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Herbs & Plants

Elsholtzia ciliata

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Botanical Name:Elsholtzia ciliata
Family: Lamiaceae /Labiatae
Genus: Elsholtzia
Species: E. ciliata
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Lamiales.

Synonyms:Elsholtzia cristata Willd., Elsholtzia patrinii (Lepech.) Garcke, Hyssopus ocymifolius Lam., Mentha cristata Buch.-Ham. ex D. Don, Mentha ovata Cav., Perilla polystachya D. Don, Sideritis ciliata Thunb.

Common Names:Crested latesummer mint, Vietnamese Balm or kinh gioi

Engl.: crested latesummer mint, Vietnamese balm, Vietnamese mint. Deu.: Vietnamesische Melisse, Echte Kamminze, Kamminze. Suom.: helttaminttu. Sven.: kammynta. Bot.

Habitat :  Elsholtzia ciliata is native to Asia; however, the exact extent of its original range is unclear.Today it is found throughout Nepal at elevations of 1500 to 3400 m. It is found elsewhere, including through much of India, eastern Asia, and Europe. In modern times it has become popular as an ornamental plant, though first being reported in the Americas as a weed in 1889. It prefers moist soil, and grows mostly on exposed rocky slopes and other open, gravelly areas.

Description:
The plant is an erect annual herb that grows to about 60 cm in height. The leaves are long, stalked, and serrated, and reach 2 to 8.5 cm in length and .8 to 2.5 cm in width. In shape they are ovate to lanceolate, with a gland-dotted underside. Flowers of a purple color bloom in flat spikes in September and October. Seeds propagate within them….CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

Cultivation: 
An easily grown plant, it succeeds in most soils. Cultivated for ornament in N. and E. Europe.
Propagation:
Seed  is sown late spring in situ.

Edible Uses:  The seeds are sometimes powdered and used for flavoring food.

It is used in Vietnamese cuisine, where it is called rau kinh gi?i or lá kinh gi?i.

Elsholtzia ciliata inhibits mast cell-mediated allergic inflammatory reactions.

Medicinal Uses:
The plant contains an essential oil. It is antibacterial, antipyretic, antiviral, astringent, carminative, diaphoretic, diuretic and stomachic. Its use is said to relieve the effects of excess alcohol. It is used in the treatment of common colds, fevers, headaches, diarrhoea, oedema and oliguria. The plant has a broad-spectrum antibacterial action. It is harvested when in flower and dried for later use.

Elsholtzia ciliata is common in herbal medicine, as it is carminative and astringent.

Other Uses:
Elsholtzia ciliata has many cultural uses. Sometimes  it is grown as an ornamental plant.

Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elsholtzia_ciliata
http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Elsholtzia+ciliata
http://www.henriettes-herb.com/plants/elsholtzia/ciliata.html

Categories
News on Health & Science

The 7 Germiest Public Places

It is possible for a person to touch about 30 things in one minute from daily and normal activities.

This heightens the chance of contracting and spreading germs to and from all these objects if in a public setting. But there are ways to avoid being infected by knowing the more obscure places germs hide other than door knobs, light switches, and bathroom surfaces. Here are 3 out of 7 listed by ABC News:

Restaurant menus…..
Studies from the Journal of Medical Virology reports germs like the cold and flu viruses can survive for up to 18 hours on a hard surface. When dining in a public place, be conscious to not let the menu touch your flatware and wash your hands after you return it.

Lemon wedges
The Journal of Environmental Health discovered 70 percent of restaurants had contaminated bar fruit with microorganisms like E. coli, fecal bacteria, and other disease causing microbes. By opting out of the garnish for your beverage is a good way to prevent ingestion.

Condiment dispenser
Many people do not wash their hands before eating and they can spread their germs to bottles at the condiment stand. When grabbing for the ketchup, a paper napkin is not sufficient due to the abilities for microorganisms being able to pass through.

Restroom door handles
Don’t think you can escape the restroom without touching the door handle? Palm a spare paper towel after you wash up and use it to grasp the handle. Yes, other patrons may think you’re a germ-phobe–but you’ll never see them again, and you’re the one who won’t get sick.

Soap dispensers
About 25% of public restroom dispensers are contaminated with fecal bacteria. Soap that harbors bacteria may seem ironic, but that’s exactly what a recent study found. “Most of these containers are never cleaned, so bacteria grow as the soap scum builds up,” says Charles Gerba, PhD. “And the bottoms are touched by dirty hands, so there’s a continuous culture feeding millions of bacteria.” Be sure to scrub hands thoroughly with plenty of hot water for 15 to 20 seconds–and if you happen to have an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, use that, too.

