Evening Primrose Oil
I wanted to talk about EPO because I take this supplement daily and I have found it very useful. I originally started taking it for premenstrual symptoms; in particular, breast tenderness. I can't tell you how long it was before I noticed improvement and I wish I had of kept track, but I would say within six weeks I noticed a difference. I no longer have breast tenderness before my periods! I take two capsules per day, or 2,000mg., and directions state you can take up to three per day.
I now take it to benefit me in another way. I have scleroderma, a connective tissue disease, and have read that EPO, which is an omega-6 supplement, can help control inflammation, prevent blood clots, reduce some kinds of muscle cramping and balance hormones. Evening Primrose Oil seeds yield between seven and ten percent GLA(gamma linolenic acid). It is recommended to take in combination with EPO an omega-3 oil such as flaxseed, hemp or fish oil. I can't state for certain EPO has helped with this problem, but I can tell you that when I stopped taking it for about two weeks I noticed I started having more joint pain and muscle aches.
This is a simple supplementation if you'd like to try and cost is inexpensive. I paid under seven dollars for a bottle of seventy-five softgels at Wal-mart. On a scale from one to ten of effectiveness and general helpfulness, I would rate Evening Primrose Oil an eight. Granny J
Garlic
If the term wonder drug can be applied to any healing herb, garlic deserves that distinction. It is the world's second oldest medicine (after ephedra), and still among the best. Garlic is part of the allium genus, and is the most powerful and most thoroughly researched healer.
During World War I, garlic's success in treating infected wounds and amoebic dysentery clearly showed it had potent antibacterial and anti-protozoan effects, validating thousands of years of herbal tradition. Since the 1920's garlic's broad spectrum antibiotic properties have been confirmed in literally dozens of animal and human studies. Garlic kills the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, food poisoning, and women's bladder infections. Garlic also may prevent infection by the influenza virus.
Researchers have found that 1 medium-size garlic clove packs the anti-bacterial punch of about 100,000 units of penicillin. Depending on the type of infection, oral penicillin doses typically range from 600,000 to 1.2 million units. The equivalent in garlic would be about 6 to 12 cloves. It's best to chew 3 cloves at a time, two to four times a day. To help reduce blood pressure, cholesterol, and the likelihood of internal blood clots, three to ten cloves of fresh garlic a day is recommended. Garlic must be chewed, chopped, bruised, or crushed to transform its medicinally inert alliin into antibiotic allicin.
Garlic's anti clotting action may help prevent heart attack and some kinds of stroke, but medicinal amounts could conceivably cause problems for those with clotting disorders. If you have a clotting disorder, consult your physician before using garlic in medicinal amounts.
Ginger
Ginger is a root that can be grated and used fresh, or dried or powdered. It can also be used in the form of a tea. Ginger helps to create heat in the body. It is offered on sea voyages as standard fare to soothe the stomach and help prevent motion sickness. As a tea, ginger is very effective in cases of pharyngitis and tonsillitis. It can often curtail the spread of strep throat if the illness is caught in its earlier stages. Ginger can also be applied to the skin in the form of a poultice; it helps to draw out toxins in cases of skin and soft-tissue infections. I personally have used ginger in its crystallized form to help with nausea and it does work. I just put a piece in my mouth and let it dissolve slowly. Ginger Ale is usually what people think of to use for nausea when they come down with a stomach flu or general feeling of malaise, and it helps to calm the stomach also.
Mints
Both spearmint and peppermint owe their value in healing to their aromatic oils. Menthol appears to soothe the smooth muscle lining of the digestive tract, making it an anti-spasmodic and perfect for use after dinner. No wonder it is used in such over the counter products, such as Tums and Phillips' Milk of Magnesia. It is used as an anesthetic in many pain relieving skin creams, such as Solarcaine, Ben-Gay and Noxzema Medicated Cream. As a decongestant we use Vicks VapoRub with its menthol vapors helping to relieve nasal, sinus and chest congestion. For wounds, burns, scalds, and herpes, apply a few drops of peppermint oil directly to the affected area. Please do not use pure menthol, or pure peppermint oil, as it has been found to produce toxic effects, such as cardiac arrhythmias.
