The Drink Your Body Loves

Many women see comfort in a cup of chamomile tea, thanks to its slightly sedating effect and its ability to ease anxiety, menstrual cramps and skin problems. Your bloodstream finds it comforting, too. Because there’s something in chamomile that not only helps keep blood sugar stable (at least in the lab), but also guards against the tsunami of damage that high blood sugar can do.

Too-high levels of blood sugar can act like scouring powder on your arteries, weakening junctions between cells, allowing nicks between cells that encourage an ugly pileup of inflammation and plaque. Everything that’s happening in there eventually makes itself known in the form of a heart attack, stroke, memory loss, impotence, wrinkled skin and more. But chamomile can change all that.

If you don’t like tea (and even if you do), there’s plenty more you can do, with next to no effort, to keep blood sugar even and its damage at bay (in addition to eating well and exercising):

Fill up on broccoli. It’s rich in a compound called sulforaphane, reputed to cut blood sugar damage to arteries.

Spice things up with cinnamon. This favorite spice may turn on insulin receptors and help your body use glucose better (no pileups of sugar in your blood). Cloves and allspice also may help prevent diabetes damage.

Say yes to spinach. People who fill up on this green have lower rates of diabetes, possibly because of its magnesium content.

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 19th October 2009

The Body Part

That Wants You To Go Green

Your knees love it when you go green. We don’t mean environmentally green, although they appreciate it when you take the stairs and when you take your bike for a spin instead of the car (strong leg muscles keep your joints healthy). We mean eating green. Filling your meals with this color can go a long way to preventing arthritis. Here’s what to reach for:

Leafy greens. A killer, flavor-filled salad or side dish could mean one less knee replacement surgery in the world. The vitamin K in leafy greens — think cabbage, spinach and Swiss chard, for starters — reduces your risk of joint damage. People who have the highest levels of K are less likely to develop the bone spurs and cartilage damage that are common in osteoarthritis. (A word of caution: If you’re on a blood thinner, check with your doctor about whether K is safe for you.) Leaves just not your thing? No problem. Broccoli and asparagus make tasty alternatives.

Green tea. Potent compounds in green tea — EGCG and ECG — may help battle cartilage and collagen destruction in arthritic joints. The EGCG and ECG found in green tea are powerful flavonoids known as catechins. These particular flavonoids fight inflammation and some of the underlying mechanisms that mess with knees in both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Bonus: Sipping it before you do that knee-preserving workout may help you burn fat faster.

Chlorophyl is a powerful antidote for cellular regeneration.

It can be obtained from your local chemist or drug store cheaply.

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 19th October 2009

Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 Vaccine

Protect yourself, protect your community

A new FREE vaccine to protect Australians from pandemic (H1N1) 2009 influenza virus is ready. Panvax® H1N1 vaccine was registered by the Therapeutic Goods Administration on 18 September 2009.
There is clear evidence of serious or fatal health complications for some people who catch this flu. It is a new strain of flu that spreads easily from person to person, and experience in other countries shows that this is not just a winter flu – it could come back during spring and summer.

Vaccination is the safest response for the community, particularly as large numbers of people continue to be infected, and some are suffering serious health complications. By getting vaccinated you can protect yourself and help stop this flu spreading.

How a vaccine works

Panvax® H1N1 Vaccine contains extracts of protein from the new flu strain. Once you get vaccinated, proteins prompt your body to produce antibodies to protect you from the virus.
Protection after vaccination varies from person to person, but people generally start producing the antibodies that provide protection two weeks after the vaccination. Protection is expected to last for at least one year.

This vaccine does not contain live virus and cannot give you influenza.

People who should get immediate vaccination

All people can get vaccinated but some people are more at risk of severe outcomes if they catch this flu. Vaccination is strongly recommended for:

• Pregnant women
• Parents and guardians of infants up to six months old
• People with underlying chronic conditions, including:
  • heart disease;
  • asthma and other lung diseases;
  • cancer;
  • diabetes;
  • kidney disease;
  • neurological disease;
  • other chronic conditions (talk to your GP)
• People who are severely obese
• Indigenous Australians
• Frontline health workers
• Community care workers

Where do I get vaccinated? How do I get this vaccine?

