole French marigold plant, when used in traditional medicine, is called kong que cao, or "peacock herb".
Marigolds are strong-scented annual herbs, usually 0.3 to 1 m. (1-3 ft) tall. Aztec marigold bears flowers that range in color from yellow to orange and can reach as much as 10 cm (4 in.) across, while French marigold bears yellow to golden-yellow flower heads that are much smaller, only about 4 cm (1.6 in.) across and usually with red patches. Both marigolds are generally considered to be natives of Mexico. They are now extensively cultivated throughout the world, with numerous varieties.
Although both marigolds are commonly seen as ornamental plants in Western countries, Aztec marigold is quite extensively grown for its yellow flowerheads. The flower petals are used in chicken feed to give the skin and egg yolk of chickens the familiar yellow color. This practice has been going on for so many years, and western consumers have grown so used to the yellow color of the chicken skin and egg yolk, that most of them believe this color to be natural and actually consider chickens without a yellow skin and eggs without yellow yolks unnatural and undesirable. Marigolds also yield a fragrant volatile oil called tagetes oil that is used in perfumes and in many types of processed food products, including alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, frozen desserts, candies, puddings, condiments and relishes.
In Western folk medicine, the flower heads and leaves of Aztec marigold are used in treating intestinal worms and colic, as well as in promoting menstrual flow.
Scientists have found tagetes oil to have various effects on experimental animals. These include sedative, anticonvulsive, hypotensive, bronchodilatory, and anti-inflammatory effects. Tagates oil also has insecticidal properties.
As is typical in plants of the composite family, marigolds can cause contact dermatitis in some sensitive individuals. Consequently, if one is allergic to chrysanthemums, daisies, or other composite plants one should be careful about handling marigolds also.
The uses of marigolds in Chinese medicine are described only in modern herbals that are mainly of southern Chinese origin. Despite this lack of written record, marigolds have probably been used for generations as a folk remedy in some southern Chinese provinces, particularly Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Guangxi. Both the flower heads and leaves of Aztec marigold are usually collected in the summer or fall and are used either fresh or sun-dried.
The flower heads of Aztec marigold are considered to have properties that dissipate heat (in fevers), expel colds, and break up phlegm. They are used to treat whooping cough, coughs due to colds, convulsions in children, acute conjunctivitis, dizziness, mumps, and mastitis. The usual daily internal dose is 3 to 9 g. (0.1 to 0.3 oz.) of dried flower heads taken as a decoction. Externally, the decoction is used to wash affected areas.
The leaves of Aztec marigold are used mainly for treating carbuncles, sores, and boils. The usual daily internal dose is 4.5 to 9 g. (o.15 to 0.3 oz.) of dried leaves taken as a decoction. For external use, the decoction is used to wash the affected areas or the mashed fresh leaves are applied directly.
The whole French marigold plant, also collected and dried in summer or fall, is used in traditional medicine. Said to dissipate heat, it is also used in treating coughs and diarrhea, with a daily internal dose of 9 to 15 g. (0.3 to 0.5 oz.), taken as a decoction or powder.
Recorded remedies using marigolds are few. Following are two that don't combine marigolds with other herbs.
To treat toothache or sore eyes, 15 g. (0.5 oz) of dried flower heads of Aztec marigold are boiled in water and the liquid is drunk.
To treat whooping cough, 15 fresh flower heads are boiled in water and the resulting decoction is taken along with red sugar (a type of crude cane sugar).
Marigolds are widely grown as ornamental herbs in home gardens and are also sold in garden centers or by florists.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using marigold as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about marigold and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Two species of marigold are used in Chinese medicine - the big, or Aztec, marigold and the French marigold. Big, or Aztec, marigold is known scientifically as Tagates erecta and French marigold as Tagates patula, both of the composite family. In Chinese, Aztec marigold is called wan shou ju, meaning "long life chrysanthemum", and French marigold is known as xi fan ju, meaning "Western chrysanthemum", denoting its foreign origin. The whole French marigold plant, when used in traditional medicine, is called kong que cao, or "peacock herb".
