The Chemistry Of Garlic

Garlic is well known for its culinary and medicinal use.

It has been harvested as a crop for thousands of years. 

But what makes it such a great spice and medicine?

Did you know that if you that if your rub garlic on your feet you can then smell it in your breath?

So there is a long list of uses for garlic and I have mentioned a bunch of them is a post that I wrote on why I eat more garlic in the winter time.

But here for part of our free class on herbal medicine, I want to speak about the chemical make up and clinical studies that have been done about garlic. 

The following are the pharmacological effects that have some clinical proof to them:
•    Cancer prevention 
•    Improvement in circulation
•    Antimicrobial 
The active ingredients in garlic are sulfur containing compounds, alliin, and ajoene. 

These substances are what seems to give garlic its medicinal effects.

They seem to inhibit the aggregation of platelets by which they thin the blood and improve circulation. 

Also they seem to cause the destruction of bacteria and cancer cells.

Other effects of garlic are not yet supported by clinical tests but are known by practical experience of thousands, myself included.

Such as:
•    Treating the common cold
•    Diaphoretic
•    Expectorant
•    Antiviral
•    Antispasmodic
•    Antiseptic

Dosage: the average dose is 4 grams of fresh garlic per day (2-4 cloves). Also garlic is available in a pill and oil form and should be then used as directed on the label. 

I use garlic all the time. I eat about two cloves a day on average and even more then that when I feel that I may be getting sick.

Just this week I made a simple garlic oil for my son who was starting to get an ear infection.

Here is how I used garlic for an ear infection, it very simple and you can use this as well.

All you are going to need is a few cloves of fresh garlic, some olive oil, a few Q tips, and a small frying pan.

Chop up two or three cloves of garlic and then put them in the pan with about 2 or 3 tablespoons of olive oil. 

Heat the oil and garlic on a very small flame, you don’t want to fry the garlic because that would destroy the active ingredients. 

Heat the oil and garlic for about five minutes and let it cool.

Use the Q tips to put the oil in side of the ears.

Make sure that there is no pieces of garlic on the Q tips.

This may seem very simple but it really works wonders for ear infections.

Rosemary – To Preserve The Body

Rosemary – To Preserve The Body

Back in the day before we had refrigerators and freezers to keep our meats fresh, people would use herbs to try and preserve meats for as long as they could. 

No question, this did not work as well as the freezer, but it helped. 

Rosemary was one of these preservative herbs, and its ability to keep things from spoiling has been proven to be true. 

Rosemary is packed with anti oxidants that protect the cells of our body. 

It has even been found to work almost as well as modern day chemical food preservatives. 

In addition to its anti-ageing capabilities, here is a list of what you can use rosemary for. 

•    Improve digestion and help stomach ache 
•    Help clear respiratory congestion 
•    Help to bring about menstruation 
•    Help to improve memory and concentration 
•    Relieve muscle pain

Most of these uses still don’t have very strong clinical proof.

But one interesting study showed that people who used rosemary regularly suffered les from thrombosis, which from what I understand is just a fancier word for blood clots. 

In laboratory tests rosemary was found to have anti-microbial, anti-oxidant, and even anti-cancer effects. 

Here is a link to a very interesting article showing a direct link between the use of rosemary essential oil and increased mental abilities.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3736918/

This seems to be a very scientific article and shows that the traditional uses for rosemary are holding up to modern day pharmacological scrutiny.
 

The Natural Medicine Back To School Check List.

The natural medicine back to school check list.

I wrote this last year a bit after school started, so this time I figured I would share it with everyone before school starts.

Hope you find it helpful. 

So school started a bit more then a month ago and I know that we had two stick children and one sick patent already. 

So here is just a quick list of the things that I am going to stock up on so I can continue going to work and not have to stay home and take care of sick kids. 

First up are the amazing tag team of elder syrup and Ricola Cough Drops. 
Order them from these links and get a great product while helping to support this website.

Ricola Cough drops

Elderberry syrup

As soon as you start to feel that tickle in the back of your throat start using them. 

Next get these two must have essential oils.  They are what you can call essential essential oils. Yeah corny joke, I know. 

Lavender oil

Use lavender oil on cuts, scrapes and bug bites. Just put a drop directly on the skin where needed. 
Also lavender oil is great for helping to calm the nerves and also a hacking cough. 
Eucalyptus oil
Eucalyptus oil is another great oil that everyone should have in their home. 
it's great to help clear the lungs and the sinuses. It also helps to uplift the spirit.
And the last two are super good herbal tinctures to have around.

Gotu kola

Gotu kola is known to be a brain tonic and helps people to concentrate and may help to improve memory. 

Valerian root

And to help calm the nerves at the end of a long day there is nothing like valerian root. You can also try and give it to your hyper active kids before their long day to help them stay on their chair at school.
And before I finish off..

Peppermint oil

When a stomach ache comes around just add a drop to a cup of water and drink, you will be amazed at how fast it helps.

What other common back to school ailments would you like to hear about?

Alfalfa In Depth

  Alfalfa

Latin name: Medicago sativaL.

Uses: Rich in vitamins and minerals, helps with high cholesterol, anti cancer, Phytoestrogen.  

So I still cant think about alfalfa and not think about the kid alfalfa from that old TV show with his hair sticking up.

For the most part alfalfa is eaten as sprouted seeds. It can also be taken as none sprouted seeds and also pill form.

From the research that has been done alfalfa seems to have cholesterol lowering properties.

This seems to be the work of the saponins in the plant the which decrease intestinal absorption of cholesterol. 

Also the isoflavonoids coumestrol and gentistein have documented oestrogenic properties, making the Alfalfa an effective phytoestrogen.

From what I have read alfalfa is an over all very healthy herb because of high nutritional value. 

In addition there is some clinical proof that it could be effective for lowering cholesterol and treating certain problems of the female reproductive systems. 

Herbal Help For Going Back To School

The summer is over and now the kids are going back to school. I am sure that for a lot of parents like my self it's a relief to have the kids back in school and not have to be entertaining them all day.
But going back to school cam come along with some not so pleasant side effects.
Stomach aches, colds and head lice are just the tip of the ice burg when talking about quai could be waiting for is once or kids get back on schedule.
So here are some quick tips to use herbs and oils to help get you through it.

First thing you are going to have to do is gear up.

Buy 50 grams of each of the following herbs.

• Chamomile
• Yarrow
• Linden
• Catnip
• Elder berries
• Gotu cola
• Licorice 

Buy a ten ml bottle of each of these essential oils.

• Rosemary
• Bergamot
• Lavender
• Eucalyptus

And these two other natural remedies.
Arnica tablets and rescue remedie.
Go out and get those and the next post I'll tell you how to use them.

Learn The Body To Know How To Heal The Body

Here is a great post I came across on stumbleupon. Just a nice collection of youtube videos on how the body works.

I hope you find if usefull, I sure did.

http://onlinenursepractitionerdegree.com/2010/49-fascinating-youtube-videos-to-learn-about-the-human-body/

Medicine then and Now

http://www.bestnursingmasters.com/medicine/