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The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods by Michael Murray, N.D. and Joseph Pizzorno, N.D. See book keywords and concepts

One study of subjects who consumed a diet that emphasized peanuts, in both nut and butter form, for one month demonstrated that their risk of heart Disease dropped by around 21 percent compared to those people who ate typical American fare. A second study, in which the subjects were given two or three servings of peanuts or peanut butter for one month, also found reductions in the "bad" LDL cholesterol with maintenance of "good" HDL cholesterol. Triglycerides, which are another risk factor for heart Disease, also dropped.

Prescription for Herbal Healing: An Easy-to-Use A-Z Reference to Hundreds of Common Disorders and Their Herbal Remedies Phyllis A. Balch, CNC See book keywords and concepts

However, since vaccination has been available, a much larger percentage of people in North American who get measles have been adults who were never exposed to, or vaccinated for, the Disease. Measles causes more severe symptoms in adults than in children, and the vaccine can sometimes cause fever and joint pain. Recovering from measles provides lifetime immunity from future infection. The Disease also causes immune-system changes that may have some beneficial effects, notably a reduced risk of developing asthma and hay fever.

HERBS TO AVOID -J Individuals who have Graves' Disease should avoid the following herbs: aloe, American ginseng, astragalus, bamboo, burdock, chrysanthemum, echinacea, ginger, ginseng, lemon balm (melissa), Siberian ginseng, and wheat grass. For more information regarding these herbs, see the individual entries under The Herbs in Part One. There is no need to avoid these herbs if the hyperthyroidism is not caused by Graves' Disease.

Although the exact mechanisms of activity are not known, it is likely that American ginseng protects a portion of the brain known as the hippocampus from the effects of stress hormones. This prevents memory problems, a common complaint among people under stress. This mechanism would also explain the usefulness of American ginseng in preventing loss of memory and cognitive ability in people who suffer from bipolar disorder, depression, and a disorder of the adrenal glands known as Cushing's Disease.

Vitamin P" compounds appear in so many foods that it is difficult to experience a deficiency, and American scientists had assumed it had no value. Flavonoids and oligomeric proanthocyanidins are now known to be essential to health. The flavonoids and oligomeric proanthocyanidins interact with vitamin C to protect each other from free radicals. Together with vitamin C, they promote vascular health. Their promotion of vascular health helps correct an array of diseases, ranging from attention deficit disorder to cancer to degenerative conditions of the eyes to Parkinson's Disease.

Moreover, American manufacturers and distributors of herbal products keep current with scientific research in China, Europe, Japan, and especially Germany, places where herbs are part of mainstream medicine. Another reason the revitalization of herbal medicine has come about is that while modern drugs have achieved a great deal in Disease treatment, they also have contributed to ill health. Every modern drug comes with warnings of side effects. A standard textbook for pharmacists even states, "If a drug is stated to have no side effects, then it is strongly suspected it has no central benefit.

The China Study: The Most Comprehensive Study of Nutrition Ever Conducted and the Startling Implications for Diet, Weight Loss and Long-term Health T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. and Thomas M. Campbell II See book keywords and concepts

If there is an "American" game, it is baseball; an "American" dessert, apple pie. If there is an "American" Disease, it is heart Disease. EVERYONE'S DOING IT In 1950, Judy Holliday could be seen on the big screen, Ben Hogan dominated the world of golf, the musical South Pacific won big at the Tony Awards and on June 25, North Korea invaded South Korea. The American administration was taken aback but responded quickly. Within days, President Truman sent in troops on the ground and bombers overhead to push back the North Korean army.

American men died from heart Disease at a rate almost seventeen times higher than their Chinese counterparts.18 CHART 5.1: HEART Disease DEATH RATES FOR MEN AGED 55 TO 59 ACROSS 20 COUNTRIES, CIRCA 1955" Why were we succumbing to heart Disease in the sixties and seventies, when much of the world was relatively unaffected? Quite simply, it was a case of death by food. The cultures that have lower heart Disease rates eat less saturated fat and animal protein and more whole grains, fruits and vegetables. In other words, they subsist mostly on plant foods while we subsist mostly on animal foods.