Marigolds are strong-scented annual herbs, usually 0.3 to 1 m. (1-3 ft) tall. Aztec marigold bears flowers that range in color from yellow to orange and can reach as much as 10 cm (4 in.) across, while French marigold bears yellow to golden-yellow flower heads that are much smaller, only about 4 cm (1.6 in.) across and usually with red patches. Both marigolds are generally considered to be natives of Mexico. They are now extensively cultivated throughout the world, with numerous varieties.
Although both marigolds are commonly seen as ornamental plants in Western countries, Aztec marigold is quite extensively grown for its yellow flowerheads. The flower petals are used in chicken feed to give the skin and egg yolk of chickens the familiar yellow color. This practice has been going on for so many years, and western consumers have grown so used to the yellow color of the chicken skin and egg yolk, that most of them believe this color to be natural and actually consider chickens without a yellow skin and eggs without yellow yolks unnatural and undesirable. Marigolds also yield a fragrant volatile oil called tagetes oil that is used in perfumes and in many types of processed food products, including alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, frozen desserts, candies, puddings, condiments and relishes.
In Western folk medicine, the flower heads and leaves of Aztec marigold are used in treating intestinal worms and colic, as well as in promoting menstrual flow.
Scientists have found tagetes oil to have various effects on experimental animals. These include sedative, anticonvulsive, hypotensive, bronchodilatory, and anti-inflammatory effects. Tagates oil also has insecticidal properties.
As is typical in plants of the composite family, marigolds can cause contact dermatitis in some sensitive individuals. Consequently, if one is allergic to chrysanthemums, daisies, or other composite plants one should be careful about handling marigolds also.
The uses of marigolds in Chinese medicine are described only in modern herbals that are mainly of southern Chinese origin. Despite this lack of written record, marigolds have probably been used for generations as a folk remedy in some southern Chinese provinces, particularly Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Guangxi. Both the flower heads and leaves of Aztec marigold are usually collected in the summer or fall and are used either fresh or sun-dried.
The flower heads of Aztec marigold are considered to have properties that dissipate heat (in fevers), expel colds, and break up phlegm. They are used to treat whooping cough, coughs due to colds, convulsions in children, acute conjunctivitis, dizziness, mumps, and mastitis. The usual daily internal dose is 3 to 9 g. (0.1 to 0.3 oz.) of dried flower heads taken as a decoction. Externally, the decoction is used to wash affected areas.
The leaves of Aztec marigold are used mainly for treating carbuncles, sores, and boils. The usual daily internal dose is 4.5 to 9 g. (o.15 to 0.3 oz.) of dried leaves taken as a decoction. For external use, the decoction is used to wash the affected areas or the mashed fresh leaves are applied directly.
The whole French marigold plant, also collected and dried in summer or fall, is used in traditional medicine. Said to dissipate heat, it is also used in treating coughs and diarrhea, with a daily internal dose of 9 to 15 g. (0.3 to 0.5 oz.), taken as a decoction or powder.
Recorded remedies using marigolds are few. Following are two that don't combine marigolds with other herbs.
To treat toothache or sore eyes, 15 g. (0.5 oz) of dried flower heads of Aztec marigold are boiled in water and the liquid is drunk.
To treat whooping cough, 15 fresh flower heads are boiled in water and the resulting decoction is taken along with red sugar (a type of crude cane sugar).
