What is Witch Hazel

Witch Hazel is a small perennial deciduous shrub, growing to fifteen feet with coarsely toothed, broad oval leaves. Distinctive yellow flowers appear in clusters at its joints and then evolve into blackish-brown fruit capsules that, when ripe in winter, audibly eject two oily, edible seeds up to twelve feet away from the tree. Witch hazels perform best when planted in a moist but well-drained, loamy, acidic soil. They do not flourish in heavy, wet, and compacted soils and are subject to drought stress.

Witch Hazel is a natural anti-inflammatory that helps tighten pores and reduce swelling. Witch Hazel has been supposed to owe its utility to an action on the muscular fiber of veins. The distilled extract from the fresh leaves and young twigs forms an excellent remedy for internal or external uses, being beneficial for bleeding from the lungs and nose, as well as from other internal organs.

Witch hazel water contains a trace of essential oil consisting of eugenol, carvacrol, and probably similar compounds. However, as it is a steam distillate, it does not contain tannins.

Witch Hazel can be used to soothe down the pain of sunburn, insect bites, poison ivy blisters, windburn, sprained muscles, etc. Witch hazel has long been used to treat hemorrhoids. Both European and American herbalists use witch hazel both as an internal and topical remedy.

Witch hazel, the famous astringent herb, is full of tannins, gallic acids, and essential oils. While you can take it internally as tea, it is best to make a strong decoction for use as a compress. Witch Hazel provided early pioneers with medicine and cosmetics. Millions of gallons of extract from the plant’s leaves are sold yearly. Witch Hazel has been rubbed on piles, skin disorders, and joints, and has been consumed for sore throat, bronchial discharges, diarrhea, and uterine hemorrhages. It has also been used to “soothe” the nerves and “tone” the system.

Witch-hazel was subsequently used by the early European settlers in similar ways. A tea of the leaves was employed for a variety of medicinal purposes. Witch-Hazel may have a single trunk up to 1′ across, or there may be several ascending branches at its base. The trunk and/or larger branches are grey, relatively smooth, and slightly wrinkled.

I have personally used witch hazel as a cotton eye compress and found it very smoothing and relaxing.

How To Best Fight A Cold Or The Flu

More than one million colds happen in the United States alone every year, setting off a storm of sneezes, sniffles, aches and pains. The flu affects more then tens of millions of American with fever and fatigue every winter. You can take steps to prevent those dreaded viruses from knocking you out for several weeks.

You need to build up your immune defense all winter long, follow a plant-based diet, high in vitamin C (kiwi, citrus and broccoli, cabbage), drink lots of fluids (green tea, black tea). Become germ obsessed during the winter months or flu season. Get plenty of rest and relaxation because chronic stress and sleep deprivation are both known to wear down your immunity.

When a cold or flu strikes you, act fas t with natural remedies:

Echinacea: is the king of cold and flu remedies, it is recommended getting 3 grams of Echinacea daily when you’re sick, reducing the dose as you start to feel better. People with several allergies should be careful in taking echinacea. Echinacea can be purchased by pill form, liquid drop or tea bags.

Astragalus: Is a root that can be stirred into soups to bolster your immune system during the cold and flu season. As soon as you feel a cold coming on, taking 2 to 6 grams of astragalus in pill form daily.

Yin Chiao: is a formula that contains nine cold and flu countering herbs. Botanicals like licorice and peppermint are very helpful for colds and sore throat. Take 60 drops of the tincture in water every 2 or 3 hours for the first two or three days. It also comes in tablets, check the dosage on the box.

Garlic: Crushing up a clove, mixing it with olive oil and lemon juice, and putting it on your salad is something easy for people to do every day. When you’re sick, downing at least thee cloves of garlic daily will help keep the flu and cold away.

