A close friend of the two victims of a deadly death cap mushroom dish wants better warnings in the ACT about the dangers of picking wild mushrooms.

Tom O’Dea wants a public health campaign that will prevent future fatalities from the poisonous death caps, which claimed the lives of chef Liu Jun, 38, and kitchenhand Tsou Hsiang, 52.

Mr Liu and Ms Tsou died from liver failure after eating the death cap mushrooms in a stir-fry Mr Liu prepared after work at the Harmonie German Club in Narrabundah on New Year’s Eve.

Speaking after a memorial service for the pair at the weekend, Mr O’Dea said, ”We’ve got to make sure this never happens again.

”The message has got to be do not pick wild mushrooms.”

Signs warning people about death cap mushrooms already exist in parts of the ACT where the world’s most deadly mushrooms are known to grow.

ACT Health issued a reminder on New Year’s Day that Canberra residents should steer clear of death caps, and runs education campaigns in schools about the dangers of wild mushrooms.

Fact sheets about the mushrooms are also available on the Health directorate’s web page, and last year were published in a Chinese publication available in Canberra.

Representatives of ACT Health, including its chief officer Paul Kelly, met with members of Canberra’s Chinese community last week to begin discussions about whether public warnings about death cap mushrooms could be improved.

At Saturday’s memorial service, Chief Minister Katy Gallagher said further meetings would determine what steps could be taken. Canberra Multicultural Community Forum chairman Sam Wong, who is part of the consultations, said the ACT Government might have to consider more focused campaigns that target new Canberra residents, recent migrants or specific age groups, such as the elderly.

He said the message about the dangers of wild mushrooms could be made clearer through new multimedia advertisements, or by changing warning signs around the ACT so they could be understood by residents and visitors who did not speak English.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

MEDICINAL PLANT

AYAHUASCA

The mighty Amazon River holds many mysteries and secrets but you wouldn’t think of it as a place where Western visitors go to transform their lives. Along with countless natural herbal remedies, there’s the apparently magical potion known as Ayahuasca. This mind-bending drug draws people from all over the world..

Works for some people to get off alcohol addiction it is said.

Sourcd & published by Henry Sapiecha

SAGE-Salvia divinorum

Salvia divinorum is a plant that many know as “sage”. But this sage is not the spices you use to cook with. Salvia, as many have shortened it, is a natural plant that has long since been known to create visions in the users mind. This plant is just over a metre high and has incredibly large leaves as well at times. Often, you can find white or purple flowers growing on the stems as well.

2) Damiana

Damiana is a small shrub type plant that has numerous flowers that give off very aromatic smells. This plant is usually mixed into a tea form, but it can also be made into a sugary substance as well. It is said that the aromatic smells caused by these plants give a “relaxed” feeling almost immediately. Another form that this plant can be made into is incense. The incense gives off the smell causing the calming effect as well. Damiana is also be used more and more as a spice blend.

3) Blue Lotus

This plant is also known as “Sacred Blue Lily”. Its origins come from the Nile River and many other areas in East Africa. Many refer to this plant as the “spiked plant”; not just because of its blue and white spiked petals, but because it is said to give the same type of effects as a sedative, yet also increase your conscious awareness. It is said that your sense will be heightened and at the same time you feel a sense of peace and tranquility. These days, the effects & use of blue lotus can be felt through many teas, wines, and cocktails.

4) Wild Dagga [Lion's  Tail]

This particular plant also has the distinction of sometimes being called “Lion’s Tail”. This name definitely comes from the fact that the tips of this plant look exactly like a lion’s tail Drying the leaves and smoking them can cause effects that are very calming and soothing. There are a number of things that can result from smoking Wild Dagga, such as irritation of the lungs and throat, dizziness, euphoria, and calterations to your vision. It is not known just how many side effects can actually result from smoking this plant, but the list appears to keep growing rapidly.

5) Channa

Also known as “Kanna”, this plant originates from South Africa. This is a plant that has been around for many thousands of years. As far back as records indicate, this plant has been used as a mood changing substance. There are many ways in which this plant has been consumed. In earlier times the plant was crushed and then chewed, like a chewing tobacco, and the saliva was then swallowed. These days you can find many forms of this plant with teas and certain gel caps that are predominantly made. This plant like many others, gives you a very calming effect and is said that any presence of stress is eliminated quickly. In higher doses, it is believed that this plant can cause a state of euphoria.

6) Nutmeg

Nutmeg has been a plant that has been around for quite a number of years. This plant is not just used in making foods, but it also has many hallucinogenic qualities when in different forms. The seeds that are produced by this plant are actually the cause of these qualities. Just eating a few of these seeds can almost instantly give you a state of euphoria. While this feeling may seem good at the time, there are some side effects to this that not many people have been able to withstand. Severe cases of nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea have all been linked to the consumption of nutmeg seeds, in large quantities. After trying to sleep this one off, you may still feel some effects like extreme tiredness, even if you just woke up from a great nights sleep. In some people, insomnia has manifested itself.