Marigolds are widely grown as ornamental herbs in home gardens and are also sold in garden centers or by florists.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using marigold as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about marigold and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Friday, March 16, 2007
Giant Knotweed is Japanese Knotweed is Huzhang
Giant knotweed is a commonly used name for Polygonum cuspidatum Sieb. et Zucc. (Family Polygonaceae). The standardized common name for this herb in commerce is Japanese Knotweed. It also can be known by its Chinese name, huzhang. Parts used are the root and rhizome. Properties include antiarthritic, antirheumatic, analgesic, detoxicant, antitussive, expectorant, antibacterial, antiviral, and antioxidant. The most common traditional uses for giant knotweed are painful joints, jaundice, menstrual difficulties, cough with excessive phlegm, skin sores and boils, and traumatic injuries. More modern or recent uses include burns, acute viral hepatitis, and acute infections (e.g. appendicitis). Finally, huzhang has recently become a major source of resveratrol, a compound found in a number of plants and having a number of reported health-enhancing effects in research trials.
Originally native to eastern Asia, giant knotweed has escaped in North America and is now a weed found throughout New England and neighboring states and in Canada. Young shoots are edible. Despite its abundance here in America, the rhizome and root are not collected or used, and huzhang comes primarily from China.
Although huzhang is botanically very closely related to fo-ti and buckwheat, their major uses differ considerably. Whereas fo-ti (especially the cured form) and buckwheat have a long history of use as a tonic or food, the use of huzhang is limited to specific disease treatments. In recent years, the Chinese have been using huzhang in the treatment of burns and acute viral hepatitis with considerable success. Modern scientific studies performed by Chinese and Japanese researchers have found that some of huzhang's chemical components have antibacterial, antiviral, liver protectant and antioxidant effects.
The unique broad, traditional and modern properites of huzhang, which include detoxicant, antiburn, wound healing, astringent, antimicrobial and antioxidant, have been utilized in skin care cosmetics and environmental products. Its extracts are used in skin lotions, antifatigue, massage and cleansing creams. As mentioned above, it is used as a main source of resveratrol.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including giant knotweed on pages 38-39.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Originally native to eastern Asia, giant knotweed has escaped in North America and is now a weed found throughout New England and neighboring states and in Canada. Young shoots are edible. Despite its abundance here in America, the rhizome and root are not collected or used, and huzhang comes primarily from China.
Although huzhang is botanically very closely related to fo-ti and buckwheat, their major uses differ considerably. Whereas fo-ti (especially the cured form) and buckwheat have a long history of use as a tonic or food, the use of huzhang is limited to specific disease treatments. In recent years, the Chinese have been using huzhang in the treatment of burns and acute viral hepatitis with considerable success. Modern scientific studies performed by Chinese and Japanese researchers have found that some of huzhang's chemical components have antibacterial, antiviral, liver protectant and antioxidant effects.
The unique broad, traditional and modern properites of huzhang, which include detoxicant, antiburn, wound healing, astringent, antimicrobial and antioxidant, have been utilized in skin care cosmetics and environmental products. Its extracts are used in skin lotions, antifatigue, massage and cleansing creams. As mentioned above, it is used as a main source of resveratrol.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including giant knotweed on pages 38-39.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Alfalfa - Not Just Sprouts
Did you know that alfalfa is used for more than just sprouts?
Alfalfa, or Medicago sativa L. (Family Leguminosae) has diuretic, tonic, and appetizing properties. The parts used are leaves and flowering tops. It is traditionally used to promote appetite and weight gain, to stop bleeding, or to treat badder infections and fluid retention.
Alfalfa is rich in nutrients including proteins, antioxidant flavonoids, vitamins (A, B2, B6, B12, C, E, and K), amino acids, minerals, sterols, and fibers. It also contains saponin glycosides and coumarins. It is one of the commerical sources for chlorophyll production and is also a source for leaf protein production. Its extracts are used as flavor ingredients in many processed foods.
