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Are you Making Mistakes with Herbal Remedies? Pt 6

When it comes to taking herbs, you may actually be unwittingly making a mistake that could potentially harm your health. Here is a look at one of the biggest mistakes that you could be making when it comes to taking herbs.

Are you making sure that you are taking your herbal supplements every single day, or otherwise on a consistent basis?

It is vitally important that you take your herbs and your supplements regularly as is recommended by the manufacturer in order for you to assess if they are actually working for you or not. One of the biggest mistakes that people make is that they begin to take an herb or a supplement, then they skip a day, and then they skip two days, and then after a while they believe that they have not seen any improvement and so they either stop taking the supplement all together, or they add other supplements in because they believe the first one was not working.

The fact of the matter is, you have to be consistent in taking your herbal remedies and supplements in order to tell whether or not they are actually working for you. One of the best ways that you can achieve this is by purchasing a daily pill organizer so that you can tell whether or not you have taken your supplement for the day. This will ensure that you stay on track. Keeping a pill organizer within reach will ensure that you really, truly benefit from the vitamins and supplements that you buy.

Filed Under: Herbal Food Supplements, Traditional Medicine Tagged With: Herb, Herbalism, Shopping

Chinese Herb Guide: Dandelion

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Dandelion is an herb that is used in a variety of different herbal remedies, especially when it comes to premenstrual bloating. Dandelion may also be capable of providing anti-inflammatory results. The best way to enjoy dandelion is as a tea. You can create a dandelion tea by steeping half of an ounce of dried dandelion leaf in a cup of hot water for a period of ten minutes. You can have as many as three cups of tea with dandelion in it per day.

For a lot of people, the dandelion is a yard pest. The truth is, the dandelion is particularly rich when it comes to nutrients. The roots and the leaves of the dandelion plant have been used for a variety of different medicines, including treatments for gastrointestinal system disorders, skin conditions, aching joints, bloating and breast illnesses. The leaves of the dandelion contain a number of vitamins including B-complex vitamins, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D and minerals such as magnesium, zinc potassium, copper, manganese, iron, choline, silicon, calcium and boron. The primary active ingredients in the dandelion plant are called germacranolide and eudesmanolide, and they are compounds that can be found only in dandelion plants.

The dandelion plant offers numerous other benefits. For example, it has diuretic properties and is useful in purifying the liver and the blood stream. The dandelion plant can decrease the body’s concentrations of uric acid and serum cholesterol. The dandelion plant can maximize how well your pancreas, kidneys, stomach and spleen perform in your body. The dandelion plant can treat anemia, abscess, breast tumors, liver cirrhosis and boils, and can also avert the development of both breast cancers and age spots. The dandelion is also effective in treating menopause in women. It offers numerous benefits and is well worth adding to your daily regimen accordingly.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Blood, Breast cancer, Health, Herb, Herbalism, Plant, Shopping, Taraxacum

Chinese Herb Guide: Slippery Elm Bark

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Slippery elm bark is a common herb found in throat lozenges and in cough drops, but you can use it for a variety of other purposes as well. This herb is capable of providing relief for coughs, sore throats and upset stomachs. If you want to buy it in bulk rather than in a cough drop or a lozenge, then the best route for you to take is to boil it and simmer the slippery elm bark in a powdered form in a cup of water. Between one and three teaspoons of the herb is best for 8 ounces of water and you can have as many as three cups of the herbal tea per day.

The herb slippery elm bark comes from elm trees and these trees are primarily native to the Appalachian mountains which are in the eastern United States. The elm leaves have been dried and used to create tea and skin washes. Natives haven eaten the inner bark of the tree because it offers high carbohydrate levels and can be digested easily. The inner bark can be used for many other purposes as well. You can use slippery elm bark to relieve a number of gastrointestinal conditions as well as respiratory irritations, sore throats and ulcers. There are also external use benefits for slippery elm bark including the treatment of skin conditions, hemorrhoids and vaginitis. Some people recommend the use of slippery elm bark as a cough medicine or for use to soften and smooth out the skin.

You can take a 500 mg capsule of slippery elm bark three times daily to benefit from its numerous health advantages. You may also combine one part slippery elm bark to ten parts of water in liquid form or one part of slippery elm bark powder to eight parts of water in order to take advantage of the health benefits offered by this herbal supplement.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Alternative, Cough, Elm, Health, Herb, Herbalism, Shopping, Ulmus rubra

Chinese Herb Guide: Raspberry Leaf

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Raspberry leaf is an herb that has seen a great deal of use as a treatment for morning sickness, uterine irritability and as a way of helping to prevent miscarriage during pregnancy. The most common way to take raspberry leaf is as a tea by adding between one and two teaspoons of the herb for each cup of hot water. Steep your raspberry leaf tea for at least ten minutes and drink as many as three cups daily.