Height Weight in Excess of (lbs) 5'0" 153 5'2" 164 5'4" 174 5'6" 185 5'8" 197 5'10" 209 6'0" 221 6'2" 233 But cancer and obesity are not the only epidemics casting a large shadow over American health. Diabetes has also increased in unprecedented proportions. One out of thirteen Americans now has diabetes, and that ratio continues to rise. If we don't heed the importance of diet, millions of additional Americans will unknowingly develop diabetes and suffer its consequences, including blindness, limb amputation, cardiovascular Disease, kidney Disease and premature death.

If there is an "American" Disease, it is heart Disease. EVERYONE'S DOING IT In 1950, Judy Holliday could be seen on the big screen, Ben Hogan dominated the world of golf, the musical South Pacific won big at the Tony Awards and on June 25, North Korea invaded South Korea. The American administration was taken aback but responded quickly. Within days, President Truman sent in troops on the ground and bombers overhead to push back the North Korean army. Three years later, in July of 1953, a formal cease-fire agreement had been signed and the Korean War was over.

In a recent study, it was found that Japanese American men living in Hawaii had a higher rate of Alzheimer's Disease than Japanese living in Japan.59 Another study found that native Africans had significantly lower rates of dementia and Alzheimer's than African Americans in Indiana.60 Both of these findings clearly support the idea that environment plays an important role in cognitive disorders. Worldwide, the prevalence patterns of cognitive disorders appear to be similar to other Western diseases. Rates of Alzheimer's are low in less developed areas.

During this period of time, over 30,000 American soldiers were killed in battle. At the end of the war, a landmark scientific study was reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Military medical investigators had examined the hearts of 300 male soldiers killed in action in Korea. The soldiers, at an average age of twenty-two years, had never been diagnosed with heart problems. In dissecting these hearts, researchers found startling evidence of Disease in an exceptional number of cases. Fully 77.3% of the hearts they examined had "gross evidence" of heart Disease.

Healing with Whole Foods: Asian Traditions and Modern Nutrition Paul Pitchford See book keywords and concepts

Oats were recommended to those with cancer and general debility by American herbalist Jethro Kloss, as a daily breakfast cereal in many health clinics in Europe, and also by Max Gerson. One beneficial action of oats is their nervine property, which helps relax the patient; the high fiber content of oats cleanses the arteries and other areas of the body of mucoid deposits; they also strengthen and regulate the qi energy, which is often stagnant in cancer. Oats were used in the early days of this century to boost resistance to Disease.

When cultures in Africa, the American South, and elsewhere first began using the grain as a staple in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, there resulted an epidemic of pellagra, an often-fatal wasting Disease involving skin lesions, diarrhea, and nerve deterioration. The cause was discovered to be niacin deficiency. Corn is very low in niacin, but when lime is cooked into it, niacin absorption in the body increases. Eating corn regularly poses no problem for people who have a varied diet of other wholesome foods.

For the first time in United States history, the Surgeon General acknowledged (in 1988) the value of a good diet, while simultaneously condemning typical American eating patterns. According to his statement, fully two-thirds of all deaths are directly affected by improper diet, and poor eating habits play a large part in the nation's most common killers—coronary heart Disease, stroke, atherosclerosis, diabetes, and some cancers. Holistic practitioners have always seen marked improvements when individuals make appropriate dietary changes.

A Dose of Sanity: Mind, Medicine, and Misdiagnosis Sydney Walker III, M.D. See book keywords and concepts

Benjamin Rush (1746-1813), considered the father of American psychiatry, was noted for his insistence that insanity is a Disease. A heroic doctor who joined the Continental Army as a surgeon (after making history as a signer of the Declaration of Independence), Rush was highly trained not only in psychiatry but in obstetrics, pediatrics, geriatrics, and the treatment of tuberculosis. His Diseases of the Mind, written in 1812, was a landmark treatise on mental illness.