The popularity of alfalfa is quite recent, perhaps only a couple of decades. Although much chemical and pharmacological research has been performed on alfalfa, there is still no clear-cut evidence to support the benefits of alfalfa's advocated medical uses in humans. In addition, there is preliminary evidence that ingestion of large quantities of alfalfa (especially seeds or sprouts) may produce blood abnormalities and reactivate systemic lupus erythematosus in persons in whom this condition has been clinically inactive. Nevertheless, alfalfa does contain a wide variety of nutrients (both conventional and non-conventional) and ingestion of its leaves and sprouts in moderation can be quite nutritious. One thing to bear in mind is that nothing is absolutely safe, especially if done in excess. Also, it is your body, you know it best. Continue to listen to it.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including alfalfa on page 1.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Alfalfa, or Medicago sativa L. (Family Leguminosae) has diuretic, tonic, and appetizing properties. The parts used are leaves and flowering tops. It is traditionally used to promote appetite and weight gain, to stop bleeding, or to treat badder infections and fluid retention.
Alfalfa is rich in nutrients including proteins, antioxidant flavonoids, vitamins (A, B2, B6, B12, C, E, and K), amino acids, minerals, sterols, and fibers. It also contains saponin glycosides and coumarins. It is one of the commerical sources for chlorophyll production and is also a source for leaf protein production. Its extracts are used as flavor ingredients in many processed foods.
The popularity of alfalfa is quite recent, perhaps only a couple of decades. Although much chemical and pharmacological research has been performed on alfalfa, there is still no clear-cut evidence to support the benefits of alfalfa's advocated medical uses in humans. In addition, there is preliminary evidence that ingestion of large quantities of alfalfa (especially seeds or sprouts) may produce blood abnormalities and reactivate systemic lupus erythematosus in persons in whom this condition has been clinically inactive. Nevertheless, alfalfa does contain a wide variety of nutrients (both conventional and non-conventional) and ingestion of its leaves and sprouts in moderation can be quite nutritious. One thing to bear in mind is that nothing is absolutely safe, especially if done in excess. Also, it is your body, you know it best. Continue to listen to it.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including alfalfa on page 1.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Japanese Honeysuckle, Chinese Medicine
Honeysuckle is a collective name for numerous twining or trailing shrubs with opposite leaves and mildly to very fragrant flowers. The plants are known scientifically as Lonicera of the honeysuckle family. The Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) is the honeysuckle most commonly used in Chinese medicine, but several other species are also used.
In Chinese, honeysuckle flowers are called jin yin hua, meaning, literally, gold and silver flowers. The term refers to the color of the flowers of Japanese honeysuckle, which are at first white but then turn to golden yellow. Honeysuckle stems or vines are called ren dong teng, meaning “winter-resistant vine”, which referes to the hardy nature of the vines.
Japanese honeysuckle is a native of Asia but now grows wild in many parts of North America, especially the northeastern United States. Its climbing or twining stem can reach as much as 9 m. (30 ft.) long. Its flowers are very fragrant.
Honeysuckle is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine. Japanese honeysuckle stems, leaves and flowers have been found to contain numerous constituents including luteolin, luteolin derivatives (e.g. lonicerin), alkaloids, tannins, inositol, loganin, secologanin, chlorogenic acid and saponins. Chlorogenic acid is believed to be the major active constituent. Among the most commonly used honeysuckle species, including Lonicera confusa, L. hypoclauca, and L. dasystyla, chlorogenic acid content ranges from less than 0.5% to almost 7%.
The flowers and the stems, with leaves, of the honeysuckle plant are commonly used in Chinese medicine and are produced throughout China.
Honeysuckle flowers are collected during May or June (the flowering season in China is May to July). Traditionally picked in the morning after the dew has evaporated, they are laid out in thin layers on straw mats and are sun-dried or air-dried in the shade. Harsh midday and early afternoon sun is avoided. The flowers are turned over occasionally to ensure even drying.
Honeysuckle stems (or vines) with leaves are collected in autumn or winter. They are tied in small bundles and sun-dried.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using honeysuckle as well as over 45 other herbs. Note: there is also an entry for honeysuckle in Dr. Leung’s encyclopedia, near the back in the section on cosmetic ingredients.