Vaccinations will be available from 30 September. Vaccination will be available from a range of locations, including GP offices, vaccination clinics, hospitals and health centres. To check vaccination location in your State or Territory, go to:

Health department websites and phone numbers

WA: call 1800 186 815 or visit http://www.health.wa.gov.au/swine_flu/home/
SA: call 1800 022 222 or visit www.flu.sa.gov.au
VIC: call: 1300 882 008 or visit www.humanswineflu.health.vic.gov.au
TAS: 1800 358 362 (1800 FLU DOC) or visit www.pandemic.tas.gov.au
ACT: call 02 6205 2300 or visit www.health.act.gov.au/flupandemic
NSW: visit www.emergency.health.nsw.gov.au/swineflu/vaccination/index.asp, or call 180 2007 for your local Public Health Unit contact
QLD: 13HEALTH (13 43 25 84) or vist www.health.qld.gov.au/swineflu/html/vacc.asp
NT: call 08 8922 8044 or visit www.swinefluvax.nt.gov.au

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 18th October 2009

Cassia Fistula – Cultivation and uses

Golden shower tree

leaves in Hyderabad, India.

Cassia fistula is widely grown as an ornamental plant in tropical and subtropical areas. It blooms in late spring (May on the northern, November on the southern hemisphere); flowering is profuse, with trees being covered with yellow flora, with almost no leaf being seen. It is not recommended for dry climates. Growth for this tree is best in full sun on well-drained soil; it is drought- and salt- tolerant, but will be damaged by even short spells of freezing weather. It can be subject to mildew, leaf spot and root diseases.

In Ayurvedic medicine, Golden Shower Tree is known as aragvadha (“disease killer”). Its fruitpulp is used as mild laxative, against fevers, arthritis, vatavyadhi (nervous system diseases), all kinds of rakta-pitta (bleeding, such as hematemesis or hemorrhages), as well as cardiac conditions and stomach problems such as acid reflux. The root is considered a very strong purgative, and self-medication or any use without medical supervision is strongly advised against in Ayurvedic texts.

Though its use in herbalism is attested to since millennia, there has been rather little research in modern times. While the purgative action is probably due to abundant 1,8-dihydroxyanthraquinone and derivates thereof, whether the reputed nervous system (anti-vatavyadhi) effects are real and if, what causes them, is not known. While many Fabaceae are a source of potent entheogens and other psychoactive compounds (see e.g. tryptamines), such plants are rarely found among the Caesalpinioideae.

The golden shower tree is the national flower of Thailand; its yellow leaves symbolize Thai royalty. A 2006-2007 flower festival, the Royal Flora Ratchaphruek, was named after the tree, which is most often called dok khuen or ratchaphruek in Thailand.^[1]

The golden shower tree is the state flower of Kerala in India. The flowers are of ritual importance in the Vishu festival of Kerala state of India, and the tree was depicted on a 20 Indian rupees stamp. C. fistula is also featured on a 2003 joint Canadian-Thai design for a 48 cent stamp, part of a series featuring national emblems.

It has strong & very durable wood.There is please called “Ahala Kanuwa” in “Adems peek” “Sri Lanka” and its made by Cassia fistula(Ahala) heart wood.

It has reportedly been used in other, less wholesome, contexts.

Names and taxonomy

Amalt?s inflorescences, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

Being so conspicuous and widely planted, this tree has a number of common names. In English, it is usually known as Golden Shower Tree or Golden Shower Cassia. Other, less unambiguous names include Indian laburnum, “golden shower” or “drumstick tree“. It is known in Spanish-speaking countries as caña fistula.

Names from its native range and surrounding regions include:^[1]

• Assamese: Xonaru
• Bangla: sonalu, bandar lathi
• Chinese: ? bó lè (???: Taiwan), là cháng shù (“sausage tree”, ???)
• Gujarati : Garmalo
• Hindi: bendra lathi (or bandarlauri), dhanbaher (or dhanbohar), girimaloah
• Hindi and Urdu: amalt?s (??????)
• Japanese: nanban saikachi (???? ????, Kanji: ????)
• ^Khmer: ‘reachapreuk’ (?????????? – rajavriksha)
• Lao: khoun
• Marathi: bahava (?????)
• Malayalam: kanikkonna (or kani konna ??????????: Kerala), Vishu konna(???????????)
• Meitei (Manipuri): chahui
• Nepali: amaltash, rajbriksya
• Sanskrit: aragvadha, chaturangula, kritamala, suvarnaka
• Sinhalese: aehaela-gaha (or ahalla-gass), ekela
• Tamil: konrai (??????)
• Thai: rachapruek (????????), khun (???), dok khuen (??????)
• Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 8th Oct 2009
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Non-TB lung disease increasing in the U.S.

BETHESDA, Md. (UPI) — The U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases says incidents of non-tuberculosis mycobacteria lung disease are increasing across the nation.

Researchers said non-tuberculous mycobacteria are environmental organisms found in both water and soil that can cause severe pulmonary disease in humans — and a large study indicates the disease is increasing.