Elderberry: is used in jams and lemonades because of its sweetness. Elderberry is packed with quercetin. Elderbery helps activate the immune system. Sipping Elderberry tea can also soothe flue symptons

Andrographis: is a traditional Indian and Chinese medicine, this herb activates natural killer cells to fight against infection. When Andrographis is paired with Siberian ginseng, andrographis may attack the flu more effectively than some antiviral drugs.

Ginger:is a pungent root that has the ability to tame nausea but it can also act as an antihistamine and decongestant. Tossing some fresh, chopped giner into your stir fry or soups can lessen cold symptoms;as can making a strong cup of ginger tea.

Olive Lea Extract: Anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial, olive leaf extract interacts with the protein in cold and flu virus particles to halt infections. I would recommend using liquid extract because it is so easy to use. You can put three to four drops in warm water, gargle, its great for sore throats.

Medicinal Mushrooms: Chinese and Japanese healers have understood the magic of mushrooms for centuries, using shiitake, reishi, maitake and others to both prevent and treat several ailments. There are many medicinal mushroom blends available in health food stores that can be taken to prevent illnesses.

Can Red Wine reduce the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease?

There are lots of health benefits from drinking red wine.

Look at the French people, they eat large quantities of fat daily and I am told that they are relatively free from heart diseases. This is due largely to the resveratrol found in the red wine they consume daily.

When it comes to heart health resveratrol a famous antioxidant, offers cardiovascular support and helps improve blood flow. Resveratrol is a unique phytochemical produced by plants to ward of disease,fungi and viruses. Resveratrol is a powerful antioxidant that can neutralize free radicals in our bodies found in the skins and seeds of grapes.

So folks it sounds as thought it is healthy to have a glass of red wine with you meal daily to help keep your heart healthy. It is definitely a protective measure against any potential threat that might occur in your life time. Thanks to the French people.

For people who cannot drink red wine there is an alternative look for a products called Resvinatrol Complete. 1 glass a day is all you need daily.

Benefits of Green Tea

When I first started drinking green tea, I was not even aware of the benefits it offers, but I knew that it tasted good,I love tea anyway and that was enough. My grandmother and mother used to drink green tea all the time, as I grew up drinking tea instead of sodas because I lived on a Tea Estate. What I did not know was that instead of drinking soda which has so many negative consequences was what I was drinking in its place was actually helping me maintain my health.

But more and more, science has been discovering the benefits of green tea. No many foods have the benefits that green tea has to our good health.

The most well-known benefit of green tea, of course, is its antioxidant effect. Of all of the benefits of green tea, this one is perhaps the most important for health. You see, antioxidants reduce the effects of free radicals, molecules which can age and prematurely destroy cells. Anything that has antioxidants is good for preventing free radical damage, but the benefits of green tea are much greater than for most antioxidants. Green tea can even help to prevent cancer, a fact only recently studied by science. Today,scientific research in both Asia and the west is providing hard evidence for the health benefits long associated with drinking green tea.

The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches to depression.

Another one of the benefits of green tea is its soothing effects. Although these come down largely to the fact that it is a warm, comforting liquid, nonetheless they are pronounced. A recent study suggests that tea drinkers, whether they drink black tea, green tea, or a white tea, have lower stress levels. Of course, you can get the same effect by drinking black tea, but since green tea has a lower dose of caffeine and more healthy antioxidants than black tea does, it is better for your health.

Many people like to take green tea extract which is a concentrate, as a way to try to increase its effects. The problem with this is that the benefits of green tea has been studied with brewed tea. Green Tea capsules filled with tea would work every bit as well, it is not known for sure.

Green Tea comes from Japan, China, Ceylon,Vietnam, Assam

You should read this information as it is very useful of getting a great understanding of Green Tea.

Green Tea also comes in packages for weight loss and a few people I talked to say it does work and does not taste any different from the normal green tea. So now you can buy Green Tea, Green Tea for Weight loss and you can also purchase it in capsule form for liquid extract. The safest thing is to follow the instructions on the bottle or container.