Salt
Besides being a necessity for a certain amount of dietary salt intake, salt is also a valuable natural support for your healing system. Salt has important therapeutic applications in both the prevention and treatment of various conditions and illnesses. Because of its ability to absorb water and draw fluid out, its preservative effect, and its ability to kill bacteria and other harmful microorganisms, humans have relied on salt for centuries as a valuable aid in curing and preventing infections. Learning to work with salt is a safe and effective,simple yet powerful way to assist the work of your healing system. Here is a small example of how salt can assist your healing system:
Salt packs, salt soaks, and salt fomentations are applied externally to intact skin with warm water to help draw out unwanted fluids, swelling, and toxins from various skin and soft-tissue infections, including carbuncles, furuncles, cysts, and abscesses.
Salt water also can be taken internally as an aid in various forms of intestinal cleansing, to prevent and assist in the treatment of food poisoning, diarrhea, and nausea and vomiting.(Note:When taken internally, salt water must be used under qualified medical supervision.)
Salt water gargles can be very effective in treating pharyngitis, sore throats and tonsillitis.
Salt water nose drops, or the use of salt water nasal sprays, can be extremely effective in the treatment of nasal allergies, hay fever, rhinitis, colds, congestion, and sinus infections.
Nebulized saline is another form of salt water employed as an effective aerosol spray used in the treatment of asthma and other respiatory conditions.
Add a small amount of water to finely grated horseradish. Wrap it in a cloth; apply it to the neck for not more than 5 minutes. This will stimulate the skin, which helps extinguish headache pain. If your skin is sensitive, spread cream over your neck before applying the poultice.
Garlic
If the term wonder drug can be applied to any healing herb, garlic deserves that distinction. It is the world's second oldest medicine (after ephedra), and still among the best. Garlic is part of the allium genus, and is the most powerful and most thoroughly researched healer.
During World War I, garlic's success in treating infected wounds and amoebic dysentery clearly showed it had potent antibacterial and anti-protozoan effects, validating thousands of years of herbal tradition. Since the 1920's garlic's broad spectrum antibiotic properties have been confirmed in literally dozens of animal and human studies. Garlic kills the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, food poisoning, and women's bladder infections. Garlic also may prevent infection by the influenza virus.
Researchers have found that 1 medium-size garlic clove packs the anti-bacterial punch of about 100,000 units of penicillin. Depending on the type of infection, oral penicillin doses typically range from 600,000 to 1.2 million units. The equivalent in garlic would be about 6 to 12 cloves. It's best to chew 3 cloves at a time, two to four times a day. To help reduce blood pressure, cholesterol, and the likelihood of internal blood clots, three to ten cloves of fresh garlic a day is recommended. Garlic must be chewed, chopped, bruised, or crushed to transform its medicinally inert alliin into antibiotic allicin.
Garlic's anti clotting action may help prevent heart attack and some kinds of stroke, but medicinal amounts could conceivably cause problems for those with clotting disorders. If you have a clotting disorder, consult your physician before using garlic in medicinal amounts.
Ginger
Ginger is a root that can be grated and used fresh, or dried or powdered. It can also be used in the form of a tea. Ginger helps to create heat in the body. It is offered on sea voyages as standard fare to soothe the stomach and help prevent motion sickness. As a tea, ginger is very effective in cases of pharyngitis and tonsillitis. It can often curtail the spread of strep throat if the illness is caught in its earlier stages. Ginger can also be applied to the skin in the form of a poultice; it helps to draw out toxins in cases of skin and soft-tissue infections. I personally have used ginger in its crystallized form to help with nausea and it does work. I just put a piece in my mouth and let it dissolve slowly. Ginger Ale is usually what people think of to use for nausea when they come down with a stomach flu or general feeling of malaise, and it helps to calm the stomach also.