7) Morning Glory [The vine]

Blue Flowered Morning glory, or rather its seeds, have long since been known as hallucinogenic substances. Generally the effects come from simply chewing the seeds, but there are more ways in which they can be ingested. They can be soaked in water for extended periods of time, crushed into a paste and eaten. Soaking them for a few days will cause them to sprout. Many people have said that once they sprout they seem to be more potent.

Hawaiian Baby Woodrose

This is another plant in which the seeds are the ones that give the effects. The seeds are actually contained within pods with thick coatings. There are about five seeds to each pod. Pods from this plant usually require a lot of work to get into them, but once you have opened them, you can chew the seeds found inside. There have been many reports of nausea from this seed, but that is pretty much the only side effect that has been brought to anyone’s attention.

9) Passion Flower

Passion flowers have, in recent years, been found to create certain mind-altering effects. It is not actually the flower part of the plant that creates these illusions, but the stem and roots. The calming effects by this plant can also come from eating large amounts of the fruit it creates. Passion flowers can have many different color petals like reds and purples and each plant can look completely different from the next. The dried leaves of the passion plant have been known to have calming effects that often result in sleeping states.

10) Wild Lettuce

Wild lettuce is very different from your everyday garden lettuce variety. Wild lettuce has long and thin stems. The stems, themselves, it has been said to have effects that are much like poppies, but not as strong. There may be a calm and slight euphoric state, but the effects do not go much further than this. The chambers in the stem are what actually hold the calming substance.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha

Holy Shit, Really?

Salvia divinorum is a member of the Lamiaceae family, which makes it a cousin of the mint plant. When properly prepared, salvia can be smoked in order to bring on incredibly intense, at times paralyzing, hallucinations. Most salvia trips are short in duration, but very powerful and jarring. All side effects of salvia are gone within an hour, and it doesn’t show up on standard drug tests.

Depending on the amount of smoke inhaled, users of salvia may experience hallucinations on par in intensity with those caused by drugs like LSD or DMT. Since most users lose consciousness and drift off into a world of fractal shapes and green women as soon as they hit the pipe, it has not gained much popularity as a ‘party’ drug.

It kind of makes the world look like this for about six minutes.

Where Can I Get One?

Salvia is still legal in most US states. You can pick it up at most well-stocked ‘head’ shops, but the cheapest and highest quality salvia is usually found online. Make sure to check your local laws to see if you can legally purchase and possess it in your state. If not, at least you still have your flamethrower.

What Should I do With it?

Here at Cracked, the only “high” we’re interested in is the natural high we get from bringing comedy to the world (and sometimes crystal meth), so we have no advice here. However there are a number of educational videos that recommend gardening, writing letters to congressmen, and driving while on salvia.

Also, we do not recommend teaching while on salvia.

Holy Balls, Why is it Legal?

Salvia is actually pretty harmless, as intoxicants go. There have been a few accusations of its involvement in causing a suicidal mindset, but evidence is spurious at best. In fact a number of scientists believe that salvia may act as an anti-depressant, and its effective use in ending cocaine addiction has been noticed as well. Dr. Bryan Roth believes the drug has the potential to help those suffering from schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s and has urged the government not to ban salvia. With the potential to cure depression, Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia and cocaine addictions, it’s a wonder salvia isn’t a mandatory side dish in high school cafeterias across America. We’re going to go ahead and say that last one is a bad idea.

CANCER patients are offering themselves as human guinea pigs as researchers investigate a possible cure for cancer that was found in north Queensland rainforests.

Scientists have identified a compound in the fruit of the native blushwood shrub that appears to “liquefy and destroy cancer with no side-effects”, according to latest research.

Found deep in the remnants of a 130 million-year-old rainforest, the fruit extract may yet hold the secret antidote to Australia’s No.1 killer disease.

Victoria Gordon, of EcoBiotics, an Atherton Tableland-based company, said they hoped to go to human clinical trials later this year.

Dr Gordon said a single dose injection of the extract, known as EBC-46, had been effective in 50 critically ill dogs and about a dozen cats and horses.

“This is proving to be something exceptional,” she said.

“The tumour literally liquefies.

“There is a rapid knock-down of the tumour, it disintegrates within 24 hours and we have a rapid healing response.

“The biggest tumour we treated was the size of a Coke can in a dog, and that animal is fully healed and healthy.”

Dr Gordon said it had worked on skin cancers, such as carcinomas and melanomas, and bone cancer, and was a possible treatment for breast, colon and prostate cancer.

But she warned wannabe human guinea pigs against seeking under-the-table treatment.

She said it was “immoral, illegal, and unscientific” to seek to be administered the drug before approval, likely to take up to seven years, by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

“We have been inundated with calls – it shows there is such a need for a breakthrough in anti-cancer treatment,” she said. “Most people understand when we explain the situation.”

Former breast cancer sufferer Mena Crew, 65, said many dying of cancer would “do anything for a miracle cure”.

