The news report yesterday produced by the EAT Lancet Commission, a non profit start up, has reached a consensus about what makes a healthy, sustainable diet to feed the 7.7 billion in the world today, and the expected 10 billion by 2050.
The EAT Lancet commission is a group of 37 scientists who have come together to address five main issues around a healthy, sustainable diet:
Cinnamon* (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) is a well recognised spice, and one of the oldest spices. It is one of the seasonings in “Five Spice Powder”, together with anise, star anise, cloves and fennel seeds. In the Western world cinnamon features strongly in the colder months, especially at Christmas when it is added to mulled wine, Christmas cakes, mincemeat in mince pies and many other seasonal delicacies. What benefits and effects on health does Cinnamon have?
Menopause is a natural part of any woman’s life, not a disease as some might think. Women can now expect to live 20-30 years past the menopause. Quality of life is vital to enjoying these years, including abundant energy, good memory, skin and hair, as well as being able to have a good nights sleep, be free from aches and pains and have a good sex life.
Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) is not the only option out there to achieve this desired life quality. Treating menopause naturally through diet, herbs, supplements and exercise can make a huge difference to life quality.
The recent news and discussion on the connection between ill health and loneliness is sad, whilst at the same time the root of many questions. Humans are social animals. Socializing in a face-to-face manner may not only be fun, stimulating, comforting and motivational, but also necessary to sustain who we are whilst essential to support a healthy mind and body.
Socialization is about brain stimulation, laughter, positive interaction and contact with others giving each one of us a purpose, whilst feeling valued. Touching, whether that friendly pat on the back, hug, kiss on the side of the cheek or any other physical contact gives reassurance that we are “alright” and that we are recognized as being a valued part of the community.
As we come to the end of the summer season and school begins with a long awaited excitement of seeing friends again, sharing holiday news and other celebratory moments from the last six weeks, the weather also slowly begins to get colder as the sun changes its location in the sky, and the days become shorter. This is the time when our immune system needs a little boosting to manage the change and avoid falling victim to often circulating colds and flu.
How can you boost your immune naturally to avoid or minimise the impact of the all too familiar seasonal bugs? Immunity is compromised in many ways – poor eating and lifestyle habits, mental/emotional and or physical stress and over exposure to the elements through inappropriate dress for the weather.
When looking at the word “bitter” there are many uses in the English language – to be bitter about something, to have a bitter taste, or to refer to the weather – It was bitter on top of the mountain. Humans are not exempt from this word “bitter” as it can also be used to describe an attitude or emotion of a particular type of person or a person’s feelings on a situation – “he is very bitter about…. “. As a naturopath and herbalist, I am especially interested in the bitter taste of certain vegetables, herbs and fruits. The bitter flavour being generated when bitter taste buds in the mouth are stimulated by a particularly bitter food.
Reported in the BBC news headlines this morning is the fact that antidepressant use, based on a doctor’s prescription is increasing dramatically in school children. The UK has seen the fastest rise in the prescribing of antidepressants and other mind-altering drugs to children, a new study of nine countries shows. In total, there were 950,000 prescriptions issued between April 2015 and March 2018.
German Chamomile (Chamomila recucita) - we all know this flower as Chamomile tea, drunk before going to bed to relax body and mind from infusing the flowers in boiled water. Known to calm the spirit. This herb flowers profusely at this time of year creating a yellow and white carpet. Not only good for calming and relaxing, Chamomile is very effective in addressing gut issues and skin disorders.
Earlier this week, I received a call from a lady who was frantically trying to find a cure for her son’s hay fever (allergic rhinitis). His main symptoms were streaming eyes, sneezing, mucous, thick head and the inability to sleep well. Nothing from the chemist was touching it. This call spurred me to share some ideas for treating hay fever naturally.
The familiar symptoms of hay fever are caused by the release of histamine and other inflammatory chemicals usually worse in hot weather. Hay fever can be an atopic condition, meaning there is a hypersensitivity to developing a certain reaction to that stimulant, often occurring when immunity is lowered.
Most of us can relate to the Nettle as mostly an unpleasant experience when inadvertently coming in contact and receiving a tingling, itching sensation to the skin for hours to come. The more nettles that manage to sting you the longer it lasts and the more intensive the tingling. The humble and prolific nettle is also very nutritious containing vitamins A, B, C, E, and K, as well as being packed with minerals including iron, potassium, magnesium, phosphorous and selenium. The high iron content makes it useful for treatment of anemia when mixed with molasses.