This is fairly mild compared to the reaction of one former head of the American Psychiatric Association, who labeled psychiatric expert witnesses who make such predictions as "a bunch of clowns.") The only legitimate role a psychiatrist can play in a courtroom is as a medical doctor, testifying about the presence or absence of scientifically verifiable disorders. A psychiatrist can testify with a clear conscience as to whether a criminal has Wilson's Disease, a thyroid disorder, a brain tumor, or any other disorder that can be verified by a careful evaluation.

Adaptogens: Herbs for Strength, Stamina, and Stress Relief David Winston, RH(AHG), and Steven Maimes See book keywords and concepts

The following adaptogens provide adrenal support: American ginseng, ashwagandha, Asian ginseng, cordyceps, dang shen, eleuthero, holy basil, jiaogulan, licorice, reishi, rhaponticum, rhodiola, and schisandra. Adaptogen Notes • American ginseng is an endocrine amphoteric and adaptogen useful for mild to moderate depletion of the HPA axis and adrenal glands. • Asian ginseng and licorice can be used together for adrenal exhaustion (Addison's disease) along with conventional therapy. AGING AND LONGEVITY Aging is an ongoing process, and our bodies will continue to age.

Like its Western relative, American ginseng, Asian ginseng is an immune amphoteric. This ability to normalize immune function means that this herb can be used to enhance depleted immune system function in cases of cancer, chronic fatigue immune deficiency syndrome, and autoimmune Disease. It also can be used to reduce excessive immune response in allergies and some autoimmune conditions as well. (Autoimmune illnesses often produce systemic immune depletion and excess immune response to a specific tissue at the same time.

The following adaptogens give the body and mind an energy boost: American ginseng, ashwagandha, Asian ginseng, cordyceps, dang shen, eleuthero, holy basil, jiaogulan, rhaponticum, rhodiola, schisandra, and shatavari. Adaptogen Notes • Asian ginseng is used in traditional Chinese medicine to restore energy. • Eleuthero is used to increase energy, endurance, and stamina. • Rhodiola increases mitochondrial activity (cellular energy). It is used to reduce fatigue associated with Lyme Disease.

Adaptogen Notes • American ginseng is an endocrine amphoteric and adaptogen useful for mild to moderate depletion of the HPA axis and adrenal glands. • Asian ginseng and licorice can be used together for adrenal exhaustion (Addison's disease) along with conventional therapy. AGING AND LONGEVITY Aging is an ongoing process, and our bodies will continue to age. With aging, there is the decline in most physiological functions, including cellular immunity. As the body ages, it has a decrease in its adaptive capacity needed to maintain homeostasis when under stress.

Allergic to the Twentieth Century: The Explosion in Environmental Allergies--From Sick Buildings to Multiple Chemical Sensitivity Peter Radetsky See book keywords and concepts

The major techniques used by the clinical ecologists are controversial and unproven," states the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology. "There are no immunologic data to support the dogma of clinical ecologists. Clinical ecology... is an unproven and experimental methodology." For example, what about total body load, the idea of the body's barrel filling with environmental incitants? "It makes no sense, none at all," declares Michael Straight, a former Centers for Disease Control toxicology and emergency medicine expert now practicing in Seiner's clinic.

This "germ theory" of Disease made its way across the Atlantic, and, with Johns Hopkins in the lead, by the turn of the century American medical institutions were teaching the new gospel. No wonder that in the 1920s, as people were discovering the microbe-fighting mechanisms of the immune system, the fledgling field of allergy fell in line. In response to the urging of European allergists, an allergy became defined as "the consequence of an immune reaction.