Grocery carts
The handles of almost two-thirds of the shopping carts tested in a 2007 study at the University of Arizona were contaminated with fecal bacteria. In fact, the bacterial counts of the carts exceeded those of the average public restroom. Swab the handle with a disinfectant wipe before grabbing hold (stores are starting to provide them, so look around for a dispenser). And while you’re wheeling around the supermarket, skip the free food samples, which are nothing more than communal hand-to-germ-to-mouth zones.

Airplane bathrooms
When Gerba tested for microbes in the bathrooms of commercial jets, he found surfaces from faucets to doorknobs to be contaminated with E. coli. It’s not surprising, then, that you’re 100 times more likely to catch a cold when you’re airborne, according to a recent study in the Journal of Environmental Health Research. To protect yourself, try taking green tea supplements. In a 2007 study from the University of Florida, people who took a 450-milligram green tea supplement twice a day for 3 months had one-third fewer days of cold symptoms. The supplement brand used in the study was Immune Guard ($30 for 60 pills; immune-guard.us).

Doctor’s office
A doctor’s office is not the place to be if you’re trying to avoid germs. These tips can help limit your exposure.
1. Take your own books and magazines (and kid’s toys, if you have your children or grandchildren with you).

2. Also pack your own tissues and hand sanitizers, which should be at least 60% alcohol content.

3. In the waiting room, leave at least two chairs between you and the other patients to reduce your chances of picking up their bugs. Germ droplets from coughing and sneezing can travel about 3 feet before falling to the floor.

Source: ABCNews February 20, 2011

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Herbs & Plants

Acacia senegal

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Botanical Name :Acacia senegal
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Acacia
Species: A. senegal
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Commo Names:Swet khadira, khair swet, Catechu tree, Goradiobabul, Rfaudraksha, Gum Acacia, Gum Arabic Tree, or Gum Senegal Tree.  Svetakhadira.

Habitat : It is native to semi-desert regions of Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as Oman, Pakistan, and northwestern India. It grows to a height of 5-12m, with a trunk up to 30 ft in diameter.

Description:
Bush or small tree, usually 2 -6 m high, occasionally reaching 10 m under optimal conditions, frequently forming thickets. It has a short stem, is usually low branched with many upright twigs, the crown eventually flattened, umbrella-shaped. Bark pale brown to pale grey, smooth in young individuals, brown scaly on the older parts, slash mottled red and white, prickles up to 0.5 cm long, the centre one sharply curved, the other two more or less straight and directed forward. Leaves bipinnate, small, greenish-grey, with 3-6 pairs of pinnulae having 10-20 pairs of leaflets each. Leaflets grey-green, 3-8 x 1-2 mm. Flowers very fragrant, creamy white (red in bud), usually appearing before the leaves in pedunculate spikes 3-10 cm long either solitary or two to three together. Pods 7-10 cm long x 2 cm wide, flat and thin, papery, attenuated at both ends, containing 3-6 flat, round, light-brown to brown-greenish seeds. Both tap roots and lateral roots are very developed ; the latter may spread many metres from the tree, particularly in sandy terrain. The tree is deciduous, drooping its leaves in November in the Sudan.

You may click to see the pictures of Acacia senegal

 

The senegal gum acacia is a small to average sized thorn tree of the African grassland savanna. It can grow up to 20 meters tall. It has many branches that spread out into a flat and rounded top. These branches have many thorns that come in pairs. The leaves are a grey-green color. The flowers are yellow or cream colored and grow on spikes just above the thorns. These flowers turn into seed pods about 8 inches long and 2-3 inches wide. They look like giant dried up pea pods, and are yellowish to brown in color, and flat.

CLICK & SEE THE PICTURES

The acacia can live through long periods of drought. They tend to grow in sandy places where there is only between 12 to 15 inches of rain a year. Periods without rain can last from 5 to 11 months a year.

Cultivation:
A. senegal is sensitive to frost but is very heat tolerant.

Water:  Occurring between the 100 and 800 mm of MAR, mainly between 200 and 600 mm. It is extremely drought resistant as it occurs close to the very border of the Sahara and West Asian Deserts.

Soil :  A. senegal is sensitive to water logging. In the drier parts of its area of distribution it tends to be restricted to sandy habitats and dry river beds, but to fine textured soils under the higher rainfalls of the South Sahelian and North Sudanian ecozones., it may also occur on shallow soils and duripan lithosols. The tolerance to pH is quite broad : 5-8 .

