PHILADELPHIA—St. John’s Wort and other psychotropic herbals are making headway in the treatment of mental conditions, compelling many patients to view them as safe herbal alternatives to modern chemical medications.
Coconuts, like the human breast, produce medium-chain fatty acids, which have strong antimicrobial properties. Monolaurin, a monoglyceride of lauric acid, one of the key fatty acids in coconuts, is proving effective as a treatment for Staphylococcal and Streptococcal infections. It also appears to work against pathogenic fungi and some viruses as well.
Many herbal compounds are metabolized by the same set of liver enzymes, the Cytochrome P450 group, as are pharmaceuticals. A clear knowledge of which herbs are metabolized by which enzymes will help clear up much of the confusion and concern about herb-drug interactions.
Herbal medicine truly represents a crossroad between the culinary and medical arts. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the emerging body of data showing that a number of commonly used cooking herbs contain powerful antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds.
Latin Americans use a wide range of herbal medicines that are not as common in other cultural communities. Cumin, Sage, Rue, Wormwood, and Chamomile are especially common. Drs. Jose Loera and Victor Sierpina, who have been studying patterns of herbal medicine use in Hispanic communities, are at work on a textbook to educate physicians about the most commonly used herbs in Latin American communities.
Use of herbal medicine is widespread in Latin American communities, according to a study by researchers at the University of Texas. People from Hispanic cultures tend to favor herbs in tea and tincture form, rather than as pills or capsules. They are also more likely to use herbal plasters, baths and poultices than members of other ethnic groups.
The coriolus or “Turkey Tail” mushroom is a common denizen of dead tree stumps worldwide. But it is proving to be uncommon medicine for a number of cancer types. Used for centuries in Asian medicine, coriolus extracts are now being studied in modern medical settings.
Mushrooms are mysterious, and where there is mystery, there is often medicine. Asian traditional medicine has known this for centuries, and various kinds of mushrooms occupy a prominent place in Chinese, Japanese and Tibetan medicine. A review of some modern mushroom medicines making their way into Western clinical practice.
A combination of herbs based on a traditional Chinese formula, is proving effective in inducing necrosis in various types of liver cancer cells.
Herbal medicine can take many forms. Herbs can be used as simple “green pills” for symptom relief, but they can also serve as “teachers,” helping us re-connect our human lives to the life of Earth as a whole. Bill Mitchell, ND, one of the nation’s true medical visionaries, reminds us “The plants…figured out how Gaia could have a relationship with the Sun in a way that supports life.” He shares his views on the spiritual and practical aspects of plant medicine.
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