Learn more about honeysuckle and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
In Chinese, honeysuckle flowers are called jin yin hua, meaning, literally, gold and silver flowers. The term refers to the color of the flowers of Japanese honeysuckle, which are at first white but then turn to golden yellow. Honeysuckle stems or vines are called ren dong teng, meaning “winter-resistant vine”, which referes to the hardy nature of the vines.
Japanese honeysuckle is a native of Asia but now grows wild in many parts of North America, especially the northeastern United States. Its climbing or twining stem can reach as much as 9 m. (30 ft.) long. Its flowers are very fragrant.
Honeysuckle is widely used in traditional Chinese medicine. Japanese honeysuckle stems, leaves and flowers have been found to contain numerous constituents including luteolin, luteolin derivatives (e.g. lonicerin), alkaloids, tannins, inositol, loganin, secologanin, chlorogenic acid and saponins. Chlorogenic acid is believed to be the major active constituent. Among the most commonly used honeysuckle species, including Lonicera confusa, L. hypoclauca, and L. dasystyla, chlorogenic acid content ranges from less than 0.5% to almost 7%.
The flowers and the stems, with leaves, of the honeysuckle plant are commonly used in Chinese medicine and are produced throughout China.
Honeysuckle flowers are collected during May or June (the flowering season in China is May to July). Traditionally picked in the morning after the dew has evaporated, they are laid out in thin layers on straw mats and are sun-dried or air-dried in the shade. Harsh midday and early afternoon sun is avoided. The flowers are turned over occasionally to ensure even drying.
Honeysuckle stems (or vines) with leaves are collected in autumn or winter. They are tied in small bundles and sun-dried.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using honeysuckle as well as over 45 other herbs. Note: there is also an entry for honeysuckle in Dr. Leung’s encyclopedia, near the back in the section on cosmetic ingredients.
Learn more about honeysuckle and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit http://www.earthpower.com/.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Turmeric
Also known as curcuma and Indian saffron, turmeric is a common spice used worldwide. It is an ingredient in curry, prepared mustard, pickles, and other well-known food products. It is used both for its yellow coloring effects and for its flavor. Turmeric is derived from a plant of the ginger family known as Curcuma longa or Curcuma domestica. The plant is a perennial herb with a thick rhizome from which large oblong leaves arise.
To produce turmeric, the rhizomes are dug up at the end of the growing season, which is usually in the fall or winter. They are washed, thoroughly boiled, and dried under the sun, yielding the turmeric sold commercially. Two forms, bulbs (main rhizomes) and fingers (branched rhizomes), are usually sold. India is the major producer of turmeric.
Traditional uses include removing blood stasis, promoting and normalizing energy flow in the body, and relieving pain. Major uses include treating chest and rib pain, amenorrhea, abdominal mass, traumatic injuries, swelling and carbuncles. Other uses include the treatment of hematuria (bloody urine), pain and itching of sores and ringworms, toothache, colic, flatulence, and hemorrhage.
Numerous recipes exist for using turmeric to treat various conditions. Most require the use of numerous other herbs/traditional drugs. Here is a recipe dating back to the 7th century. For treating pain and itching resulting from sores or ringworms, turmeric is mashed in water and the mash is applied directly to the affected areas.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using turmeric as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about turmeric and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
To produce turmeric, the rhizomes are dug up at the end of the growing season, which is usually in the fall or winter. They are washed, thoroughly boiled, and dried under the sun, yielding the turmeric sold commercially. Two forms, bulbs (main rhizomes) and fingers (branched rhizomes), are usually sold. India is the major producer of turmeric.
Traditional uses include removing blood stasis, promoting and normalizing energy flow in the body, and relieving pain. Major uses include treating chest and rib pain, amenorrhea, abdominal mass, traumatic injuries, swelling and carbuncles. Other uses include the treatment of hematuria (bloody urine), pain and itching of sores and ringworms, toothache, colic, flatulence, and hemorrhage.