Propagation :
Propagation is made either from direct seeding of treated seeds (8,000-18,000 per kg) or via nursery-grown seedlings in various kinds of containers ; naturally the former is much cheaper and used to be a part of the traditional management of the Acacia bush-fallow production system of Kordofan (Seif el Din; 1965 ; Seif el Din & Mubarak, 1971).

Food Uses:It is also used as flavoring in certain soda (pop).

Gum arabic
It produces gum arabic, which is used as a food additive, in crafts, and as a cosmetic. The gum is drained from cuts in the bark, and an individual tree will yield 200 to 300 grams. Seventy percent of the world’s gum arabic is produced in Sudan.


Medicinal Uses:

Gum Arabic is used in making medicine. It is used to make a cream for skin inflammations and ailments of the respiratory and urinary tracts. Its also used for coughs, sore throats, eyewash, diarrhea, and dysentery. It is also used as flavoring in certain soda (pop).

The gum is used for soothing mucous membranes of the intestine . It is also reportedly used as for its astringent properties, to treat bleeding, bronchitis, diarrhea, gonorrhea, leprosy, typhoid fever and upper respiratory tract infections.


Other Uses:

Rope :Roots near the surface of the ground are quite useful in making all kinds of very strong ropes and cords. The tree bark is also used to make rope.

Wood : Handles for tools, parts for weaving looms.

The acacia provides shade and shelter for the animals of the savanna. Giraffes, antelopes and elephants eat its leaves, and birds make their nests in its branches and use them as perches to look out over the flat grasslands.

Acacia was considered sacred by the ancient Hebrew. It is said that Moses used acacia wood to build the Ark of the Covenant and the sacred Tabernacle (Exodus, chapters 25-40). Legend also has it that the thorns of the acacia were used for Christ’s crown of thorns.

Click to see Other Botanical variations
Acacia senegal var. leiorhachis Brenan  :
Acacia senegal var. rostrata Brenan   :
Acacia senegal var. senegal :

Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acacia_senegal
http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/acacia_senegal.htm
http://www.fao.org/ag/AGP/agpc/doc/gbase/DATA/Pf000131.htm

http://www.whack.org/~xanthia/herbs/az/acacia.html

Categories
Herbs & Plants

Sweet Acacia (Acacia famesiana Willd.)

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Botanical Name :Acacia famesiana Willd.
Family: Fabaceae
Genus: Vachellia
Species: V. farnesiana
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Fabales
Syn. : Vachellia farnesiana Linn
Common Names: Farnese Wattle, Dead Finish, Mimosa Wattle, Mimosa bush, Prickly Mimosa Bush, Prickly Moses, Needle Bush(It is so named because of the numerous thorns distributed along its branches), North-west Curara, Sheep’s Briar, Sponge Wattle, Sweet Acacia, Thorny Acacia, Thorny Feather Wattle, Wild Briar, Huisache, Cassie, Cascalotte, Cassic, Mealy Wattle, Popinac, Sweet Briar, Texas Huisache, Aroma, (Bahamas) Cashia, (Bahamas, USA) Opoponax, Cashaw, (Belize) Cuntich, (Jamaica) Cassie-flower, Cassie, Iron Wood, Cassie Flower, Honey-ball, Casha Tree, Casha, (Virgin Islands) Cassia, (Fiji) Ellington’s Curse, Cushuh, (St. Maarten).

Habitat:The native range of Needle Bush is uncertain. While the point of origin is Mexico and Central America the species has a pantropical distribution incorporating Northern Australia and Southern Asia. It remains unclear whether the extra-American distribution is primarily natural or anthropogenic.The plant has been recently spread to many new locations as a result of human activity and it is considered a serious weed in Fiji, where locals call it Ellington’s Curse. It thrives in dry, saline or sodic soils. It is also a serious pest plant in parts of Australia, including north-west New South Wales, where it now infests thousands of acres of grazing country.

Description:
It is deciduous over part of its range, but evergreen in most locales.The species grows to a height of up to 8 metres (26 ft) and has a life span of about 25–50 years.It is a medium-sized shrub with many spreading branches and basal stems. The
leaves are alternate, bipinnately compound with two  to six pairs of pinnae, each with 10 to 25 pairs of  narrow leaflets 3 to 5 mm in length. The slightly zigzag twigs are dark brown with light-colored dots  (lenticels) and paired spines 3 to 20 mm in length at  the nodes. The older bark is also dark brown and  smooth. Its bright yellow or orange flowers,  produced over a period of 2 to 4 months, depending  on locality, are very fragrant and used in the  perfume industry in France and elsewhere.
click to see the pictures….>……(01)....(1).….…(2).…....(3).…...(4)…...(.5)....……………..
Sweet acacia produces small (to 5 mm in length) flowers that have functional male and female parts, borne in compact rounded heads 0.6 to 1.3 cm across. The flowers are very fragrant and are pollinated by bees and other insects. The thick, slightly flattened pods, 4 to 9 cm in length and 0.5 to 1.3 cm broad, are produced in abundance after about 3 years. They mature 4 to 6 months after flowering  and contain a number of hard-coated, brown seeds embedded in a pulpy mesocarp.