“We would all like a magic cure, that would be wonderful, and I hope in my lifetime we find it,” the breast cancer support volunteer said.

She has worked with more than 200 sufferers and some victims in her role with the Cancer Council Queensland.

“I don’t want to kill the enthusiasm of all the wonderful research, but until it is proven it will do the job, we recommend they go with proven and conventional treatments,” she said.

“It is good, however, to think the secret antidote may be growing in the jungle above Cairns.” Queensland Australia.

Sourced & Published by Henry Sapiecha

Snake Gourd is a natural antibiotic, expectorant & laxative.

The snake gourd (chichinda), also known as Chinese cucumber, occupies an important place among vegetables in India. It is an annual plant and belongs to the gourd family Cucurbitaceae. It is of exceedingly rapid growth and of climbing habit. The tendril is divided into three parts. The leaves are angular and hairy, with 5-7 lobes. They emit foetid odour when damaged. The flowers are white. The fruits are large and greenish white. They often reach upto 150 cm. in length and 8 cm. in thickness. There is also a short-fruited type. Tender fruits are used as vegetables.

The botanical name of the snake gourd is Trichosanthes anguiana. It is believed to have originated in India. It occurs wide from India to Australia. It has also been cultivated for long in this country and the Far East. The plants are commonly grown in South India for their snake-like greyish white spongy fruits. They are also grown in North India but mostly in home gardens.

Nutritive Value
Snake gourd is a very nutritious vegetable. An analysis of this vegetable shows it to consists of moisture 94.6 percent, protein 0.5 percent, fat 0.3 percent, fibre 0.8 percent and carbohydrate 3.3 percent per 100 grams of edible portion. Its mineral and vitamin contents are calcium 26 mg. percent, phosphorus 20 mg. percent, iron 0.3 mg. percent, carotene 96mg. percent, thiamin 0.04 percent, riboflavin 0.06 mg percent, niacin 0.3 mg. percent. Its calorific value is 18.

Curative properties
Snake gourd is a natural antibiotic, expectorant, and laxative. It can disperse phlegm, remove pus, expel toxic matter and is anti-inflammatory. It creates a cooling effect in the body. Snake gourd is a tonic for the heart. It is useful in correcting disorders, processes of nutrition and it restores the normal function of the system. Snake gourd helps stimulate the production of body fluids, relieving dryness. The plant is particularly useful in checking night sweating during the active phase of tuberculosis of the lungs. The leaves of the plant are used in folk medicine all over India.

Fevers
Snake gourd is useful in reducing bilious fever. A decoction of the fruits should be prepared for use in this condition. Its efficacy is increased if it is given with chiretta and honey. In obstinate cases of fevers, a combined infusion of this plant and of coriander will be more beneficial. About 12 grams of each should be infused in water overnight. The strained liquid should be given in two parts the next day.

A decoction of the leaves of the plant, made with the addition of coriander leaves, is also useful in bilious fever. The leaf juice is used to induce vomiting. In remittent fever, the leaf juice is applied as a liniment over the body.

Diabetes
Snake gourd is considered useful in wasting and thirst, which is an ancient reference to diabetes. This has led to investigations of its potential to treat this disease. Modern Chinese treatments for diabetes frequently include Snake gourd root as an ingredient. Even otherwise, being a low-calorie food, this vegetable can be used liberally with advantage by Type-II diabetics to reduce weight and also at the same time get adequate nourishment.

Heart disorders
The juice of the fresh leaves is useful in the disorders of the heart like palpitation and pain in the heart on physical exertion. The juice should be given in doses of one to two tablespoons thrice daily.

Jaundice
An infusion of the leaves is beneficial in the treatment of jaundice. It should be given in 30 to 60 grams doses with coriander seed decoction thrice daily.

Alopecia
The juice of the leaves is beneficial in the treatment of alopecia, a disease of the scalp resulting in complete or partial baldness. The juice should be applied externally on the scalp for treating this condition.

As a Purgative
Juice of the snake gourd root is a strong purgative, while an infusion of the dried fruit is a mild one. It also aids digestion. The leaves of the plant are useful as an emetic and purgative in children suffering from constipation. A teaspoon of the fresh juice should be given early in the morning for this purpose. The seeds are especially useful as a moistening agent for treating dry constipation.

Dosage

Snake gourd root, fruit, seeds, and pericarps are normally administered in doses of 9-15 grams in decoction. Snake gourd seeds are sometimes used in higher doses, up to 20 grams, in the treatment of constipation, as their oil lubricates the intestine. When powdered and made into pills, snakegourd is consumed at a dose of 2-3 grams daily.

Uses of Snake Gourd

The tender immature fruits are cooked as vegetables.

Precautions
The seeds of the snakegourd should not be taken in excess of prescribed dosage as their overdose may cause gastric discomfort, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea; due to their high content of oil. The fruits are contraindicated in cold with diarrhea. Snake gourd root should be used cautiously during pregnancy as high doses may have an abortifacient effect.

Sourced & published by Henry Sapiecha