Best Choices From the People's Pharmacy Joe Graedon, M.S. and Teresa Graedon, Ph.D. See book keywords and concepts

Almonds • Cashews • Halibut • Oatmeal • Peanuts • Potatoes (baked) • Soybeans • Spinach A different study of nearly 3,000 people was presented at the American Heart Association annual meeting in April 2005. It revealed that magnesium plays a crucial role in heart Disease. Investigators found that those people who get the least magnesium are most likely to have clogged coronary arteries. Scientists believe that magnesium deficiency changes fat metabolism so that atherosclerosis becomes more likely.

Downside: American taste buds need to get used to the flavor. Cost: $3 to $5 a month leaves are "fermented" and oxidized; and oolong tea leaves are partially oxidized. It's an acquired taste, but it could be a taste worth acquiring. Over-the-Counter Remedies Vitamin E Vitamin E, once considered a potential super-nutrient, has fallen out of favor as a preventive for heart Disease or cancer. But back when it still looked ever so promising, a group of Italian dermatologists conducted a study to see if vitamin E could improve symptoms of eczema.

Encyclopedia of Natural Medicine, Revised Second Edition Michael T. Murray, N.D., Joseph E. Pizzorno, N.D. See book keywords and concepts

Considering the fact that the average American consumes an excess of 5 ounces of sucrose and other refined carbohydrates per day, it is safe to say that most Americans have a chronically depressed immune status, which puts them at increased risk for periodontal Disease. Vitamin A Vitamin A deficiency predisposes a person to periodontal Disease.

It is now estimated that ten percent of all American males will experience a kidney stone during their lifetime, with an annual frequency of 0.1 to 6.0 percent of the general population. In the United States, one out of every one thousand hospital admissions is for kidney stones. The frequency has been steadily increasing, paralleling the rise in other diseases associated with the so-called Western diet, e.g., heart Disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

The second study, published in the JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association), was the first clinical study on GBE conducted in the United States.'1 The study was conducted at six research centers with the design of the study being approved by the Harvard Medical School and the New York Institute for Medical Research. In the study, 202 patients with Alzheimer's Disease were given either GBE (120 mg per day) or a placebo for one year. The study provided tremendous evidence on the value of GBE in Alzheimer's Disease.

It has been estimated that seventy to ninety percent of Asian, Black, Native American, and Mediterranean adults lack the enzyme required to digest milk sugar (lactose). Diarrheal diseases caused by parasites still constitute the single greatest worldwide cause of illness and death. Popular natural treatments of parasitic infections include high dosages of pancreatic enzymes and berberine-containing plants, such as goldenseal. Berberine has shown significant success in the treatment of acute diarrhea in several clinical studies.

For information on these "gentler" therapies, or to find a practitioner near you, contact The Trager Institute 33 Millwood Mill Valley, CA 94941 415-388-2688 North American Society of Teachers of the Alexander Technique P.O. Box 517 Urbana, IL 61801 800-473-0620 Feldenkrais Guild 706 SW Ellsworth Street Albany, OR 97231 800-775-2118 PART TWO ENHANCING KEY BODY SYSTEMS Heart and Cardiovascular Health Cardiovascular Disease is responsible for at least forty-three percent of all deaths in the United States.

Box 23053 Seattle, WA 98102 National Digestive Disease Education and Information Clearing House 1555 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 600 Rosslyn, VA 22209 I Cellulite Demonstration of the "mattress phenomenon" (pitting, bulging, and deformation of the skin) Possible feelings of tightness and heaviness in affected areas (particularly the legs) Tenderness of the skin when pinched, pressed upon, or vigorously massaged The term cellulite is used to describe a cosmetic defect that is cause for great distress among millions of European and American women.