Raspberry leaf is a popular uterine stimulant as well as an astringent that has tonic properties. It happens to be one of the most popular herbs for pregnancy because it is both toning and relaxing with astringent actions, and it appears to have a particular affinity for the woman’s uterus. Both the stimulating and astringent properties of the raspberry leaf can help to strengthen as well as tone up the muscles in the uterus and the pelvis. The relaxing properties, coupled with other soothing properties associated with raspberry leaf can help to relax the uterus during the same time.

The raspberry leaf herb is used as a means of encouraging an easier childbirth, likely as a result of its ability to strengthen the muscles in the uterus, because this both increases and coordinates the contractions during childbirth.

There are other purposes for why you might want to use raspberry leaf. For example, raspberry leaf can be used for relieving diarrhea. It can also be used externally, because raspberry leaf works well as a wash in the eyes for conjunctivitis, a wash in the mouth for mouth sores, a wash in the vaginal area for discharge and a wash for wounds as well. The raspberries themselves also have astringent properties.

Some people also recommend the raspberry leaf for treating discomforts associated with menstruation, morning sickness, bed wetting and sore throat.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Health, Herb, Herbalism, Morning sickness, Pregnancy, Raspberry, Shopping, Uterus

Chinese Herb Guide: Uva Ursi

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Uva ursi is an herb that is primarily used in conjunction with other herbs to create effective medicinal treatments. The herb uva ursi is particularly bitter, and it provides diuretic and urinary antiseptic results. The most common way to take uva ursi is in a tea, in which case you would add a teaspoon of the herb to a cup of water, boiling them together for ten minutes. You can drink as many as three cups of uva ursi every day to realize its benefits.

The herb known as uva ursi can be used for a wide variety of different purposes, including to treat inflammations of the urinary tract including cystitis. Uva ursi has also been used as an astringent and as a healing remedy. Uva ursi has history in treating ailments within many different cultures including the Native Americans, who used it for treating uterine dropsy and other uterine and urinary diseases and ailments.

The herb Uva ursi is capable of treating many different conditions including cystitis, infections of the urinary tract and also kidney stones. The primary compound that Uva ursi contains is known as arbutin, and this is a derivative of hydroquinone. It is absorbed by the stomach and then allowed to change into a substance that has anti-microbial, disinfectant and astringent properties that lend many health benefits to the person taking it. This compound is capable of soothing irritations, fighting infections and reducing inflammation experienced during urination.

Herbs are capable of fighting disease as well as strengthening the body, though they can also possess chemicals and compounds capable of reacting with other herbs. As such, you should only take Uva ursi when recommended by a physician. Certain medications and other herbs can cause reactions to your body when taken with Uva ursi so keep this in mind prior to taking this herb.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Astringent, Bearberry, Conditions and Diseases, Health, Herb, Shopping, Urinary system, Urinary tract infection

Chinese Herb Guide: Ginger

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Ginger is an herb with numerous health benefits, and as such, it has a rich history of being used in many different cultures to treat ailments and improve general health. For example, it has the capability to prevent blood clots internally, and as such, it may be able to reduce the risk of having a heart attack. Ginger is also used for a variety of different ailments involving stomach upset including motion sickness.

If you want to avoid motion sickness you can take between 2 and 3 capsules of 500 milligrams of ginger each, or you can drink your ginger in a tea. To do this you are going to want to grate or powder the ginger and add two tablespoons to each glass of 8 ounces that you drink. Steep the ginger in the tea for at least 10 minutes, and drink as many as three cups of your ginger tea per day.

The primary benefits of ginger are that it helps to improve digestion, can reduce motion sickness and nausea and is also capable of protecting good bacteria and working to eliminate any harmful bacteria in your intestine. Ginger has been in use for several thousand years so far in Chinese medicine and in other cultures because of its healing properties and health benefits. In ancient Chinese medicine, ginger was used to treat a wide variety of different problems including abdominal bloating, vomiting, coughing, diarrhea and even rheumatism. Ginger has also been used for the purpose of treating joint diseases involving inflammation including arthritis and rheumatism.

Ginger root has been used to provide relief for not only nausea, but other symptoms associated with motion sickness as well including vomiting, dizziness and sweating. Ginger has shown similar effects as commercial medications designed to treat these and similar symptoms of the ailment.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Disease, Ginger, Health, Health insurance, Motion sickness, Nausea, Pregnancy, Shopping

Herbal Remedies in Alternative Medicine

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Herbalism is the use of plants and herbs to cure ailments, wounds and illnesses and a tradition that spans centuries. More than likely, several members of your genealogy used a variety of herbal remedies.

In a study called “The value of plants used in traditional medicine for drug discovery”, published in the March 2001 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives, it was determined that at least 122 compounds found in modern medications were derived from plant sources. Approximately 80 percent of them were being used in the same manner in which your great grandmother used them decades ago.

Some traditional alternative herbal medicines include:

Aloe Vera – The most popular use of aloe vera is in association with skin burns and moisturizing the skin. It is also used for gastrointestinal issues, aiding in circulation and assisting in better function of the kidney, liver and gall bladder.

