Herbs & Foods

Carrots and Glycemic Index

Mostly people with sugar challenges tell me that they stay away from carrots and potatoes because they are high in sugar. But when I ask them what they eat for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks and what they drink, I can see that they don’t understand the concepts of the glycemic index! For example

Celery Health Benefits

Celery and Celery Juice Health Benefits Celery is rich in sodium. “So?” you say, “I eat table salt. Doesn’t that count?” Actually, no! Table salt is composed of insoluble inorganic elements which lead to the development of varicose veins, hardening of the arteries and other aliments. Sea Salt is a better product, but the sale [...]

Ginger Health Benefits | ginger benefits

I often recommend ginger for car sickness in pets and people. The dose is 1-2 capsules 20 minutes before the car ride—hopefully on an empty stomach. It also helps with clearing gas and in promoting menstrual regularity and occasionally it is effective for relief of menstrual cramping (although I have never experienced relief from my own cramps with ginger!). Ginger can also be used for morning sickness.

Herb-Astragalus

Astragalus has been used in China for thousands of years. The herb is native to northern China. The root is used for medicinal purposes and is collected in the spring after it is 4-7 years old. While there are over 2000 types, the only one that has extensive research on it is the Chinese version. The Chinese name “Huang Qi” means yellow leader because of its importance to Chinese medicine and the color of the root. Also known as “Milk Vetch,” Astragalus is used as food and fodder crops. Astragalus belongs to the Leguminosae family and has seed pods that resemble beans.

Herb-Buckthorn

Buckthorn should not be used to treat constipation resulting from excessive tension (bloating, impaction, torsion, blockage and that kind of thing) in the colon wall. Alder Buckthorn bark is toxic and violently purgative when fresh, but is safe once dried and stored for a year. The berries may also be harmful if eaten.

Herb-Burdock

How Burdock is used and how it Works: Burdock promotes flow of secretions of the body without irritating qualities. It has a gentle laxative effect and stimulates digestive action within the stomach.

Herb-Butcher’s Broom | butchers broom

Mature branches were once bundled and used as brooms by butchers. Young shoots were eaten as food. Early physicians used the roots as a diuretic in the treatment of urinary problems. It was also used to treat menstrual bleeding, bladder stones, jaundice, and headache. Butcher’s broom decreases vascular permeability.

Herb-Chaparral

There have been reports of people developing problems with their liver and kidneys. In most cases the people were taking either Chaparral capsules or drinking excessive amounts of Chaparral tea. Some people were reported to have had previous liver disease. It is possible that these could be individual reactions to the herb. The strong taste of Chaparral is disagreeable to most people. This makes it hard to take too much internally before getting nauseous.

Herb-Comfrey

Comfrey contains allantoin which is a cell-proliferant which helps repair damaged tissue. It promotes the knitting together of bones and ligaments. The herb also contains rosmarinic acid which is an anti-inflammatory property.

Herb-Ginger

Although ginger originated in India and China, the root is now cultivated all over the world as a spice, food alternative, and medicinal herb. The plant can be propagated through rhizome division and then harvested after about 10 months.

Natural Health Techniques