Prescription for Nutritional Healing, 4th Edition: A Practical A-to-Z Reference to Drug-Free Remedies Using Vitamins, Minerals, Herbs & Food Supplements Phyllis A. Balch, CNC See book keywords and concepts

Training on the proper use of defibrillators is conducted by both the American Red Cross and the American Heart Association. Q The use of a test called cardiokymography (CKG) together with electrocardiograms (ECGs) may help to detect "silent" heart Disease. A comparison study revealed that electrocardiograms alone missed 39 percent of heart Disease cases. When CKG was used along with ECGs, only 8 percent of cases were undetected.

The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 130,000 Americans will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer in a given year, and more than 56,000 will die from the Disease. It strikes men and women nearly equally. Colorectal cancer develops over a ten- to fifteen-year period and produces no symptoms until it is advanced. If the Disease is detected early enough and the tumor has not metastasized, the survival rate is quite high. Patients whose tumors are entirely localized to the bowel have an 80 to 90 percent chance of surviving for ten years.

According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, an estimated 5 to 7 million American women, many of them young, suffer from endometriosis. Unfortunately, many women fail to seek medical help because they mistake the symptoms of this Disease for normal menstrual discomfort. Laparoscopy is the procedure most commonly used to diagnose endometriosis. This involves the insertion of a tiny lighted optical tube (a laparoscope or a smaller version, the microlaparoscope) through a small incision in the navel. The surgeon can then see inside the abdominal cavity.

American medicine became almost exclusively committed to a medical system some practitioners call allopathy, which seeks to treat illness by producing a condition in the body that does not allow the Disease to live or thrive. Over the years, most Americans have become conditioned to rely on synthetic, commercial drugs for relief. Today, however, scientists are taking a second look at herbal remedies. Particularly in the past twenty years, a growing body of research (much of it done in Europe) has pointed to the therapeutic potential of numerous herbs.

The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2003 about 267,000 women were diagnosed as having breast cancer, and about 39,800 deaths occurred from the Disease. The lifetime risk of developing breast cancer for American women is one in nine. Surveys suggest that it is the health problem most feared by women, but if breast cancer is detected early the five-year-and-beyond survival rate is very high—about 95 percent. There is probably no single answer as to what causes breast cancer, and it is reported that as many as 60 percent of breast cancers develop without any known risk factors.

Bilberry The herb bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus), a European relative of the American blueberry, contains natural antioxidants that keep capillary walls strong and flexible. They also help to maintain the flexibility of the walls of red blood cells and allow them to pass through the capillaries more freely. Bil- Antioxidants are natural compounds that help protect the body from harmful free radicals. These are atoms or groups of atoms that can cause damage to cells, impairing the immune system and leading to infections and various degenerative diseases such as heart Disease and cancer.

The Healing Power of Rainforest Herbs: A Guide to Understanding and Using Herbal Medicinals Leslie Taylor, ND See book keywords and concepts

It will be interesting to see if North American scientists investigate simarouba as a possibility for North America's only malaria-like disease—the newest mosquito-borne threat, West Nile virus. It might be a good one to study because, in addition to its antimalarial properties, clinical research has shown good antiviral properties with simarouba bark. Researchers in 1978 and again in 1992 confirmed strong antiviral properties of the bark in vitro against herpes, influenza, polio, and vaccinia viruses.

Nettle leaves were also recommended as a nutritious food and as a weight loss aid by the famous American plant forager and naturalist, Euell Gibbons. In Brazilian herbal medicine, the entire plant is used for excessive menstrual bleeding, diarrhea, diabetes, urinary disorders, and respiratory problems including allergies. Externally, an infusion is used for skin problems. In Peru, In Germany today, stinging nettle is sold as an herbal drug for prostate diseases and as a diuretic.

Please remember this information is an historical account about how these tropical rainforest plants are employed as natural remedies in South American and Third World countries. This—as well as all of the information found in this book—is not a medical claim or recommendation to use herbs in place of proper medical care. Please always check with a qualified health practitioner before beginning any herbal medicine program on your own— especially if you are taking prescription drugs or have (or think you may have) a serious medical disorder or Disease.

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