Mints
Both spearmint and peppermint owe their value in healing to their aromatic oils. Menthol appears to soothe the smooth muscle lining of the digestive tract, making it an anti-spasmodic and perfect for use after dinner. No wonder it is used in such over the counter products, such as Tums and Phillips' Milk of Magnesia. It is used as an anesthetic in many pain relieving skin creams, such as Solarcaine, Ben-Gay and Noxzema Medicated Cream. As a decongestant we use Vicks VapoRub with its menthol vapors helping to relieve nasal, sinus and chest congestion. For wounds, burns, scalds, and herpes, apply a few drops of peppermint oil directly to the affected area. Please do not use pure menthol, or pure peppermint oil, as it has been found to produce toxic effects, such as cardiac arrhythmias.
Salt
Besides being a necessity for a certain amount of dietary salt intake, salt is also a valuable natural support for your healing system. Salt has important therapeutic applications in both the prevention and treatment of various conditions and illnesses. Because of its ability to absorb water and draw fluid out, its preservative effect, and its ability to kill bacteria and other harmful microorganisms, humans have relied on salt for centuries as a valuable aid in curing and preventing infections. Learning to work with salt is a safe and effective,simple yet powerful way to assist the work of your healing system. Here is a small example of how salt can assist your healing system:
Salt packs, salt soaks, and salt fomentations are applied externally to intact skin with warm water to help draw out unwanted fluids, swelling, and toxins from various skin and soft-tissue infections, including carbuncles, furuncles, cysts, and abscesses.
Salt water also can be taken internally as an aid in various forms of intestinal cleansing, to prevent and assist in the treatment of food poisoning, diarrhea, and nausea and vomiting.(Note:When taken internally, salt water must be used under qualified medical supervision.)
Salt water gargles can be very effective in treating pharyngitis, sore throats and tonsillitis.
Salt water nose drops, or the use of salt water nasal sprays, can be extremely effective in the treatment of nasal allergies, hay fever, rhinitis, colds, congestion, and sinus infections.
Nebulized saline is another form of salt water employed as an effective aerosol spray used in the treatment of asthma and other respiatory conditions.
Vitamin D Supplements: How Much Should You Take?
Horseradish PoulticeIt is wise to consider oral vitamin D3 supplementation during the winter months, or year-round if you haven’t time or sufficient access to the sun or a safe tanning bed.However, the Reuter’s article above is years behind the research on their recommended dosage of 1,000 IU’s a dayIt’s true, there are no definitive studies on the optimal daily dose of vitamin D, but based on studies on healthy indigenous peoples, many vitamin D experts now agree that most adults, including pregnant women, require about 5,000 IU of vitamin D daily for optimal health – or 35 IU’s of vitamin D per pound of body weight, which is certainly well above the current RDA.That said, although these recommendations may put you closer to the ballpark of what most people likely need, it is impossible to make a blanket recommendation that will cover everyone’s needs.The ONLY way to determine how much you might need is by testing your blood level of vitamin D.This is in fact a very important aspect of optimizing your vitamin D levels that you should not skip over.Why?Because while overdosing on vitamin D from sun exposure is highly unlikely as your body has a built-in “failsafe” feedback loop, which will tend to shut down production when your levels are healthy, it IS possible to overdose when taking supplements.So you need to be careful when using oral vitamin D therapy and make certain you have your blood levels checked. Many of you may choose to ignore this warning, but I am telling you in no uncertain terms that while vitamin D has enormous potential for improving your health, it has significant potential to worsen it, if you use it improperly.
Add a small amount of water to finely grated horseradish. Wrap it in a cloth; apply it to the neck for not more than 5 minutes. This will stimulate the skin, which helps extinguish headache pain. If your skin is sensitive, spread cream over your neck before applying the poultice.
