A herb by any other name... E-K

Continued... A-D E-K L-P Q-Z Note: If you know some herb I have listed under a different name, please tell me in the comments. Earth Smoke Fumaria officinalis Fumitory Eastern Purple Coneflower Echinacea purpurea Echinacea East Indian Rhubarb Rheum palmatum Chinese Rhubarb Echinacea Echinacea angustifolia Edible Burdock Arctium lappa Great Burdock Eglantine Rose Rosa spp. Rose Elder Sambucus nigra Elderberry Elderberry Sambucus

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Cholesterol and heart disease - no link at all

For obvious reasons, Big Pharma would rather you didn't hear about this.

This article from NaturalNews.com gives the chapter and verse on a number of recent studies which have proved that cholesterol does not cause heart disease:

http://www.naturalnews.com/037105_cholesterol_myth_heart_health_diet.html

People with high cholesterol do way better on a Mediterranean diet than on the American Heart Health diet. Now you've got the excuse you need to start eating pasta, olive oil and all that good stuff.

Barberry for gallstones, hypertension and sore throat

The barberry, Berberis vulgaris syn. B. abortiva, B. acida, B. alba, B. bigelovii, B. globularis, B. jacquinii and B. sanguinea, is also known as common barberry, European barberry, holy thorn, jaundice berry, pepperidge bush and sowberry. It is closely related to the Nepalese barberry (Berberis aristata), Indian barberry (Berberis asiatica) and Oregon grape (Berberis or Mahonia aquifolium) - all very active medicinally. The name holy thorn comes from a legend which states that it was the

Barberry health benefits

Hello World! again

I've been away so long, it's almost as if I'm starting again from scratch, and it's definitely important to let you know what's been going on. For some time, I've been having health problems, and recently I've been in and out of hospital no less than four times. I've always been a hard worker, but there came a point where I couldn't even face turning the computer on for days on end, even when I wasn't temporarily resident at the Royal Infirmary (where there is no wifi!). If you knew me

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Great introduction to herbs, and what NOT to do

I came across this great post today: 

Ten Mistakes New Herb Gardeners Make (and How to Avoid Them!)

Well worth a look if you'd like to grow some culinary or remedial herbs at home.

Babaco - great fruit for low sodium diet

The babaco or mountain papaya, Vasconcellea ×heilbornii (syn. Carica chrysopetala, C. xheilbornii or C. pentagona) is also known as the champagne fruit because of its "effervescent" flavor. A native of Ecuador, but cultivated successfully even in comparatively cool places, like Guernsey, Channel Islands. The shrubby tree is smaller than its lowland relative, reaching a height of around 2m (6'), which makes it more suitable for growing in containers. As it is seedless, it is propagated

Babaco - great fruit for low sodium diet

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Sorry for hiatus

We ran out of space on our old server, so we had to move to a new one. You may have noticed the site was down for a while. There were a few problems getting the site up and running at the new

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Urgent: What you need to know about aspartame

Just a brief post to give you the link to a very interesting article about aspartame, a sweetener found in very many foods nowadays.

I have been avoiding it since it came out, not just because I don't like chemicals but also because I can't stand the taste. If you haven't, or you have friends who haven't, you will most likely find the contents of this article instructive.

Here's the link: http://www.naturalnews.com/035126_aspartame_side_effects_withdrawal.html

Pros and cons of organic essential oil

I've been asked to explain the difference between organic and non-organic essential oils, so that's what this post is about. Before I get into the subject I should remind you that whether you buy organic or not, it's important that you buy 100% pure essential oils. This is the grade you should always use, because it means the oil hasn't been adulterated with other inferior and potentially dangerous additives. Remember that aromatherapy oils are medicinal, and like conventional medicines

Pros and cons of organic essential oil

Acerola cherries the vitamin C booster

Acerola or acerola cherry, Malpighia emarginata (syn. Malpighia glabra, M. punicifolia or M. retusa), is also known as Antilles cherry, Barbados cherry, Puerto Rican cherry, West Indian cherry and wild crape (or crepe) myrtle. It is a fast growing deciduous sub-tropical tree native to northern South America, Central America and the Caribbean (but cultivated in many other places), some varieties of which can reach a height of 20' in their native habitat. Because acerola has large glossy

Benefits of acerola

Benefits of stevia

Stevia is a popular sweetener for dieters and diabetics, but there are also other benefits from this natural supplement. Check out these links to find out more:

4 fantastic benefits of Stevia
Stevia health benefits

It's best to use natural unrefined stevia. Find out why here: Why is White Stevia Powder No Good?

Discover four fantastic benefits of stevia

via naturalnews.com

Wormseed old remedy for amoebic dysentery, parasites and snake bite [updated]

Wormseed, Dysphania ambrosioides (though you will more than likely find it labeled as Chenopodium ambrosioides; the name changed only recently), is also known as American wormseed, chenopodium, epazote, feather geranium, goosefoot, herba Sancti Mariae, Jerusalem oak, Jerusalem tea, Jesuit tea, Mexican tea and Spanish tea. It's not related to garden geraniums (which have the latin name Pelargonium), nor to plants with the latin name Geranium. It's also not related to oak trees, tea tree or even

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Acai - not worth the air miles

The açaí berry, fruit of the açaí palm (Euterpe oleracea syn. E. badiocarpa, E. edulis) hit the news a few years back and has been popular ever since as a super-food. Other common names for the açaí palm include assai palm, cabbage palm, jussara and pina palm. The açaí palm is an attractive, tall, slender palm with 4-8 stems, reaching a height of 15-25m (50-90'). As it is a native of the Amazon, it is not suitable for most other areas (unless you live in a rainforest), but may

Acai - not worth the air miles

Essential Oil Blends

You might want to make essential oil blends for several reasons. One of these is to make a therapeutic massage oil or other blend to be used for health promotion, whether physical, mental or emotional. But there are many people who are interested aromatherapy oils not so much for therapy, but for the aroma part of the equation. Just because something smells nice, it doesn't mean that it's not good for you, but there's no intrinsic link between a pleasant fragrance and therapeutic

Essential Oil Blends