Numerous recipes exist for using turmeric to treat various conditions. Most require the use of numerous other herbs/traditional drugs. Here is a recipe dating back to the 7th century. For treating pain and itching resulting from sores or ringworms, turmeric is mashed in water and the mash is applied directly to the affected areas.
This information is excerpted from Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Chinese Healing Foods and Herbs. This publication includes further information and home remedies using turmeric as well as over 45 other herbs.
Learn more about turmeric and read further about Dr. Leung and his writings! Visit www.earthpower.com.
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
LYCIUM: PICKING AND PROCESSING
If you have never seen a Lycium berry before, then imagine a red raisin with skin that is not glossy, but flat/matte. These berries come from two different species of shrubs (Lycium barbarum L. and Lycium chinense Mill.), native to northern and eastern Asia, respectively.
Ripe fruits are collected in the summer or fall from both wild and cultivated plants, rid of stalk, left in a shady and airy area until skin is wrinkled, and then sun dried or oven dried until skin is dried but the whole fruit is still soft to the touch. Lycium fruit comes in numerous grades. Top grades consist of fruits that are large, bright red or purplish red, soft to the touch and taste sweet.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Foods, Drugs and Cosmetics, 2nd Edition presents technical information and traditional medicinal uses of Lycium berries, as well as similar info for about 500 other herbs.
The encyclopedia entry for Lycium fruit spans four pages (pp. 358-361).
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Ripe fruits are collected in the summer or fall from both wild and cultivated plants, rid of stalk, left in a shady and airy area until skin is wrinkled, and then sun dried or oven dried until skin is dried but the whole fruit is still soft to the touch. Lycium fruit comes in numerous grades. Top grades consist of fruits that are large, bright red or purplish red, soft to the touch and taste sweet.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients Used in Foods, Drugs and Cosmetics, 2nd Edition presents technical information and traditional medicinal uses of Lycium berries, as well as similar info for about 500 other herbs.
The encyclopedia entry for Lycium fruit spans four pages (pp. 358-361).
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
JOB’S TEAR: A FOOD AND A MEDICINE
Job’s tear (Coix lachrymal-jobi L. and C. lachrymal-jobi L. var ma-yuen (Roman.) Staph. (Family Gramineae) is commonly used as a food and a medicine in China. It is one of the most popular food herbs used in diet therapy of painful and stiff joints, either singly or in soup mixes. From all traditional accounts, it seems to work.
If you suffer from stiff and painful joints, try this: Cook 1-2 ounces of Job’s tear as you would regularly cook barley and drink the soup (or eat the whole thing if you like). Give this a week or two to work.
Many of the traditional uses of Job’s tear may have a scientific basis. Based on experimental animal studies, Japanese scientists have isolated numerous active chemical components from Job’s tear, including coixol (anti-inflammatory, antihistaminic, muscle relaxant, fever reducing, etc) and coixans (sugar lowering properties). Job’s tear also contains the more common nutrients, known for their more subtle effects.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including Job’s tear on pages 49-50.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
If you suffer from stiff and painful joints, try this: Cook 1-2 ounces of Job’s tear as you would regularly cook barley and drink the soup (or eat the whole thing if you like). Give this a week or two to work.
Many of the traditional uses of Job’s tear may have a scientific basis. Based on experimental animal studies, Japanese scientists have isolated numerous active chemical components from Job’s tear, including coixol (anti-inflammatory, antihistaminic, muscle relaxant, fever reducing, etc) and coixans (sugar lowering properties). Job’s tear also contains the more common nutrients, known for their more subtle effects.
Dr. Albert Leung’s book, Better Health with (mostly) Chinese Herbs and Food discusses the use of 60 different herbs as healing foods, including Job’s tear on pages 49-50.
For more information about Dr. Leung and his writings, visit www.earthpower.com.
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