Cultivation :
Prefers a light sandy loam and a very sunny position sheltered from strong winds. Plants can grow well in pure sand. Most species in this genus become chlorotic on limey soils. Established plants are very drought tolerant. The species and its cultivars are reported to exhibit tolerance to drought, high pH, heat, low pH, salt, sand, slope, and Savannah. Plants tolerate a pH range from 5.0 to 8.0. Whilst this species is not very tolerant of cold, being damaged by even a few degrees of frost, the variety A. farnesiana cavenia seems to be more resistant to both drought and frost. Both A. farnesiana and its var. cavenia are extensively cultivated for the essential oil in their flowers in and around Cannes, southern France, which is the centre for production of the perfume. A good bee plant. This species has a symbiotic relationship with certain soil bacteria, these bacteria form nodules on the roots and fix atmospheric nitrogen. Some of this nitrogen is utilized by the growing plant but some can also be used by other plants growing nearby.

Propagation :
Seed – best sown as soon as it is ripe in a sunny position in a warm greenhouse. Stored seed should be scarified, pre-soaked for 12 hours in warm water and then sown in a warm greenhouse in March. The seed germinates in 3 – 4 weeks at 25°c. As soon as the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and grow them on in a sunny position in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts, and consider giving them some protection from the cold for their first winter outdoors. Cuttings of half-ripe wood with a heel, July/August in individual pots in a frame. Overwinter in a greenhouse for the first winter and plant out in their permanent positions in late spring or early summer. Fair percentage[

Medicinal Uses:-
Astringent;  Demulcent;  Poultice;  Stomachic.

The bark is astringent and demulcent. Along with the leaves and roots it is used for medicinal purposes. Colombians bathe in the bark decoction as a treatment for typhoid. The gummy roots have been chewed as a treatment for sore throat. A decoction of the gum from the trunk has been used in the treatment of diarrhoea. An infusion of the flowers has been used as a stomachic. It is also used in the treatment of dyspepsia and neuroses. The flowers are added to ointment, which is rubbed on the forehead to treat headaches. The powdered dried leaves have been applied externally as a treatment for wounds. The green pods have been decocted and used in the treatment of dysentery and inflammations of the skin and raucous membranes. An infusion of the pod has been used in the treatment of sore throats, diarrhoea, leucorrhoea, conjunctivitis, and uterorrhagia. The juice of the bark is used in Nepal to treat swellings

Traditional medicine:
The bark and the flowers are the parts of the tree most used in traditional medicine. V. farnesiana has been used in Colombia to treat malaria, and it has been confirmed in the laboratory that extract from the tree bark and leaves is effective against the malarial pathogen Plasmodium falciparum. Indigenous Australians have used the roots and bark of the tree to treat diarrhea and diseases of the skin. The tree’s leaves can also be rubbed on the skin to treat skin diseases.

One or more alkaloids present in Vachellia farnesiana: “phenethylamine; N-methly-.beta.-phenethylamine; tyramine; hordenine; N,N-dimethyl-phenethylamine; and N,N-dimethyl-.alpha.-methylphenethylamine” in the “leaves, bark, and roots.”

The following compounds are said to be in Vachellia farnesiana:

*5-MeO-DMT
*Tryptamine
*?-methyl-phenethylamine, flower.

Ether extracts about 2-6% of the dried leaf mass. Alkaloids are present in the bark.

Other Uses:

Some of the reported uses of the plant:

Bark:...click to see

The bark is used for its tannin content. Highly tannic barks are common in general to acacias, extracts of many being are used in medicine for this reason. (You may click & See cutch:).

Food....click to see
“Roasted pods used in sweet and sour dishes.”

Flowers..click to see
The flowers are processed through distillation to produce a perfume called Cassie. It is widely used in the perfume industry in Europe. Flowers of the plant provide the perfume essence from which the biologically important sesquiterpenoid farnesol is named.

Scented ointments from Cassie are made in India.

Foliage
The foliage is a significant source of forage in much of its range, with a protein content of around 18%.

Seed pods
The concentration of tannin in the seed pods is about 23%.