A research team led by epidemiologists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, analyzed hospital discharge records of patients in 11 states whose combined total population represents 42 percent of the country. They said they reviewed database records spanning 1998 to 2005 and identified more than 16,475 hospitalizations associated with non-tuberculosis mycobacteria in people without AIDS.

Before the widespread availability of combination antiretroviral therapy, pulmonary disease was a common opportunistic infection among people with AIDS. The study was limited to patients not suffering from AIDS.

Researchers said of the 11 states studied, Florida, New York and California had 62 percent of the pulmonary hospitalizations.

Study results show while overall prevalence of non-tuberculosis mycobacteria lung disease is higher in women, prevalence increases for both sexes in the fifth or sixth decade of life, the scientists said.

The research appears in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 7th Oct 2009

Pets could be called ‘wonder drugs’

COLUMBIA, Mo. (UPI) — Pets lower hypertension, spur exercise and improve psychological health, and if this appeared in pill form it would be called a wonder drug, a U.S. expert says.

“Research in this field is providing new evidence on the positive impact pets have in our lives,” Rebecca Johnson, an associate professor in the University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing, the College of Veterinary Medicine and director of the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction, says in a statement.

Johnson says the International Society for Anthrozoology and Human-Animal Interaction Conference in Kansas City, Mo., Oct. 20-25 will include conference discussions on ways that human-animal interaction benefits humans and animals.

“Pets are of great importance to people, especially during hard economic times,” Johnson says. “Pets provide unconditional love and acceptance and may be part of answers to societal problems, such as inactivity and obesity.”

ReCHAI sponsored the Walk a Hound, Lose a Pound and Stay Fit for Seniors program that matched older adults with shelter dogs, while another group of older adults walked with humans. For 12 weeks, participants were encouraged to walk on an outdoor trail for one hour, five times a week.

“The older people who walked their dogs improved their walking capabilities by 28 percent,” Johnson says. “They had more confidence walking on the trail, and they increased their speed. Those who walked with humans had a 4 percent increase in their walking capabilities.”

Copyright 2009 by United Press International

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 7th Oct 2009

Eat The Whole Thing And Watch Cancer Risk Drop
By Michael Roizen, M.D., and Mehmet Oz, M.D.

Juicier than the latest celeb gossip and more crisp than HDTV, apples may do a lot more than be the perfect fruit. The type of fibre in apples, called pectin, lowers your colon cancer risk by bumping up colon-protective compounds and clamping down on cancer-causing ones. In the lab, apple pectin increased levels of butyrate, a fatty acid that manages to do this colon-health double duty. That’s fabulous, since colon cancer is the third most common type of cancer for both men and women.

Unlike chocolate cake or entire buckets of wings, apples are one case where you really want to eat the whole thing. In other words, don’t peel it first. If you pitch the skin, you’re ditching compounds called triterpenoids (we’re not going to test you on that), which have strong potential against colon cancer and against breast and liver cancers, too. More reasons to go whole: The peels also contain quercetin, a compound that may bolster your immune system (it may even help stave off the flu when you’re under stress), and that can help defend your body against cardiovascular disease and even Alzheimer’s.

Of course, apples aren’t the only thing you should do to keep your colon cancer risk down. You also need regular screenings. Do an annual Hemoccult test after age 40 (available at pharmacies and not as gross as you think) and colonoscopy screening every 10 years, starting at age 50.

Sourced and published by Henry Sapiecha 7th Oct 2009

INDIAN ALMOND TREE

TERMINALIA CATAPPA

Cultivation and uses

Terminalia catappa is widely grown in tropical regions of the world as an ornamental tree, grown for the deep shade its large leaves provide. The fruit is edible, tasting slightly acidic.

The wood is red, solid and has high water resistance; it has been utilized in Polynesia for making canoes. in telugu it is called as

BADAM CHETTU

The leaves contain several flavonoids (like kamferol or quercetin), several tannins (such as punicalin, punicalagin or tercatin), saponines and phytosterols. Due to this chemical richness, the leaves (and also the bark) are used in different traditional medicines for various purposes. For instances, in Taiwan fallen leaves are used as a herb to treat liver diseases. In Suriname, a tea made from the leaves is prescribed against dysentery and diarrhea. It is also thought that the leaves contain agents for prevention of cancers (although they have no demonstrated anticarcinogenic properties) and antioxidant as well as anticlastogenic characteristics.

www.sciencearticlesonline.com

Keeping the leaves in an aquarium is said to lower the pH and heavy metal content of the water It has been utilized in this way by Betta breeders in Thailand for many years

Sourced and Published by Henry Sapiecha 5th Oct 2009