Black Walnut – The outer hull of a black walnut contain a substance that helps eliminate parasites from the body. It has also been used in treating skin problems such as poison oak and ringworm.

Cayenne Pepper – Cayenne pepper is beneficial to both the circulatory and digestive systems.

Ginger Root - Ginger is a well-known remedy for upset stomach and nausea. Even doctors recommend that pregnant women take a ginger supplement to help prevent morning sickness.

Hops - One of the main ingredients in most beers, hops, is effective in relieving pain and insomnia.

Kelp – Also known as seaweed, kelp contains approximately 30 minerals that are beneficial to the body’s glands, balancing out metabolism.

Licorice - Licorice root has many benefits to the body. It’s a great expectorant for mucus. It stimulates adrenaline and helps relieve the physical symptoms associated with stress. It also has properties that are beneficial to the body’s respiratory and gastrointestinal systems.

Passionflower - Passionflower is often used in association with the nervous system. It helps alleviate anxiety, pain, insomnia, asthma and even symptoms of attention deficit disorder (ADD).

Some might say that the earth provides us with everything we need, we just have to know where to look.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Alternative, Health, Herb, Herbalism, Medicine, Pharmaceutical drug, Shopping, United States

Alternative Medicine and Therapies: Aromatherapy

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Nearly every candle company advertises candles that provide aromatherapy for the user, claiming to produce smells that calm anxiety and relax the body. This is where an alternative medical treatment has gone mainstream, being utilized as a marketing tool.

Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils extracted from plants, in combination with other compounds that provide a notable scent. Smelling items with particular aromatic properties is supposed to benefit an individual’s health and alter moods to a more beneficial state.

There are three main ways that aromatherapy is applied. The first, and most common, is through aerial release, such as with burning candles or incents or in the use of aerosol sprays. Some aromatherapy products are inhaled directly by the patient as a means of providing relief from respiratory infections, congestion or as an expectorant for mucus. Direct inhalation is also thought to provide psychological benefits. The final means of application is topical, usually though massage oils, bath oils, compresses or skin care regimens.

There are several types of materials used in aromatherapy, which include:

Essential Oils – fragrant oils obtained through steam distillation or expression of the plant
Absolutes- fragrant oils from delicate plants like flowers through the use of solvent or supercritical fluid extraction
Phytoncides – plant compounds added to aromatherapies that kill microbes
Hydrosols – the remains of a plant after a extraction process that still have culinary or medical uses, such as rose petals
Volatized Raw Herbs – plants with a higher oil content that are dried and used in direct inhalation methods

The belief is that certain aromas have an effect on the brain and that some have pharmacological benefits as well. The purpose of aromatherapy is to find a balance between the two. While some studies show a positive effect in the use of aromatherapy, it is typically is conjunction with other medical treatments, such as an aromatic massage in addition to physical therapy as treatment for an injury.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Alternative, Aromatherapy, Essential oil, Health, Medicine, Odor, Shopping, Therapy

Alternative Medicines and Therapies: Chinese Food Therapy

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Chinese food therapy is a medical practice of using natural foods as remedies for illnesses, rather than medication. While food therapy goes back as far as 2000 B.C., the earliest documented indication of the practice was found in the Niejing, also known as the Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine, back in 500 B.C.

The Niejing divided foods into four groups and five tastes, determined by their nature and characteristics. The four food groups are meats (for enhancement), grains (for sustenance), fruits (for support) and vegetables (for filling).

Under these characteristics, all life needs grains and vegetables in order to survive and should make up most of one’s diet. Under that same premise, meats and fruits are viewed as complementary and should be consumed only moderately. It is believed that human’s should not consume dairy products, specifically cow’s milk, under the practice of Chinese food therapy.

Chinese food therapy also believes that foods have five types of tastes and that each taste relates to a particular vital organ. Moderate consumption helps that associated organ to function properly, but over-indulging in one particular type of taste results in imbalance between the organs, causing illness.

Sweet tasting foods are associated with the spleen and stomach, aiding in the digestive process. Sour tastes correlate with the liver and gall bladder, helping to prevent diarrhea and control sweating, while bitter tastes are connected to the heart and small intestine, reducing excessive bodily fluids and cooling the body’s temperature.

The kidneys and bladder are connected to salty food, which relax the muscles and helps in proper function of the glands. Finally, pungent foods correlate with the lungs and large intestine, promoting proper function of the circulatory system and inducing perspiration. The body needs a proper balance of all five tastes in order to be healthy.

One must also balance the nature of foods with his or her body constitution. Chinese food therapy believes food to be hot, warm, neutral, cool or cold. You must eat foods with a nature contrary to your body’s constitution for optimal health and mood.

Filed Under: Chinese Medicine Tagged With: Gallbladder, Health, Large intestine, Medicine, Shopping, Small intestine, Taste, Traditional Chinese medicine