Seeds….
The seeds of V. farnesiana are completely non-toxic to humans and are a valuable food source for people throughout the plant’s range. The ripe seeds are put through a press to make oil for cooking. Nonetheless an anecdotal report has been made that in Brazil some people use the seeds of V. farnesiana to eliminate rabid dogs. This is attributed to an unnamed toxic alkaloid.

Forage
The tree makes good forage for bees.

Dyes and Inks
A black pigment is extracted from the bark and fruit.

Perfume
Acaci farnesiana flowers are distilled in the south of France to make an essential oil called Cassie which is used as a basis for aromatherapy and perfume.[14]

You may click to know more :

Known Hazards:  The seeds, containing an unnamed alkaloid, are used to kill rabid dogs in Brazil

Disclaimer:
The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplements, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.

Resources:

Click to access Acacia%20farnesiana.pdf

http://vaniindia.org.whbus12.onlyfordemo.com/herbal/plantdir.asp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vachellia_farnesiana
http://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Acacia%20farnesiana

Categories
Healthy Tips

Two Foods You Should Never, Ever Eat After Exercise

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Did you know that what you eat directly after exercising – typically within two hours – can have a significant impact on the health benefits you reap from your exercise?

CLICK & SEE

Consuming sugar within this post-exercise window, will negatively affect both your insulin sensitivity and your human growth hormone (HGH) production.

A recent study in the Journal of Applied Physiology found that eating a low-carbohydrate meal after aerobic exercise enhances your insulin sensitivity. This is highly beneficial, since impaired insulin sensitivity, or insulin resistance, is the underlying cause of type 2 diabetes and a significant risk factor for other chronic diseases, such as heart disease.

In addition, as HGH Magazine explains, consuming fructose, including that from fruit juices, within this two-hour window will decimate your natural HGH production:

“A high sugar meal after working out, or even a recovery drink (containing high sugar) after working out, will stop the benefits of exercise induced HGH. You can work out for hours, then eat a high sugar candy bar or have a high sugar energy drink, and this will shut down the synergistic benefits of HGH.

… If you miss reaching HGH release during working out, you will still receive the calorie burning benefit from the workout. However, you’ll miss the HGH “synergy bonus” of enhanced fat burning for two hours after working out.

This is an extremely important fact to remember if you want to cut body fat and shed a few pounds.

The University of Virginia research team demonstrated that carbohydrates are burned during exercise in direct proportion to the intensity of training. Fat burning is also correlated with intensity. However, the actual fat burning takes place after the workout, during the recovery.

This makes the “Synergy Window,” the 2 hour period after a workout, very important in maximizing HGH, once it’s released during exercise.

… If you are middle-age and want all the benefits from exercise induced HGH, then apply this strategy.”

Fitness expert Phil Campbell, author of Ready, Set, Go! further explains how you can maximize your HGH production by limiting sugar intake for two hours post exercise, in this article on HowToBeFit.com.

Exercising one hour a week and getting the same results as traditional strength training might sound impossible. However, University of Florida orthopedics researchers have developed a system that may do just that, and as you will read in my comment below, the kind of exercise you perform can dramatically reduce the time you spend in the gym while still getting better results than you did before.

The system created by University of Florida researchers uses eccentric (negative) resistance training, which capitalizes on the fact that the human body can support and lower weights that are too heavy to lift.

According to UF Health Science Center:

“Through a system of motors, pulleys, cams and sensors it adds weight when a person is performing a lowering motion, and removes that weight when the person is lifting. As a result, the body starts seeing loads, resistance, and forces that it doesn’t normally see”.

Other scientists have found additional clues that explain how exercise reshapes and strengthens more than just your muscles.

It changes your brain too.

In the late 1990s, researchers proved that human and animal brains produce new brain cells, and that exercise increases the process. But precisely how exercise affects the intricate workings of your brain at a cellular level remained a mystery.

However, a number of new studies have begun to identify the specific mechanisms, and have raised new questions about just how exercise reshapes your brain.

In some studies, scientists have been manipulating the levels of bone-morphogenetic protein (BMP) in the brains of mice. The more active BMP becomes, the more inactive your brain stem cells become and the fewer new brain cells you produce. Exercise reverses some of the effects of BMP.

According to the New York Times:

“BMP signaling was found to be playing a surprising, protective role for the brain’s stem cells … Without BMP signals to inhibit them, the stem cells began dividing rapidly, producing hordes of new neurons.”

Resources:

UF Health Science Center February 23, 2010

New York Times July 7, 2010

PloS One October 20, 2009; 4(10):e7506

Cell Stem Cell July 2, 2010; 7(1):78-89

Journal of Applied Physiology December 31, 2009

HGH Magazine

HowToBeFit.com

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