The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches to depression

There are many benefits of Green Tea:

• It stops certain diseases
• Prevents treating cancer
• Helps body to use fat as energy
• Treat Multiple sclerosis
• Lower bad cholesterol,
• helpful if you have an infection

Loose 6 lbs in 40 weeks to me it seems like a much better way to get all the Benefits of Green Tea is to brew it.idea not to risk it. Enjoy a healthy cup of tea every morning and every evening, and it is assured that you will enjoy the benefits of green tea. This will this be good for you and you will get to savor the delicious taste as well. To me, there is nothing else like it.

There are many products on the market today that uses green tea and you can find them in the supermarket or an asian market. Lipton tea/green tea, green tea ice cream, green tea pancake, green tea cupcake, green tea root beer, green tea soda and much more.

Blood Pressure Cures

Do you suffer from high blood pressure? Unfortunately, this is now a common condition. Most cases of high blood pressure result from poor life style practices and diets. When blood pressure becomes high, you risk developing plaque in your arteries, which may cause heart attacks and strokes. So it’s important to monitor blood pressure.

A question you would like to ask is probably “what is the normal Blood pressure reading”. The normal reading should between 120 and 140 over 70 to 90. Anything above that is considered that you have High blood pressure. High Blood Pressure Monitoring is very important.

Stress is an important factor in high blood pressure. Because stress is an integral part of almost everyone’s life, you’ll reap rewards for your health by practicing breathing exercises, meditation, regular physical exercise and a good diet. Anything you can do besides taking medication should have beneficial effects on lowering the effects of high blood pressure. It really comes down to making a life style change.

You may wonder if there are blood pressure cures – or if this is something you just need to accept. Fortunately, there are many natural blood pressure cures to get you back to a healthy state. While no single remedy may produce blood pressure cures, a combination of several life style and dietary changes can truly produce a cure.

There are several outstanding herbs that may well prove high blood pressure cures. Take a trip to your local herb store its amazing how much you can learn from just one visit.

If there were one substance to be deemed a blood pressure cure, it would be garlic. Garlic has the unusual property of normalizing blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels. You’ll want to eat the garlic raw, as cooking reduces it’s effectiveness. If you dislike the taste and follow up breath, try the capsule form, a patented process where the garlic retains all of the allicin (the medicinal component) while producing no tell-tale breath. Many clinical studies have demonstrated garlic to be equally as effective as pharmaceutical prescription products, with none of the side effects. If you are already taking blood pressure medication, consult your doctor as garlic may interact unfavorably with some prescription medications.

Hawthorne berries are an excellent herbal supplement which acts as a tonic on the heart, improving function, normalizing blood pressure and treating palpitations and irregular beating.

Dandelion root primarily cleanses the liver, but is also a diuretic, which helps reduce blood pressure. Unlike pharmaceuticals, use of dandelion does not result in depletion of potassium.

Talk to your physician about the changes you need to make and get an understanding of your medication and also ask if you can take some herbal natural cures.

Acne Medicine Herbal Alternative Solutions

For millions of people around the world, acne rears its’ ugly head often and with a vengeance. Teenagers are at the highest risk, with 70 percent of them affected with these unattractive and painful blemishes. Clear, glowing skin, free of acne is what we want, whether you are a tennager or an adult.

Psychological trauma can also result from acne. Some people experience a loss of self esteem and general depression over the fact that their appearance is far from perfect. When you believe there is nothing that can be done, this only serves to promote low self esteem and increase your depression. Fortunately, there are several acne remedies available to get you back on track to a healthy, clear complexion.

The reason so many teens are afflicted with acne is, in part, because of fluctuating hormones, producing extra oils which are secreted through the pores of your skin. The fluctuating hormones are a normal condition at this age. Your most important weapon against acne outbreaks is your diet.

Discover information on more than skin deep affects on acne breakout

Teens often consume lots of soda, junk food, fried foods, pizzas and those great greasy burgers. This type of diet can only overload ones system with still more oils, which may quickly appear on your face and even your body. This develops a classic good news, bad news situation. The food tastes great, but the excess oil soon shows up on your skin.

Teens all over the world struggle to control acne break outs. Acne is a problem that very few manage to avoid and the truth is that it is not just teenagers that have problems with acne. Many continue to have issues with acne breakouts well into adulthood and some people have problems with it though the majority of their life. If you’re one of those people you are likely always on the search for remedies for acne that can help you clear up your skin. If you’ve tried everything else, acne herbal remedies may be the next step for you.

Acne herbal remedies involve treatments that can be done easily from home. You don’t have to make multiple trips to a dermatologist, medical spa or skin specialists to undergo sometimes painful therapy or spend hours every week employing the remedy. It can become expensive with little or no results. There are usually simple supplements that can be taken with a meal or direct applications to the area that needs attention applied once or twice a day.

To get a better idea of what kind of acne herbal remedies are available you should do some research online or at your local health store. You’ll find that there are a multitude of herbal options available to you. Proven acne vitamin treatments can help you relieve acne and breakouts and they can help you treat the underlying cause of acne.

Shopping for acne herbal remedies online will give you a wider variety of choices. It will also allow you to comparison shop and find the best prices. Many of the products that are available online can be purchased and delivered for free right to your door. That can be convenient for the person that lives a busy lifestyle and often doesn’t have time to make that extra trip to the health food store.

As with any herbal treatment, you will want to make sure that you learn as much about the product as possible before taking it. If you have any pre-existing conditions or are being treated with prescription medication by a doctor, herbal treatments may be counteract the effects of your prescriptions. Herbal remedies may also be harmful to people who have conditions such as pregnancy, diabetes, or kidney conditions. If that is the case, speaking to your doctor before using an acne herbal remedy is always a good idea.

There are several herbs which are effective acne remedies. They are renowned blood cleansers which have been used for centuries to literally clean your blood and organs of toxins which accumulate and contribute to acne outbreaks, especially useful in the teenage years. These herbs include Burdock root, Echinacea root, Red clover blossoms and Dandelion root. All may be found at your local herb shop. Red clover blossoms make a sweet and delicious tea. The other herbs are quite bitter,so you’ll want to take them in capsule form. Alternating use of each herb is recommended. Take burdock root one week and Echinacea root the next, and so on.

Here’s a tip, go here for more information on acne questions and answers

For those of you who have tried-the-counter medication and is not successful in clearing up your skin and you are hesitant to go to a dermatologist, acne herbal remedies may be a convenient option for you. Why continue to suffer with acne and breakouts when you can treat your breakouts easily from home? Whether you are a teenager or an adult acne herbal remedies can be the solution you are looking for so that you no longer have to look forward to a future of constant acne breakouts.

Dermatologist: A doctor who after completing medical school studies in a residency setting under a professor or professors caring for patients studying skin disease. If the residency is proper and formal then the doctor may sit for an American Board of Dermatology examination, which is a division of the American Board of Medical Specialties

Your diet is also important it should include lots of fresh fruits and vegetables daily.. Go for unprocessed and unrefined foods when possible. Did you know that the single-slice type processed cheeses are mademostly with oil? Shocking when you think of it. Drink juices instead of soda. Whole grains, rice and lean meats and fish are other good choices. Avoid fried foods. If you can’t do it cold turkey, then make small gradual changes. A healthy diet is among the best acne remedies available.

Vitamin supplements are another addition to your acne remedies. A good, balanced multi-vitamin supplement supports your entire system’s general health. Vitamins A, C and E are particularly important to healthy skin.

Pay attention to your diet, get regular exercise and drink plenty of water. Try some of the herbs and supplements. You’ll soon see results!

You may also want to go to your doctor and get a blood test done, especially to see if you hormones are unbalanced…and that your acne breakout is not due to a medical problem that you are not aware of. Also tell the doctor what over-the-counter supplements you are taking. Make the changes and will be surprised with the results.